What can pull a 20' Globtrotter?

[stacystudeba]

Hi There
We have a 1965 Globtrotter that we love. Fankie is her name because we have been doing an arts and crafts (Frank Lloyd Wright) theme. She is beautiful and we tow her with a Ford 150. But we would like to get a car that can pull her.

We are wondering how to find out if she can be pulled by something else.
We have a 2001 suburu (Probably not)......1965 Mustang (289 V8) Maybe?
1958 Studebaker Scottsman- and she is a beast but not much power and in mint condition.

With all these vehicles do we really need to purchase a new one? The Ford is going away soon so................. just knew someone out there could help.
Thanks
ss

[Condoluminum]

SS-

Welcome to the fun. You should enjoy using the search feature, and if you type in words like vintage tow vehicle in blue tab above, you'll find a numer of threads on this subject...

Lots of members have opinions about tow vehicles, and what is right or wrong for towing.. You should weigh opinions carefully, and then decide what you'd like to do...

Herewith my opinions..

Many Airstreams in 1960's were towed by full sized cars or station wagons with frames and V8 engines, and after-market special tow hitches and booster springs and transmission coolers.. Cars like Full size Cadillacs or Buicks (including Buick Wagon) or Ford Galaxie or Mercury (including wagons..) were used, and appear in ad photo's.. I don't feel your present car collection (Mustang, Studebaker or SUbaru..) will make it... Assuming you don't really want another truck, options are limited to finding big honkin' V8 Sedan or wagon from late 60's or early 70's and trying to mod it to pull the trailer.. Good features include longer wheelbases, heavy frames (as opposed to uni-bodies) and large engines like 400+ cubic inch V8's...

Prepare to see a number of messages urging you to acquire latest model heavy duty truck with all the latest safety features as an alternate...

John McG

[stacystudeba]

Thanks...I guess my boyfriend was right....I hate when that happens. We shall heed your warnings!

[S C Streamer]

Welcome ss,

Sell the Mustang,and get a 1966 Oldsmobile VistaCruiser wagon.



Mark

[Condoluminum]

Mark has good idea.. Many older wagons have been lovingly restored and offer coolness and are welcome to register for Reno Hot August Nights as well.. No need to go boring or dull... Late model wagons are usually cheap, other than Chevy Nomads, which are really pricey...

McG

> And please bring it to Lake San Antonio Rally in October so we can see what you settled on...

[Chuck]

on the other hand....we're talking about a vintage GT, here; not a 31' behemoth. ~3000lbs empty weight...I bet the mustang could do it. it certainly wouldn't be crazy to at least try, and see how it goes. setting up the car for towing would be a bit much for a "maybe", though.

[Frank S]

Hi stacystudeba--In the 1960's the interstate highway system was just starting to be built, and with the exception of some of the western states, there was very little opportunity to tow faster than 55mph. Many cars of that period were capable of towing, as trailers were lighter and smaller, and speeds slower than today. When I purchased my A/S in 1988, the previous owner had it since 1974, and towed it with a 1973 Caddy, at 55mph max. If you limit your speed to 55mph a lot of vintage autos could be considered. There are several people on this forum who have vintage TV's, and they will probably respond to your question.--Frank S

[JimGolden]

I used to pull a 35' Holiday Rambler, which is heavier than any Airstream, with a '75 Mercury Marquis. The Merc had the 460 V8 and C6 transmission. It pulled it just fine. Never had a bit of trouble. That was a good old car. The body rotted to pieces but the drivetrain still worked great. If you could find a mid 70's Lincoln from the West Coast where they don't use salt, you'd have a super cool tow vehicle.

Even cooler, a '64 Lincoln with the suicide doors on the back!

I will echo what the others said: full frame + big V8 = good to go.

[john hd]

my grandfather used a international travelall to pull his airstream in the '60s.

might be another option.

john

[wkerfoot]

Originally Posted by JimGolden

I used to pull a 35' Holiday Rambler, which is heavier than any Airstream, with a '75 Mercury Marquis. The Merc had the 460 V8 and C6 transmission. It pulled it just fine. Never had a bit of trouble. That was a good old car. The body rotted to pieces but the drivetrain still worked great. If you could find a mid 70's Lincoln from the West Coast where they don't use salt, you'd have a super cool tow vehicle.

Even cooler, a '64 Lincoln with the suicide doors on the back!

I will echo what the others said: full frame + big V8 = good to go.

The 1964 Lincoln Continental convertible is my dream tow vehicle. I saw a beautiful turquoise blue with turquoise blue interior last week. The only problem is a restored one will cost you about the same as the Globetrotter at Sutton in Eugene. Also since they are unibody, you need a good hitch fabricator.

The 1970's are much cheaper. 1976 is the last year for a California car to have the 460CI and 1978 is the last year for the Federal cars to have the 460 CI. We have had our 1977 Lincoln Continetal for three years and it is a great tow vehicle for our Safari and hopefully the Liner.

[JimGolden]

I'm gonna throw this out here because I know very little about these cars...but...

How would a mid 70's Cadillac Eldorado do with the 500 V8? I know they were front wheel drive. But did they have a frame?

I will confess...I'd love to have a white '76 Eldorado with the 500. Of course I'd have to put a set of steer horns on the hood and have a plate that says "BOSS"

For those who don't know what I'm talking about...that's from the old TV series "Dukes of Hazzard"; Boss Hogg had a '76 Eldo set up like that.

Beautiful car. don't know how it'd tow. Probably not as well as my truck, but it'd sure be pretty

[john hd]

i had a 67 toronado in my youth, same as the eldorado.

yes they had a frame and were as close as you could get to a street legal sherman tank!

great in the snow too!

john

[FreshAir]

I just saw a '67 GT yesterday towed by a 1946 Ford woody. I realize the Ford would not have the original flathead in it but more likely a small block Chevy. What ever engine was in the woody that rig really looked great. A vintage car for your GT will turn heads. That is what you want to do, right? I just remembered that my dad and mom moved us all (my brother too) from Michigan to California in 1952 pulling a 1950 Pan American with a 1948 Nash Ambassator. We made it and got our 'kicks on route 66' too.
Neil.

[SafeHarbor]

I actually got interested in the Vista Cruisers and looked up some information about them. To my surprise, in my memory they were immense, but in their time, they were the mid-size wagon. They would probably NOT make a great tow vehicle.

The Caprice with the bi-fold electric tailgate and the LTD "Country Squire" were the big, honkin' 400 CID monsters.

I've always thought that a coke-bottle '65 Impala might be fun towing a little Airstream. And I just happen to have a story about that.

Seems we had a '65 Impala when I was wee lad. It had a 327 cid V-8. On the Ohio turnpike on vacation, my dad decided to see how fast we - him, mom, two kids, and the trunk bulging - could get the car to go.

Over 100 mph, we found out. Slowing down, we blew the right-rear tire.

On the side of the turnpike, we dug out the jack, broke the lug nuts loose, and jacked the car. My dad had put the tools on the rear floorboard and closed the door.

When the car was up, we found the door wouldn't open. The hardtop had too much frame flex.

My dad was all for sending ME in to get the tools from the opposite side. (The front door, with some difficulty, was opened.)

Mom was having none of THAT. Down came the car, out came the tools, back up went the car, and the tire was changed.

So we had this big pile of 60's travel goodies - boxes, Igloo coolers, grocery bags, something crazy in some ammo cans - on the grass and spread out in the break-down lane. Traffic is zooming by at 80 mph, and my dad says he's hungry.

So my mom makes sandwiches, and we chow down on the side of the Ohio turnpike.

It was another time; it was another world.

Lamar

[wkerfoot]

Regarding the Toronado or Eldorado, Kevin Allen, Overlander64, has an Eldorado which he uses on his Argosy and Overlander. I believe that he has some wheel clearance problems with the Eldorado.

There is a couple in Sebastopol with a late 40's Ford woodie but a Bambi, they have a Chev 454. There is another couple in the Lake Tahoe area with a small trailer and a late 40's Merc woodie, don't remember what he has powered the Merc with, could be a large chev also.

Bill

[Darol Ingalls]

Of the choices you offer, I'd bet on the Studebaker. Power would be limited but it certainly has the weight to handle the trailer safely. Mustang is just a bit small and "skitterish" on the back end, although the Airstream '67 sales book shows a Mustang towing a Globetrotter. Any of the mid-size or larger '60s sedans would tow your trailer just fine. The addition of air shocks and a stabilizer bar on the rear axel would be good, and of course a good hitch. I towed my '65 Tradewind with my '64 Pontiac Star Chief and will use the same car to tow my '62 Globetrotter. Four door sedans and most station wagons are still relatively cheap and there were lots of them made. You should be able to find something if the Studebaker lacks "motovation." My Dad towed an 18' wood frame/masonite trailer from North Dakota to Oregon with a 1950 Studebaker Champion in late fall of '53. The car had the flathead 6 and a 3-speed overdrive transmission. He never worrried about going too fast because, as he said, he "always had a higher gear to use." Darol

[S C Streamer]

Originally Posted by SafeHarbor

It was another time; it was another world.

With 6 kids and a wife,this is what my dad tore up the highways with.

1957 Ford wagon-312cid.
1962 Buick Invicta wagon-400cid.
1965 Buick Electra 225 convertible-455cid.
1960 17'Aristocrat trailer.

And he drove FAST...



Mark

[SafeHarbor]

Hi, Mark,

I can relate. My grandfather had a Mercury Marauder. My uncle had a Chevy with a two-speed and a reversing cone that could go just as fast backwards as it did forward. Another uncle had a Nash Metropolitan. That was a strange sight out in the country.

We are of a century. My mom has a picture of her mom taken in the early thirties. In the picture, she's very young and she's wearing a big smile and a flapper outfit complete with hanging tassels. My grandfather is smoking one of the non-filters that would eventually kill him in the sixties. He looks like the top man on the scene, highly confident, and he has a highly polished wingtip on the bumper of a 1927 Whippet.

Boy, is this off-topic. I had lunch with my grandmother today (she's 94) and she told me about her mother warning her when she was young that she should get under some more quilts. Her mother's comment (I remember her, too, she lived to 96 and worked in her garden the day she died) was, "Better shelter up. It's gonna be a three-dog night."

Lamar

[overlander64]

Greetings stacystudeba!

Welcome to the Forums!

If your Studebaker was the more powerful President model, it woul make a better match for the Globetrotter than the Scottsman with the small six cylinder. I would anticipate very high probability of clutch (manual trans.) problems or transmission problems (automatic) if this car were used for towing.

The Mustang would likely have the raw power, but the concerns would be its short wheelbase and relatively narrow width -- along with the likely difficulty in fabricating a receiver hitch that will work with the Airstream. I know that the owners' manual for my '68 Mustang limited trailer towing to no more than 2,000 pounds. A Fairlane 500 or Torino would be a more likely towing mate for your Globetrottter.

I have owned several collector cars and have used them to tow either my Airstream, Argosy, or Nomad. One of my favorite towcars has been my '65 Dodge Coronet 500 Convertible (383 c.i. V8/727 Torqueflyte) -- it is a bit short on wheelbase for my Overlander but worked well with my Nomad (17') as well as my Minuet. The Cadillac looks great towing my Overlander and does a good job as long as the tires don't contact the wheelwells -- an ongoing problem since I have been unable to find a set of OEM wheels that aren't bent or out of round.

So far as towing speed is concerned, my collector cars CAN keep up with modern traffic, but I do not choose to when towing. Even when towing with my '99 GMC, I keep my speed at 55 MPH with a self-imposed maximum of 60 MPH.

Good luck with your dilemma!

Kevin vbmenu_register("postmenu_267755", true);

[S C Streamer]

Originally Posted by overlander64

A Fairlane 500 or Torino would be a more likely towing mate for your Globetrottter.