2012 QX56 & 27 ft AS Intl or Serenity

[imflyinby]

Hello, Newbies here who want to travel with our 2 dogs. We know the trailer and lenghth we will be getting but the tough part has been nailing down the tow vehicle. Has to be a large SUV and the fold down of two rows of seats seems perfect in the Infinity. Dont want to remove and stow 3rd row. Also seems the power is there. Anybody have any thoughts, good or bad, that might help in the tow decision❓Thanks so much

[n2916s]

Well, basically, the choice of tow vehicle is a very contentious issue on the Forum.

I think the best person for you to talk to about towing with an Infinity is likely Andy at Can-Am RV in London, Ontario. They also have some very interesting videos on their website.

There is a large contingent of contributors on this forum who simply (and earnestly) believe that you must tow with a 3/4 or one ton pickup truck, preferably diesel, or you are inviting disaster.

There is an equally committed group of contributors who believe that there a exists a wide range of suitable vehicles to serve as a tow vehicle provided that they are carefully set up and adjusted.

So, basically, you are likely to get conflicting opinions...

That is why I suggest you call Andy. His family has been doing this a long, long time and he seems to really have all his ducks in a row.

Mike

[wulfraat]

We have a 2012 QX and tow a 25' international. GVW of our trailer is 7000lb and the tongue weight is sitting at 780lbs (measured on a CAT scale). We've been using this setup for 3 years - probably towed maybe 15,000 miles.

Just watch tongue weight and overall payload of your setup. Vehicle has a very beefy class IV hitch but is only rated for 850lbs tongue weight - likely because any more than that and you will quickly hit the ceiling on the payload capacity of the Infinity with 2 adults and a small amount of cargo in the cabin. Hitch failure is not a concern with this truck but payload needs to be taking into consideration.

The springs in the back are soft which as you know provides for a soft ride when not towing - but the supplemental airbags help firm things up under load when you have the airstream hitched up. Properly configured WD is a must. Don't forget to take into account hitch weight when looking at load on the reciever. We use an equalizer hitch which is simple and works fine.

All that being said we love our QX for towing - much better than the previous generation "armada" ... power is great at over 400HP and 400 ft pounds of torque. We live in Colorado and tow through the mountains on a regular basis.

[jayseejay]

We tow a 27' Eddie Bauer twin with an Infinity QX80, which is almost identical to your QX80, with a Reese dual cam hitch, and we've not had any issues or concerns to date. Joe

[RAH]

If a little thread wandering is permitted...Wulfraat is the reflection in your front pano window real? Must be. did you plan this picture or did it just turn out that way? What a great picture! Nice setup.

[wulfraat]

Picture on trailer is the swiss alps... its a vinyl wrap... (think 2010 victorianox edition) ... I spent a lot of time climbing in the swiss alps and thought it was pretty cool. It really looks like Zinalrothorn which I have climbed but hard to tell because of the angle... and it was 15 years ago so my memory is fading

Background is rocky mountain national park last fall. We live an hour away from the park and spend a lot of time up there... just coincidence ... picture was taken coming out of moraine park campground....

Gotta love colorado

[franklyfrank]

Originally Posted by n2916s

Well, basically, the choice of tow vehicle is a very contentious issue on the Forum.

I think the best person for you to talk to about towing with an Infinity is likely Andy at Can-Am RV in London, Ontario. They also have some very interesting videos on their website.

There is a large contingent of contributors on this forum who simply (and earnestly) believe that you must tow with a 3/4 or one ton pickup truck, preferably diesel, or you are inviting disaster.

There is an equally committed group of contributors who believe that there a exists a wide range of suitable vehicles to serve as a tow vehicle provided that they are carefully set up and adjusted.

So, basically, you are likely to get conflicting opinions...

That is why I suggest you call Andy. His family has been doing this a long, long time and he seems to really have all his ducks in a row.

Mike

Good Advice !

[imflyinby]

Thanks for the responses. So helpful and the photos were great. We will take it all into consideration !!!

[BAB]

I towed my 2012 28' Intl CCD with a 2012 Infinity QX56. It towed exceptionally well. You have plenty of torque with that brute of a V8, and I had no issues with weight. BTW, I actually talked to Andy Thomson about my rig at Alumapalooza a couple of years ago. He said that I had the best of both worlds with the QX56. 4 wheel independent suspension, and a relatively low center of gravity. I towed this rig through the Rockies and from east coast to west coast, north to south. The only reason I went to the Ram was for more place to haul stuff like generator, chairs, grill, etc. AND, I went to a bigger trailer.

[RAH]

Originally Posted by wulfraat

Picture on trailer is the swiss alps... its a vinyl wrap... (think 2010 victorianox edition) ... I spent a lot of time climbing in the swiss alps and thought it was pretty cool. It really looks like Zinalrothorn which I have climbed but hard to tell because of the angle... and it was 15 years ago so my memory is fading

Background is rocky mountain national park last fall. We live an hour away from the park and spend a lot of time up there... just coincidence ... picture was taken coming out of moraine park campground....

Gotta love colorado

Well, the vinyl wrap looked very real to me! I used to live in Switzerland, and have many fine memories of Jungfrau and other Alps trips. Or just walking the dog on Uetliburg across town. Thanks for sharing the story on your QX56 (I had to at least try to get this back to the thread topic!).

Rich