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Old 11-05-2016, 10:12 PM   #1
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Towing with ML350 Diesel

Does anyone have experience towing a 19'or 21' with a Mercedes ML350 Diesel?
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Old 11-07-2016, 12:09 PM   #2
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After quite a bit of looking, here is what I found.
Max. Weight towing...7200lbs
Max. Tongue weight...575lbs

apparently europeans tow with a much lighter tongue weight 8%, so using 13% as a tongue weight, I would calculate the maximum towing weight at about 4425 lbs....
There are a ton of opinions on tongue weight...9-15% seems to be the most common range here in the US.

interesting is that the sticker on the hitch also shows the ratings for a GL 7500 and 600 tongue weight perhaps due to longer wheelbase .

I would feel comfortable with a average tongue weight of about 12%, so I thing I would limit myself to a maximum towing weight around 4800lbs.
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Old 11-07-2016, 01:39 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dan55 View Post
After quite a bit of looking, here is what I found.
Max. Weight towing...7200lbs
Max. Tongue weight...575lbs

apparently europeans tow with a much lighter tongue weight 8%, so using 13% as a tongue weight, I would calculate the maximum towing weight at about 4425 lbs....
There are a ton of opinions on tongue weight...9-15% seems to be the most common range here in the US.

interesting is that the sticker on the hitch also shows the ratings for a GL 7500 and 600 tongue weight perhaps due to longer wheelbase .

I would feel comfortable with a average tongue weight of about 12%, so I thing I would limit myself to a maximum towing weight around 4800lbs.
Correct regarding % in Europe, my VW Touareg has a tow cap of 7700 lb and a tongue weight cap of 616 lb. Sensibly you should limit yourself to the tongue weight for compliance to the vehicle manufactures specification in order to ensure you are not liable. If you have an accident while towing it could be an insurance issue if you were out of manufacturers specification, i.e. they could deny coverage. My Touareg owners manual also states not to use a WDH, if I used one the same insurance issue may arise in the event of an accident.
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Old 11-07-2016, 03:21 PM   #4
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I will have to double check my manual about the wdh...thanks for the feedback
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Old 11-07-2016, 03:52 PM   #5
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No restrictions on wdh for the ml350
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