Towing a Nissan Maxima with my Winnie: Opinions

[searcherrr]

As a lot of ya'll know I have a new engine and new transmission (young, not new anymore, but around 50k engine and less on tranny). My mom's Maxima was flooded out by Hurricane Isaac and I need to tow it 330 miles one way. Do ya'll think (class III trailer hitch - rated to 5000lbs) that I could tow that car with a uhaul car dolly and the van would be ok hauling that load??

I will also have 4 "LARGE" people in the van and assorted items/luggage with the rear seat taken out to make room.

[searcherrr]

Awwww no takers?? No opinions? No one else haul a car with their Windstar?

[wiswind]

I do not have experience with this.
I went to the Uhaul website and entered the 1995 Windstar and made a guess at the maxima year.....I entered 1990 through 2021....each year at a time.
For 1990 through 1994, they say "NO" for dolly and trailers.
For 1995/1996, they say "Yes" for dolly, and NO for trailers.
For 1997 and newer, they say "NO" for dolly and trailers.
I am guessing that it has to do with the weight of the Maxima over the different years.
I even tried upping the trailer hitch capacity above 5000lbs for the 1998........and it did not change the results.

Uhaul tends to be optimistic about how much weight a vehicle can tow......but then I guess it depends upon how far and how hilly it is where you are towing.
In short.....if Uhaul says that it is too heavy.....it would certainly be heavier than I would tow as I'm not comfortable with their max limits to start with.
Again, I'm not anyplace close to being qualified to give advice.

When I say that the Uhaul website says it is not recommended......the website states "not recommended for this towing combination"....and does not let you reserve a dolly or trailer.

[phil-l]

I've done a fair amount of towing with my Windstar. I have both a utility trailer (1000 pounds or so) and a popup camper (2500 pounds GVWR).

The maximum towing capacity for any year of Windstar is 3500 pounds, no matter what the hitch itself says.

Also note that the maximum tow rating is reached only with the heavy-duty towing package, whose contents varied from year to year on the Windstar.

Further: The maximum tow rating presumes that the trailer has its own brakes (my popup has brakes; my utility trailer doesn't). The van's brakes are not designed to stop itself and a max-weight trailer. Does your tow dolly have brakes? This is a key factor for safe towing.

Does your Windstar have the tow package? The most important part of the Windstar's tow package is an auxiliary transmission cooler, which can be added. I also know that early Windstars had cooling issues that were remedied in later model years. The tow package on some of these years included an extra engine oil cooler (I've seen the unusual hardware for this option on a junkyard Windstar that I pulled some parts from).

Some of the confusing results wiswind saw on the UHaul web site may have to do with the fact that the Maxima was originally a rear-wheel drive vehicle - and later went to front wheel drive. In general, I'd avoid towing a car with its drive wheels on the ground; many cars aren't designed for this (As always: Read the owner's manual).

Back to your original question...

If your van has the towing package, it's probably capable of safely towing the car while using a tow dolly that includes its own brake system. Of course, I'm guessing that the weight of the dolly plus the car to be towed is less than 3500 pounds.

However, the above math ignores the weight of cargo in the van. Extra passenger and cargo weight could easily push you over the van's limits. Can your passengers and cargo ride in another vehicle? That would help buy some margin.

Remember that towing puts extra stress on everything - and safe towing near the max limit requires that every system in the tow vehicle is in tip-top shape.

So: Theoretically, I suspect it can be done - but you'd be desperately close to the edge of the capabilities of the van. If you decide to do it, I'd find a way for passengers and cargo to take another vehicle, and take it slow and easy.

[azharj]

Dear searcherrr
This information taken from the Windstar 2000 manual with towing option. See the attachment.
AzharJ

[Windstartled]

Originally Posted by searcherrr

As a lot of ya'll know I have a new engine and new transmission (young, not new anymore, but around 50k engine and less on tranny). My mom's Maxima was flooded out by Hurricane Isaac and I need to tow it 330 miles one way. Do ya'll think (class III trailer hitch - rated to 5000lbs) that I could tow that car with a uhaul car dolly and the van would be ok hauling that load??

I will also have 4 "LARGE" people in the van and assorted items/luggage with the rear seat taken out to make room.

I have towed a 2009 Ford Escape several times with my Winnie but I use a flatbed trailer with its own electric brakes, not a dolly because there is too much drag. I have had people telling me that the Escape should be towing the Windstar, unaware that the latter has a substantially more powerful engine than that Escape's tiny 4-cyl Duratec and is heavier.

However when I do this I try to carry as little cargo and people as possible in the Winnie and the Escape is empty of any load. Also mine is a second-generation model with the improved transmission and sturdier frame, I am not familiar with the 95's towing specs but they may not be the same.

[wiswind]

Looking at the Uhaul website.
The tow DOLLY....which you load just the front wheels onto does NOT have brakes.
The Auto Transport TRAILER, onto which you drive your vehicle (all 4 wheels are up on the trailer), has SURGE brakes.....which is a hydrolic piston that applies the trailer brake when the trailer is pushing into the vehicle.