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In the absence of a flair system on lemmy yet, let’s try to make it easier to scan through posts by type in here by using tags:
You can tow with anything. The question becomes, how long can you tow with it. If I'm buying a car and it has a hitch on it, I'm not buying that one unless it just had a transmission put in it or I got it cheap enough that I can put a new transmission in it.
Something interesting about a camper like in the picture in Europe, to me, is where the axle is. It looks much more centered than the campers I see in the US and I have no idea why. The way the axle is in the picture certainly reduces tongue weight on the car. I wonder if the trade off is less stability at high speed? Genuinely curious!
Tongue weight in Europe (EU) is much less than in the US. In Europe it's typically 4 % of the trailer weight.
Instability at higher speeds is less of an issue in Europe, as the maximum allowed towing speed is 100 km/h. Depending on the type of trailer and country, it can also be lower. Trailers above 750 kg are always braked with overrun brakes and require an additional driver's license (class BE instead of B).
Trucks are limited to 90 km/h, buses to 100 km/h. As you can see, caravans and motorhomes in Europe fit right into the flow of other slower traffic.
Having vehicles traveling at different speeds, requires good lane discipline though. It is the law in most of Europe to drive in the rightmost lane possible, unless you are overtaking.
if you saw the sheer scope of trailers, campers, Tour Bus RV's, custom toy haulers etc that invade the coastal areas of where I live, you would realize the problem isn't the semantics of tow vehicle size. the whole "adventure camping" myth when two people bring a 800 square foot Motorcoach with a car in tow makes me want to vomit. its like a car brain with sepsis. leave your fucking house at home.