Off Roading Airstream

[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by john hd

gotair

after i am all hitched up and ready to roll i load the trailer out in front of the house. beer, water, food etc. go in after i'm out in the street.

it is amazing how much ground clearance i gain by just doing these two steps. i have it so i don't even scrape when exiting my driveway.
john

OK John, You're a man I wanna meet on my travels (Burp!)

Tin Lizzie

[Coastalview]

Ford builds a nice F250 powerstroke diesel in a 2WD extracab shortbed configuration, and used ones are abundent in this format.(Mass market are mostly 4WD,crewcabs). 4WD isn't really needed, unless you plan on offroad trips without the trailer. I believe GM also builds as well as Dodge, similar configurations as well, all with their own issues.One thing to remember is, that the added cost for a diesel power plant, is not for folks that resale their trucks every few years, but for folks that plan on using them the long duration.Properly maintained, any of these trucks can give you a low cost per mile, and thats really what were all looking for right?

[john hd]

Originally Posted by PaulaFord

OK John, You're a man I wanna meet on my travels (Burp!)

Tin Lizzie

paula,

how much beer? 54 fit with a little room left for snacks! as you can see the weight savings can be substantial!

go ahead and get a 4wd truck, you won't regret it. the added benefit is the transfer case. you can use 4wd LOW to reduce the gear ratio for backing the trailer up a steep incline.

i hope to run into you too!

john

[wahoonc]

As a general rule, I don't like/want/need 4x4 for a variety of reasons. However if shopping for a used vehicle I would not rule it out. A couple of years ago I dragged a fair sized 5'ver(12k# GVW) out to Phoenix for a friend of mine....I used the the 4x4 twice...both times to get some extra oomph to back the beast into a tight spot on an uphill over a hump. It probably would have made it with out but it was nice that it was there. I have owned 4x4's in the past and probably will own one again someday. But I feel in my current situation the added maintenance, extra parts to break, etc out weigh the advantages. JMHO

Aaron

[john hd]

aaron

that is a very reasonable point of view given your location.

some mornings i need 4wd just to get out of the driveway, not to mention the daily drive of 75 to 100 miles to work.

bottom line get the tow vehicle that meets your needs the best.

i drove 2wd trucks for years in the snow, gotta have good snow tires and a lotta weight in the back. chains don't hurt either since studded tires have been outlawed here for over 30 years.

john

john

[DesertRats52]

Greetings!
We have a 97 F-150 4x4, 4.6L that pulls our 23' Safari really good on flat ground, or down hill. he he
We have to put it in 4 wheel drive to get out of the driveway, or start out on a hill, plus gear down to make it up a hill, whether we are pulling anything or not. Our next truck will be a F-250 4x4 for sure.

Marie

[Paul Mayeux]

I'm a firm believer in if you can afford it, go with the 4x4. I changed from 2wd trucks to 4wd trucks back in the eighties after getting tired of not being able to get my boat out of the water without having to be towed up the ramp. There have been several occasions while traveling out west during the winter that I have had to use it to start moving again after coming to a stop while climbing some of the steeper mountain passes. I've been caught by thunderstorms while boondocking ending up looking like a scene from one of the old "Around the World" Caravan videos. Maintenance wise I have never had any problems out of the 4x4 system. Just a little more oil and differential fluids to be changed. I've got 103,000 miles on my '03 4x4 with nothing being done other than the recommended service. When it comes time to sell, the 4x4 will bring more money as well.