I have a 2005 xterra that i am looking to tow a small travel trailer in the snow with. i was wondering what a SAFE weight would be to look for, are chains on the trailer nessesary if the truck has 4x4, a trailer brake useful? any helpful hints or suggestions for towing in the snow? i am looking at trailers under 20' and under 2.5k.

thanks for the help!

slow is fast and why in the hell would you put chains on the trailer tires?

slow is fast and why in the hell would you put chains on the trailer tires?

i was thinking of putting chains on the trailer tires with a trailer brake might help with traction issues if it starts to get sideways, i could hit the trailer brake and (with the chains) straighten it out...

i could be WAY off. ive barely towed a snowmobile trailer with 2 sleds on the back in the snow. no trailer brake just hooked up to my buds trailer and went. like i said any help is awesome!!

I would look and see what your truck is rated to tow. What is will tow when its 90 and sunny out wont change when there is snow on the ground. The only thing that needs to change is your driving.
SLOW, give plenty of room to stop, etc...
Brakes are nice and there are alot of different brands out there so do some research on here.
Is the Xterra lifted or stock height?

why in the hell would you put chains on the trailer tires?

Some places in the country have hills :flipoff2:

Actually some passes will require drag chains on trailers in the winter, helps keep the trailer behind you when you hit the brakes ;)

I would look and see what your truck is rated to tow. What is will tow when its 90 and sunny out wont change when there is snow on the ground. The only thing that needs to change is your driving.
SLOW, give plenty of room to stop, etc...
Brakes are nice and there are alot of different brands out there so do some research on here.
Is the Xterra lifted or stock height?

the xterra is completly stock. truck is rated for 1500lb tonge and 5000 load if i recall correctly. my main concern is that on a tight, windy, iced over mountain pass, that a trailer wont act as a giant sled pushing me where IT wants to go, not where i want to go. i understand going slow is a must. Any other hints? tire pressure? what to do IF it starts to push me? would chains ever be necessary on the x or would a good set of like bfg allterrains be enough?

thanks for all the feedback guys!!

Some places in the country have hills :flipoff2:

Actually some passes will require drag chains on trailers in the winter, helps keep the trailer behind you when you hit the brakes ;)

gotcha. i think i might have a set of spare chains that would fit the trailer. good to hear they would help!

the xterra is completly stock. truck is rated for 1500lb tonge and 5000 load if i recall correctly. my main concern is that on a tight, windy, iced over mountain pass, that a trailer wont act as a giant sled pushing me where IT wants to go, not where i want to go. i understand going slow is a must. Any other hints? tire pressure? what to do IF it starts to push me? would chains ever be necessary on the x or would a good set of like bfg allterrains be enough?

thanks for all the feedback guys!!

I would say trailer brakes are a must when towing anything with an Xterra. If you start to get bent out of shape, remember that the tires must be rolling to help you in any way. Don't lock your brakes. Chain requirements can be quite different from place to place, check your area to see what minimum chain requirements are when you tow a trailer. Even with 4x4 you should have at least one axle of chains on the tow rig and the trailer when on a snowy/icey mountain pass.
Travis..

I would say trailer brakes are a must when towing anything with an Xterra. If you start to get bent out of shape, remember that the tires must be rolling to help you in any way. Don't lock your brakes. Chain requirements can be quite different from place to place, check your area to see what minimum chain requirements are when you tow a trailer. Even with 4x4 you should have at least one axle of chains on the tow rig and the trailer when on a snowy/icey mountain pass.
Travis..

what axle would you recomend putting chains on the tow rig? the only place i will be towing in the snow is to kirkwood area for snowboarding. thing is i go in REALLY bad conditions so i like being safe not sorry.

Ahhhh, you're in California. Go to the Caltrans website and it will tell you what the minimum chain set is and where they want them. I think it's rear axle on tow rig and brake axle on trailer, but double check.
Travis..

If you only chain one axle, make it the front. Much better to steer and stop than accelerate! It wouldn't hurt to run snow tires on the trailer too.

If you have a 2K axle under the trailer, your axle is unlikely to have brake mounts in place but it's not hard to weld on a flange. By the time you pay a welding shop to do that and buy the little (I think 8 inch, maybe only 7?) brake drums and hubs, you will have paid almost enough for a new 3500lb axle with 10 inch brakes. On the other hand, if you already have a 3500lb axle then a brake upgrade is a simple matter of bolt on the backing plate and install the new hub. The 10 inch brakes cost about half what the 8 inch one do and I never could get the little ones to work worth a darn. I have bigger axles now...

In my experience, trailer brakes can help and hurt in the snow. If they're not correctly adjusted and lock up too easily, it will fuck you in a hurry. Pulling it behind an xterra isn't going to help. As was said though, go slower than you think you should, don't tailgate and you'll be fine. Make sure your trailer doesn't have shit tires either.

In my experience, trailer brakes can help and hurt in the snow. If they're not correctly adjusted and lock up too easily, it will fuck you in a hurry. Pulling it behind an xterra isn't going to help. As was said though, go slower than you think you should, don't tailgate and you'll be fine. Make sure your trailer doesn't have shit tires either.

why would it be a bad idea to pull it behind a newer xterra? i could understand the -04 but the 05+ should be better right? can anyone suggest better tires for the xterra for in the snow/mud? something decently priced would be nice.

I'm not saying it's a bad idea, I'm just saying it won't be as ideal as say a 3/4 ton truck with larger tires, more weight and more wheelbase. It gives the trailer a lot more chance to push you around towing with the xterra. Not because of engine or even brakes really.

I have towed over 80 to Nevada and they required me to chain the truck and trailer (braked axle). That was good as the conditions did warrent the chains on the trailer. I was wishing for chains on the front once. I pulled over to chech the chain tension and when I stopped the front of the truck slid sideways on the icy side shoulder! That was like a 12 hour trip from San Jose to Sparks lol what with getting chains for the truck waiting in line again and then getting sent back to buy chains for the trailer!

Jason :)

Went and looked at trailers this weekend. think we narrowed it down to 2 choices. both are 15' one is a fleetwood orbit which is a full height trailer and a hi-lo which is a pop up type trailer. the hi-lo is more money, sleeps less, and has less room but give the advantage of less weight, less drag(better mpg) and less chance of being blown around. the orbit is a couple grand less, sleeps more, more room but it is heavier by a couple hundred pounds, would get worse mpg and would probably be blown around a lot more than the other.

which would you suggest?

for the x i am thinking of getting some 265 or 285 bfg at and chains for all axles including trailer. then down the line a locker for the rear.

how does that set up sound?

tire chains on the front of many SUV's will take out fender flares if you dont have enough clearance. Only time i chained up the front axle on my log truck was when things were so iced up that steering was impossible. otherwise drive axle is sufficient. As well with my pickup and a GN trailer all over CA, ID, OR, WA, UT, WY, MT and into BC never had issues with chains on drive axle and occassionally a set on the tag of the trailer creating some drag behind me.

Les schwab sells those V bar chains with the Cam tighteners. the v bars are nice on heavy icy roads. If you go with them also plan on using rubbers with the chains. some guys swear by the cam locks by themselves, but i find alot of piece of mind knowing if a cam or two loosens up that those chains are being pulled to the outside of the tire and not in towards my ABS lines and brake lines.

Cables for the trailer probably is sufficient. or a light duty chain with good rubbers.

i just carry bungees for my rubbers, the rubber rings are good for some people but remember all rubber becomes brittle in the cold, using only one rubber ring means if it breaks it was the only thing keeping tension on the outside of the chains hence why i use bungees, that way one or two can break and i still have some tension on the outside.

:D

tire chains on the front of many SUV's will take out fender flares if you dont have enough clearance. Only time i chained up the front axle on my log truck was when things were so iced up that steering was impossible. otherwise drive axle is sufficient. As well with my pickup and a GN trailer all over CA, ID, OR, WA, UT, WY, MT and into BC never had issues with chains on drive axle and occassionally a set on the tag of the trailer creating some drag behind me.

Les schwab sells those V bar chains with the Cam tighteners. the v bars are nice on heavy icy roads. If you go with them also plan on using rubbers with the chains. some guys swear by the cam locks by themselves, but i find alot of piece of mind knowing if a cam or two loosens up that those chains are being pulled to the outside of the tire and not in towards my ABS lines and brake lines.

Cables for the trailer probably is sufficient. or a light duty chain with good rubbers.

i just carry bungees for my rubbers, the rubber rings are good for some people but remember all rubber becomes brittle in the cold, using only one rubber ring means if it breaks it was the only thing keeping tension on the outside of the chains hence why i use bungees, that way one or two can break and i still have some tension on the outside.

:D

i know what vbar chains your talking about, but rubber rings are you refering to? do you have a link to them? i like the idea of the vbars on the back and cables on the trailer. i didnt think i would need chains on the front. if i do end up needing them, i probably shouldnt be going where i am going haha. what would be better(just in case purposes) for the front, cable or vbar? i have stock tires may upgrade to a 285 but thats about it.

Honestly, you wouldn't even need chains for that, unless the law requires it. I towed a car trailer with my '89 hardbody all the time, and that weighed 2000 lbs dry. It's hauled a skid- steer around, small tractor, a few cars, etc. Just don't drive with your head up your ass and you'll be fine.

You don't want a locker under those conditions. I grew up on a farm in North Dakota, we had one four wheel drive, my little nissan. We towed throughout winter with two wheel drives all the time, never had an incident.

A wider tire doesn't really help in snow. It spreads the load out and can make things seem a little more slippery. Most snow tires are tall and skinny. Just take it easy and take precautions earlier than normal.

In addition to a lot of other good information here, I feel obligated to make a plug for the value of dedicated winter tires. The all-seasons are a compromise between everything so they are excellent at nothing. The winter tires give up a lot of comfortable handling, long life, dry traction, and quietness in order to provide the absolute best possible snow & ice traction. The trade-off is worth it. I had Bridgestone Blizzak tires on my Geo Prism during an ice storm and was able to get where I was going with confidence while watching a lot of 4x4 trucks slide helplessly into the ditch. I even climbed a hill where I was the ONLY vehicle of any type to make it to the top. There were at least 40 other vehicles slipped into the ditch that I drove past including a hot-rod F-150 with big A/T's. The downside is that I didn't take the tires off when the weather got nice and they were destroyed in 12,000 miles. I've got Blizzaks waiting to be mounted for both of my plow trucks this winter. If you only run them when you need them, it's easy to get 4 winters out of them.

Cable chains on one axle of the trailer, preferably the one with brakes if only one axle has brakes. They are light, easy to put on and take off, they are cheap and they don't take up much room.

Buy good heavy duty chains for the back axle of the tow rig. That's where all the power meets the road and lots of twist side to side from cornering. The front axle you have to use whatever fits. Cables or chains either way, just make sure they clear everything when you turn.

Buy a trailer brake controller and use a good weight distributing hitch. Keep the brakes set on the lighter mode when it's slick. You want the trailer to trail, not lock up and slide downhill.

Good luck, you have a fine setup, don't worry too much and drive careful you'll be just fine.

Honestly, you wouldn't even need chains for that, unless the law requires it. I towed a car trailer with my '89 hardbody all the time, and that weighed 2000 lbs dry. It's hauled a skid- steer around, small tractor, a few cars, etc. Just don't drive with your head up your ass and you'll be fine.

You don't want a locker under those conditions. I grew up on a farm in North Dakota, we had one four wheel drive, my little nissan. We towed throughout winter with two wheel drives all the time, never had an incident.


He's in CA and the bunch of boneheads that run the state down here require chains on all vehicles pulling tailers in the snow regardless. nothing like chains for 45-60 miles of highway

I know what you are saying. when i lived in MT and was driving A train and log truck the only times i ever needed to chain up was once off the pavement or when we had a freezing rain coat everything with several inches of ice, otherwise you just get used to it and drive accordingly. Down here they just don't understand that people really can drive without chains

With the big trucks we will occasionaly chain one steer wheel (generally the driver side) to help guide it. We usually chain both axles on the trailer in icey conditions, but on on a 80k truck you need that to stop. (Not much weight on the steer axle compared to the trailer/drive)