Buying a trailer for 2000 Mountaineer

[farmer.family]

Hello all. What a wonderful resource you all are. I've just spent about an hour reading up and getting educated. Sorry, I wander.
Well, I own a 2000 Mercury Mountaineer, 5.0L V-8, AWD, Auto Tranny, Class III receiver. It is manufacturer rated at 6720 Max towing capacity.
We are currently shopping for a Travel Trailer, and I'm wondering about Wheel Base and such. There are some great 20-24Ft trailers out there that fall well within our towing capacity. But I worried about what goes unsaid. I've never had a Trailer before and I don't want to make a large mistake.
Any input would be most appreciated. Thank You.
Alan

 

[Gary B]

Buying a trailer for 2000 Mountaineer

Hi Alan, welcome to the forum, you are heading in the right direction, if you stay well with in the towing limits, remember that you'll be adding 1000 to 1500 lbs to the empty trailer so what you need to look at is the gross wt of a trailer, if it were me I tend to stay in the 20 to 23 ft range, but of course the wt. is the main thing. Its very possible a 21' could weigh more than a 24', also you'll want to check into a weight distribution and sway control hitch. Good luck with the search for a trailer. :laugh: :bleh:

 

[rvlikens]

Buying a trailer for 2000 Mountaineer

I was a campground recently when I seen a Jeep Liberty towing a Antigua or something like that. I have a Liberty also which as a 5000lb tow cap (the new diesel was going to have a 7200lb but DCX gave it a final 5k approval.. DARN) The owner said it was his first trip out (towed it 200 miles) and it did very well. Think he said the trailer was something like 23feet and had a weight of 3800lbs. I think starcraft is the maker on this but could be wrong. Just remember, leave some room. Water is about 7lbs per gal just to start not to mention if your someplace where you can't dump your tanks. With a 40plus gal of fresh water, 30/30 black/grey water, you could exceed your abilities if you get a TT near your max.