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Old 09-08-2018, 04:17 PM   #1
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Is my tow weight calculation accurate?

Hello,

I’m trying to determine what vehicle I can purchase as a flat tow behind my 35J Sunova Motorhome. First things first..what is my max tow weight.

So this is the calculation I come up with.

UVW 16920 includes fluids for power unit.
Coach Fluid weight 660lbs. Water, propane.
Total human weight 700lbs..family of 5.
Factory installed options 478lbs...unclear if the was included in UVW
Cargo...estimate 1500lbs.

GCWR is 26000. Total above =20258. So vehicle weight and installed equipment is capable of 5742. Trailer hitch limit is 5000lbs.

So I should be good for a vehicle that weights up to 5000lbs?
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Old 09-08-2018, 11:27 PM   #2
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Your math seems sound, but there's no substitute for actually weighing your motorhome, fueled, packed and ready to go.
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Old 09-09-2018, 10:35 AM   #3
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Hi,
No your calculations are not quite right.
I have a 35p Adventurer and can only tow 4000 lbs. Yes your GCVW is 26K hiowever your vehicle GVW is 22000 lbs. So 26K minus 22K = 4K.
This should all be on sticker in coach. Mine is on drivers door. Check the sticker not the sheet you showed.
If you use a tow dolly that has to be added into mix too.

Good Luck

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Old 09-09-2018, 11:52 AM   #4
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Originally Posted by Tom-NC View Post
Hi,
No your calculations are not quite right.
I have a 35p Adventurer and can only tow 4000 lbs. Yes your GCVW is 26K hiowever your vehicle GVW is 22000 lbs. So 26K minus 22K = 4K.
This should all be on sticker in coach. Mine is on drivers door. Check the sticker not the sheet you showed.
If you use a tow dolly that has to be added into mix too.

Good Luck

Every definition I see says that GVW is the actual weight of the fully loaded vehicle, whereas GVWR is the manufacturer's maximum for GVW:

https://www.quora.com/How-does-GVW-and-GVWR-differ

His actual towing capacity would be his GCWR minus his actual, weighed GVW. If his GVW is over the 20,500# GVWR he's overloaded. His theoretical maximum towing capacity is GCWR minus his 20,500# GVWR.

Rather than trying to reconcile our conflicting statements, here's a link to a Lichtsinn posting on this topic:

https://www.lichtsinn.com/blog/how-m...motorhome-tow/
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Old 09-11-2018, 03:39 PM   #5
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I think the Descrapancy here is that my GVW is actually 20500, not 22000. That’s the additional capacity that puts me at 5k towing capability.

Thoughts?

And true, probably best to weight fully loaded coach.

Thanks for the reply.
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Old 09-11-2018, 03:45 PM   #6
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Thanks for the link BobC. I think that my calculations follow the lichesinn format to a T. I’m looking for 4500# toad, need a comfortable 5 person vehicle.

Still open to additional looks at this too..

Thanks all that added to the discussion thus far.
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Old 12-30-2018, 12:17 PM   #7
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Tongue weight calculation?

Since the goal would be to achieve a "straight line" pull, how would this impact the tongue weight? If you actually DID get a straight line set up, wouldn't the tongue weight then just be the weight of the tow bar? Does the tow bar weight become part of the Toad weight or the MH weight? Important when determining which Toad to buy!
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Old 12-30-2018, 12:47 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by DariusB View Post
Since the goal would be to achieve a "straight line" pull, how would this impact the tongue weight? If you actually DID get a straight line set up, wouldn't the tongue weight then just be the weight of the tow bar? Does the tow bar weight become part of the Toad weight or the MH weight? Important when determining which Toad to buy!
If I remember my engineering principles, it's shared between the two. Think of two people carrying a stretcher. If level, each is going to carry 50% of the load, assuming it's evenly distributed. If one person is shorter, they're going to carry a bit more. From a practical standpoint, the tow bar is going to weigh 35 lbs or so and won't affect the capacity enough to be an issue in determining your allowable toad weight, nor would the additional weight of a drop receiver.

Given the weights involved, 50 lbs one way or the other isn't going to make any difference.
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