Fantasy Tow Vehicle - May the Forces Be With You

[m.hony]

There used to be shops around here that would fix a sagging headliner for $200.
I had a Pontiac one time with a sagging headliner. Since I only paid $200 for the car I just removed the headliner.

[Andrew T]

Hi Julien

Happy to help you out, We did so much with them I sometimes feel those old Caprices were like a part of me.

Funny when we started using them in 1977 People said, "you can't tow with that small car". By the time they stopped building them in 96 People said "I guess you need a big car like that to tow with."

Andrew T

[Road Ruler]

Originally Posted by Andrew T

Hi Julien

Happy to help you out, We did so much with them I sometimes feel those old Caprices were like a part of me.

Funny when we started using them in 1977 People said, "you can't tow with that small car". By the time they stopped building them in 96 People said "I guess you need a big car like that to tow with."

Andrew T

It is hard to believe that the alternatives, pickups back then, could do the job. They were very low tech, crude vehicles back then.

[Jim Flower]

My 1987 Caprice Estate Wagon looked exactly like the one shown earlier, but could not tow a kid' s sleigh. But it got terrific fuel mileage and sounded fabulous. Clackety, clackety, clack, with nice black smoke emanating from the exhaust pipe. An environmentalists worst dream. It seamed ok to me since I was a fugitive from Tar Island. But I liked it, it was rare, and did I mention, it was cost effective since Diesel was a lot cheaper than gas and it got 28 miles per gal. Zero zip but once up to speed, was a real long distance cruiser. She was T Boned a bit down the road from Masseyfarm's bird, where the Yellowhead joins the Trans Canada. Nice elderly couple in a Class B drove through a red and put an end to their venture and my wagon. I rented a car, refastened my bike rack along with the bikes, and continued on to enjoy a great bike touring holiday with my kids that started in Winnipeg, you know, where it is flat. Jim

[beetlebob]

Well I am finally ordering my dream truck. So some day when you see a white M2/106 with a service body on the back loaded with solar that will be me.

[mstephens]

Originally Posted by beetlebob

Well I am finally ordering my dream truck. So some day when you see a white M2/106 with a service body on the back loaded with solar that will be me.

What exactly is a "M2/106?" I've never heard of that one!

[m.hony]

It is a medium duty Freightliner. It resembles an over-the-road 18 wheeler.
I hadn't heard of it, either- I Googled it!

[Lance M]

The Freightliners are very popular with the big 5th wheel full timer crowd and the rodeo cowboy haulers.

Reliable Recreational Trucks for Hauling & More - Freightliner Trucks

[mstephens]

That's for the 53-foot Airstream?

[beetlebob]

350 hp with 1000 lbs of torque. Allison 3000 trans with all air ride,cab,seat,etc. Also heated seats.Covered service body give me about as much storage as my big shed at the S&B.

[mefly2]

Originally Posted by m.hony

I had a subscription to Corvette News in the 70's and 80's. I remember an article in which a Corvette was modified to tow a huge sailboat.

Pictures say 1,000 words ... 436 hp ...

[BoldAdventure]

My current truck, except 2500HD variant with the 6.7 liter Hemi, roof lights and to complete the dream, a magical card that gives me free gasoline at every pump in America.

[JFScheck]

Originally Posted by mandolindave

But I am skeptical about an 8 speed transmission for towing. Wouldn't an 8 speed transmission be changing gears quite a lot?

Do you not know that Big Rigs have 12 to 16 gear transmissions?

My Allison in my RV has 6 as did both my diesel trucks when I owned my Airstreams.

More gears the better, keeps one in the desired power band of the engine and that 8-speed German sourced tranny is in Trucks, SUV's, and heavy arse luxury cars, by all sorts of manufacturers with different programs based on it's deployment.

The transmission shifts up to 8th for driving, then drops on declines or inclines or accelerating, so seamless one sometimes can only tell my the gear indicator in the dash.

[Uzzah]

So, did the 300 ever get hitched up and go on holiday? I'm in the "don't shoot a large caliber man with a small caliber bullet" crowd at the moment. I went the large SUV route, because that is what works for my current situation, but I love those touring sedans. This really perks my interest and I found the videos posted by CanAm, but they are on a flat road running through cones. I was hoping for more up long steep grades and "drove the 300 and my 30 footer to Vale last week and this is my result" type information.

My other question for those pulling 30 footers, or larger, what type of speeds are you running in the Rockies? And are there issues with temps? Just looking for some of the results of this scientific testing. I'd love a 4 door sedan to putz around town, and yard around my 31 footer.

Where do you all put your bikes and firewood?

[mefly2]

Originally Posted by Uzzah

Where do you all put your bikes and firewood?

Bikes go inside the rear hatch of the AS ... what's firewood ... pick it up when we arrive at camp site ...

[Aage]

Originally Posted by Uzzah

Where do you all put your bikes and firewood?

I see lots of people putting bikes into the trailers.

And up here, many places have laws prohibiting movement of firewood. Beetles and such...

[my3sonsdad]

My fantasy tow vehicle

[Denis4x4]

This is a fantasy come true. Stretched 1933 Ford cab with state of the art interior on a Dodge diesel dually chassis. Set up for fifth wheel or bumper pull.


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[mefly2]

Originally Posted by Denis4x4

This is a fantasy come true. Stretched 1933 Ford cab with state of the art interior on a Dodge diesel dually chassis. Set up for fifth wheel or bumper pull]


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wow

[Tom_T]

The 1985-89 928S (85-86) & 928S4 (87-89) was seriously considered by me to tow our 1960 Avion T20 & well within limits for shortish trips to Vintage Trailer rallies, & would've looked cooool!

Porsche offered a factory tow option & accessories (front fender mounted wide towing mirrors, etc.) for the 928, and was rated by the German TUV (their US-DOT) to tow private campers & such up to 4144# & 3127# otherwise for braked trailers with their factory option long gooseneck Euro style ball. We would've had Andy T. set ours up with a custom version with 2" receiver & torque drag link for WD to tow our vintage silver twinkie. Alas, the wife wanted a "real" usable back seat - not 2+2 & more stowage room, so we're now looking at a used Cayenne S (as you see from my topic in TVs).

Here are some pix of 928s from the USA & EU/UK in tow mode which I found while researching it .... last pic is the 1960 Avion sales brochure with a T20 (possibly ours) towed by an Olds Delta 88 wagon, 2nd to last is a 928 with a custom receiver at the Lic Plate, also factory hitch is shown 3rd from last.

So use your imagination to put the 928 "egg" in front of that vintage silver Avion!