Re: [A/S] Tow vehicle

[NotoriousBuz@xxxxxxx]

Glen, To help set your mind at ease, check the owners book for the tow 
ratings. This is a pretty good outline of what to follow. Keep in mind to 
subtract the additional weight you have added as cargo in the truck. One of 
my favorite subjects with the members of our unit is towing power and 
listening to their comments and experiences about grades and passes. The 
opinions are as varied as the weather. One fellow towed his 34 ft for years 
with a late 80's sub with a 350 and 410 rear, and always was fine with it. He 
recently replaced it with a newer Sub with the old diesel power plant and he 
wonders why he hadn't made the switch sooner. Our trailer (75 27 Overlander) 
weighs in at about 6200 lbs fully loaded, yet we have never loaded it to 
capacity. We load in about another 350 lbs of stuff in the van plus another 
two passengers. Our 2500 series van with the 373 gears was rated to tow 6000 
lbs. I'm figuring we were close to if not to the capacity. In most cases we 
had no problem. We live in the East where there are rolling hills and 6- 10 
percent grades are not uncommon. Yet when you turn a corner at 15 mph and 
stare up the side of a mountain you know your engine and tranny are in for a 
workout. I have since replaced the ring and pinion gears with a 410 ratio. 
This has added an extra 1500 lbs of towing capacity. In the short time since 
the replacement I can say you can hear the difference in the strain of the 
engineand trans, feel the increased torque pulling out and ascending hills, 
and have recorded no gas mileage decrease while towing. And very little 
difference if at all without the unit. As been said on this list before check 
the tow rating and add for a comfort level, I was at the tow rating and felt 
strongly enough to replace the gears to add the comfort level and I am 
satisfied with the results. Yet when I move to a heavier unit I will be 
looking for a mightier puller as well. In the end what ever you start with 
only you will know if you need more schmaltz or not. Good luck and enjoy your 
Airstream.   J.L.Dietz #4361