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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / RVs / July 2005On pulling with the wrong vehicle.
I have considered purchasing a small used trailer or pop up, been looking hard at pop ups and have found a few in really good condition for low cost. I am a Tent camper but the wife and daughter have had it with the tents. The thing is, what I have to tow with. Having lurked a while and read quite a few posts on towing, veh-trailer weight ratio, stopping etc..I have to say YOU GUYS HAVE SCARED THE DOO DOO OUT OF ME! lol Just kidding, but you have made me think twice. The vehicle I have to tow with is a Plymouth Grand Voyager Mk III Conversion. Its a 3 litre 6 cylinder and I read online that the towing capacity was 2500 lbs. But thats without the conversion so obviously the towing capacity is lowered. So, with that type if vehicle is it safe to tow a popup? Will sway be a problem? Am I looking at possible transmission problems? Your group is very informative, appreciate that without all the bull you usually find on other groups. My wife and kids safety is number one with me so what do you recomend? I am looking more at a better tent. J > I have considered purchasing a small used trailer or pop up, been looking > hard at pop ups and have found a few in really good condition for low cost. > I am a Tent camper but the wife and daughter have had it with the tents. The > thing is, what I have to tow with. Having lurked a while and read quite a > few posts on towing, veh-trailer weight ratio, stopping etc..I have to say > YOU GUYS HAVE SCARED THE DOO DOO OUT OF ME! ARGH!! [sputtering, spew, etc] [ROFL] :) > you have made me think twice. Good. WAAAAAY too many wannabe trailerists forget exactly WHAT they're hauling - besides the trailer: Their "entire" net worth *AND* their entire family. Yep. Let's take some proven safety shortcuts there, fer sure. <sigh> > The vehicle I have to tow with is a > Plymouth Grand Voyager Mk III Conversion. Whoops. There goes the tow rating. :\ > Its a 3 litre 6 cylinder and I read online that the towing capacity was > 2500 lbs. But thats without the conversion so obviously the towing capacity > is lowered. So, with that type if vehicle is it safe to tow a popup? Sure. Just keep SIZE and weight of the popup FOREMOST in mind. Unless you can UPGRADE to a more capable tow vehicle, you would do well to constrain yourself to an 8-ft popup. (Coleman Taos, Starcraft Meteor, etc). With only three people (so far), such a camper will be a WELCOME change from sleeping on the ground in a tent. Sell Mrs. on the SAFETY aspect of sticking to a small trailer and she'll love you even more! > Will sway be a problem? Not if you load the camper properly with the heavy stuff in FRONT of the trailer axle. A more likely issue will be rear end SAG on the minivan. Air-adjustable shock absorbers are a reasonably cost-effective fix for that. > Am I looking at possible transmission problems? Possible? Sure. Always. Given that, if you are are conscientious about vehicle maintenance and DO NOT exceed the tow rating, you should be good to go. > Your group is very informative, appreciate that > without all the bull you usually find on other groups. Oops. I forgot the requisite bull: Your mother wears combat boots. <grin> > My wife and kids safety is number one with me OK, pal. Print that line and SHOW it to her. Too many women don't realize that we actually DO care about safety. We just don't like to SHOW it too much - the whole wimpy vs. macho thing, ya know... > so what do you recomend? I am looking more at a better tent. A better tent is NOT a bad choice, given the vehicle you would be towing with. Waaaay back when, I special-ordered a brand new Chevy station wagon, equipped to tow a top-of-the-line Starcraft popup. We tented-it (big time) using the station wagon for five YEARS until the car was paid for. I then bought the popup camper of my dreams - big (huge) with every option except an air conditioner (it's a tent - sheesh!) and a shower (floorspace too valuable). In order to "do it" safely/properly with the conversion minivan, you are relegated to all but the smallest popup camping trailer. Consider your family plan: Three will pretty much fill a (i.e.) Coleman Taos. Four would likely be a bit much, IMHO. Then again, getting "off the ground" is a VERY GOOD thing in any case. Good luck! :) JR Which transmission do you have? The 3-speed or the 4-speed overdrive? I would be afraid to do much towing with the 4-speed. I've got a 92 Caravan with the 3-speed (and 3.0 v6) that has almost 180k miles on it...I bought it used at 84k and I'm guess it probably never had any transmission work done on it before I got it, and I haven't done anything other than a few routine fluid changes. The ones I hear of giving trouble are the 4-speeds. Having learned to drive and tow in a full-size Ford van (towed a 21' travel trailer with it when I was 16 years old), and now towing with an Isuzu Trooper, the Caravan (at least mine) never really gave me the feel of a strong tow vehicle. I've never put a hitch on it, and with this many miles, I certainly won't now. :-) If you keep it light and take it easy, you could probably get away with it. Might want to consider an auxilliary transmission cooler. I've done that with both our Isuzu Troopers that we use for towing - I figure it's cheap insurance. Wesley > I have considered purchasing a small used trailer or pop up, been looking > hard at pop ups and have found a few in really good condition for low cost. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > J >So, with that type if vehicle is >it safe to tow a popup? Will sway be a problem? Am I looking at possible >transmission problems? Your group is very informative, appreciate that >without all the bull you usually find on other groups. My wife and kids >safety is number one with me so what do you recomend? I am looking more at a >better tent. Conventional wisdom is that the longer wheelbase a vehicle has, the more stable it is when towing. A minivan is generally best when transporting people, not towing a trailer. People do tow with minivans. Some have good experiences, some do not. A good alternative to a minivan would be a full-size van. Models such as the Ford E-250 make excellent people movers and tow vehicles. They are built on a truck chassis and have the long wheelbase. And once your family gets a taste of the RV lifestyle, there will probably be a hardsided trailer in your future. 8-) Mark Filice 2004 Homestead Settler 255RS 1999 Chevrolet Suburban 2500 If you plan on killing your tow vehicle (TV), consider towing something. We have a 2500 lb popup. We had a "truck" SUV with a 5,000 lb tow capacity. It did not like to go up hill in VT. We have a 6,800 lb TV now, w/ almost double the torque & 50% more hp power. Much better. I had a friend kill a mini van transmission w/ a pop up. My recommendation: do not do it unless it is lite and you live in FL. K > I have considered purchasing a small used trailer or pop up, been looking > hard at pop ups and have found a few in really good condition for low cost. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > J MAX towing capacity of 2500 lbs should translate to a practical limit of about 1500 lbs., total. Don't forget gear. A load equalizing hitch and sway bar will go a long way towards driver comfort. I have finally worked my way up to a Silverado 2500HD Diesel 4-door, long bed truck. Makes for a lot more security when going down the road with the trailer. |
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