Request advice, Crown Vic and Trailer

[Happy Camper]

I have seen the future, in the past...



The long long trailer

 

[user 423]

LOL. An old Merc with drum brakes. Wheeeeee....

 

[bullfrog]

I don't actually. I avoid interstates and cities and yes I stay in remote areas of Utah, Colorado and Arizona even though I am pulling half of the recommended weight the stopping distance of older vehicles just isn't good enough to warrent taking chances. I'm sure a 2007 CV with over 200,000 miles isn't capable of stopping as good as it was new but compare it's stopping distance to a Tesla or any new small car, now add a little bit due to the fact most electric brakes take a little time to activate and sometimes are not effective like on wet roads. If you are traveling through Utah on the interstate the speed limit is 80 miles per hour, even the back roads are 65 miles per hour and that is on open range which is why I travel them in daylight at 55 miles per hour. Would I travel on the interstate in Utah at 80 miles per hour in a 2007 CV with 200,000 miles on it? Probably if traffic was light, would I recommend towing an additional 1,000 lbs. above the recommended towing weight at the time it was new at highway speeds up and down the mountain on that interstate? Nope! Would I drive through a major city with that loaded trailer? Nope! Would I be shocked if someone driving a 2007 CV pulling a trailer that was overloaded by 1,000 lbs. doing the speed limit hit a cow and died? Nope! Usually we have 5 or so people most years seriously injured by hitting cows and usually in a truck pulling a boat that is overloaded with an older vehicle, go figure!

 

[Happy Camper]

Does that mean we have to change the two happiest days of boat ownership rule?

 

[Cammalu]

I have seen the future, in the past...



The long long trailer

I love that movie but it gives me the vapors to watch that part.

 

[Malamute]

My opinion is based on years of learning through bad experiences like being a third of the way down Wolf pass in Colorado in low gear with the brakes smoking having the passenger jump out and throw rocks under the wheels to get it stopped, putting one in a drainage ditch and letting the bottom of the chassis drag me to a stop because the brakes went out, telling my friend who was taking me to town in his new VW bug to get in the other lane at a traffic light at the bottom of a long down hill because I smelt the brakes getting hot on the Caddy pulling the travel trailer. Watched it crush a 1957 Chevy all the way to the driver's bench seat and kill the little boy in the back seat. Had a Rambler station wagon pulling a tent camper with a heavily loaded homemade rear rack start weaving while passing a semi truck in front of me on my motorcycle on the interstate hit the truck and explode the propane tanks putting a piece of 2" x 2" lumber through my front spokes locking my front wheel. It is very easy to tow to heavy a load with too little tow vehicle. New little cars stop much quicker than the old ones especially one towing something they shouldn't be. I just don't care to think taking my advise may have caused someone to make an easy to make mistake and smash someone like that little boy years ago.

 There are a couple points here to keep in mind. I believe many, perhaps most, motor home and trailer runaways are related to people with automatic transmissions NOT gearing down on long grades. In my neighborhood theres a runaway motor home fatal wreck every few years, and ive smelled cooking brakes many many times in the mountains of people coming downhill. It doesnt seem common knowledge to gear down an automatic transmission, many seem to think its not even possible. Reading the vehicle instruction manual will reveal its the suggested method (besides NOT using overdrive when towing, which I think few follow).

 Ive towed rather large and likely excessive loads with a variety of vehicles, but my main problem was being a slow vehicle. I used to get rough cut lumber from a small mill in the mountains then top off the 6x16' flatbed trailer with log slabs to use for firewood, as well as many many loads of only slabs, and done a number of materials runs and lumber auctions with that trailer towed by various vehicles. In all cases I never let the speed get above when I felt I could stop under the conditions. That sometimes meant several miles of 20-25 mph on long downgrades. Understanding your vehicles abilities and shortcomings goes a long ways towards using them safely.

 

[Happy Camper]

Most people have never driven a manual rtanny vehicle. Most don't even know they have gears. R is reverse and D is for drive obviously.

The "prndl21", or prindle as I've heard it called us a black box to most modern driver's asking someone to read a manual isn't going to happen. It would have to be texted to them in small chunks for it to be convenient enough. After the third text they will think it's all too basic for them and block the texts.

Then you see a break fire rolling down the mountain. Customer education has never caught up to the times like the sales and marketing has. But it's all in the manual and downloadable, so the lawyers are happy.

/Rant

 

[user 423]

Most people have never driven a manual rtanny vehicle.

That's a good reason to drive one with a manual. Thieves won't know how to drive off with it.

The casual ones anyway.

 

[user 37446]

Most people have never driven a manual rtanny vehicle. Most don't even know they have gears. R is reverse and D is for drive obviously.

The "prndl21", or prindle as I've heard it called us a black box to most modern driver's asking someone to read a manual isn't going to happen. It would have to be texted to them in small chunks for it to be convenient enough. After the third text they will think it's all too basic for them and block the texts.

Then you see a break fire rolling down the mountain. Customer education has never caught up to the times like the sales and marketing has. But it's all in the manual and downloadable, so the lawyers are happy.

/Rant

What? Do you mean the "2" and the "L" on the automatic display mean something?  Who'd have guessed. 

It's obvious that many people nowadays don't know how to drive down hills and mountains, maybe because the hills/mts just showed up? Dunno. 

All those people traveling all those miles in decades past must just have been lucky. Logging trucks, semi's, busses, just pure luck they ever survived. If you don't have a 2017 or newer with every safety nanny device possible you shouldn't be driving?  But then maybe this isn't "cheaprvliving", instead it's "most up to date rv living".

Pity the OP trying to get by with what he has. "Don't do it OP, you'll kill everyone on the road."

Done with this.

 

[bullfrog]

Nobody is saying the op needs to get a new anything but always get the newest vehicle with the least miles you can afford. In this case get the most capable vehicle you can that can safely tow what you need to tow or take less to lighten the load. If you happen to have a 2007 CV doesn't mean you can't trade it or sell it to get a vehicle of like year or a little older with a higher towing capacity if you need to tow more than what you have is rated for. There are several vehicles with less than 200,000 miles on them with 5,000 lbs towing capacities that could be had for less than $5,000 and some for $2,500 if you are lucky. Honestly would anyone feel comfortable looking up in the rear view mirror while slowing down from 80 miles per hour for a bunched up group of cars on the interstate and see a 2007 CV with a larger cargo trailer bearing down on them? Wouldn't you feel better if it was a 2002 Excursion pulling that trailer? Having had to drive most of the heavy vehicles listed above in various states of repair and being overloaded because of greedy owners I do feel lucky and after many close calls fortunate to have not gotten anybody or myself killed, but is sure isn't something I would recommend.

 

[highdesertranger]

Look people, as an organization CRVL can not endorse unsafe practices or illegal stuff. If we told someone that it is ok to tow a 8,000lbs trailer behind a Yugo on I-70 up and over the continental divide, we would be chumming for lawyers.

We have to draw the line somewhere and that would be to follow what the vehicle manufacturer and the law states. Pretty simple if you ask me.

Now all of you as individuals, if you want to take on the liability of giving out bad advice that's on you but we at CRVL can not.

Highdesertranger

 

[Happy Camper]