Re: [a/s] Thanks from Ruth & Dan!!! for info about help near Atlanta

["Philip Tipler" <ptipler@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Ultimately, you have to decide which vehicle suits your lifestyle best.
Just a few words of advise. There is a lot of misinformation out there what
constitutes a good tow vehicle.  Many people are quick to say a vehicle with
a long wheelbase is good. WRONG!! You have gleaned only part of the
equation.  What you should be looking for is a vehicle with a healthy
wheelbase to rear overhang ratio. Your trailer should act as a less
effective lever on the tow vehicle.  The tow vehicles that handle Airstreams
the best are vehicles with independent rear suspension,  a low center of
gravity and tires that are properly sized to their rims. Vehicle
manufacturers are in a difficult position when it comes to establishing tow
ratings.  Very, very few of them have actually been tested in a towing
application.  You have only to check out the factory hitches that Ford and
GM supply these days to understand how little they know about towing!   Once
the vehicle leaves their factory, they have no control over the hitch system
that will be used, how aerodynamic the trailer is, or the type of brake
controller used.  Most tow ratings are driven solely by marketing.  Some
vehicles have incredibly high ratings because of demands.  Consider Ford.
They market a vehicle for towing that can barely move itself. A 31'
Airstream 310 Motorhome weighs only 3,000 pounds more than the Excursion.
The Ford has a tow rating of over 10,000#, yet is incredibly inept as a tow
vehicle.  If you open the rear door and grab an assist handle, you can rock
that sucker 8" side to side. I took one out for a day hooked to a 34'
Limited. It has two solid axles and a V10 powerplant. I wouldn't tow
anything hitched to an Excursion without a Hensley, it's that ****ing
dangerous!  Even with the Hensley, it's far inferior to my Suburban with an
Eaz-Lift and two friction sway controls hitched to my  34' through  Road and
Track's lane change and slalom course. This thing weighs 1700# more than a
Suburban and spends most of its horsepower trying merely to get out of its
own shadow. A 6.0 liter Suburban will literally run circles around it!  As
well, the Suburban will out handle it, out stop it, and out accelerate it
(not to mention the obvious fuel $$$ savings).  Many people fail to consider
that an Airstream requires considerably less horsepower to tow than ANY
OTHER RV on the road. In fact, wind tunnel testing has proven an A/S to need
between 50 and 55% of that required to tow a "shoebox" trailer. Aerodynamic
drag is proportional to the square of speed.  Many well-intentioned people
are quick to suggest a 3/4 or 1 ton truck over a 1/2 ton for the purposes of
towing an Airstream. In fact a 3/4 ton truck has approximately 6-7% more
brake surface than a 1/2, yet weighs roughly 8-9% more. It takes a 3/4 ton
truck a longer distance to stop solo. More stiffly sprung vehicles such as a
1 ton or a heavy half will also severely shorten the lifespan of an
Airstream.  This has been proven by service records. Additionally, all
pickups and sport-utility vehicles seem to favor a solid rear axle.  These
vehicles are effectively sprung at between 38 and 42", making them fairly
unstable compared to a independently suspended vehicle. The stance of an
independently sprung vehicle will be much wider.  For this reason, a
powerful, independently sprung vehicle with traction control and low profile
tires such as a Cadillac DTS or STS or an Olds Aurora will absolutely blow
the doors off of any truck for the purposes of towing an Airstream.

Philip Tipler
http://www.can-am-rv.com