[A/S] Dealer Recommendations Regarding Tow Vehicles

["Harvey Barlow" <harveybarlow@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Malcolm,

I hate to write anything which may diminish the enthusiasm of a new list
member and prospective A/S owner but in the interest of your own long term
satisfaction with both your A/S and your van, I will open my big mouth.

Sadly, a few RV salesman will tell you anything you will believe in order to
make a sale.  We have all seen the result and heard the sad stories of
someone who has laid out a large sum of $$$ to purchase the trailer of his
dreams and has found that he now needs a new tow vehicle to tow the trailer
he bought on the recommendation of a salesman.  In some cases the salesman
doesn't own a trailer, has never towed one, and is somewhat uninformed about
the experience.  In worse cases, he knows better but tells you what it takes
to close the sale.

I am doubtful that you will be very satisfied towing with a 3.8 liter V6
engine, light duty automatic transmission, unibody construction, and light
duty suspension.  Before making any purchase I would encourage you to visit
your van dealer and inquire about the factory rated towing capacity of your
van then discuss your intentions with the dealership service manager.  If
the van is rated to tow the weight of the trailer you are planning to
purchase, remember that factory tow ratings are optimistic and RV industry
published weights are dry weights.  A mini van with factory towing package
was probably never intended to tow a self-contained travel trailer but the
engineers probably envisioned a jet ski trailer or small utility trailer
returning home from the nursery on a Saturday morning with a few bags of
fertilizer and seeds.

Dry weight means the weight of the trailer before installation of air
conditioner and other options, before filling the fresh water tank, propane
bottles, before installation of the equalizing hitch and sway control, and
certainly before you add food, clothing, bedding, cooking and eating
utensils, and your tooth brush.  It would be prudent to use the trailer's
gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) as a weight estimate.  If the weight is
very close to the rated towing capacity of the van you can tow it but it
will not be a satisfactory combination.  If the trailer weight exceeds the
weight of the van, it is possible to experience a "tail wagging the dog"
situation.

If you will tow the trailer only on flat terrain, only for short distances
on occasional weekends, you can get away with less but at best, your van
will be marginal.

Another thing to consider is your mini-van has unibody construction i.e. no
steel ladder frame underneath to hang a hitch receiver on, only sheet metal.
When the trunnion bars of your hitch are cranked up to distribute the tongue
weight of your trailer, they exert considerable twisting force which is
amplified as the van and trailer negotiate uneven surfaces like driveways,
etc.  It is possible, maybe not probable, that over time the hitch receiver
could actually tear away from the sheet metal attachment point and allow the
trailer to separate from the van.

Most of us listen to advice and then do what we intended to do all along and
I will understand if that is your eventual decision.  It is your money and
your choice to make.  But if you do, please buy the lightest and shortest
trailer available.  In the long run, you will be happier with your purchase.

It is possible to tow any trailer with any tow vehicle.  As we all know, it
is possible to tow a vintage A/S with a bicycle.  However, most experienced
trailerists will tell you that you cannot have too much tow vehicle, but it
is very easy to have too much trailer.

I hope this does not rain on your parade.  All of us on the list love
Airstreams, the trailering lifestyle, and urge you to join us in this
rewarding experience.  We just want you to make the right decisions so that
you will not regret joining us.

Good luck.

Harvey Barlow
Lubbock, TX
WBCCI # 1171, WDCU,. VAC