Towing with a RAV 4

A 16' boat, you'll be just fine. if you have the v6 rav, you should have the tow prep package on there, so there should be no issue. I have a few customers who tow with their rav, and no problems!

[REW]

The rav4 will do just fine.
It would be nice, if you had any concerns to have brakes on your trailer to help with the stopping.

REW

[ChuckD]

Maybe the Rav4 can handle a 16' lightweight boat, however for a slight comparison, as a CR-V owner ('00 and '08 models) I won't tow anything with the new CR-V as it seems it's geared for it's carrying it's own weight, but my older '00 model w/ 5 speed manual the max I can tow is my 14' Jon boat loaded with gear (1500lbs?). Stopping, pulling the boat out of sketchy accesses are the main issues. It has a tendency to push the vehicle around at high speeds.

I have pulled my 18' glass boat with the CR-V....in the yard. No way it will get up to hwy speed, nor stop it. lol That's where the F250 comes in.

[Tim_Kelly]

A friend of mine is one his second Ford Escape. He tows a 17ft 90hp Triton tin bass boat with it. It has been absolutely fine, though he does say that if he had the choice he would probably go with a braked trailer next time. He also commented that the new Escape with the six or seven speed gearbox was a huge improvement over the older four(?) speed box for towing.

Not directly relevant, but a similar size vehicle and boat, to prove it's perfectly possible.

[bob888]

Thanks for the replies!

My Odyssey is equipped with a power steering and transmission cooler which were required by Honda if pulling over 2000# to avoid warranty issues. I would follow Toyota's recommendations which I would think would require a transmission cooler at a minimum.

Feel more positive from the replies about using the RAV 4 V6. My Jeep Grand Cherokee which I had total faith in has dimensions slightly less than the RAV 4. The Jeep is; L 177", W 71", WB 106". The Jeep's weight is more weighing in at 3931#. I do realize the difference in the RAV 4 being a uni-body and the Jeep having a frame.

[TJEli]

Originally Posted by bob888

Thanks for the replies!

My Odyssey is equipped with a power steering and transmission cooler which were required by Honda if pulling over 2000# to avoid warranty issues. I would follow Toyota's recommendations which I would think would require a transmission cooler at a minimum.

Feel more positive from the replies about using the RAV 4 V6. My Jeep Grand Cherokee which I had total faith in has dimensions slightly less than the RAV 4. The Jeep is; L 177", W 71", WB 106". The Jeep's weight is more weighing in at 3931#. I do realize the difference in the RAV 4 being a uni-body and the Jeep having a frame.

Your Jeep Grand Cherokee did not have a frame. Nor does the Liberty. The ONLY jeep vehicle to have body on frame construction since the death of the FSJ is the Wrangler.

-Eli

[nicko]

You are correct in that the jeeps are not full frame vehicles, but the construction and stiffness in those vehicles far exceeds any minivan or rav4. Front wheel drive vehicles are notoriously poor at towing due to the weight on the front transaxle. Towing with the rav 4 again is possible, but highly dependant on the size and weight of the boat. It's all simple physics. Try it and see. Just be prepared for long stopping distances and slow acceleration.

The old jeep Cherokee was a workhorse. It's straight six and frame are built for off road. I had one with over 200k miles on it....the body died. Motor and trans were still going.

[Jack G]

I bought a 2009 Toyota Tacoma and its curb weight was 3,580 lbs and was rated to tow 3,500 lbs. However, Toyota advised that if you were going to tow something over 1,000 lbs the trailer should be equipped with brakes.

Jack

[ohiojmj]

Why do you need a frame chasis to pull a small boat under 1 ton? More than a dozen plus mnanufacturers of plaza cruising type SUV's can't all be wrong...

[Chode2235]

My buddy tows a double snowmobile trailer with a couple of heavy touring 4 stroke snowmobiles with his 2010 RAV 4.

It's not the most robust towing vehicle, but is capable.

A good rule of thumb is 80% of rated towing capacity, any more than that performance and safety starts to deteriorate fairly quickly.

I was towing my boat (4000 lbs) with a vehicle rated to tow 5000 lbs, and it was do-able, but I am much happier now that I have my diesel jeep (rated for 7500).