Considering a travel trailer

[Sligh]

My wife & I recently sold our 36' cruising sailboat and are considering an Oliver.  We have a Jeep Cherokee that I believe has a 5000# towing capacity.  Is anyone towing an Oliver Elite II with 5000# vehicle?  I do not know how the GVWR is calculated and what the issues are if the trailer is heavier than 5000#.

[SeaDawg]

With a Cherokee,  I'd be looking at an Elite I. My friend towed a Casita for a number of years with a Cherokee. She had a much heavier tongue weight than we did with the Elite I.

My initial thoughts.

Sherry

[SeaDawg]

And, welcome aboard. We're sailboaters, too. There are a number of boaters on the forum. I think the molded fiberglass construction gives us a common ground.

We still have our fiberglass boat. 40 + years old.

Sherry

[Mike and Carol]

Welcome!  5000 isn’t going to be enough for the big Oliver.  Ours weighed 5100 when it rolled out of the factory before any water or cargo was added.  As Sherry says, you could pull the Elite I.  Mike

[ScubaRx]

Unfortunately, Sligh, a tow capacity of 5000 pounds is not nearly enough for an Elite II. On average, they will weigh in at closer to 6000 pounds in full camping mode. It would actually be only marginal for the Elite as they will weigh in at 4000 pounds or better. I would want a little more lee way in towing capacity.

There are a couple of other values you also have to take into consideration:

1 - Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) which is the total the truck can safely weigh when it’s loaded. That includes the curb weight – the truck with nothing in it – plus whatever goes in, including passengers and cargo. It also includes tongue weight, which isn’t the weight of the trailer itself, but the downward force it exerts on the trailer hitch ball.

2 - Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR), which is the maximum of the truck and everything in it, plus the trailer and the weight of whatever’s in it. I was unable to find this information anywhere on the net with many Jeep Cherokee owners complaining about it not being posted on the vehicle (by law, it should be on a label stuck to the inside of the driver's door post.)

In your case, I'm concerned that you would quickly run out of carrying capacity inside the Jeep trying to pull something as heavy as either of these trailers.

I know these answers are not what you wanted to hear. But for safety's sake and to paraphrase Chief Martin Brody, 'You're gonna need a bigger truck.'

Edited July 26, 2020 by ScubaRx

[John E Davies]

Sligh, besides not having enough rated capacity, the Cherokee is really way too light duty to tow much of a trailer. A 2500 pound teardrop or similar tiny RV  would be a good choice. Even a Grand Cherokee with a Hemi.V8, though capable of towing a LE2 when properly equipped, is still marginal IMHO. If you are thinking about Ollies, you need to also include plans for acquiring a safe and competent tow vehicle. if you are a Ram fan, go take a 1500 pickup for a test drive. They are very nice and a properly chosen model would tow a LE2 without any hassles.

Welcome to the forum.

John Davies

Spokane WA

Edited July 27, 2020 by John E Davies