Towing with Grand Caravan

[Boneyard]

I have a 97 Grand Caravan AWD 3.8L that I want to pull my pop up camper with. the weight of the camper is 2100lbs. Will this van pull it ok? It has a tranny cooler on it. thanks

[danielsatur]

It look's like the max is 2Klbs, you might need to turn the overdrive off going to the hills!

Don't forget about the weight of total passengers + luggage.

[b1lk1]

Not sure if the AWD is the limitation, but my 02 Grand Caravan is rated for 3600lbs so I don't understand why the 97 would be so much less. The real problem is the rear springs are weak and the ass-end will sag badly like mine did before I installed an Airlift air bag system. I regularly tow my popup/utility trailer and have had it up to 3K pounds total extra weight.

Hopefully your camper has electric brakes too because that is the other weak link in towing with these vans. My camper does but my utility trailer does not and I can feel a major difference when pulling either. If no brakes be very mindful not to overwork your factory brakes and give yourself double the space to stop.

As for engine performance, I tend to turn the A/C off when climbing steep hills otherwise the engine seems to have the power to do the job. Of course you can feel the extra weight, but these motors don't mind revving and if you practice keeping your momentum up before hitting hills you'll be very surprised at how well these vans do tow. My gas mileage only tends to drop 3-4MPG when full loaded but I am also very mindful and aware.

EDIT: INSTALL A TRANNY COOLER IF IT DOES NOT HAVE ONE!! THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!! YOU WILL EAT THE TRANSMISSION WITHOUT ONE VERY QUICKLY!!