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garyd55

Hi, I have a NZ new 2013 Toyota Rav 4 (new model) and am looking to purchase and tow a pop top type trailer / caravan. The Rav4 is a two litre front wheel drive only.(2WD) The weight of the trailer is listed as 795kg and has brakes. (Trailer is a UK model Pennine Pathfinder 660).
I understand the towing limit of the Rav is 800kg.(braked trailer) By the time we add camping gear including the awning and poles etc we may be adding 80-90kg in weight to the trailer. This will put it beyond the safe towing weight of the RAV.
I have read about stabilizer bars that can be fitted which will transfer one third of the coupling weight to the front wheels of the towing vehicle. Would this be a viable option in order to make the trailer a more safer towing option. Last thing I need is to start wheel spinning in the wet towing the trailer uphill , or being pushed around when coming downhill. Any advice would be much appreciated. eg. If I loaded the car down with camping gear instead of the trailer , would that be a safer option. Thanks

Anon

Hi there,
The Caravan stabilizer kit looks like it would be of good value, I haven't heard of anyone using one or commenting about them yet.
I think your Rav and Pop-top combo will not cause too much trouble. But I do recommend having more gear in your vehicle in order to lessen the tow load. NZTA safe towing practices recommend that the tow load does not exceed 3/4 of the vehicle unladen weight, which would equal a load of 1,125kg. However we would call into question the CVT transmission operation or longevity, this is why the tow rating is quite low. Just something to keep in mind. I would be more concerned about this than being a few kg's over the manufactures tow recommendation.