Tow Vehicles for a Pop Up Camper | Real Owners MPG Results

I recently surveyed A-Liner Pop Up Camper owners about the tow vehicle they use as well as they gas mileage they get when towing. I present the results and discuss some fuel efficient tow vehicles for your pop up camper or lightweight travel trailer.
Google Sheet Survey Data - docs.google.co...
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[@GoldenK9Campers]

I have a new FaceBook Group called (A-Liners Out West). It's for A-Liner Camper owners or wannabe owners, check it out at facebook.com/groups/aliners.out.west.

[@Heinz76Harald]

this guy is so exited, he would smile all around his head if not stoped by his ears XD

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Thanks?

[@Heinz76Harald]

@@GoldenK9Campers it was meant positive ;)

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@Heinz76Harald Thanks.. I do smile a lot. I try really hard to be as excited as I can on camera especially.

[@FSULAUBACH]

The 2024 nissan pathfinder is an absolte beast towing my 20ft pop up camper. I get about 20 mpg. It can pull 6000 lbs

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Very good vehicle.

[@noboringcars1227]

Interesting data. Needs some statistical analyses that might show things are closer than they look. I just got a Hyunda Pallisade that tows 5,000lb, comes with a hitch and 7-pin plus the wiring harness for a trailer brake. It has a tow mode engine setting. Looking at things from a lightweight Viking 1706 to some fiberglass trailers that top out at about 3000lb. The Pallisade has a naturally aspirated V6 that puts out 291hp. I feel it’s a good engine but those turbo engines probably have an advantage in places like the Rockies where they will compress the thinner air and keep their hp up. I expect the Pallisade to do fine even if I have to slow down. I think with SUV’s you need to consider the weight of the tow vehicle compared to the trailer camper, too with more weight being better. One of the lovely things about pop-ups is their low profile for less wind resistance. I would have never guessed such high mpg ratings. Nice review.

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Hey there. Thanks for the great comment. I almost bought a Tellurdie... they are such great looking cars. I just didn't like the drivetrane so much. In sport mode it really woke up though. I have another channel focusing on Jeep Wranglers, and i'm about ready to do a video on the top campers under 3,000 lbs. You might want to take a look at that when it comes out.. as i will have a lot of campers that are sort of under the radar and might be perferct for the Palisade. Here's a link to the towing playlist - kzbin.info/aero/PLIV9TmrW7NNTtaHhr4DvYEe87X098EmuK

[@hybridfan100]

My view is that the non-towing mileage is more important for a typical owner. I can relate to wanting to get good mileage to save money, we need to start also wanting that because it reduces emissions and is less harmful to the environment. I'm constantly looking for ways to reduce my consumption and resulting carbon footprint. I think the A-Liner is a step in that direction compared to other mega RVs. Those that love the outdoors need to promote good stewardship. If we don't, who will?

[@GoldenK9Campers]

You're probably right. We're retired and most of our trips are towing. We do some driving around town, but not too much. Thanks for sharing..

[@DannaShaffer]

Now, not all 6 cylinders are created equally. I have a V6 turbo, but it still doesn’t pull as much weight as a 4Runner with their bigger V6. (3500lbs to 5000lbs -big difference!) I’m currently looking at different SUVs to pull my pop up (tent trailer), because my Ford Edge is having a huge engine issue. I love Ford Rangers, but they’re too expensive for my budget and I really need an SUV for every day family life. Thanks for sharing this!

[@GoldenK9Campers]

It's really hard to go wrong with either a Jeep Grand Cherokee or Dodge Durango. Those are pretty much built to tow, and get decent gas mileage. This video. may help (kzbin.info/www/bejne/qIalZ3Wjd96Fe8k). My next KZbin strategy is to approach dealers about test driving tow vehicles.. and doing gas mileage comparisons. We'll see how that goes !!

[@jesserevilla992]

Yes but what are comparing it as in MPG’s

[@Stanf954]

I towed my 2003 Viking 2107 PUP (1800lbs MT) with a 2018 Jeep Cherokee complete with a tow pkg and 3.2L V6. I aver 18 MPG. I now tow a Gulf Stream 23 ft TT loaded @ 4000lbs. I avg 14MPG .

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Pretty impressive for a little cherokee for sure.

[@shobull8695]

Ibdo appreciate your commitment to going extremely in depth with this study. I do wonder how much the wright differences influence the numbers on your second chart making some look better than others. Word from the wise on turbos. They are great for milage until the turbo starts working then you'd be better off getting the next size up engine. Great work dude!

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Thanks for the comment!! Yeah I just towed 800 miles with a Jeep Wrangler Turbo. It did amazingly well. The key as you said is to keep the rev's low so that the turbo isn't working all the time. But it is nice to have the low end torque of the turbo ready to go when you want to speed up or when going up a mountiain. Also.. the elevation doesn't affect the turbo powered tow vehicles as much as naturally aspirated truck.

[@shobull8695]

@@GoldenK9Campers Thanks for that nugget on the how they operate more efficiently at higher elevations.

[@peterkunka2694]

Here's where I'm at. My Jeep tows great, but I'm really sick of the reliability problems with it. It's at the dealership now (for a week already) getting all new steering parts replaced. I don't mind the V6 MPG because I'm a weekend camper and realistically only travel within Arizona for weekend trips. If I traded, I'd be curious about the Ranger. Better MPG than the Jeep, probably a better commuter driving everyday than the Jeep, and still a solid 4-wheel drive system with a low-range transfer case for mild off-roading. Subaru: Too much car-like for me, but I do appreciate their fantastic all-wheel drive system. I'm in a conundrum... if Jeep had Toyota quality, I'd be fat and happy! But, since they don't (nowhere near Toyota quality), I'm starting to look around. Ugh... We'll see what happens. Cheers! Pete - KI7LIL

[@GoldenK9Campers]

I'm looking at a Bronco now !! A guy that I just subscribed to has the 2.7 v6 turbo, and he can get 22 mpg on the freeway with almost no drop in MPG when towing a smaller trailer. The steering is nice and tight, not as many relability issues. Etc.. If I "just" wanted a tow vehicle i'd be looking hard at the ranger.. but I want a fun car where I can take the top off.

[@susancrowley7711]

My 2018 Ford F150 Platinum was totaled and I need to replace it in the next two weeks. This was a timely video for me. What year is your Jeep? I was seriously looking at the 2022 or 2023 Grand Cherokee PHEV. Thanks!

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@susancrowley7711 I have another video coming out next week where I rank my top 10 towing vehicles... Disclaimer.. i'm just starting my towing education.. But my picks are pretty safe one's. If you're doing a "lot" of towing, you're likely going to get better gas mileage going with the V6 Jeep Grand Cherokee rather than the Plug In Hybrid version. I do love the look of those new Grand Cherokee's.. Very nice @! Hard to go wrong..

[@peterkunka2694]

@@susancrowley7711 Sorry to hear of your totaled F150. My Jeep is a 2020 model year. The Wrangler is rated to tow around 4K lbs, the Grand Cherokee is higher at around 6K lbs. I don't know the tow rating for the PHEV model, though. I don't have a very high opinion of Jeep right now because of the reliability issues with mine. Have fun shopping and I hope what you find works perfectly for you.

[@peterkunka2694]

@@GoldenK9Campers I'm starting to see a lot of Bronco's lately. Pricey with the big dealer markups, but good looking vehicles. I'm glad to see Ford did a much better job bringing the Bronco back than Chevrolet did with the Blazer. Might be a winner for you over the Jeep.

[@randomspirit]

Before you buy that Ranger, take a look at the Nissan Frontier. All new redesigned body and interior in 2022, with the engine and transmission upgraded in 2020. I spent almost two years researching midsized trucks and SUVs, with the knowledge I would likely be towing a small camper like an Aliner, and after comparing specs and test driving the Tacoma, Ranger, Escape, Colorado, and Frontier...I went with the Frontier. It equals or exceeds the others in horsepower and torque, has a 9 speed transmission, and the price is waaaayyy better than the others. I only paid 36k for my 2021 Frontier SV 4WD with the tow package, bed rail system, and bed extender. It's been almost two years and I haven't had a single issue with it. And, although it's rated 22/19 mpg, by simply adding a bed cover and staying at 60 mph on the interstate I was able to get 30.7 mpg (not towing).

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Thanks so much for sharing your experience. It's so helpful to have someone who did all that research and test driving comment!! The fuel mileage you got on the highway was pretty amazing. I have a Nissan GT-R.. and although it's a crazy fast sports car, the reliability has been awesome. Hopefully you get your travel trailer soon, and i'll see you out there!!

[@randomspirit]

@@GoldenK9Campers On the road by Nov. '23 is my goal. Still waiting on a few things to fall into place...while I research RVs, of course. LOL

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@randomspirit I bought a RAV4 prime.. and I researched SUV's for like 6 months.. I love the car.. but my focus at that time was not necessarily towing. It's still does a decent enough job. We love our A-Liner.. but no camper / travel trailer is going to be perfect. They all have their issues. We tent camped for a year.. we're really enjoying the heater !!

[@randomspirit]

@@GoldenK9Campers I've been looking hard at Aliners. I'm a little concerned about the lack of a grey tank. How are you handling that?

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@randomspirit We just bought our trailer. We haven't even used the water tank yet. There are a lot of folks that have a sealed plastic tank with handles that they put in their tow vehicle to empty. The A-Liner community is great.. if you aren't already a member of one of their facebook groups, you should join and they love answering questions!! "Camping with Aliners", "Aliner Life", and "AFrame Technical Resource Center" are the one's i'm subscribed to.

[@richardmorrow5060]

I have a subaru ascent touring with a 4 cylinder turbo. I tow the Evolution 15 and average 17mpg. Not towing I average 24mpg. All my towing so far has been in the Adirondack mtns. and the Catskills.

[@GoldenK9Campers]

That's not terrible. So interesting.. I have a Jeep Wrangler 4 cylinder turbo.. and on a recent trip to california I averaged 20MPG towing my ALiner Classic. Pretty good.

[@dhrivnak59]

I think you are missing two key points. Am I correct that the Prime gets the best MPG both towing and non towing. Second one can really use the plug-in to your advantage. Our last 6600 mile trip through Eastern Canada we averaged 36 mpg as we were able to charge up at most camp grounds and many of the Canadian parks had EV chargers at many trail heads.

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Very true. We love our RAV4 Prime. I don't know if it's necessarily the best tow vehicle though. I really wish Toyota had some options for improving the suspension or come out with and adventure or TRD trim to get the towing capacity up to 3,500 lbs. I'm just cutting it a little too close with my current setup. I feel 3,500 lbs towing capacity is the minimum for towing an a-liner unless it's one of the scout models.

[@TobyCostaRica]

@@GoldenK9CampersEibach makes lift springs with mild increase in spring rate. 10% stiffer. The added height is nice for fire road exploring

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@TobyCostaRica I'll look into those. They make them for the Prime? Ooh.. I just found the release on their website.. I know they we're working on them. You think they'd help with towing?

[@mn55019]

2009 Kia Borrego V8 7000 pounds max 20 mpg without 17 with

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Never heard of that truck?

[@mn55019]

@@GoldenK9Campersmidsize suv only made one year.

[@TobyCostaRica]

3:39 the problem with that 4 cylinder turbo, or most Subarus in general is that they are connected to a terrible unreliable CVT. They have a very high failure rate. I’m a former Subaru owner. Never again.

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Combination of worrying about the Turbo and also the CVT is the primary reasons I didn't get the ascent. I really liked it. Very happy with my prime though... although it also has a CVT.. but it's not a belt driven one. Very durable!!

[@laurennaylor7551]

Also a former Subaru owner. The engine/timing failed after only 73,000 miles. Never again.

[@kathyknuteson2838]

This is very helpful! I'm in the market to find a new (to me) car to pull my small camper(1500 lbs). I can't believe the one I've been zeroing in on (Suburu Outback) made the top of your list! The trim i was going to get is whatever ended in "XT" lol because the tow capacity went from 2700 pounds to 3500 lbs. My question is, do you think an Outback with a 2700 lb tow capacity would be ok to pull my camper, or to be on the safe side i should get an XT trim? Thanks!

[@GoldenK9Campers]

It's. not really the top of my list.. it's what a lot of Aliner owners use to pull their camper. The survey I did was Aliner owners. Is that 1,5000 lbs your dry weight.. or you total weight? The minimum I would recommend is a vehicle that can tow 3,500 lbs. The outbacks with the Turbo (XT), can pull 3,500 lbs.. and are pretty popular. You'll need to work with the dealer to get the tow package to include a 7 pin connector (assuming your camper has trailer brakes). Good luck. I did another video on "my" top 10 tow vehicle for lightweight campers.. you might also want to check that out.

[@kathyknuteson2838]

@@GoldenK9Campers Thank you so much! I think dry weight might be like 1400 lbs? It's old -- a '79 13' playmor camper. Had to go online to see if i could find the weight so I'm not sure if that's totally accurate. Was thinking possibly of getting an Aliner in the future. Definitely not a canvas pop-up. I had one once and a bat got in bc it got through in a little gap between the bottom and the canvas. Never again! Lol. New subscriber btw

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@kathyknuteson2838 - cool.. thanks for the sub !! I got a lot of Aliner content. If you're interested in Aliners.. there are also a lot of facebook groups. I have a facebook group called "Aliners Out West", that I think is the friendliest group.

[@elmostong1865]

Great job

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Thanks so much for watching !!

[@jesserevilla992]

Appreciate the vid/ info. BUT YOU NEVER mention MPH; Great mpg’s but at What MPH? I have towed a rental Aliner LXE this thing even had a bathroom in it with our 2.7l turbo F150 getting 21-22 mph at 70-72 mph. In normal conditions. I would not worry about a modern day boosted motor. What’s nice about the Turbo is the torque on climbs without allowing gears to drop and gravel for power and drop your fuel. Of you take care of the oil change it will last you over 300 or more. miles. You are honest that you’re not familiar with trucks and turbo. Turbos have come along way. Would never want a naturally aspirated motor towing. I have towed over 100 trailers with any truck they gave me for the day . Turbo the most pleasant when towing. Now we have towed a Aliner Classic getting 23-24 mpg @ 71-72 mph; with my 2023 F150 2.7L .. Torque is your best friend when towing.

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Very good point. MPH has a big affect on towing mpg. Thanks for sharing your experiences with turbo engines while towing.

[@austinado16]

Remember that ethanol based fuel is costing you 10-15% fuel economy because it produces less power. I think your tow set up is fine, for the area you live, and the type of towing and camping you do, and will do in the future. Plus, your TV (tow vehicle) makes an outstanding vehicle for you and your wife. IMO, that's worth the 2mpg you "might" get by buying into the marketing that something else is going to save you money. There's no math that will actually show that. Just keep the TV tires aired to the max level that's printed on the sidewalls when you're towing, so that you're not wasting power "plowing" marshmallows down the road. It'll also make for a better tow experience because you'll have less "tail-wagging-the-dog" feeling of the camper back there, since you don't use a sway controller or a leveler. If makes you folks feel better, my TV, a '90 GMC Suburban 4x4 with 350ci/5.7L V-8, gets 11-15mpg towing my 2200lb pop-up, and 17-18mpg when not towing. It has the aerodynamics of 2 vertical sheets of plywood😎

[@GoldenK9Campers]

Hi Todd!! Hope you're healing up well!! Thanks for responding. We absolutely "love" our Prime, but we really want to bring more stuff with us... I.e., Bikes, more gear, and more stuff for the A-Liner. As it stand now.. we're pretty close to our weight limit, so eventually we'll need to get something else, especially for longer trips that we'll be doing when Nicole retires. I'm looking at Ford Bronco's right now. Not great MPG, but a superfun vehicle and a lot more stable than trying to tow with a Wrangler. That'll likely be our next vehicle, and it tows 3,500 lbs so we should be able to load the A-liner up as it has a 3,000 gvwr.

[@austinado16]

@@GoldenK9Campers Oh, well then yes, you have definitely entered the realm of buying a more capable TV. Something to consider is wheelbase. A short wheelbase TV is not friendly for towing. Ask Jeep owners. You don't ever want to risk the tail wagging the dog, and short wheelbase, especially raised up off the ground to look "badass" is a recipe for that. Maybe because you're in LV, you have car rental places that would rent you a TV when you need one? Or, maybe you could rent different ones and see what you like, prior to actually purchasing a new or used one? Might make for an interesting video, and maybe if you did it as an advertisement for them, they'd let you take out a handful of TV's in one day, for say, 30min at a time? Part of what I love about the Suburban is I don't (within reason, of course) ever think about what I'm towing, or where I'm towing it. When we were putting on the XC running camp for my daughter's high school teams, we'd put 9 people in the 'burb, with all their gear (barn doors for the win), and drop the fully loaded pop-up on the hitch (water tank full, full propane, toilet tank full, refrigerator full, solar panels, etc. and drive through 90+F temps across the CA valley, and then climb the winding grade into the park that topped out at 7,000'. Day 13 for me, and I'm doing really good. I would start driving again if I didn't think Kate would hunt me down!

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@austinado16 Yeah. i'm starting to rack up subscribers.. Really focusing on this channel now.. and have a pretty good Niche figured out.. combination of Camping, Dogs, A-Liner and RAV4 Prime stuff. A lot of it goes together.. especially the caming with dogs and an RV !! Maybe once I hit a little more subscribers a rental car/truck place might be willing to work with me.. Have to see if anyone rents tow vehicles. Thanks for the idea. Tell Kate I said HI!! Going to be scheduling another Rim to River Hike in April.. can't wait!!

[@austinado16]

@@GoldenK9Campers When the Canyon calls, you must answer!! Nice! I'll be living vicariously through you guys! I'm already plotting in my head for how soon can I get back on those trails. I think a Memorial Day weekend in '24 is not out of the question.

[@GoldenK9Campers]

@@austinado16 Rest up young man!!