I am the proud owner of a new 2012 Durango R/T. I was not able to find a Durango exactly the way i wanted, so i settled with one without a tow package. I figured the R/T was just missing some hardware and wiring. My dealer set me up to have an aftermarket hitch installed. Now here is my dilemma.

The Durango has a 7400 lb capacity for towing. I had a 5000 lb Class III receiver hitch installed, with wt dist of 7500 lbs. So does this now limit me to 5000 lbs for towing?

The reason i ask is, we are moving from AZ to VA and i am looking to tow a 2011 CRV across country on a u-haul trailer. The CR-V is 4wd, so I will be pulling the 2200 lb car hauler. The CRV weighs around 3400 lbs.

This puts me at 5600 lbs. Should i be looking to get a factory hitch installed? The Uhaul calculator says im fine, but it looks like i will be pulling more than my hitch will allow.

Thanks for the help.

 

I wish I knew enough about towing and the weight distributions to offer a precise answer. However, from what I've read, another hitch might be required. Here are a couple of sites that might help in your research:

http://hitches4less.com/trailer-hitch-classes.html

http://howto.curtmfg.com/index.cfm.25.html

Good luck!

 

Congrats and welcome... Mine has the tow pkg but I haven't used it as of yet to tow!

 

Then what HAVE you used it for...BUUUUAHAHHHAHAAAAAHAHAHAA

 

was the price different that big between U-Haul and Factory trailer?
also, Some Durango or Grand Cherokee have a cap-off Factory harness alrdy, even without towing package. all you need is a cheap 7way/4way connector and a Software adjustment. you should crawl under the rear bumper and look, see are lucky. It is a Rounded connector zip tied to the rear bumper, around this area.


.

 

Here is a note from your owners manual:
Note: Vehicles NOT factory equipped with trailer tow
package are limited to 3,500 lbs (350 lbs tongue weight)

So if you do not have the factory installed towing package, which includes a lot more than a hitch. It also includes........

• Class IV receiver hitch
• 7 and 4 pin wiring harness
• Heavy-duty cooling(used to keep transmission fluid from overheating)
• Rear load leveling suspension(Keeps the back from sagging due to heavy loads)
• 220 amp alternator
• Full-size spare tire.

You can't in accordance with factory recommendations tow more than 3500 lbs.. You can only tow the max weight of 7200 lbs with the factory tow package installed. NOW could you do it(wouldn't recommend it), probably but I think you will put a lot of wear on the SUV especially without the transmission cooler and have future warranty issues. If you do it, change your transmission fluid as soon as you reach your destination. The towing will cause your transmission fluid to get hotter than normal and break down the viscosity of the fluid, because you do not have a transmission cooler.

 

as pointed out
your well above what the factory calls for.
The factory tow package is what you really needed.

 

I will preface my comments by saying that I do not own a Durango yet, but I have been doing the research to buy one.

I am about 99% sure that all Hemi equipped 2012 Durangos come equipped with:

Heavy Duty Engine Cooling
Rear Load Leveling Suspension


If you look at the dash of any V8 Durango you will see the tow button. When building a Hemi equipped Durango the Tow group IV lists only the following items:

• 7- and 4-Pin Wiring Harness
• Class IV Receiver Hitch

When you build a Pentastar Durango and add the more expensive Tow Group IV it adds the following:

• 220-Amp Alternator
• 7- and 4-Pin Wiring Harness
• Class IV Receiver Hitch
• Full-Size Spare Tire
• Heavy Duty Engine Cooling
• Rear Load Leveling Suspension
• Steel Spare Wheel

The dodge website also lists Load leveling suspension as a standard feature on the R/T and 7200lbs as the standard towing capacity.

Please let me know if I am wrong on this, because it will influence my purchasing decision but it looks like Dohcboost just needs a better hitch in order to gain the full towing capacity.

 

You may be onto something here. I looked at the Dodge website and you are right it states the Standard towing capacity for the R/T Is 7400 lbs. It also list the the towing capacity for the Pentastar equipped SUV with a max capacity of 5000 lbs. I think the Manual needs to be updated with this information. Good Job!

 

Correct. My RT has the tow button and all the tow goodies minus the hitch and wiring.

Im going to just spend the 600$ and have the factory tow package installed. Thanks for everyones help.