# A question I am dying to ask...



## mliponoga (Jul 24, 2010)

Don't be worried, that pathfinder will do fine. It's completely ridiculous to hear someone pulling a horse with a car though, I'm sorry, that's dangerous!!!!! You're at just over half your towing capacity, you'll be fine. You may be underpowered going up hills, but just have to be aware of that. Also realize, a horse trailer weight is split differently than others. They put a lot more weight on the hitch than a trailer that is weighted right. While normally you may only put 10% of the trailer weight on the front, I've heard horse trailers can put as much as 25%.


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## ShutUpJoe (Nov 10, 2009)

The people that pulled Arabella up from Indiana (over 2 hours away) pulled her with an old van. I think it depends on the distance, the brakes and how much you like your vehicle.


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## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

I agree with you mlipinoga, no car towing for me EVER!

I have not seen a hill since I came to this part of SC  I have done this particular route 3 times before and there are 2 on ramps with a steep incline. But I have worked a route that will take me 15 mins more and completely eliminate having to go UP anything. Thank you for that trailer weight info. Very interesting!


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

Add that the brenderup (or however you spell that) trailers are designed so their tongue weight is much lighter than the average trailer. 

One thing you have realize about the 'Oh my gawd you can not do that' trailering threads is that people are just trying to make sure you are safe.

Can you pull that trailer with that small sized vehicle? Sure, it can pull it. Can you most likely stop it? Sure, most likely. 

But why risk it? Why totally kill the transmission of your vehicle?


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## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

This is where my lack of knowledge throws me for a loop. What would cause it to kill the transmission if it's rated for allot more then I would ever attempt??


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## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

Do you have a transmission cooler on your vehicle? If not, it's not really rated for towing, regardless of whether or not you _can_ tow with it.

It's the continual pull on the transmission that's bad for it, if you don't have an actual rated tow vehicle. Dealers never tell you that.

It's not the pulling or stopping I worry about, it's the strain on my transmission. Even for a rated tow vehicle with the proper equipment, towing will diminish your transmission's life expectancy. Especially for a smaller vehicle.


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## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

Yes, came with tow package, transmission cooler (standard on '06+ models had that confirmed at the inspection today), and is wired for towing...I am guessing wired for towing means it has all the electrical break wires and I know those function because I have pulled a 1,000 lb utility trailer. Also has the wiring set up for the brake controller box under the steering column.


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## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

I meant breaks and lights sorry. Those all work when the utility trailer is hooked up.


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## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

Sounds like you have all the proper equipment. 

Just be sure to get a brake box installed as soon as you can. Towing a horse trailer is a lot different than towing a utility trailer, and you're going to need that brake box.


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## Mingiz (Jan 29, 2009)

The major thing I think about when towing with less than a 3/4 ton p/u is in emergency situations. If your pulling it with an suv and have to stop quickly the chances of your trailer pushing you is greater, also the live animal on board has alot of factor in that, It may also jack knife on you...The stability isn't there as much as it would be with a p/u. Also most suv's,vans etc aren't set up for towing yes they may say they are but in the long run the transmission isn't heavy duty enough and will eventually wear out. The trans cooler just keeps it from over heating... Good Luck....


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## WickedNag (Sep 7, 2010)

Mingiz said:


> The major thing I think about when towing with less than a 3/4 ton p/u is in emergency situations. If your pulling it with an suv and have to stop quickly the chances of your trailer pushing you is greater, also the live animal on board has alot of factor in that, It may also jack knife on you...The stability isn't there as much as it would be with a p/u. Also most suv's,vans etc aren't set up for towing yes they may say they are but in the long run the transmission isn't heavy duty enough and will eventually wear out. The trans cooler just keeps it from over heating... Good Luck....


I am with you. I used to pull my small two horse with a 1/2 ton and I would have went to a 1 ton when I bought my last truck but it was so beefed up for towing at the factory it out pulls my best friends 1 ton truck. They are both the same year and model... I like that I can still gain power going up a hill and if I have to stop I can!


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## RitzieAnn (Dec 22, 2010)

We have a 91 Pathfinder, and a trailer that weighs 2800lbs. I couldnt imagine towing it with the Pathfinder. If I had no tack room, I'm pretty sure my P-finder would fit inside my trailer. 

I originally was towing with a 1/2 ton gas Dodge. It had a lot more power driving (no trailer) than our Pfinder does. I now have a 3/4 ton Diesel Dodge. I love it more than the previous truck. lol

If you have very flat area, and your vehicle has been inspected by repuitable professionals & you've explained that you will be towing a trailer and a horse, then you should be ok.

Like somebody else said though, you're towing LIVE weight, which is different than towing dead weight. If your horse suddenly starts jumpin around in the trailer, you're going to feel it, especailly on the short wheel base of the Pathfinder, and with it's overall lightness.

When you have extra funds, go buy an older truck. Find one you like, get a mechanic to check it over, and you'll be set!


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## faye (Oct 13, 2010)

CecilliaB said:


> Why is it Europeans will pull a 1300 odd lb brenderup (some of them weigh as much as 2100) with a horse in it with a car.....but Americans cringe at the thought of towing smaller 2 horses with 1 horse in it with plenty of towing capacity?


Erm I have no Idea where you got that from!
Ifor williams are the most popular trailers over here (UK), closely followed by Rice. 
The brenderup supreme weighs 2700kg FULLY loaded (i.e with all tack and horses onboard). The Equitrek weigh significantly more. The vast majority of trailers overhere take a max of 2 horses, very rarely you will find a 3 horse but they are like hens teeth. The livings are tiny and generaly poorly equiped because if you need a living you buy a lorry not a trailer.

I have also lived in Europe for quite number of years and I have NEVER seen a car pulling trailers. We use 4x4's.

It is illegal to tow a trailer that exceeds the MAM of the car. It many countries it is illegal to tow if the trailer out weighs the car and it is certainly not reccomended.

When we tow (as in me personaly) we tow an ifor 505 (1200kg empty) with a mercedes ML270 which withoutt people in weighs 2.5tons! Legally we are allowed to tow a maximu of 3.5 tons however I would not feel safe doing so. I have a 7.5 ton lorry which I use for traveling any distance and it has a full living.


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## rum4 (Feb 28, 2010)

CecilliaB I see that you are in Beaufort, SC, there are not many hills there but if you head up toward Greenville on I-26 or West or East on I-20 you will find some real nice hills......
I think with your set up you should be ok. I would get a brake controller installed so that when you brake the trailer will brake to helping to slow down. If you drive sensible while towing you should have no issues stopping even in an emergency especially if you have the brake controller set up correctly


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## QOS (Dec 8, 2008)

Before I bought my trailer I did a ton of research. I scoured horse forums of all types looking at different information on different trailers. I settled on a Brenderup because I could tow it with my RAV4. 

My 2007 Rav4 has V6 engine, 269 hp, 181" long, 104" wheelbase, and a towing package for 3,500 lbs. 

Tongue weigh is different than an American trailer so it does haul with my Rav4. I generally only haul 1 horse - I hauled my 15.3 former QH that was 80" long - he is a big boy. I have never had trouble hauling him, Sarge or Biscuit in the trailer. I have hauled two horses in it for short hauls with no trouble at all - but when I haul both I am hauling 45-50 mph or less. If I am just going up the road 4 miles to the park I am on the service roads so going less than 40 but even on the highway hauling the horses I have never had trouble stopping it. It doesn't push my Rav at all. I hit the breaks - Brenderup hits its breaks and we come to a slow smooth stop. 

I have had an IDIOT pull out in front of me on a curve when I was hauling Red. She pull up from an entry ramp on the curve (really really bad civil engineering at this point) and putted. I had to hit my brakes HARD - I was scared to death we would have a problem...no problem at all. I felt the B'up bump bump bump lightly on my ball and that was it - no swaying, no fishtailing - nothing but following the Rav back to the barn. 

A friend has trailered with me twice to the local park. Her TW loves the B'up and wants to go with me whether he came with me or not! She said she is very impressed by how it hauls and several other local horse guru's that have been with me hauling have said the same thing - they were skeptical but changed their mind when they hauled with it. 

Do your research - look at each trailer and check out reviews on forums and see if there have been problems. Choose your vehicle carefully. I would love to have a 3 horse slant with a LQ. One of these days I will get one but I won't ever get rid of the B'up. I love it!


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## my2geldings (Feb 18, 2008)

mliponoga said:


> Don't be worried, that pathfinder will do fine. It's completely ridiculous to hear someone pulling a horse with a car though, I'm sorry, that's dangerous


 ...and I agree with the breaking issue; however you have to remember that European vehicles are not build like the crap we have here. They all have completely different transmissions and towing capacity. Traffic conditions there and the roadswhich are all up and down hills, on tiny roads, with very small lanes and traffic space, with speeds limits far greater than we do, and they do just fine.

I am not a big fan of what they do there, but I wouldn't under estimate what they find as ok. A lot more things you have to consider when seeing how much their vehicles handle day to day.


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## Reiterin (Mar 28, 2010)

I agree with QOS about the brenderups. I have one and I love it! it pulls like a DREAM. They Are built differently than American horse trailers. wheel base alignment, more aerodynamic, less tongue weight, etc. (funny story.. the first time I parked my trailer, I parked it on a little-tiny-bit of a hill and when I went to hook it up the next time, I raised the little 'kick stand' thingy to lower it on to the tow ball, and it just stayed up in the air. I had to jump on the trailer tongue to get it down on to my truck. HA! Now I be sure to park it on Level ground!) Also you have to understand, that the cars that they are using (in Europe) to pull them are muscle cars. not just little crappy cars. =)


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## faye (Oct 13, 2010)

I've been in an american Ford Truck that an aquantance of mine had imported from the states. The **** thing was useless, It had all the guts of a dead fish, guzzled fuel like it was going out of fashion, struggled on the hills (we live in a mountain range, we have many many very steep hills, one in perticular is known localy as Engine hill as it has killed so many engines, it is very steep and very long and is on a motorway so you should theoreticly do 70mph up it, they have recently installed a laybay halfway up!) and it had the turning circle of a battleship (my 28ft lorry has a smaller turning circle)! 
With the narrow counrty lanes round here it was practically useless. It was a nightmare to park in a carpark as it simply did not fit, it was too wide for the parking spaces, too tall for some multistories and tbh it didnt have the turn to make it up the ramps!

Ifor williams trailer fully supports it's own weight. The nose weight (i/e the actual weight pressing down on the tow ball) is less then 60kg, It is quite possibly for 2 women (me at 5ft 3 and my mother at 5ft5) to push it by hand up a hill and then turn it into a parking spot!


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## RitzieAnn (Dec 22, 2010)

Faye, specifically what is that truck? There are tons of trucks over here, and lots are gutless wonders.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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