Towing 2200 pounds trailer with Curt hitch on A4 Golf?

Got a 2003 A4 Golf with Curt hitch and a John Deere 1023E tractor to haul home. Empty weight of the tractor is 1345 pounds, too much for my piece of crap Carry-On trailer that's only rated for 1500 pound and shows it. I've got another much beefier trailer, a 12 by 6 foot ShoreLander flatbed that's rated for 2200 pounds load and 3000 pounds GVW. Problem is, it's heavy- 660 pounds stripped down with the loading ramp and sideboards off! The Golf was rated by VW's U.S. lawyers for 1000 pounds towed weight, 1650 pounds and 165 pounds tongue weight with unbraked trailer in Europe, and Curt rates their hitch for 200 pounds tongue weight and 2000 pounds total trailer weight.

I'm gonna have to put some plywood on the trailer floor to spread the weight of the tractor, and the tractor will have another hundred pounds or so of mounts for the front end loader added, and I should fill up it's 5 gallon tank on the way home= 2100 to 2200 pounds loaded trailer weight and maybe pushing the 200 pound tongue weight limit by a bit too.

So has anyone towed this much weight with just a Curt hitch on an A4? On one hand I'm thinking that the Curt's weight limits are crudely translated from metric and 220 pounds (100 kilograms) tongue weight and 2200# (1000 kg.) total trailer weight are what the hitch is really good for, and I should quit worrying. On the other hand, maybe I should run over to Fleet Farm and lay out the whole $450 for their 4 by 8 no floor 2000 pound rated trailer and a sheet of 3/4 inch plywood for the floor- That'd weight about 300 pounds and keep me below the Curt hitch's 2000 pound weight rating.

Any opinions?

just drive gentle and you'll be fine
golfs actually tow real nice, with the hitch so close to the rear axle it doesn't whip the car around as easily

My opinion is that you're too heavy with the setup you describe. At least I would judge it so if it were my rig. If you just need a one-way transport, and you are contemplating dropping $450 for a new trailer, would you consider just renting a pickup truck from somewhere to use with your ShoreLander? Waaay less expensive, and safer in this case.

I'm 70 miles from the nearest place that might rent a pickup. I have a Ford Ranger, but trying to replace rusted out brake lines on it... Major hassle!

You don't say how far you need to tow the tractor/trailer. With any towing, brakes are the most important thing. Then comes the driver of the tow rig and road conditions.

Clearly, you have used the Golf and both your trailers before. So you have a fair idea how they perform. I say make your own judgement and go with it.

Make sure you have lots of tongue weight, so you can control the trailer better. Keep your speed down and your following distance way up.

The other thing you can do: Take that $450 and fix the Ranger's brakes properly. Then use the Ranger to do your towing.

This is a 5 mile tow and I'll time it for dry roads, and it's paved rural 2 lane unless I take the gravel roads. Problem with the Ranger is the brake lines are rusting out and failing, replaced the rears a couple years back and now the fronts are failing. They're a PIT to replace- The one from the right front crosses under the engine to a junction block where it meets the lines to the left front and master cylinder. So far I haven't even figured out how to get the old line out of there, probably have to cut it into at least two pieces and then make a new line out of several pieces.

I have installed the european hitch on my Golf so I am familiar with what you are trying to do. The Bosal hitch is much stronger than the Curt. The Curt is attached to sheet metal and would probably rip out carrying that much weight. IMHO you would be crazy to try that much weight with a Golf and be a danger to others. Hire it done or get a UHaul pickup and car trailer.

Nothing wrong with the Bosal hitch, it's clearly "factory" and a lot cleaner install. It's rated for more towed weight (1500 kg. vs. 900 kg.) than the Curt, but the Curt is rated for more hitch weight (75kg vs. 90 kg.). Then again, Curt is only rating their hitch, not the VW body it's attached to, though I've heard of no Curt hitches being pulled out of their attached VW.

To be honest, the difference in hitch ratings amazes me- While the rest of the world rates in metric units, in 2017 the SAE is still maintaining a backward standard for vehicle and hitch tow ratings in pounds! No wonder the rest of the world thinks we're stupid...

Warming up the shop while I wait for the frost to melt and drain off the Ranger so I can bring it in and try to fix the brakes. No easy task- looks like Ford installed the brake line on the chassis first, then put the engine on top of it. Too bad VW wasn't selling trucks here when I bought the Ranger in 1997...

For 5 miles rural with next to no traffic and hopefully no steep hills, lots of people would redneck the sucker and do it. Make sure you are not over the hitch tongue weight rating and take it easy. Just beware that if the cops see what you are up to, they would be quite justified in writing you a ticket.

Can the tractor not make it on its own? Around here, a tractor with a slow moving vehicle sign on it is exempt from a lot of the rules ...

That's "plan B"- drive the tractor home! The main road home is flat with a 55 MPH limit and little traffic, but the shoulder's pretty narrow so I wouldn't try it with a tractor. But there's some gravel roads I could take, about a mile longer but little traffic. On the other hand, I looked under the rear of the Golf and the hitch and it's mountings look great after 10 years and at least 10k miles of use- No signs of failure or of the hitch pulling out of the body. I've moved 2000 pounds total trailer weight around the yard before and 1000 to 1500 pounds several times, even hooked a trailer to it to push the 4000 pound Ranger into the shop once 'cause the bumpers didn't match... Looks like the Curt hitch and it's mountings are certainly good for their 2000 pound towed/200 pound hitch rated weights.

gearheadgrrrl said:

This is a 5 mile tow and I'll time it for dry roads, and it's paved rural 2 lane unless I take the gravel roads. Problem with the Ranger is the brake lines are rusting out and failing, replaced the rears a couple years back and now the fronts are failing. They're a PIT to replace- The one from the right front crosses under the engine to a junction block where it meets the lines to the left front and master cylinder. So far I haven't even figured out how to get the old line out of there, probably have to cut it into at least two pieces and then make a new line out of several pieces.

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when I did the lines in my ranger I ran the new one across on the firewall up out of the salt

it was only rear ABS though, so you might have some extra complexity
don't gotta pull the old line out, it'll happily rot away where it sits undisturbed

This is a '98 with rear ABS only, so a bit less complex. Finally got the lines out and the fittings they screw into look OK. Had to cut the one under the engine in the middle to wiggle it out, I doubt I can very well duplicate it's 22 curves! Wonder if you're Ranger is like mine- No rust through in the cab, box, or front end so it looks great, but the underside is rotting away? Tempted to retire the Ranger after this repair, there's a bunch of other fluid lines and parts underneath that look ready to break next, only way to make it reliable would be to take the body off and go through everything.

heh on mine (a '90, twin I beam front) the front spring buckets rusted off along with a rear cab mount, then the rear leaf spring hangers went, then when I was putting a tonner rear under it I noticed that next to the fuel tank the frame had rotted out from dirt and leaves accumulating in between the tank and the c-section frame rail

Pretty much replaced from the cab back with c-channel and drove it another few hundred miles before tearing into it again to fit a 7.3 IDI, scrapped it when I couldn't get a front axle under it without it being lower than 2 feet to the rockers.

Curt rates their hitch for 200 pounds tongue weight and 2000 pounds total trailer weight.

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That rating has nothing to do with what your car can tow. It's a generic class rating for the hitch itself.

Mourning the retirement of my Ranger today...

[486] said:

heh on mine (a '90, twin I beam front) the front spring buckets rusted off along with a rear cab mount, then the rear leaf spring hangers went, then when I was putting a tonner rear under it I noticed that next to the fuel tank the frame had rotted out from dirt and leaves accumulating in between the tank and the c-section frame rail

Pretty much replaced from the cab back with c-channel and drove it another few hundred miles before tearing into it again to fit a 7.3 IDI, scrapped it when I couldn't get a front axle under it without it being lower than 2 feet to the rockers.

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Thought I'd just replace the front brake lines, fill and bleed, and good to go with the big trailer. Ford doesn't supply brake lines (anymore), so I ended up with "will fit" lines from the local auto parts emporium. Don't fit worth a crap, front wheels are rusted to the hubs so I have to work around them, etc.. Then I start noticing how rusted everything else is, and they gave me a line with the wrong fittings, etc. (Ford liked to mix metric and english parts just for fun), and the whole job got rather depressing. After spending half the day not accomplishing anything, I decided it's time to retire the Ranger to the back corner 0'the back yard, even after I get the right brake lines and get them fitted. Gonna buy the 4 by 8 trailer monday, hook it to the A4 Golf, and I ain't lookin' back.

Just for ****s and giggles, I looked it up and I can get new exact duplicate brake lines for my VWs... Despite being a Ford stockholder, I may not be replacing my A5 Sportswagen with a Ford. In Ford's defense, unlike VW they at least rate everything bigger than a Focus for towing.

Pfft! It's five miles. Drive slow. Keep your hazard lights on. Be careful. Do nothing special besides that.

Source: I've towed 3300lbs with a 1999.5 Jetta on a self-installed uHaul hitch.

Yup, with the smaller trailer the total towed weight should be down to around 1800-1900 pounds, I've pulled 1600 pounds with the A4 before with no problems, so should be OK. I like my "big" 6' by 12' flatbed trailer, but the lightest I can get it down to is 660 pounds, and it's a hair over 8' wide so it catches more wind and drags the fuel economy down. Nice for wide stuff like motorcycles with sidecars, but I prefer the smaller 4' by 8' flatbed 'cause it doesn't stick out any wider that the VW and I barely notice it's back there. My current 4 by 8 is beat up and is only rated for 1500 pounds, and I'm due for a new one anyway!

@gearheadgrrl, I see your in Minnesota.. check out http://www.spacetrailers.com, Ive had one 4 years, 2 sets of tires and ~40k miles now and f'n love it.. they are local to you.

The tow rating in North America for these cars is a joke! They are very capable cars but keep in mind that the brakes will need more time to slow down!

Too many lawyers running the auto manufacturers! My owners manual doesn't even list a tow rating just "N/A at time of printing".

We are pulling a 2,000 lbs. RV trailer. The beetle does a good job with that.

It's funny that you can get a 5,000 lbs tow rating on a Mitsubishi SUV. What's with that? A Civic or Corolla are listed at 1,500 lbs. tow rating. VW choses to not publish any tow values except for its big SUV's.

It comes down to common sense, watch the tongue weight so you don't go over 200 lbs. on that hitch. Take it slow.

gearheadgrrrl said:

Thought I'd just replace the front brake lines, fill and bleed, and good to go with the big trailer. Ford doesn't supply brake lines (anymore), so I ended up with "will fit" lines from the local auto parts emporium. Don't fit worth a crap, front wheels are rusted to the hubs so I have to work around them, etc.. Then I start noticing how rusted everything else is, and they gave me a line with the wrong fittings, etc. (Ford liked to mix metric and english parts just for fun), and the whole job got rather depressing. After spending half the day not accomplishing anything, I decided it's time to retire the Ranger to the back corner 0'the back yard, even after I get the right brake lines and get them fitted. Gonna buy the 4 by 8 trailer monday, hook it to the A4 Golf, and I ain't lookin' back.

Just for ****s and giggles, I looked it up and I can get new exact duplicate brake lines for my VWs... Despite being a Ford stockholder, I may not be replacing my A5 Sportswagen with a Ford. In Ford's defense, unlike VW they at least rate everything bigger than a Focus for towing.

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Why would you buy prebent brake lines?
get a coil of the nickel copper **** and ziptie it to whatever
try and remember the line nuts when you flare it

Cute trailer, but...

nayr said:

@gearheadgrrl, I see your in Minnesota.. check out http://www.spacetrailers.com, Ive had one 4 years, 2 sets of tires and ~40k miles now and f'n love it.. they are local to you.

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Only 1000 pounds capacity and my tractor weights 1400-1500 pounds. Kinda overpriced too- close to $3k by the time you add sales tax and delivery!

Here's what I'm getting: https://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/bi...iler/0000000082049?bc=11928|11994|11995|11997

Add a sheet of treated plywood for a floor and some removable sides if you like. Made 50 miles from me in Springfield, Minnesota and beefier than the Carry-On trailers with a Dexter axle you can get bearings for anywhere, unlike Carry-On's oddball Chinese axle (don't ask how I know). Not cute, but does the job at a bargain price.

oh Ive towed it at 1500lbs no problem @ 80mph, its Achilles heel is it dont like alot of tongue weight and needs to be well balanced w/ballast or whatever, not that our cars can take alot of tongue weight anyhow.. Ive added a few pices of angle iron to mine to strengthen the front and let me put more on the tounge.. I got the extended tongue version.. the axle is rated for a ton IIRC.

I bought it for its long distance capabilities largely, keeps all my crap dry and clean when we travel.. slipstreams well and dont hurt mpg's all that much; 36mpg @ 75mph in my CR2.0.. but ive stacked it with tree branches 10ft high and loaded it down with brick, dirt, shingles, garbage, appliances etc..

I rented one from em for a couple weekends and they refunded it when I bought one.. seems kinda expensive until you start pricing enclosed trailers that somewhat aerodynamic... the fuel saved from driving a big truck all over the country paid for its self already.

just suggesting it since they are local and you can see em in person..

Not worth it for such low capacity...

Looks like a trailer made for the Prius People... Expensive and doesn't haul a lot. If you want enclosed, just put one or more of the rooftop cargo boxes on a flatbed trailer, you can even mount the Thule or Yakima crossbars on a flatbed trailer and add whatever carriers and such that will clamp to them. I've got a setup like that on a flatbed sidecar, usually carry the smallest Thule cargo box on it and the added wind drag is barely noticable.

let me know when you see a prius pulling something w/gas/fridge/solar/ham radio and enough camping gear a family of 3 that dont need to resupply on a 2 week trip.. it holds more than several roof top cargo boxes, and I can still put one of those on top but im saving that spot for a canoe.. while still being able to pickup buildng materials and other stuff



but whatever.. enjoy your lil flatbed, you know you can get that from harbor freight for $300 on sale

OK, I'll concede that you have the koolest trailer on earth. But I need to haul stuff, and is that box even 8 feet long? As for the harbor freight junk, I know enough to avoid that ilk.

If you want to regularly tow 1400-1500lbs, you might consider something like this 5x8:


The trailer's max load capacity is: 2,800lbs and it has its own disc brakes. It rolls on 14" tires, and the entire frame is galvanized.

As for placing a Thule box on an empty utility trailer. Be very wary of doing that on a trailer sprung for serious weight. I broke the latch out of the Thule box pictured here with it riding on the tongue of the trailer pictured here during the 2000 mile return trip. The box was empty, and so was the trailer.

I was able to close the hatch with the seats uncomfortably far forward

you'll be fine

where2 said:

If you want to regularly tow 1400-1500lbs, you might consider something like this 5x8:


The trailer's max load capacity is: 2,800lbs and it has its own disc brakes. It rolls on 14" tires, and the entire frame is galvanized.

As for placing a Thule box on an empty utility trailer. Be very wary of doing that on a trailer sprung for serious weight. I broke the latch out of the Thule box pictured here with it riding on the tongue of the trailer pictured here during the 2000 mile return trip. The box was empty, and so was the trailer.

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What brand is this?

TomJD said:

What brand is this?

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Continental: UT5828B

Nice trailer, problem is it weights 700 pounds empty.