[Kirtsinger]

So I found the answer to my question after doing more researching since I posted this.
I finally got the answer to many questions on here about the self leveling suspension AND the tow rates for the 2011 and 2012 Armada, so here it is.
The SV 2WD can tow up to 8200 lbs.
The SV 4WD can only tow up to 6500 lbs.
The self leveling suspension is ONLY available to the SL and Platinum series
which allows those two vehicles to tow up to 9000 lbs.
That's a real bummer for the SV. Especially since the 2WD can tow more than the 4WD.
The SV is available with a factory tow package which adds only the rear hitch and trans cooler instrument cluster. It's missing the self leveling suspension and the different gear ratio that would allow the 9000 lbs tow capacity.
I can't believe how hard it was to find this info.
Some review websites say the self leveling is available to the SV, but this is in fact wrong.

 

[Kirtsinger]

I just wanted to make a correction to my findings. What i posted as max tow capacity of 6500 lbs is for the 2012 SV 4WD only.
The 2011 SV 4WD has a max tow of 9000 lbs and the 2WD is 9100 lbs.
Sorry for any confusion I may have caused.
The self-leveling suspension is still only for the SL and above trim for both years though.

 

[Kirtsinger]

I found it on the Nissan corp. forum I think it's called Nissan help.
Also got some info from my owners manual and the Nissan USA website.
If you have a leveler you can see the two air tanks inside your left rear quarter panel. Take a look. You can't miss it.

 

[Kirtsinger]

It's definitely a complicated system. The tow ability ranges so much between the year and models.
Thankfully any 2011 Armada with factory tow package can tow up to 9,100 for 4X2 and 9,000 for 4X4 no matter if it has auto leveling or not. Auto leveling is just a luxory item that comes with SE and Platinum models.
I have a 2011 4X4 SV and I have verified this with my owners manual and the assembly plant in MS.

 

[Kirtsinger]

I can't speak of any other model years because I didn't do as much extensive research.
Any 2011 Armada with a factory tow package (which does not include self leveling on the SV model) can tow up to 9100 for 2X4 and 9000 for 4X4. I got this from my owners manual and from talking to customer relations at the manufacturing plant in MS who said that the self leveling is a luxury item for the SE and Platinum models which does not improve the tow capacity.
I feel like i'm repeating myself a lot on this post.
The factory "tow package" for a 2011 SV is just the factory installed hitch. For the 2011 SE and Platinum it adds the self leveling.
The way my owners manual words it is that if you use the trailer ball your tow capacity is 6500lb and if you have the factory installed trailer hitch I can tow 9000lb. This was verified by the plant rep in MS via phone call. I called to verify incase I was misunderstanding what the owners manual was saying. I didn't ask about any other year model.

I admit that either the wrong info keeps getting passed around the internet or the different year models are very different in their tow capacity.

Check out this link where another person did pretty much the same research I did.

http://x.nissanhelp.com/forums/armada/18106-2011-sv-tow-package.html


As far as the axle gear ratio being part of the tow package is not true.
After doing more research which I am done with now, I'm tired of researching Here are the axle gear ratios for every year Armada except for 2012:

2004-2008 Models
SE/LE 2WD- 2.937
SE w Off Road Package/LE 4WD- 3.357

2009 Models
2WD- 2.937
4WD- 3.357

2010 Models
SE 2WD- 2.937
SE 4WD- 3.357
Titanium/Platinum 2WD- 3.357
Titanium/Platinum 4WD- 3.357

2011 Models
SV 2WD- 2.937
SV 4WD- 2.937
SL/Platinum 2WD- 2.937
SL/Platinum 4WD- 3.357

As you can see there are many changes with final gear ratios after year 2008. I have no idea of the actual tow capacity of any model outside of the 2011 model. You will have to do your own research on that.
I just wanted to show that there is plenty of wrong info about the Armada tow capacity, especially on this forum.
Do your research on official literature and websites, don't use forums like this one if your trying to get very technical info. They are full of opinions, assumptions, and word of mouth info.
I mean no disrespect here. I just want to make sure people are getting the correct info because it's important to be safe when towing.

 

[Kirtsinger]

I'm not one to argue with a stranger on a web forum so I'll leave this post with this and walk away.
My owners manual and an official at the manufacturing plant says the 2011 SV 4WD can tow 9000lb without self leveling suspension.
Everything on my very last post is a fact according to an official person, official literature, and manufacturing websites.
The web address you posted is for the 2012 model only..... nice try.
Take care and have a good one.

 

[Kirtsinger]

Thanks Pops. That tow sounds like you were happy to get to where you were going.
My Armada will never tow anything up to anywhere near that size.