Please advise - determining max tow capacity

[johnxhc]

Hi,All,
I have a 2017 Thor WindSport J34, The GVWR is 22,000 lbs, I could not find the GCWR for 2017, but for 2020, it is 26,000.00 (link as following)

https://www.thormotorcoach.com/hurricane/specs/

I assume it is the same as 2017 (please let me know if anyone believe it is different for 2017 model).

The dry weight of the motorhome is 16,800. so my calculation is as following:
Max towing capacity = 26,000 - 16,800 (Motorhome Weight) - 2,000 (cargo, passengers) - 420 (water) - 88 (propane tank) - 480 (gas) = 6,212 (lbs)

I would like to flat tow my 2019 Escalade , curb weight 5,856

The motorhome hitch is rated 8,000lbs.

the difference between Max towing capacity 6,212 - Escalade weight 5,825 = 400 lbs.

I understand this is not ideal, I definitely would prefer more than 400 lbs difference between my Max towing capacity and towed vehicle. However it is what it is, I figure I probably will not able to drive 70 miles/hour or even 55 mile uphills.

Other than that, does any experts here see any major problems here? (I would like to drive around north American with this)

Please advise.

Thanks in advance.
John

[ArchHoagland]

What braking system are you going to use?

[FunTwoDrv]

Just as a reference, our toad weight almost 500lbs more than the mfg curb weight without a driver and about 8gals of fuel...

Gary

[rk911]

johnxhc wrote:
Thanks for all of your help! Your guys are wonderful!

Here is what I found out from Thor Customer service about my couch by giving them my vin number.

GCWR: 26,000
GRWR 22,000
Vehicle Dry Weight: 16,646.

My flat towed vehicle is 4x4

I will probably only load 1/4 of my fresh tank( I am camping at fully hookup camp site 100%) , that will reduce the load by 300 lbs.

The Weight of the whole family(assuming everyone in the family goes): 860 lbs

Since I am not a full time I do not believe I would carry more than 500 lbs of luggage with me (if I do, I will make reduce it to 500)

Also the curb weight of my towed vehicle DOES include the weight of the driver (165 lbs) since no one will be at towed vehicle when it is flat towed , the weight of my towed vehicle is only going to be 5,856 - 165 = 5,691

So What I can tow is as following:
26,000 - 16,646 (Motorhome Weight) - 860 lbs (passenger) - 500 (cargo) - 100 lbs (1/4 of fresh tank water) - 88 (propane ) - 480 (gas) = 7,334

7,334- 5,691(towed vehicle weight ) =1,643

So looks like I still have 1,643 lbs buffer to play with. Even I fill the whole fresh water tank, I still have 1,343 lbs buffer.

That makes me very comfortable.
Of course I will definitely weight the motor home when it is loaded.

Thanks again to all of you

looks good, john but i strongly urge you to verify at a certified scale.

[rk911]

Alan_Hepburn wrote:

rk911 wrote:
if it were me i would want to KNOW the dry weight rather than trust a brochure or closet sticker.

I know it's just semantics, but to me the DRY weight is a fictional number. An RV will NEVER match its dry weight once you drive it out of the dealer. You're going to add fuel, water, propane, batteries, tools, kitchen stuff, clothing, etc. and most of that stuff will stay in the RV forever. What you need to determine is the ACTUAL weight, which you can ONLY get by visiting a scale. Ideally, you want the weight carried by each wheel; if you can''t get that then the weight carried by each axle will work; if you can't get that then as a last resort you can use the total weight on all axles.

which is why i don’t accept the mfg stated dry weight, empty weight...whatever label you want to place on it. when we took delivery of our current MH i weighed it. nothing in it but me, the extras from the dealer and factory and a few gallons of gas. after deducting my weight and x-lbs for the gas i had my actual empty weight. i then filled the fuel, fresh water and LP tanks and re- weighed. that gave me my wet weight. payload = GVWR minus wet weight. when we loaded up for a trip i re-weighed to be sure neither axle was overweight. on my F53 chassis the GVWR = the sum of the GAWRs.

[johnxhc]

Thanks for all of your help! Your guys are wonderful!

Here is what I found out from Thor Customer service about my couch by giving them my vin number.

GCWR: 26,000
GRWR 22,000
Vehicle Dry Weight: 16,646.

My flat towed vehicle is 4x4

I will probably only load 1/4 of my fresh tank( I am camping at fully hookup camp site 100%) , that will reduce the load by 300 lbs.

The Weight of the whole family(assuming everyone in the family goes): 860 lbs

Since I am not a full time I do not believe I would carry more than 500 lbs of luggage with me (if I do, I will make reduce it to 500)

Also the curb weight of my towed vehicle DOES include the weight of the driver (165 lbs) since no one will be at towed vehicle when it is flat towed , the weight of my towed vehicle is only going to be 5,856 - 165 = 5,691

So What I can tow is as following:
26,000 - 16,646 (Motorhome Weight) - 860 lbs (passenger) - 500 (cargo) - 100 lbs (1/4 of fresh tank water) - 88 (propane ) - 480 (gas) = 7,334

7,334- 5,691(towed vehicle weight ) =1,643

So looks like I still have 1,643 lbs buffer to play with. Even I fill the whole fresh water tank, I still have 1,343 lbs buffer.

That makes me very comfortable.
Of course I will definitely weight the motor home when it is loaded.

Thanks again to all of you

[Alan_Hepburn]

rk911 wrote:
if it were me i would want to KNOW the dry weight rather than trust a brochure or closet sticker.

I know it's just semantics, but to me the DRY weight is a fictional number. An RV will NEVER match its dry weight once you drive it out of the dealer. You're going to add fuel, water, propane, batteries, tools, kitchen stuff, clothing, etc. and most of that stuff will stay in the RV forever. What you need to determine is the ACTUAL weight, which you can ONLY get by visiting a scale. Ideally, you want the weight carried by each wheel; if you can''t get that then the weight carried by each axle will work; if you can't get that then as a last resort you can use the total weight on all axles.

[Executive45]

It sounds like you're on the right track doing your research. However, when determining whether it's safe to tow, remember to also research stopping distances. While you may be able to pull that heavy vehicle up a hill, slowing it while coming down the hill is another thing..IMO, a braking system is a must..best of luck...Dennis

[DrewE]

rk911 wrote:

john, 400-lbs is a bit close for my personal comfort but as long as you’re under the GVWR (actually the GAWR for each axle), your hitch and tow bar are rated for the load and you’re under the GCWR you should be good to go.

One needs to check that it's under both the GVWR and the GAWR for each axle, in general, not one or the other. There are plenty of vehicles where being under the GAWR for each axle doesn't necessarily mean you're under the GVWR, i.e. the GVWR is lower than the sum of the axle weight ratings. That's a nice situation to have as it gives rather more flexibility in loading the vehicle.

I don't know offhand if the Ford motorhome chassis is like that or not. The E series chassis, as I recall, has the two coincide so that maximum loading requires careful weight distribution.

[rk911]

johnxhc wrote:
Rich,
Thanks for the quick response, Yes, this is exactly what I am going to do, I will take the motorhome and weight it this week.

Great idea! I will call Thor first tomorrow morning to make sure the GCWR is 26,000.

Assuming my estimate is right and there are only 400 lbs difference between the Max Tow capacity & flat towed vehicle, did you see any major problems driving this around North America?

Thanks again.
John

john, 400-lbs is a bit close for my personal comfort but as long as you’re under the GVWR (actually the GAWR for each axle), your hitch and tow bar are rated for the load and you’re under the GCWR you should be good to go.

[way2roll]

Tow rating is the LESSER of the :

Weight of the RV loaded for travel (water, food, lp, gas, people) minus the GCWR

OR

The hitch rating.

When weighing your rig, 4 corner weights are optimal , but axle weights will suffice for calculating towing.

Weighing is also helpful in setting the optimal psi.

[Ductape]

We had a 2014 F53 coach and at that time Fords ratings were 22k / 26k. Towed a 6k F150 crew cab all over North America. No issues whatsoever. I always weigh my rigs and that combo was right at 26k with a full load of water and fuel.

Do some searching and you’ll find Ford chassis manuals online for the previous years of F53.

[Dale_Traveling]

Ford, not Thor, establishes the various weight limits of the chassis (GAWR, GVWR and GCWR) so you need to research using Ford as the base. Historically the limit has been 26,000 lbs for the F53 except for the largest of the chassis models which has a combined limit of 30,000 lbs.

Also, even though the coach is a Thor 2017 model the chassis model year can be an earlier version. You need to check the Ford incomplete vehicle stickers or decode the VIN to determine the exact chassis you have.

[valhalla360]

If you already have the rig, swing by a CAT station and get the real weight (ideally packed and ready for a trip).

[johnxhc]

Don,
Good point! I will check with Thor on that.

Thank you.
John