Regardless if you drive like a idiot you're going to be In trouble no matter the tow vehicle and I believe that's what happened in that situation
I commented the original FB post. The cayenne (S/turbo) are fairly capable tow vehicles BUT hitch weight is only 640lbs so that camper was way too big. Also the trim (wheels) leads to assume it might not have had the air suspension. the short wheelbase and distance from rear axle to hitch make for a really iffy towing experience with anything over 6x12 can be covered up by wdh and sway bar but still a big problem especially when the trailer is not loaded well (weight behind axles) shame though. The RV boom thanks to covid will keep bringing shit like this up. saw a VW atlas yesterday, hopelessly squatted by the (single axle) camper behind it. How can people go on a trip like that?
I rented a Coachman Clipper 17FQ (17 foot box, 20.5 overall length, 3000lb weight and 330lb tongue empty, 7' width). Towed just as easy and less rear sag vs. my 6x12 v-nose with 2 bikes in it. Pretty sure you could go bigger without issue, but as you state, watch the tongue weight and probably keep the overall length under 25 feet. In my opinion, the short distance from the hitch to the rear axle actually helps stability of the tow vehicle. A swaying trailer has a shorter lever arm to move the tow vehicle. Also, you need to make sure you are using a short enough hitch ball adaptor. VW sells the right length, but most aftermarket are a bit long. The extra 250lb curb weight for my TDI over the V6 gas motor probably helps a bit too. An Atlas is a completely different and lighter chassis and isn't up to the towing that the Treg, Cayenne, and Q7 can do. The 5000lb tow rating and wimpy feeling doors reflect that the Atlas is just a tall station wagon. I wouldn't want to take that wimpy Atlas chassis off road either.
yeah you are probably right about the shorter distance from ball to axle helping. i just always found it twitchy. maybe i should have tried a WDH with it. we currently tow a 30ft camper (light build) with a GLS 450 and it's a better towing experience than it used to be with my RAM 1500 . WDH and sway bar... rarely go over 70. much thirstier than the ecodiesel but comfy and pulling nice and straight. good wdh setup and hitting the scales every time we leave helps.
An Atlas is built on top of the same chassis as the Golf, so yeah, it's not an off-roader or competent towing machine. Minivan FTW
Towed horses with a Buick enclave and now have the Telluride. The Kia is a slightly smaller vehicle but pulls much better pretty close to 5k lbs with a couple of money eaters on board.
I spent a month in Europe. The cars they tow with over there....you’d have a coronary. and worst of all is the vehicles are already dangerously underpowered 4 cyl diesels for the most part