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Did a test pull locally, unloaded van, unloaded trailer. Pulled great, could even leave it in overdrive.

Weekend trip to Vermont: Went very well.

van mostly loaded (2 adults, 2 teens, dog and some gear). Trailer partially loaded (a little food, forgot chairs, and a few other things). ~1000 feet elevation gain, 120 miles. Using weight distribution hitch w/ anti-sway, Odyssey has factory tow package, including (small) transmission cooler. Temps <80. (Memorial Day)

CT to San Diego and back to CT: Some Issues

3 weeks, 7,600 miles. June/July

Van fully loaded (same people/dog, with more stuff). Full size cooler in the trunk area, full of water/ice/food. Trailer fully loaded, fridge full, chairs, tent, linens, ~1 week clothing per person.

Cranked the weight dist hitch one more link, which helped. Flat/coolish states were fine, maxed out at about 63 mph in 3rd (couldn't use OD at that speed, as it wouldn't stay locked in). When ambient temps went above 85 (eastern CO), engine temp went up as well.

I70 west of Colorado – 7%+ grades, slowed to 30, engine almost overheated, AC stopped blowing cold air. After pausing, continued on at 20, a/c off, and engine stayed warm, but not overheating. As the trip continued through the desert southwest (ambient temps 92-104), van continued to heat up every time we hit a grade, and the air would go warm or hot.

Brought the car in for service at San Diego (oil change + tranny change), they said tranny oil was just a little burnt (we had changed it 7 days before the trip), and freon was a low so they filled it.

Trip home: Pretty much the same behaviour, although the AC seemed to cool back down again much more quickly than before. We also moved the full ice-cooler from the trunk to the back door of the trailer – which helped the trim a bit.

No wind/swaying problems at any point. I felt it, but never felt out of control.

Mileage: 8-12 mpg, averaging right around 10.5 (compared to a normal 19 mpg)

Rear Tires: Replaced after 3,000 miles, due to unusual wear on the shoulder of the tires, due to the heavy loading/squatting.

Summary:

I'm glad we didn't go bigger than the 14RB with the Odyssey as the TV.

Hills in CT/VT are NOT the same as hills in the west!

Trailer was almost certainly overloaded. Tongue weight??

Don't but heavy objects (coolers) in the trunk.

Consider flushing the cooling system before the next trip.

Odyssey needs some sort of rear suspension stiffening/air lifting/something.

WD hitch made a HUGE difference.

What else do you guys get out of this?

Woodie, glad you had a good trip. On my Xterra I had Firestone Ride Rite load assist air bags installed. Each bag has a schader (normal car type) valve installed on the bumper. When I am not pulling a trailer I let the air pressure down to 10 pounds – the minimum you have to maintain in the air bags.That provides a stock plush ride. When pulling a trailer and needing to raise the Xterra's back end up to level, I inflate each bag to around 40 pounds. It's very easy to do. I had them prfessionally installed. The provide great flexibility in leveling the Xterra depending on how it is loaded.

Now when I pull our big popup camper, a Fleetwood Niagra, I use a weight distributing hitch. I only have to use about 20 pounds of air pressure because the weight distrbuting hitch helps level the rig some and less air pressure is needed in the air bags. The popup weighs 3200+ pounds and outweighs our 14rb by quite a margin. 

I don't use a weight distributing hitch with the 14rb. The air bags and an antisway seems to handle the trailer very well.

I wonder if a larger aftermarket tranny cooler would help your transmission?

Lee

Post edited 1:53 am – January 14, 2012 by kayaknut

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