T-5 towing
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Re: T-5 towing (wdunlop)
I pulled my motorcycle on a trailer with some other stuff, and the car completely packed. Would
probably add to that much. No issues from Ca to Tx. I pull my jet skis about that weight, no problems.
You will know it is back there, but if loaded properly it wont be a problem.
I could see emergency braking being an issue approaching 4k. All the xc90 are rated at 5k, I think that
is a bit much to be completely safe unless the trailer had brakes. Then I would wonder about the trans
temps (dont even try towing with a T6 if you want the trans to last).
I pulled my motorcycle on a trailer with some other stuff, and the car completely packed. Would
probably add to that much. No issues from Ca to Tx. I pull my jet skis about that weight, no problems.
You will know it is back there, but if loaded properly it wont be a problem.
I could see emergency braking being an issue approaching 4k. All the xc90 are rated at 5k, I think that
is a bit much to be completely safe unless the trailer had brakes. Then I would wonder about the trans
temps (dont even try towing with a T6 if you want the trans to last).
Re: T-5 towing (wdunlop)
This depends greatly on the trailer.
There are a number of very important factors on how well a trailer tows. One of the most important is tongue weight - too much or too little and you will have a white knuckled journey. However, a properly set up trailer with 2,200 lbs should be no issue.
I have towed my 3,700 lb boat with no issues (on level ground, and in good weather). The trailer has tandem axles, surge brakes, is perfectly balanced. As a result, it tows very well, and the XC90 2.5T handles it well (although I worry about the longevity of the tranny). There have been several other owners who have reported similar results over the years. There was also a recent thread where someone posted that they were not pleased with their XC90 towing a pair of jet skis. I would suspect that the jet ski trailer is single axle, with no brakes, and is putting more of the work load on the tow vehicle than my boat trailer does.
As for the 2.5 and 5 speed - this motor makes a lot of low end torque, and does better than you would expect. However, when towing, my gas mileage was horrible - 9 to 11 MPG on level ground, at 55 MPH.
While I have found the XC90 does a decent job towing, I don't think I would buy an XC90 if I was planning on doing a lot of towing. I tow only on occasion, on level ground, in good weather, and only for moderate distances.
This depends greatly on the trailer.
There are a number of very important factors on how well a trailer tows. One of the most important is tongue weight - too much or too little and you will have a white knuckled journey. However, a properly set up trailer with 2,200 lbs should be no issue.
I have towed my 3,700 lb boat with no issues (on level ground, and in good weather). The trailer has tandem axles, surge brakes, is perfectly balanced. As a result, it tows very well, and the XC90 2.5T handles it well (although I worry about the longevity of the tranny). There have been several other owners who have reported similar results over the years. There was also a recent thread where someone posted that they were not pleased with their XC90 towing a pair of jet skis. I would suspect that the jet ski trailer is single axle, with no brakes, and is putting more of the work load on the tow vehicle than my boat trailer does.
As for the 2.5 and 5 speed - this motor makes a lot of low end torque, and does better than you would expect. However, when towing, my gas mileage was horrible - 9 to 11 MPG on level ground, at 55 MPH.
While I have found the XC90 does a decent job towing, I don't think I would buy an XC90 if I was planning on doing a lot of towing. I tow only on occasion, on level ground, in good weather, and only for moderate distances.
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Re: T-5 towing (dmd)
My experience with towing has been good, but the XC90 with the 2.5 has limited power for really steep hills, and I live on one. It managed to pull this boat up a very steep hill with switchbacks twice, with my foot to the floor and the engine not revving high enough to really take advantage of any turbo power. Since it was struggling obviously, I bought a 1989 Bronco with low range to do this job before I broke something very expensive. On the flats however, it seemed to do well with little strain and I was gentle with the power application letting the vehicle slowly get up to speed on it's own, it seemed quite comfortable with careful driving. Where the XC really struggled bigtime on our steep driveway, the 1989 Bronco 351 in low range 4WD practically idles up the hill hardly breaking a sweat.
The 2004 XC has 89,000 miles on it now and it's still driving like new.
regards,
P
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My experience with towing has been good, but the XC90 with the 2.5 has limited power for really steep hills, and I live on one. It managed to pull this boat up a very steep hill with switchbacks twice, with my foot to the floor and the engine not revving high enough to really take advantage of any turbo power. Since it was struggling obviously, I bought a 1989 Bronco with low range to do this job before I broke something very expensive. On the flats however, it seemed to do well with little strain and I was gentle with the power application letting the vehicle slowly get up to speed on it's own, it seemed quite comfortable with careful driving. Where the XC really struggled bigtime on our steep driveway, the 1989 Bronco 351 in low range 4WD practically idles up the hill hardly breaking a sweat.
The 2004 XC has 89,000 miles on it now and it's still driving like new.
regards,
P
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1,329 Posts
the boat in the photo is a 1966 20' fiberglass Chris Craft Sea Skiff (only 80 were built) with a 327F inboard, weighing 2800 pounds. I would say the trailer weighs another thousand pounds by the time you factor in the springs, frame, axles, tires, etc. Using a light touch on the throttle got the rig moving nicely on the flats, don't want to push it because you OBVIOUSLY have a load. On hills I would shift manually in order to maintain a higher and easier rpm. Our main problem was the very steep driveway which would have broken the XC had we insisted on doing that. Thankfully, I got an old Bronco with 120,000 miles on the odometer that is only used for hauling the boat. It is not as comfortable as the XC on the flats although it tows with little effort, but in low range it climbs the hill with no fuss.
Here is what not to do with your XC, the hill is MUCH steeper than it looks. We did this twice with the XCT5 AWD at a slow climb but with foot to the floor, and decided it was not the smart thing to do again. It does show what an XC can do, however!
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The boat was just restored and we had no other tow vehicle at the time, and we couldn't wait to try it out. After two road trips we got the old Bronco for the climb.
regards, P
Here is what not to do with your XC, the hill is MUCH steeper than it looks. We did this twice with the XCT5 AWD at a slow climb but with foot to the floor, and decided it was not the smart thing to do again. It does show what an XC can do, however!
regards, P
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