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Old 06-21-2017, 06:26 AM   #141
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This debate has convinced me to sell my one ton diesel, it's gone. Bought a Jeep Compass, 2000 pound tow capacity, I'm ready for the Avion. The pp hitch is on order. Avion will be for sale a s soon as I learn the jeep can't pull the trailer, no matter what some on the forums may say. Have a good one.
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Old 06-22-2017, 05:25 AM   #142
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This debate has convinced me to sell my one ton diesel, it's gone. Bought a Jeep Compass, 2000 pound tow capacity, I'm ready for the Avion. The pp hitch is on order. Avion will be for sale a s soon as I learn the jeep can't pull the trailer, no matter what some on the forums may say. Have a good one.
Well, if at least you know where you are, your somewhere; better being from nowhere, and being lost, I guess...enjoy your fantasy!
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Old 06-22-2017, 05:51 AM   #143
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Well, if at least you know where you are, your somewhere; better being from nowhere, and being lost, I guess...enjoy your fantasy!
I guess my sarcasm didn't come across very well! Did sell the truck, though. For many reasons I am done towing, but really enjoyed it. Wish everyone luck no matter what your choices are.
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Old 06-22-2017, 10:09 AM   #144
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As they say the proof is in the ......:-).
I make a bet that no one participating in this forum will see the diesel replaced with electric in their lifetime.

Didn't you read the post where you could have saved all that money you spent on buying a environment destructive humongous diesel 1 ton, kept towing with your Audi by simply buying a more expensive hitch. The wastefulness of it all. :-)
I did read that post and hundreds of others. Believe me I would prefer driving the Audi on a day to day basis over the truck. I investigated Andy in Canada's "Miraculous" hitch modifications but the Audi would have been just as overloaded as the 1/2 ton Crew. You can spend 3K on a hitch but the fact that you are adding nearly 900 lbs to the TV does not go away. The load just gets redistributed so that not all of it is on the tail. I agree that it is overkill but the 3500 was basically the same price as a 2500.
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Old 06-22-2017, 10:44 AM   #145
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What?
WD hitch?
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Old 06-22-2017, 12:26 PM   #146
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They towed 34' Avions with a 3/4 ton Suburban

I have an '87 Avion 34X. I really like it. It is about the same weight as an '87 Airstream 34. It may be lighter. The newer 34' Airstreams were certainly heavier. 1987 Avion 34' grosses at 9600lbs.

I have the brochure that came with the trailer new. On the cover, they have a Chevy Suburban 3/4 ton hitched to it.

Soooooo, to answer the question I've seen on here multiple times.....they towed 34' Avions in 1987 with 3/4 ton Suburbans.

I tow mine with a Dodge Ram 2500 4x4 long bed quad cab. I use an Equal-I-Zer 15,000/1500lb (total capacity/tongue weight capacity) hitch. Over 25,000 miles it's been fine. If I go new, I'll either get a Pro-Pride or make one myself (I am a Professional Engineer, have 5 P.E.'s in Mechanical Engineering, and know a thing or two about this stuff...have done a lot of work in chassis design and 4-bar linkages....which is all a Pro-Pride is...no magic just physics). The Slimp Dolley may be an idea that needs to come back as well.

But anyway, the 3/4 ton Sububran IS what they towed the 34' Avion with back in "The Day".
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Old 06-22-2017, 12:40 PM   #147
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Look at old Rally and Caravan pictures.
More Suburbans than you can shake a stick at.
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Old 06-22-2017, 02:41 PM   #148
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I wonder what the engine torque, how many transmission speeds, rear axle ratio, and load capacity of a 1987 Suburban 3/4 ton was 30 years ago, compared to a typical Airstream tow vehicle of today.
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Old 06-22-2017, 02:55 PM   #149
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454 7.4 liter v8 and either a three or four speed auto. Same engine as in the as mh? That was in 1987. Hp230, tq385 any number of rear ratios available.
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Old 06-22-2017, 04:12 PM   #150
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I wonder what the engine torque, how many transmission speeds, rear axle ratio, and load capacity of a 1987 Suburban 3/4 ton was 30 years ago, compared to a typical Airstream tow vehicle of today.
300 horsepower, 3.70(?) rear. It would pull anything I could hook up. Never read payloads or stickers back then, but I never had an issue.

(Mine was a '90)
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Old 06-22-2017, 05:15 PM   #151
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I'm sticking with my 230 horses guess.
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Old 06-22-2017, 09:51 PM   #152
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The 1987 Suburban 3/4 tons used to tow 1987 Avion 34s had less torque and at least half the transmission gears of a modern 1/2 ton. Yet we loved them for towing our big travel trailers. I wonder what the 1987 Suburban 3/4 ton "payload" number was, and receiver hitch rating. What type of brakes did it have front and rear.
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Old 06-22-2017, 10:25 PM   #153
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According to Google with the 7.4 engine and 4.10 gears the tow rating was ten thousand pounds. Dif rear ends and or engines were less. Couldn't find payload
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Old 06-22-2017, 10:54 PM   #154
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This is absolutely correct. There was a mechanical engineering technical article cited in a previous thread (it got deleted before I could bookmark the article), that researched the factors involved in stability of pull behind trailers. The relative weight of TV as compared to trailer was a major factor (I believe it was the second most important factor after speed). So, its not just seat of the pants when folks say they feel their trailer is more stable behind an HD truck (which is much heavier than an 1/2 truck). Of course this does not mean we all have to buy an HD truck. It all depends on the weight of the trailer we plan to pull.
Just ran across this discussion. It could be that the technical article you are referring to is:

THE DYNAMICS OF TOWED VEHICLES
An experimental study into caravan snaking
Final year project
submitted by Christopher J Killer
for the degree of MEng
of the University of Bath
23 May 2003

Snaking is British for sway.

Here is an excerpt from the study, which I think contradicts what you are saying.

After the testing of the MILM condition on the small caravan, the unused weights were placed in the boot of the car and the MILM tests were repeated. This increased the weight of the car by approximately 180kg (about 12%), loaded at the rear, which had added implication, because snaking involves the movement of the rear end of the car.

The effect this change had on snaking oscillations is shown in Figure 22. Altering the car mass in this way decreases the towing coefficient, so should increase the damping ratio and indicate a higher snaking speed. The graph shows a small increase in snaking speed, but no real change in the actual damping ratio values. Hence, the difference between each set of points is too small to deduce anything about the significance of the car mass from these data, other than it has little effect at this scale.
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Old 06-22-2017, 11:39 PM   #155
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The 1987 Suburban 3/4 tons used to tow 1987 Avion 34s had less torque and at least half the transmission gears of a modern 1/2 ton. Yet we loved them for towing our big travel trailers. I wonder what the 1987 Suburban 3/4 ton "payload" number was, and receiver hitch rating. What type of brakes did it have front and rear.
GM Heritage has the dealer info on the 1987 Suburban.

454 had 230 hp, but the standard 350 had 195 hp in the 3/4 ton model.

3 speed auto in the 3/4 ton, or a manual transmission.

Brakes were disc/drum. Note that the front discs were smaller diameter than the oft-derided Toyota minivan (which of course has four discs).

Lots of payload on the 3/4 ton. 3800 lb front axle, 6000 lb rear axle. Actual payloads varied because everything was an option. Like headliners, and AM radios, and two optional fuel tank sizes.

Never owned one myself, but I recall working on them.

https://www.gmheritagecenter.com/doc...t-Suburban.pdf
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Old 06-23-2017, 08:10 AM   #156
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I guess my sarcasm didn't come across very well! Did sell the truck, though. For many reasons I am done towing, but really enjoyed it. Wish everyone luck no matter what your choices are.
Avionstream...are you "hanging up your hitch" for good then? Are you looking at a MH or what? Too much country not to have something... I think we would be nowhere, if we had nothing to go somewhere, and then found out we really wanted to camp along the way... LoL Hope you everything works out for you.
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Old 06-23-2017, 10:45 AM   #157
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GM Heritage has the dealer info on the 1987 Suburban.

454 had 230 hp, but the standard 350 had 195 hp in the 3/4 ton model.

3 speed auto in the 3/4 ton, or a manual transmission.

Brakes were disc/drum. Note that the front discs were smaller diameter than the oft-derided Toyota minivan (which of course has four discs).

Lots of payload on the 3/4 ton. 3800 lb front axle, 6000 lb rear axle. Actual payloads varied because everything was an option. Like headliners, and AM radios, and two optional fuel tank sizes.

Never owned one myself, but I recall working on them.

https://www.gmheritagecenter.com/doc...t-Suburban.pdf
Hi

The Suburban of the 1970's and early 80's was a *very* different vehicle than the one we can buy today. I could actually sit up in the standard front seat of a 1970's Suburban. Not so much by the end of the 80's.

Bob
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Old 06-23-2017, 11:14 AM   #158
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Avionstream...are you "hanging up your hitch" for good then? Are you looking at a MH or what? Too much country not to have something... I think we would be nowhere, if we had nothing to go somewhere, and then found out we really wanted to camp along the way... LoL Hope you everything works out for you.
Yea, we are done. Sad. Avion will be listed as soon as it is cleaned up from our last few weeks on the road. Quite frankly, we need the money as we are living on SS. I'll still be here, can't let this stuff go. Love the forums.
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Old 06-23-2017, 03:52 PM   #159
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Yea, we are done. Sad. Avion will be listed as soon as it is cleaned up from our last few weeks on the road. Quite frankly, we need the money as we are living on SS. I'll still be here, can't let this stuff go. Love the forums.
Best of luck to you AvionStream. Glads to know that you'd be around.
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Old 06-28-2017, 12:18 PM   #160
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Yea, we are done. Sad. Avion will be listed as soon as it is cleaned up from our last few weeks on the road. Quite frankly, we need the money as we are living on SS. I'll still be here, can't let this stuff go. Love the forums.
I spent 40-hours cleaning a clean trailer when I sold the last one. And took a couple hundred photographs as practice. Used lights covered by wax paper, etc. wanted to do justice to the TT. (Link in sig). As I was off beaten path I sent out about fifty CDs with as many photos and several thousand words of text.

Waited awhile, but then had competing buyers making 500 mile roundtrips, cash in hand. Got asking price.

I recommend using sales brochures as guides. Decoration and angles.

1969 Streamline is best, IMO. See at Tom Patterson site.

What I didn't have then and also recommend is an ozone generator. Takes care of "old age" smell. Overnight, then air out. And if a smell comes back, get the source.

First impression (sight and smell) sells these things.



And guys will travel for that Dodge. Just tell 'em you're an old fart RVer. Don't know much about the truck mechanical details, but hate to sell it nevertheless (ha!). It'll be a race to git thar!!
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