[CaptRon]

There's no substitute for low end torque or wheelbase. Mo' is betta .

We towed our 19ERD with a Toyota Van (3500lb Tow Rating and 235hp) but it was a strain and the hitch is so low it would drag on a slight bump but the wheelbase was long enough to give a pretty good ride and that was with air bags in the rear coils and a WDH. We switched to a higher tow rated Chevy Trailblazer (5500lb rating and 290 hp) but it didn't improve things much. Better hitch position but the problem is wheelbase. The Chevy is shorter than the Toyota and even with a perfectly tuned WDH (confirmed by CAT scale) the wind and getting passed by big rigs is less than easy driving. The trailer also throws it's weight around and you definitely feel it back there. My sense of it is that a full sized SUV like a Toyota Sequoia or Chevy Suburban would be better. A big V8 won't get much worse gas mileage either. The Trailblazer 6 only does about 11mpg towing and the Toyota Van V6 got about 9mpg. A friend tows a 27foot travel trailer behind his Chevy Pick-up with a big V-8 and gets about 13-14mpg. Of course, we're talking keeping the speed down to the 60-65mph range on the Interstate. With the Toyota we towed in 4th gear and the 5spd tranny would still downshift to 3rd on every interstate overpass. With the Chevy we tow in 3rd gear (4spd trans) and every now and then the tranny will downshift on what I would call a mild grade.

The best tow vehicles have loads of low-end torque and a long wheelbase. I once had a VW Rabbit diesel that would pull my 18ft Cobia with Evinrude 85 full of gas and gear up a steep boat ramp. I would not call it a good TV but it sure had the low end torque.

I think my next attempt at a long-haul tow vehicle will be something like a diesel Suburban. Ideally on the flat and level you would like the tranny to be in overdrive, with the torque converter locked and the engine breathing easy and turning at a nice slow rate. Maybe driving the Interstates of the Appalachians gets you a downshift once in a while but it would take the Rockies to get the tranny heated up. A 'Burbin might be overkill for the 19ERD but It should hardly notice it back there.

Love the camper, not so much the TV.