Towing setup for new RP176

Please take this in the spirit in which I offer it. It reflects my personal experience, my judgement as an engineer, and the combined experience of other forum members. My personal experience is in towing a 172 with a 4WD Honda Pilot (4500# rating). I selected the 172 for its low weight as I knew I’d be climbing some hills with the Honda. The combo worked out OK but the 172 is lighter than your 176, the 4WD Honda is rated 1000# more, and we were traveling with just two adults. Performance and safety were OK at low altitudes and flat roads but climbing/descending hills, especially in the mountains, was marginal.

Vehicle tow ratings are based on a number of factors such as control of the trailer, braking, acceleration, and drive train capability. Your 3500# rating includes the empty trailer, all gear/water/propane/factory options in the trailer, and all added weight in the vehicle in excess of one adult driver. Four extra passengers and gear can add up very quickly and subtracts directly from towing capacity. You should certainly have the factory towing package including larger radiator and transmission cooler. A transmission oil temperature monitor is also highly recommended.

A WDH that includes sway control such as the Fastway E2 is highly recommended if properly installed and adjusted. My Honda book had the same non-recommendation but that is due to the fact that a misadjusted WDH can be worse than no WDH at all and concerns for the Unibody construction on the Hondas. Not recommended by Honda but most members conclude you should have one and it worked well and greatly improved the ride/safety.

General experience on this forum has been that 3500# vehicles are marginal and a 5000# tow rating is preferable.

+1 to what mjlrpod says. I would never expect the TT to be at, or below the advertised weight. I always run my calcs based on the maximum weigh, and go from there.

In addition to the tongue weight, there is also the maximum payload for your vehicle. MANY vehicles that are well within the maximum trailer weight limit will often exceed the payload limit, and/or the Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating (GCVWR).

Do yourself a favor, and run your numbers here: https://www.ajdesigner.com/apptrailertow/weightdistributionhitch.php

Make sure all your gauges show green.

The big problem is that they give unclear specs on this stuff. People look at their tow capacity and think, oh, if i stay under this number on my dry weight, I'll be fine. They use the simple subtract the dry weight from tow capacity formula. I like to point out, my car can go 120 miles an hour, but it's not very advisable to do that. Oh sure, I might get away with it many times. I also could put on a blindfold and cross my street with out looking, and I might make it many times without incident. But is it wise to do it? You should never use a machine at its maximum ability on a continuous basis. Your free to do what you want, but I would not want to be involved in an accident with a vehicle that can be deemed overweight. Remember, what you put INTO your tow vehicle counts the same as what you put ONTO your tow vehicle. If you had a 500 pound stone in your trailer, and you simply move it to the back of your T.V., It hasn't lightened your load. Everything counts, people, gas, gear, everything.

you are so right  -- Leo

i'm towing a 178 with a 3.6L dodge Caravan. for about 8000 miles. The 178 weighs in at 2650 well below the max tow weight of the TV. I don't use a WDH  because I am a little wary of the stress it could put on the frame. Been doing fine with just a sway bar. Only problems are from big trucks. Their turbulence sometimes tries to induce a little sway but stops almost immediately after they pass. (not even sure if the sway is from the trailer swaying cause I feel the semis pushing the minivan even without the trailer hitched). Havent had any problem powerwise with east coast mountains, I have yet to challenge the western mountains.

 I am violating 2 TV specs:
1. the trailer frontal area -- this is a wind resistance issue and as long as i keep the speed down the only thing that suffers is the gas mileage

2. tongue weight -- the recommended TW is 360lb.. I took the back seats out to take some weight off the axle and hitch receiver and purposely added tongue weight on the tongue to ensure a stable ride

I have very little additional cargo weight in the trailer, all the heavy stuff is stored in the van.

The itemized Dodge component sheet shows that the grand caravan comes from the factory with beefed up suspension, alternator, and trans cooling.  I don't know if Honda comes like that, i  f, not you will likely need it.