Marinermark
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Re: I have 15K to spend on a tow vehicle. I need help!
The van is a fine TV. We've towed our 25'TT over 35,000 miles with our E150 5.4/3.55 conversion van. You'll need at least 3.73 rear end, and the Ford 5.4, V-10 or GM 6.0 will give you enough power. You and the kids will like the extra storage space. You should find some decent passenger vans in your price range.545Views0likes0CommentsRe: Searching for a Tow Vehicle
We replaced '93 Chevy 1500 high-top conversion van (5.7L/3.43) with a 2003 Ford E150 5.4L/3.55. Have towed 25' TT about 30,000 miles all over the country. Would have been better with a 3.73, but had no problems and have been happy with it. We love the van as a tow vehicle. Wouldn't have anything else.451Views0likes0CommentsRe: Tow Vehicle Suggestions
The number you want to find is GCWR - Gross Combined Weight Rating. That's the total of loaded vehicle and anything towed. I suspect yours will be 11,000-11,500 lbs. Then fill up your Navigator with gas, you and DH go to a truck scale and weigh with all aboard. I suspect that will be about 5,500 lbs. That means you have about 5,500-6,000 lbs for your trailer and stuff. That should handle the trailers you're looking at, and usual contents. Our 25' Coachmen TT (4,700# dry) and '02 Ford van weigh just below the 12,000 GCWR loaded for travel. We've towed it 30,000 miles all over the country with no towing issues. Be sure you get a good weight distributing hitch. We have a Reese dual-cam.453Views0likes0CommentsRe: Newbie to towing +Retirement
DW and I have a 25ft TT towed by a Ford E-150 van. Total investment $25,000 (bought a used van for $10k). We've traveled all over the country - about 18 mo. in our TT over the last 9 years. Relatively inexpensive and easy to manage. Gas mileage about 9.5 towing. Vans are the most overlooked TV. The stuff we put in the van would require a 2-3ft larger trailer. The van is a useful 2nd vehicle at home. More muscular vans can tow up to 10,000lbs. Our Dual-Cam hitch keeps the TT where it belongs at highway speeds. We wouldn't have anything else.432Views0likes0CommentsRe: Tongue weight in Europe is around 7%
Good point. We're pretty much stuck with our RV's design, and we have to hope that they did it right. We have to stow our stuff in the areas provided, and live with the mfgr's placement of the built-ins. If we have a yaw/sway problem (typically the result of low tongue weight), we have limited ability to reposition weight. My trailer, I believe, placed too much weight over/aft of the right rear wheel (refrigerator, water heater, holding tank). That overloaded that tire and caused 3 blowouts before I figured it out and got LR D tires. Bottom line: if it tracks OK we really don't care what the percentage is; if it doesn't it's our problem to solve.779Views0likes0CommentsRe: Tongue weight in Europe is around 7%
To add to the confusion, the Coast Guard recommends 5-7% tongue weight for trailered boats. When I started RVing, after boating and teaching the CG Auxiliary Trailering class for many years, I wondered about the difference vs. our RV %. I guessed it had something to do with the different shape-dynamics or inherent weight distribution. I never really turned up an explanation, so it's interesting to see that Europe has a similar number for RVs.320Views0likes0CommentsRe: Nova Scotia
We visited NS in 2005 with our 25' TT. Took the ferry from St. Johns, NB to Digby, NS. Traveled there for about 2 weeks, including Cape Breton. I have names & phone numbers of some of the campgrounds. If you'd like them, send me a PM with your E-Mail address and I'll send them to you281Views0likes0CommentsRe: CELL PHONE INTERNET ACCESS
I've been using the Susteen Data Pilot software and USB cable through Motorola V180 for 6 weeks with the Cingular 3.99/mo data plan. So far no additional charges for data services - just minutes used. With 5000 minutes after 9PM and on weekends that's no problem. I'm sending this from a campground near Albany, NH. It's not fast, but works OK most of the time. I'm going to change plans to travel in Canada for about a month. I hope that doesn't foul up my Internet access there or when I return to my present plan as I reenter U.S. mid - August.449Views0likes0CommentsRe: CELL PHONE INTERNET ACCESS
I have Cingular's $3.99/mo data plan, with Motorola V180 and V400 phones. Got Susteen Data Pilot USB cables (1 for each phone) and software from Susteen.com. I have a Toshiba laptop, XP Home. Just got it going. Works OK through Compuserve, my ISP. Susteen's tech people talked me through setup. I'm using it just to test, until I see how much it's going to cost.541Views0likes0Comments
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