Towing with CRV 2002

I am considering buying a A-Line pop-up camper that weighs approx 900 lbs
with a coresponding hitch weight of 115 or so. I love Wyoming, Montana
mountains etc. (I live in Minn so tows would be 3000-4000 mile round
trippers with mountain passes in the 10000 to 11000 range with max grades of
10%. Any experience with this. I have the 165 horse 2002 Honda

 

My brother towed w/97 CRV his 13' Boston Whaler with no problem.

 

It is generally suggest that the Corolla not be used to tow. Has
nothing to do with the ability of the vehicle, rather the fact it
is a light FWD vehicle. As long as you are a competent driver
and understand the idiosyncrasies of FWD cars and how easily they
can loose steering control, your should be fine doing what you
want to do.


mike hunt

 

Wrong. Toyota does in fact give this vehicle a towing capacity rating.

I believe its 1200 lbs, but could be wrong on the latter only.

Duh...that's why it has a light rating...duh.

More "permission" from our village idiot, Mike.

Tell us Mike...how turned on do you get when you see yourself in print?

 

Where the f%#k did you see "Corolla"?

 

What I thought... but then I figured he forgot which group he was trolling
that day.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

 

Towing a 900 lb boat is much different then towing a 900 lb boxy trailer.
The drag coefficient of the boat is much less then the box thus reducing
the strain on your powerplant. Keep this in mind if the trailer is wider
then the CRV, then you will have a larger silohette cutting through the
wind. Also for trips, you will be probably adding family, luggage and
supplies to the total weight of the vehicle. If you are going to pull
a 900lb trailer then add another 200-300lbs of weight for gear and people
in your CRV, then remember to conside the total package.

I like the CR-V and I think that it is a great commuter style SUV however
you may be asking more of your CR-V then it can probably safely handle.
A couple of jet skis on reasonably flat terrain and I would think the
CR-V would do fine. However a boxy trailer and mountain passes would
have me worried about how crosswinds will affect the stability of the
trailer and if the CR-V is heavy enough to compensate for it.

Finally if your are going to tax your CR-V with the chore of pulling
a 900lb trailer for 3000-4000 excursions through the mountains, then
you WILL need to invest in a good transmission cooler. Without it,
your current radiator will not be able to cool both the transmission
and the engine suffciently and there is a very good chance that you
could damage your transmission. And no it will not be covered under
your warranty due to you using your CR-V to tow.