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After loading the trailer, weigh
the trailer and then the tongue,
separately, to see if the weights are
proper. If they aren’t, adjustments
might be made by moving some
items around in the trailer.
Trailering may also be limited by
the vehicle’s ability to carry tongue
weight. Tongue weight cannot cause
the vehicle to exceed the GVWR
(Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) or the
RGAWR (Rear Gross Axle Weight
Rating). The effect of additional
weight may reduce the trailering
capacity more than the total of the
additional weight.
Consider the following example:
A vehicle model base weight is
5,500 lbs (2 495 kg); 2,800 lbs
(1 270 kg) at the front axle and
2,700 lbs (1 225 kg) at the rear axle.
It has a GVWR of 7,200 lbs
(3 266 kg), a RGAWR of 4,000 lbs
(1 814 kg) and a GCWR (Gross
Combination Weight Rating) of
14,000 lbs (6 350 kg). The trailer
rating should be:
Expect tongue weight to be at least
10 percent of trailer weight (850 lbs
(386 kg)) and because the weight
is applied well behind the rear axle,
the effect on the rear axle is greater
than just the weight itself, as much
as 1.5 times as much. The weight
at the rear axle could be 850 lbs
(386 kg) X 1.5 = 1,275 lbs (578 kg).
Since the rear axle already weighs
2,700 lbs (1 225 kg), adding
1,275 lbs (578 kg) brings the total to
3,975 lbs (1 803 kg). This is very
close to, but within the limit for
RGAWR as well. The vehicle is set to
trailer up to 8,500 lbs (3 856 kg).
If the vehicle has many options and
there is a front seat passenger and
two rear seat passengers with some
luggage and gear in the vehicle as
well. 300 lbs (136 kg) could be
added to the front axle weight and
400 lbs (181 kg) to the rear axle
weight. The vehicle now weighs:
Weight is still below 7,200 lbs
(3 266 kg) and you might think
700 additional pounds (318 kg)
should be subtracted from the
trailering capacity to stay within
GCWR limits. The maximum trailer
would only be 7,800 lbs (3 538 kg).
4-28 Driving Your Vehicle