AUDI Q5 for towing

[oldbebo]

Audi Q5 is rated for 4400 lbs has a 220 HP engine and I would like to tow one of the new lighter travel trailers. Thinking hummingbird 17RB dry weight 2890, RPod 189 dry w. 2792, Mini Drop WD1705 dry w. 2800, Or the one I like best and the heaviest Winnebago 1700BH AT 3010. I know it would be ideal to buy a truck but with the Audi would you just go with the lightest of those mentioned or does the extra 2 or 3 hundred lbs really make a difference. I have many years of towing experience 27 ft Airstream w/ ford F150 truck and 17ft. Casita with 6 cyd.nizzan frontier. Never had any problems with those.....Any trailers I am missing.

[stcolfax]

This is a great discussion but mostly theoretical. My experience is real. I bought a 2010 3.7 Q5 new and have a towed a 2900 lb (Unloaded weight) travel trailer over 10,000 miles, climbing mountains and rolling on freeways.

It is an awesome tow vehicle.

Advice:
1. watch the towing capacity (4400 pounds) and remember that everything you put in the trailer (fluids, food, campfire wood, etc) and everything in the Audi (including your butts in the seats can not exceed the dry weight of the trailer plus the weight of all this cargo. Yes, you count as cargo.

2. Stay in manual tiptronic mode. Yes you have to shift. There are 6 gears, Try to keep the RPMs in the 3000-400o range. max torque is about 4000. Revs are good.

3. Use a weight distributing set up on the high with leveling bars and a sway bar.

The 2018 3.0T which I just bought has 8 gears and about the same torque package. I expect the same performance.

Have fun. Be smart. Manage your load.

[oldbebo]

CARRINGB, Thanks for the article and very informative article. I’m still several months away from making any dicisions so all of this information helps a lot.

[carringb]

oldbebo wrote:
I found the following on a Motor Trend Web site. can’t figure what they mean by including Dead wt. and Wt. Distributing figures?

Dead Weight Hitch - Max Trailer Wt. : lbs 4400
Dead Weight Hitch - Max Tongue Wt. : lbs 440
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt. : lbs 4400
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Tongue Wt. : lbs 440
Maximum Trailering Capacity : lbs 4400

It looks like MotorTrend might have botched the data on your car.

"Dead Weight" means no weight distribution. Just trailer on a ball.

What they should have put in the Weight Distributing columns is "lbs. 0" because your car structurally can't use it. You can verify this is the trailer towing section of your owner's manual.

Many larger SUVs end up with two ratings, and usually using weight distributing ratings are higher. Especially with body-on-frame vehicles. Some cars and midsize SUVs are rated for the use of weight distribution, but may not be rated for towing more when using it (ford mid-size SUVs for example).

In your case, your tow rating is structurally limited by the hitch, and mainly the 440 pound tongue-weight rating. This is because nearly all RV trailers need 12-15% tongue weight to be stable. Boats, and some cargo trailers, can be stable with lower tongue weights. Boats can be as low a 7-8%. So it you were towing a boat, you would be limited by the total weight rating of 4,400 pounds and not the tongue weight. Because of the placement of the motor, boats have a much smaller Moment of Inertia, and this is the single most significant factor in how much tongue weight is required to make a stable trailer.

The reason for the 440 pound tongue weight limit appears to be structural. Not that is matters too much, because if it were higher, you'd bump into axle and GVWR limits. The same goes for the inability to use Weight Distribution. The hitch receiver bolts to the bumper-mounting brackets, and if you hooked up weight distribution, you'd likely pry apart those brackets. There's nothing available aftermarket to get around this, so likely there's some sort of mechanical component in the way of changing where the hitch bracket mount. Or, they may even be some other structural factor preventing the use of weight distribution, like possible crumple zones ahead of the bumper brackets.

BTW - this is a very good article describing why cars are rated to tow more in Europe. To some extent, especially with the US automakers, it may only be because they didn't want to pay the expenses of testing it. And there's speculation many cars are "downrated" to persuade shoppers to move up to a higher-margin SUV. But when it comes to "import" brands, the difference mostly comes down to trailer-vehicle-dynamics, due to the differences in our roads, speeds, and trailer designs.

Jalopnik - Why You Need A Big Truck To Tow Big Things In America

[oldbebo]

I found the following on a Motor Trend Web site. can’t figure what they mean by including Dead wt. and Wt. Distributing figures?

Dead Weight Hitch - Max Trailer Wt. : lbs 4400
Dead Weight Hitch - Max Tongue Wt. : lbs 440
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt. : lbs 4400
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Tongue Wt. : lbs 440
Maximum Trailering Capacity : lbs 4400

[GrandpaKip]

oldbebo wrote:
Thanks caringb for the very useful information. I will never have more than 2 in the car with a combined weight of 270 lbs. I do realize that I will have to limit the toys I bring along.but that should not be a problem and the Audi Q5 is rated as an excellent tow vehicle in europe where they do a lot of “caravanning” I do plan to rent a similar weight trailer for a couple days test run before actually spend real money!

European cars usually have different drivetrains than US models and every car I’ve seen over there pulling a trailer was a diesel. Caravans also have less tongue weight than US campers.
Two years ago, we were staying at the southern end of Loch Ness. There was a campground nearby and not a truck to be seen. Lots of estate wagons and a couple Land Rovers.
Renting a camper is a really good idea and hopefully all works out well.

[oldbebo]

Thanks caringb for the very useful information. I will never have more than 2 in the car with a combined weight of 270 lbs. I do realize that I will have to limit the toys I bring along.but that should not be a problem and the Audi Q5 is rated as an excellent tow vehicle in europe where they do a lot of “caravanning” I do plan to rent a similar weight trailer for a couple days test run before actually spend real money!

[carringb]

There's nothing wrong with towing with a unibody. These aren't 80's K-cars. Some unibodies are rated for well over 7,000 pounds (Touareg, Grand Cherokee, Ford Transit), and some even require weight distribution for max towing (Ford Explorer/Flex).

The Audi Q5 has more braking power than most half-ton trucks from 15 years ago.

1,047 pounds of payload is better than a high-trim Ram 1500 EcoDiesel.

That said.... The 440 hitch limit is a hard limit. Weight Distribution won't fix that. That hitch limit effectively limits it to trailers under 3,000 pounds. Not only that, the Q5 is NOT APPROVED for use with a weight distributing hitch.

OP - Those Ultra-Light trailers proposed look doable, but only if you don't carry rear seat passengers or much cargo in the trunk, because of how the tongue weight will load the rear axle, especially since you can't use weight distribution. If it's only 2 of you, it might be doable. Family of 4? Probably not.

[OleManOleCan]

oldbebo wrote:
OK, The maximum payload is 1047lbs. And yes I would definitely us a WD hitch. Still debating on 600 or 800 lb unit. Have always used sway control even on my little Casita.

Not to rain on the parade, but you don't have a quality tow vehicle.
Just because a vehicle can move a RV doesn't make it a tow vehicle.
Think of the combined weight of passengers, water, propane, and things like lawn chairs. Think about tongue weight.
Lastly, think about this... Can your vehicle stop the RV at speeds of 50 MPH?

One more thing... Are there any mountains you need to climb?

[oldbebo]

OK, The maximum payload is 1047lbs. And yes I would definitely us a WD hitch. Still debating on 600 or 800 lb unit. Have always used sway control even on my little Casita.

[atreis]

I've been towing with unibody vehicles for decades without issues, as have many others. There are unibody vehicles that can tow up to 7,700 lbs available (VW Touareg). The "unibody is no good for towing" is a myth, if one stays within all manufacturer recommended limits.

On the Q5, as others have mentioned, the most likely limit that would come into effect is payload capacity.

Also keep in mind it's a fairly short wheelbase, high center of gravity, vehicle so you'll also be better off using one of the better WD hitches with sway control.

[Tyler0215]

My opinion. The Q5 is a unibody car with no frame. The goal of the manufacturer is to make them as light as possible. Any hitch will be attached to re-inforced body panels. Will it tow the trailer? Sure. But what damage will towing do over time? Audis aren't cheap. Maybe a more suitable TV would be a better choice.

[Jebby14]

what's the payload? I would think you are asking a lot from a vehicle not well suited to towing. should command a decent trade in value if you want to look at getting a proper tow vehicle.

[seaeagle2]

looks like on some of the Q5's max tongue weight is 440, not sure how that translates into the payload,

[trailer_newbe]

Need to know your cargo carrying capacity of the Q5. Max tow weight does not mean much without knowing the CCC of the vehicle.