Re: [VAL] Economical Tow Vehicles

["Scott Scheuermann" <s.l.scheuermann@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Vanessa,

Your Cruiser...does it have 1 axel or 2? On a 25 foot trailer the addition
of a second axel makes a lot of difference with stability when you are
passed by other vehicles on the highway. I know from experience. I have a 26
foot Overlander with only 1 axel. I have towed it now for over 25 years.
Overall it is well mannered. However, get passed by a truck or bus, or on
some days even a fast paced car you will know it. The long overhang behind
the trailer's axel gets pushed by the wind currents and rocks the trailer
back and forth which in turn rocks your tow vehicle around. The 25/26 foot
models have an exceptionally long back end and get rocked easily. The
addition of a second axel helps temendously.

So, what if you only have 1 axel? The key to stability lies in one of two
areas...1, buy a hensley hitch. or 2...
buy the largest, heaviest, longest wheelbased vehicle you can live with. Yes
mpg's are an issue...so is confidence and safety on the road!

I own a 3/4 ton Dodge Ram pickup with the cummins diesel engine. 17/25 mpg
solo and 15 to 17 mpg when towing. It is large, heavy, and it has a long
wheelbase. The fuel economy is better than anything else I have tried (even
mid-sized vehicles). And you can't beat how the trailer handles. Honestly
99% of the time you have no idea that the trailer is back there it is so
well behaved. It cost me 10K 3 years ago and had 200K miles on it. In those
3 years I have traveled 70K miles, averaging 1 repair per year. I have had
new vehicles that haven't done that well!

Another thing...remember that you rarely will be towing an empty trailer.
What you really need to do is load it up with all the stuff you would like
to take along...fill the water tanks, add food and clothes...etc, etc. THEN
weigh the trailer. You may very well be suprised what the actual weight of
your trailer is when ready to travel. This is the weight that you need to go
by when you go shopping for a tow vehicle!

Scott Scheuermann