Trailers on the road today

[tomman58]

We did a run to the cabin and back this last weekend (normally do not travel weekends as that is for the worker bees).
I didn't have my railer so was going around 80 for the 2 1/2 hour run.
I was impressed with about 80% of those traveling that 1. were doing about 65mph. 2. Were properly running with the correct TV (my guess). 3. Had the truck and trailer adjusted for proper leveling for towing. We only witnessed 2 trailers with blown tires, one a 5er and one really old 25 footer.

We also witnessed a few pop-ups that no one ever had washed as they were totally green.

I will say the the rigs I saw that were the worst were from our state and likely local.

Why do I bring this stuff up? Just to remind some that checking tires is important and driving at a reasonable speed is good for you and your family. It worries me to see those that do not understand that the several thousand pounds of trailer can do real damage if not respected.

Happy Trails to all this season.

see you on the road shortly.

Tomman.

[Turtle_n_Peeps]

GrandpaKip wrote:
The difference between driving 300 miles at 80 and at 60 is only 1 hour and 15 minutes. And that is if you never slow down which is kinda unrealistic. The actual difference will be under an hour.
And an emergency maneuver with a trailer at 60 to 65 is one thing and at 80 is a whole 'nother.
I'm content to sit in the right lane and ease on down the road.

That's true buy lets work the math a little different and see what happens.

You and I both have 21 days vacation.

You and I travel 8 hours a day for 21 days.

You drive 60 MPH and I drive 75 MPH.

Here is what that boils down to:

You get to go 480 miles/ day.

I get to go 600 miles/ day OR I get to pull over at my campground destination 2 hours early. TWO HOURS! I get to relax and take a nap while you're still counting mile markers on the road for 2 hours.

OR

In 21 days I get to go see 2,500 more miles of stuff or I can see the same amount of stuff that you did and relax for 3 days after you get home or I get to see stuff on my stops for 3 whole days.

As you can see, you will have about 2.5 more days on the road of exposure to hit something or be hit by something.

And before anybody starts. If I drive 600 miles a day I only have to fill up in the morning and at noon and the next day it all starts over again so I really only fill up once. (at noon)

[Huntindog]

GrandpaKip wrote:
The difference between driving 300 miles at 80 and at 60 is only 1 hour and 15 minutes. And that is if you never slow down which is kinda unrealistic. The actual difference will be under an hour.
And an emergency maneuver with a trailer at 60 to 65 is one thing and at 80 is a whole 'nother.
I'm content to sit in the right lane and ease on down the road.

With your present TV... You are correct.
Upgrade to a 1 ton dually, and put some quality tires on the TT... And it is a totally different story

[GrandpaKip]

The difference between driving 300 miles at 80 and at 60 is only 1 hour and 15 minutes. And that is if you never slow down which is kinda unrealistic. The actual difference will be under an hour.
And an emergency maneuver with a trailer at 60 to 65 is one thing and at 80 is a whole 'nother.
I'm content to sit in the right lane and ease on down the road.

[eDUBz]

Truck and Traiier like 62mph on cruise control - never really go past that. our last trip coming home pretty much every RV passed me - even half ton suvs with bigger trailers. Not worth the risk,
Plus the destination spot will be there no matter what time you show up so there's no point of speeding.

[Huntindog]

rbpru wrote:
As for stopping because the TT has its own brakes, I would like to know the percentage of TT brakes that can be locked up on dry pavement. I can guarantee you that not all of them can.

Locking up the brakes is not desirable. In fact it is so bad that most every vehicle made today has a feature called anti lock brakes.

BTW. The reason some TVs can actually decrease their stopping distance when towing is due to the anti lock brakes they have.
The TW puts more weight on the TV tires, increasing their traction with the road. So those tires are less likely to lose traction, and the anti lock doesn't activate, allowing for MORE braking force from the TV!. This works particularly well with a lot of TW, and a dually. Both of which will cause the braking of the TV to be more effective.

[rbpru]

It is good that many of the tire companies are upgrading their ST tires to more than 65 mph. But can you say the same for the TT manufacturers construction?

Are the currently manufactured TTs designed for wind loads and road vibrations at 70 to 75 mph?

I know what happens in my neighborhood when just wind gusts of 65 to 70 mph hit, let alone a continuous wind load for hours.

As for stopping because the TT has its own brakes, I would like to know the percentage of TT brakes that can be locked up on dry pavement. I can guarantee you that not all of them can.

Of course all of this is just rhetoric because we all drive in a manner which we feel comfortable with.

Whether it is the worry wart that cautiously creeps down the road and frets over every possible thing that can go wrong, or the driver screaming down the road oblivious to the laws of physics. Neither is likely to change.

In most states I could pull my 25 ft. TT as 70 to 75 mph and the cops would not blink and eye. However, since my sweet spot is about 63 mph. I get passed by almost everything on the road. 🙂

[Huntindog]

tomman58 wrote:
Safety on the road is my concern not just for me but others. I agree good tire inflated correctly, a rig set to TV properly, and an adequate TV are essential but e you can go faster than most you still experience the same identical conditions during any road situation from a semi losing a tread to a deer or other creature entering the roadway to some total maniac swerving in and out of traffic only to create an unwelcome problem. Safety is your responsibility to your family and others.

I 100% agree that Safety is a concern. Where we disagree is what makes it safe.

You seem to think that anyone towing at 60-65 is safe.

I disagree because of the difference in the people and the TV/TTs.

It makes no sense that a weak TV and a poorly set up TT with junk tires (ST) is safer at 65 than my setup. (1 ton dually cc diesel and a TT with axles upgraded from 5.2 K to 7K each running Michelin XPS RIBs.)

The mere idea that we should both be held to your standard is laughable.

BTW, I suppose I should tell you now that DW does most of the driving, and she has a lead foot as well.

Braking has been mentioned as it always is... There is no reason that a proper TV/TT combo cannot stop just as fast when towing as when not. The TT has it's own brakes. So there is little extra for the TV to do....:S
In fact it is not uncommon for a TT/TV rig to stop better when towing than when not.
But at any rate, there will always be vehicles (non towing) that stop better than others. Yet even the poorest performers are considered adequate.
If braking is the primary concern, then we should outlaw all vehicles excepting High performance corvettes and the like.

[tomman58]

Safety on the road is my concern not just for me but others. I agree good tire inflated correctly, a rig set to TV properly, and an adequate TV are essential but e you can go faster than most you still experience the same identical conditions during any road situation from a semi losing a tread to a deer or other creature entering the roadway to some total maniac swerving in and out of traffic only to create an unwelcome problem. Safety is your responsibility to your family and others.

[afidel]

Ralph Cramden wrote:

rbpru wrote:
The TT owner's manual clearly states that the TT tires should be run ay 65 mph or less. The tires are rated for service at 65 mph. There is no indication of what their maximum speed is.

Maybe yours are. The ST tires on my 2017 Rockwood are rated for service at 75 mph, designated by "L". Forget the TT owners manuals which are generic.

As are the tires on my 2017 KZ, I've also run across M and N rated tires in D and E load rating so it's quite possible to have tires rated to 80 MPH not to mention LT swaps. Personally I don't drive over 70 (and cruise at 67) so it's academic, but it's nice to know there is spare capacity.

[Ralph_Cramden]

rbpru wrote:
The TT owner's manual clearly states that the TT tires should be run ay 65 mph or less. The tires are rated for service at 65 mph. There is no indication of what their maximum speed is.

Maybe yours are. The ST tires on my 2017 Rockwood are rated for service at 75 mph, designated by "L". Forget the TT owners manuals which are generic.

[Huntindog]

tomman58 wrote:

Huntindog wrote:
I run 75-80 as a matter of routine. The only thing that slows me down is a lower speed limit, or a rare hill that is too steep to allow the truck to maintain speed.

BUT.... I have a stout dedicated TV just for towing, and tires/axles that have been upgraded a lot over how the TT came stock.

I do not believe in running any equipment close to it's max rating.... And that means that most ST tires run at 60 MPH are very close to their max rating! Even as some of you have admitted to briefly exceeding 65 on a downhill with STs.. That simply is not safe. Any tire should NEVER be run in excess of it's rating. Just as a motor with a 6000 RPM redline should NEVER exceed that redline. Every time a limit is exceeded, the risk of a failure increases dramactically.

IOW, most TT/TV combos on the road are too close to several ratings to be "safe" at 60-65 MPH. 50 MPH should be their max to leave them a reasonable safety margin.
JMHO.

I guess I couldn't agree with you less. People with TT's just have no business towing at those speeds. Your TV is not a sports car it is a TV. Also you TT is not a lightweight that you need to respect as any number of things can hamper it. The weight alone makes it a lethal weapon..... to you!
I guess from my point of view, you would be a part of the problem and not what I would like seeing coming up on me in my rearview. IMHO, as we were talking a safe trip for the family and what you described is not that at all. You are a danger to me and my family.

You are making an assumption that all rigs are equal. They are not.
Read this forum!. Thread after thread of people with TVs that are BARELY up to the task. Many won't/can't even carry water.
I understand that these people are making compromises with a daily driver that must pull double duty as as a TV.... But that does not make them equal to those that have stout TVs and TTs with good tires/axles... And they should realize that, and drive slower because of that. Those that have better setups need not be painted with the same brush.


As for the comment about LEOs being after me... Why? I am not recommending exceeding the speed limit or breaking any laws. What I do is 100% legal.

[MitchF150]

If you pass me at 75+ mph, I just say thank you... Does not matter what you are driving... You'll be my "Rabbit" ahead of me, so you'll attract any LEO before they look at me... 🙂

Mitch

[rbpru]

The TT owner's manual clearly states that the TT tires should be run ay 65 mph or less. The tires are rated for service at 65 mph. There is no indication of what their maximum speed is.

It is assumed that the TT will see continuous service at 65 mph on Interstates, and other limited access roads that allow such speeds, hence that is the service rating of the tire.

Those who choose to drive faster for whatever the reason, will most likely find the problem is not driving fast, it is stopping all that inertia. A lot of pavement passes under you rig before it comes to a stop.

Take care

[tomman58]

Huntindog wrote:
I run 75-80 as a matter of routine. The only thing that slows me down is a lower speed limit, or a rare hill that is too steep to allow the truck to maintain speed.

BUT.... I have a stout dedicated TV just for towing, and tires/axles that have been upgraded a lot over how the TT came stock.

I do not believe in running any equipment close to it's max rating.... And that means that most ST tires run at 60 MPH are very close to their max rating! Even as some of you have admitted to briefly exceeding 65 on a downhill with STs.. That simply is not safe. Any tire should NEVER be run in excess of it's rating. Just as a motor with a 6000 RPM redline should NEVER exceed that redline. Every time a limit is exceeded, the risk of a failure increases dramactically.

IOW, most TT/TV combos on the road are too close to several ratings to be "safe" at 60-65 MPH. 50 MPH should be their max to leave them a reasonable safety margin.
JMHO.

I guess I couldn't agree with you less. People with TT's just have no business towing at those speeds. Your TV is not a sports car it is a TV. Also you TT is not a lightweight that you need to respect as any number of things can hamper it. The weight alone makes it a lethal weapon..... to you!
I guess from my point of view, you would be a part of the problem and not what I would like seeing coming up on me in my rearview. IMHO, as we were talking a safe trip for the family and what you described is not that at all. You are a danger to me and my family.

[Huntindog]

I run 75-80 as a matter of routine. The only thing that slows me down is a lower speed limit, or a rare hill that is too steep to allow the truck to maintain speed.

BUT.... I have a stout dedicated TV just for towing, and tires/axles that have been upgraded a lot over how the TT came stock.

I do not believe in running any equipment close to it's max rating.... And that means that most ST tires run at 60 MPH are very close to their max rating! Even as some of you have admitted to briefly exceeding 65 on a downhill with STs.. That simply is not safe. Any tire should NEVER be run in excess of it's rating. Just as a motor with a 6000 RPM redline should NEVER exceed that redline. Every time a limit is exceeded, the risk of a failure increases dramactically.

IOW, most TT/TV combos on the road are too close to several ratings to be "safe" at 60-65 MPH. 50 MPH should be their max to leave them a reasonable safety margin.
JMHO.