Can I do it?

[Heaviside]

Hi,

I've been interested in Airstreams for many years. Now, my wife and I are retired and are thinking about doing an "around the USA" tour and are thinking about buying an Airstream. My question: will my Ford Ranger pull one of the small ones---like a Bambi?

Maybe this is the wrong forum. If so, please tell me which one to post my question on, won't you?

Thanks.

[Mike Lewis]

Answer in a nut shell---NO To small- not enough HP -to short
Pieman

[Jim Clark]

Originally Posted by Heaviside

Hi,

I've been interested in Airstreams for many years. Now, my wife and I are retired and are thinking about doing an "around the USA" tour and are thinking about buying an Airstream. My question: will my Ford Ranger pull one of the small ones---like a Bambi?

Maybe this is the wrong forum. If so, please tell me which one to post my question on, won't you?

Thanks.

I owned a Ranger and I don’t feel it would Tow a Bambi safely. I sold it to buy a F-150 to tow my previous trailer a Globetrotter. If you are planning on making an extended trip you will need a TV which can handle hills, and mountains. If you spend a little time using the search function you will find out a great deal about safe towing and which TV works best for each trailer. Everyone here is helpful and the advice you receive is sound and safe. You should start by looking up the Capacities of the Ranger and compare the specifications to the trailer you are interested in. Towing is part art and part science.

Good Luck

Jim

[Tarheel]

Trailer Life Magazine has a listing of all tow vechicles and their ratings you can find it on the web. This should let you know all your options.

[Heaviside]

Thanks a lot folks for your suggestions---which I will follow up on.

[Heaviside]

Well----I checked my Ranger manual and read a lot of gcvrw's and the like. I found the load limits for the two axles. But you have to know how much load you will be carrying in the truck and in the trailer, etc. Come on now! My question is: how big a truck do I need to pull the smallest Airstream with nominal loads in both truck and trailer. Isn't there any ballpark guide?

Should I trade in the Ranger for an F150---or similar, if you are a Chevy person, let's say? Is the Bambi the smallest? I think I saw a used RV dealer here locally (Southern Oregon) with an older Airstream "smallie." I think it was probably around fourteen feet long. Any ideas? I intend to go and chin with him in the near future and find what it is.

Is it safe to go with a used one?

Any info will be greatly appreciated from this novice!

Thanks.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by Heaviside

Hi,

I've been interested in Airstreams for many years. Now, my wife and I are retired and are thinking about doing an "around the USA" tour and are thinking about buying an Airstream. My question: will my Ford Ranger pull one of the small ones---like a Bambi?
Thanks.

I towed an Argosy 20 with a Ranger, 4.0 engine, extended cab, 2wd, 5 speed. It was woefully underpowered at best, and "white knuckle time" while trying to tow the trailer. 0-60 times required a calendar to measure, and I always got the feeling I was being pushed, rather than doing the towing.

[GO Bob]

The question was can it. yes it can. I saw a dodge dacoda pulling an older 23'. I asked him about it and he said " I aint in a hurry and aint going far." The question should be first: Is it safe? Will it shorten the life of the truck? I put 1060 lbs. of gravel in the bed of my ranger. I had no problem gettting to 45 MPH with the 2.9L. Then I started fish tailing. It bottomed out the springs.

[Airstream25]

Originally Posted by Heaviside

Hi,
I've been interested in Airstreams for many years. Now, my wife and I are retired and are thinking about doing an "around the USA" tour and are thinking about buying an Airstream. My question: will my Ford Ranger pull one of the small ones---like a Bambi?
Thanks.

Well, since you asked for opinions, here is mine.
An "around the USA" tour sounds like a great idea!
A small Airstream will be too small.
In my opinion, you need about 25' to be comfortable for an extended time.
Once you settle on the size Airstream, you need to get a "more than adequate" tow vehicle. A tow vehicle not only needs adequate horsepower, it also needs adequate wheel base, weight and braking capacity.
You will have a far happier time with a more than adequate rig.
Nothing spoils a trip like having the tail wag the dog creating an urgency for a restrooom.

[Mike Lewis]

A 1/2 ton truck of most any brand will do. Try to get the longest wheel base you can. Remember if you decide later to with a bigger trailer later that would probably mean another tow vehicle change . If you error, error on the BIG side.---pieman

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, Heaviside. In answer to your question; Yes you can, but you may not. It's not safe and more than likely illegal. Any half ton pickup with a V-8 would do the job up to maybe 23'.

Bob

[codybear]

Hi,
We have a 1999 v-10 Dodge Ram 4x4 3/4 ton towing a 22' Safari, and it works great!

[jordandvm]

We had a 2002 Ford Ranger 4.0L 4x4 with 4.10 rear end and large V6 engine and towing package (which the AS dealer said we should be OK towing a 22'). We tried to tow our first AS..... a 2004 22' CCD. We took it out on our maiden voyage once with the Ranger......and afterwards promptly began a search for another vehicle.
It really lugged down even with the smallest of hills. I can't imagine a 19'er being much easier to tow.
We ended up with a 3/4 ton......which was overkill.......but we ended up trading up to a 28' CCD later....which was a good thing!
Here's a pic of our Ranger hooked up for our maiden voyage!

[azflycaster]

Originally Posted by jordandvm

Here's a pic of our Ranger hooked up for our maiden voyage!

Did you have a WD hitch on that? It looks like the front wheels are almost off the ground.

[jordandvm]

Originally Posted by azflycaster

Did you have a WD hitch on that? It looks like the front wheels are almost off the ground.

AZ,
Yup.....it's an equalizer hitch with 1000 lb sway bars installed by Sutton RV in Eugene, OR. The truck is at an angle to the trailer and on a downslope into my driveway, so it looks like it's up in the air because it's pointing uphill! I'm still using the same hitch and sway bars on our 28' CCD.

[SafeHarbor]

Hi, Heaviside,

I'm not trying to spend your funds, but a Bambi is not the trailer to make a long tour in. It's cute as all get out, I'll admit, but wouldn't you rather carry some stuff in the trailer instead of in the truck? Besides, if you're mad at each other, how can you go to another room if you don't have one?

I was very impressed by the space and layout in Driftwoood's 25' Safari. By all means, I'd suggest that you think about tandem axles models. I've had two tire failures on the same trip, and when you've used up the spare, you can limp to the next town with a wheel removed - at 30-mph with the flashers going - if you have two axles. No fun, but it sure beats sitting on the side of the road with "No signal" showing on the cell phone.

Lamar

[Foiled Again]

I fulltimed in a 22ft CCD for a year, then made an "impulse buy" of a 25 Safari FB SE. I love them both, and have decided to keep the 22ft as a guest house for my family... who have all started to visit!

The smallest NEW Airstream is the 16 ft Bambi, then the 19ft Bambi. I really liked fulltiming in my 22ft trailer, but then I'm single... The couples who advise getting a longer one are giving you GOOD advice. Remember that you could get caught in 4 days of bad rain, or have a vehicle breakdown.

If you have many friends and family who will welcome you to visit, or plan to stay at a resort hotel or casino or other large venue from time to time, you could be all right, but if you're going to do most of your travel time IN your unit, go for a 25 at least. I'd advise looking at www.colonialairstream.com and viewing their inventory. They actually have a better representative layout of sizes, colors, etc. than www.airstream.com shows... and they do a good job of keeping their website updated.

Find the LAYOUT you like most first - remember dinettes can be converted to beds but its a time consuming job and you have to make/unmake the bed every time you use it. Think about your lifestyle too when deciding couch vs dinette.

Happy hunting, Happy trails. SYDTR (see you down the road)

Paula Ford

[rock60]

if you are looking for a small airstream there a few nice old ones at
www.rvtraderonline.com