Quote:
Originally Posted by DFord79
If towing with a larger vehicle than a V-6 pathfinder is out of the question I am concerened that you are not thinking about safety. WHAT IS MORE INPORTANT....YOUR LIFE...OR A VEHCILE THAT GETS BETTER FUEL MILEAGE. Sorry,, but its a fact. Pay attention to the exsperienced towers. Even with the 19 Bambi you will find that the vehicle you are interested in are marginal at best over the long haul. Longer wheel based V-8 tow vehicles that get worse fuel mileage may save you life. I am so sorry to be so blunt.
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Being farily new to this forum, I can relate that our opinions can scare folks away from safe, affordable Airstreaming without even objectively comparing a proposed rig to the manufacturers' recommended safety specifications.
What MuddyWaters wants to buy seems like a safe rig if they understand the specs and load it properly. My rough estimate is below and I'm not sure what I missed that would make this a marginal, unsafe or life threatening rig:
> A 19' Bambi has an empty weight of 3680lbs. (UBW). It's maximum total weight should not exceed 4500 lbs. (GVWR), This means you can put up to 820 lbs of propane, fluids and optins/gear into the Bambi.
> So, even with the Bambi fully loaded to the recommended maximum of 4500lbs, Muddy's rig will still be
well under (25%) the Pathfinder's 6000lb towing capacity.
> The next thing to check is the weight load on the Nissan. It has a payload capacity of 1200lbs. Subract from that the actual tongue weight the Bambi will put on the rear of the truck. Depending on how the WD hitch and trailer cargo weights are distributed, this might be in the 500-700lb range. Leaving appx 700-500lbs to put in the truck.
> Finally add the weight of the truck to the total maximum weight that could be put in both the truck and the Bambi. Then compare it to the Nissan's combined weight rating. In this estimate, 4900+4500+700=10,100lbs.
Even at maximum recommended loading it is 1,100 lbs under the Nissan's recommended 11,200 lb GCWR.
Although there are some variables like how the trailer load is distributed and how much of the tongue weight is transfered to the trailer wheels, these numbers seem to have a very capable safety margin.
266 HP and 288 ft-lbs torque is more than sufficient power for a 5200lb load. Even then, if the rig seems a bit slow to accelerate or has bad towing mileage, the rear axle ratio can be optimized for towing.
It's a Bambi! Airstreams are light weight travel trailers that can be towed with all manner of vehicles. That is often why many people choose them.
.................Scott