Re: [a/s] Towing Question Can-Am

[John Hilty <hilty@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dan,

I am not an expert here, but there is a good chance that you are going
to see a number of posts which will discourage you about the suitability
of using 1) a unibody frame vehicle 2) a front wheel drive vehicle 3) a
car instead of a truck with a longer wheelbase. There has been some
debate between those who hold the above to be of most importance and (I
believe, but I may be in error) personnel at Can Am who support a
different view, specifically that the best tow vehicles are 1) low
center of gravity 2) independent rear suspension 3) softer riding
vehicles, but in every case with adequate power.  

Things to consider or at least rules of thumb that are pretty well
accepted are that the vehicle should be heavy enough (at least close to
what the trailer weighs); have as long a wheelbase as possible; have
weight distributing hitch with adequate sway control; and adequate
power.

On most counts your unibody frame Buick would not be the ideal vehicle.
It is light. Its is not a long wheelbase. There is not rigid frame to
distribute the weight through. The front wheel drive is not well suited
for towing. It is more than likely under powered for climbing long hills
and would have large difficulty in mountainous terrain where gas engines
lose power at the rate of 3% per thousand feet of elevation.

However, if your airstream is extremely light you can forget most of the
above. My '90 25 footer has a dry weight of 5100 lb. and yours may not
be far below that. Pretty heavy for a V-6 if its over say, 4000. My
opinion of course.

Hope this hasn't been to discouraging. I'm sure we will hear from others
with different or clarifying views.

Good Luck,
John H.