People often wonder how well there vehicle will do when towing. I have been using my Q to tow my boat to the lake four times in the last couple of weeks. I thought I'd share my experience for future reference.The rig:
- 1999 QX4, 3.3L, Auto, 125k miles. 1,200lbs of passengers and gear (mostly PBR).
- 1995 Bayliner Capri 185, approx. 3,000 lbs w/gear and fuel.
The trip to the boat ramp is only about 10 miles, but it is up hill both ways (literally). On the way there, the climb is 1,800 feet over four miles. On the way back, it is 1,200 feet over 2 miles.
In a nutshell, it performed very well. Up the steeps, it maintained 45mph and didn't heat up at all despite temps consistently in the 80's/90's. Acceleration was slow, particularly off the line, but once the RPM's got into the 3,000 range, it accelerated well. Maintaining 55 on the highway was not a problem but it should be noted that I was towing with O/D off as per the owner's manual. The suspension did show sag, but it was nothing that made it look overloaded, even with the ice chests in the back. The weight of the trailer didn't seem to affect the handling at all, although braking was affected much more than I expected.
I was happy that it did so well. It is much easier backing and parking in a crowded trailer lot with the QX4 than it is in my 2000 Chevy crew cab dually long bed. I will likely reach for the Q keys more often in the future for heading to the local lake, but for heading to our favorite camping lake 3 hours away, I'll break out the pickup.
I need it to carry my camper anyway. 
Modified by bmlawless at 3:40 PM 7/3/2009
Modified by bmlawless at 3:41 PM 7/3/2009
