Hi, New guy here with a 2011 SV Premium Package Rogue in Black, with 250 miles, and so far I'm veeeery impressed with this vehicle....I'll post more on the pros and cons after a couple of thousand on the clock. For now I have a question regarding how much weight this car can move down the road. Is there a difference between towing 1500#s with 1 adult in the car, verses towing 1000#s with 4 adults in the car. The towing limit as you all know on the 2011 is 1000#s, but having 4 adults in the car at the same time is still moving 1800#s.....give-or-take. Can anyone clear this up, please. Essentially I'm hoping I can tow 1500#s with only myself as the driver in the car. I would appreciate any comments....Thanks ,Ralph

This is a simple one to answer:

Page 9-19 and 9-20 of your owners manual describes how to calculate the towing capacity and tongue load for your vehicle. Just follow the examples. If you are unable to weigh your vehicle (Gross Vehicle Weight), then use the published curb weights and factor in yourself + cargo + passengers to get you 'in the ballpark'.

You can find the curb weights published on the Nissan USA website:

http://www.nissanusa.com

I read somewhere, can't remember where, that Nissan will gladly attach a towing package to your Rogue, but if you tow, they won't honor the warranty for cvt vehicles....is this true?

PlatinumGraphite wrote:I read somewhere, can't remember where, that Nissan will gladly attach a towing package to your Rogue, but if you tow, they won't honor the warranty for cvt vehicles....is this true?

Not that I am aware of.

The extended CVT warranty has the same conditions as the original warranty. Read your warranty booklet for what's covered and any exclusions.

No, not according to my dealer anyway. I asked and they said that it wasn't even possible to add a "tow package", for some reason adding an auxilliary trans cooler was not possible or more likely just not recommended as it might provide a false sense of confidence and towing of excessively heavy loads could lead to CVT damage.

I sure wished it was something we could at least have as an option for upgrade, but you can't have everything I guess!

Yeah, one of the big things I had to consider was towing because I have a small boat. I really wanted a towing vehicle because I've always been used to that, but gas mileage won out. I originally went to Nissan for an x-terra, but the milage wasn't all that much better than what I was getting in the huge truck, so I started looking at others. I do remember the salesman saying he would never recommend towing with a cvt, so I didn't bother to get the hitch. I'll just use my ancient Rodeo for the boat until it goes to SUV heaven.

Thanks philipa for your help, but I can not find the actual Gross Combined Weight Rating ( GCWR ) anywhere on the vehicle. The information in the owners manual is only an example for calculating purposes. The actual Gross Vehicle Weight ( GVWR ) rating on the door sticker is 4526#'s, so can I safely assume the the GCWR is 5526#s since the car is rated to tow 1000#s. Not so sure this is very clear???

11NR wrote:Thanks philipa for your help, but I can not find the actual Gross Combined Weight Rating ( GCWR ) anywhere on the vehicle.

It's also on pg 9-21 of your owners manual:

GROSS COMBINED WEIGHT RATING (GCWR) without manual/paddle shift mode: 5,136lb (2,329kg)
*Note: Manual shift models were not available in the USA for 2011

The curb weight of the 2011 Rogue from the Nissan USA website:

S AWD: 3,428lb
SV AWD: 3,479lb
S FWD: 3,276lb
SV FWD: 3,329lb

Simply add up the curb weight + driver + passengers + cargo then subtract from the GCWR and you have your vehicle 'capacity'. It's quite easy to have a vehicle + 1500lb trailer + driver.

Ideally, you should still not exceed the recommended towing capacity of 1,000lb but it gives you an idea what the maximum vehicle 'capacity' is. This is especially important for a fully loaded vehicle + trailer as it is quite easy to exceed the GCWR which could be a traffic offence in some jurisdictions.

Basically, what philipa said is spot-on. Ideally no more than 1000 lbs, but you could probably go to 1500 lbs without much of an issue so long as you are under the GCWR.
I tow about 1600-1700 lbs with my Rogue at least once a week in the winter (6 months of the year here) without issue. (a 2-place snowmobile trailer with a giant 'salt shield' which just acts as a massive wind-catch, so tow load is probably even more) However, mine is rated to 1500 lbs due to the auxiliary transmission cooler. Since I'm over, I try to make sure I'm under the GCWR. I usually only have 1 other passenger in the vehicle (if any). Towing regularly does take a toll on the stock brakes though. Just started towing this winter, and will definitely have to have a brake job done this summer.

Would I have any issues on wear and tear on the Rogue if I tow a small utility trailer with a 4 wheeler or a sled?

Jostudly, if you stay within the Guidelines that Philipa_240sx pointed out for us you'll be ok, but you'll have to calculate the weights and decide for yourelf. There is too much variation in trailers, quads and skidoos to be able to answer your question without knowing specific weights.

Jostudly wrote:Would I have any issues on wear and tear on the Rogue if I tow a small utility trailer with a 4 wheeler or a sled?

If you're within your limits with a proper hitch setup, and a balanced, properly loaded trailer, etc; brakes are the only item that'll wear significantly faster. Of course it depends how often you tow the trailer, what kind of traffic it's towed in, speeds it's being towed, etc.
As for long-term items, the rear shocks would probably wear a bit faster, rear tires would probably wear a tad faster, etc. You'd want to make sure to rigidly stick to your maintenance schedule as well...in fact, I should call today to arrange my next appointment...

Also, for reference, here's my various towing weights:

2-place aluminum trailer: ~500 lbs (steel would be significantly more)
My 1998 Yamaha Mountain Max 700 snowmobile: 515 lbs dry
My 2006 Arctic Cat M7 snowmobile: 470 lbs dry.
They each have about 11 gallon tanks, and gasoline weighs ~6 lbs, so add another 132 lbs for gas. Then, add another 80 lbs (for two sleds) for snow retention if you keep them outside and don't let them thaw out after each run like I have to do.
So, about 1700 lbs for my setup, or 200 lbs over my limit. (I have the paddle shifters, so I have the auxiliary transmission cooler which allows for a 1500 lb tow limit)

But, I'm always under my GCWR. (see Philipa's post above for explanation...don't forget to factor in gas for GCWR!)

So, you can probably get some good guess numbers from that information to determine your load.

Well some people will kill me for this but I figure I'm using what I have instead of going out and buying out a bigger car.


The boat is about 2500 lbs loaded, during the summer we take the boat out to the lake 2-3 times a week. The road out to the ramp is about 5 miles and the rogue has no issues.
Not once has the AWD slips when pulling the boat out of the lake.

Again, I wouldn't do this for 100+ miles but for 5 miles ride to the lake, my SL AWD rogue got no probs.

Wow! And I thought I probably towed the most with my Rogue... :p
At least you're only doing it 5 miles each way, so the strain is minimal...all in-town speeds/driving, I take it?
I usually end up doing at least 120 miles/day towing, up to 250 miles/day.

Also, nice boat!

Yes mostly 30-40mph, I change the oil and rotate the tires every 5k miles, no ill effects so far.

I'm also using a class 2 hitch with 2" receiver, towing with Overdrive OFF. The AWD ROCKS pulling the boat out of the water though

Towing cap of a 2011: 1000 lbs (it is 1000 for the newer ones since they no longer have paddle shifters and thus, no aux. transmission cooler, right?)
Dry weight of their lightest 'Flight Swift SLX' trailer: 2300 lbs+

I wonder how fun a 5 mile away camping trip could be...

I have a Rogue S FWD 2011, and I'm want to buy a Pontoon Boat 18" with a trailer (w/brakes) which has a weight of 2300lbs aprox.
Any ideas?

Welcome to the NICOClub Rogue Forums usatincho!

To answer your question...

I would not recommend towing a 2300lb boat+trailer. You would be WAY over the GCWR (Gross Combined Weight Rating). Igg gets away with it, but there are a few issues:

- The vehicle is not 'legal' to drive as it is over the GCWR. If caught, you would be facing a fine or worse.
- The transmission was never designed to tow such loads. The lack of a transmission oil cooler on later model (non-paddle/manual shift) Rogue's only compound this problem. Start towing long distance or hilly areas and you're asking for expensive transmission repairs.

Yeah, towing that 2300 lbs would be a bad idea. If you need to tow that regularly, it's time to get a different vehicle. But if just towing it down the street or something, you MIGHT be okay. However, pulling the boat out of the landing...I wouldn't try it. You need another vehicle to tow that load.

Thanks philipa_240sx and Nick 568.
I sent a email to Nissan, yesterday and I'm still waiting for the answer, but this forum alreday answered my question.


Thank you!


Martin.

I just installed a Curt hitch (crappy fit btw, had to be ground to fit around the exhaust hangers) and I have the tow ready plug in harness for the lighting.

I'll be towing my Jet ski- ultra 150- 613 lbs dry with it. Trailer should be around 150 plus gear and all that.

My car is an 08 SL AWD. I should be well under the towing capacity of 1500 lbs with this car.

Any thoughts on how well the Rogue does in towing? Any tips to use ? (shifting, manual mode, etc)

Towing a Motorcycle With Our Rogue

New guy with weight limit question

Towing w/ FWD

DIY: Trailer Bearing Replacement & Repacking

i tow over 1,000 lbs, and its just fine. i use the paddle shifters

Paddle shift during the entire time? Does it do ok in Auto mode- that is, does the CVT respond well to the additional load and gear properly making the extra weight not too noticeable?

i tow about 1500lbs.
500lb trailer + 500lb bike, and about another 500lbs in gear. lets just say it has its moments where i find paddle shifting to be convenient.

left alone, it will do fine, but on the highways i find paddle shifting a good idea because naturally this tranny wants to drop the RPM by shifting too high, to quick.

where are the paddle shifters located?

Does anybody know if I can put the extra tranny fan from a SL with towing kit (1500lbs) to my regular 08 SL AWD....???? Or another way to cool transmission so I will be able to tow 1500 lbs..... thanks !

07phil wrote:Does anybody know if I can put the extra tranny fan from a SL with towing kit (1500lbs) to my regular 08 SL AWD....???? Or another way to cool transmission so I will be able to tow 1500 lbs..... thanks !

there is no tranny fan. its just a tiny radiator. yes you can - but you might void your warranty on the spot

Deenyc86 wrote:where are the paddle shifters located?

On either side of the steering wheel. They were only on the '08 and '09 models.

Anyone have any idea what the towing capacity of the 2014 Rogue will be? What is the current Rogue rated at?

Current model is 1,000lbs. Given the new platform, and the fact that the powertrain is basically the same, I wouldn't expect it to change.