I am interested in getting a travel trailer. The one that I looked at weighs 3569Lbs. I am wondering if my 2007 Toyota Sienna is capalbe of pulling this weight if I add a towing package?
Your owners manual will reflect the towing capacity of your vehicle.
Tester
Even IF the van can handle the wieght of the trailer and the tounge weight ( 09 specs say 3500 lb towing prep as an option ), be sure to get the load equalizing hitch set up. You’ll be glad you did when driving the rig, despite the extra hook up time. If the van squats down a lot with the tounge weight it will be required, or add helper springs. You always want your trailer and vehicle to tow level.
My 79 chevy pickup can easily handle the tounge weight and total weight of my 27’ trailer. The automatic transmission even shifts SMOOTHER when loaded. But the rig as a whole would tend to bounce a lot over highway seams and roadway transitions. With the load equalizing hitch set-up the bounce was eliminated and driving was so much smoother, easier to handle, and therefore SAFER.
Not a good idea. You will be over the limit for your vehicle before you load in the kids, put the bikes on the roof and load up the camper with food, and all your gear.
You can’t add a “tow package” to a vehicle you already own. You can put on a hitch and the wires, maybe even oil and transmission coolers. But you won’t be adding a larger radiator, bigger brakes, heavy duty suspension, larger alternator, and tires with greater load capacity.
You really should look at trading in the Sienna on a 4 Runner, or Sequoia. They have the capacity you need built into the vehicle.
If you tow with the Sienna you are looking at a strong likelihood of blowing out the transmission permaturely and decreasing the value of the Sienna. Any buyer looking at a used Sienna would be put off seeing the hitch figuring the vehicle had a hard life.
All of this says nothing about the safety issues of an overloaded vehicle traveling at highway speeds on a modern interstate.
I don’t think a Sienna can tow something that big. Better check the owner’s manual.
This kind of question pops up here on a fairly reqular basis. It’s not unusual for people to consider just the advertised weight of the trailer and forget about all the stuff they will be hauling in the trailer as well. For example, if you have a fresh water tank and plan to fill it at home, remember that water weighs about 8lbs per gallon. Filled propane tanks, all your gear, etc really adds up and you may be closer to 4000 or even higher depending on how much stuff you pack in there.
In a word…NO.
No front wheel drive vehicle I know of rated Class III. I also wouldn’t want to be on the road with a FWD vehicle that IS towing a trailer that weighs that much. It’s also illegal.
Sadly, none of the vehicles made today are simple enough to do ANYTHING with. It’s almost too risky to even drive it with no load. Happily, they won’t fall apart just because some coward sits at his computer and worries about things like that. IT’S GOT MY TRAILER HITCH…It’s ALIVE, it’s ALIVE, oh, it’s the trailer I hooked up.
The weight is just one factor; the size and the wind can be another. Oops, I remember now that the Sienna is a minivan. Don’t tow anything heavier than 600 pounds total with that thing. I don’t care what the specifications are.