First road trip with Touareg and CCD...

[67caravel]

Just returned last night from 1000 miles into and around Colorado pulling about our '04 22' Airstream CCD (fully loaded - full fresh water, three dogs, 2 adults, propane, food for all including over 100 pounds of frozen meat for the pooches, and all provisions including barley pop). Ran with WD but no sway control - it didn't sway or buck once the entire trip - this rig was stable.

On one stretch, we drove up to Crested Butte over Monarch Pass. Mountain Directory West refers to Monarch Pass as 9 miles exceeding a 6.4% grade. There are numerous 30, 35, and 45 MPH curves. This is one tough climb even without a trailer.

We passed everything on the road going both directions (didn't see a single motorcycle, admittedly).

On the open plain return to NM, we ran about 200 miles at 75 MPH and averaged over 12 MPG. It appeared that many of the 5th wheeler crowd were aghast (by the looks on their faces) as we left them behind to suffer the headwind alone.

The Treg turned out to be a wonderful tow vehicle for our 22' CCD. These Airstreams sure tow nice!

BTW, I owe many of you a grateful acknowledgement for all the help and insight that you gave me on this forum. Thanks again.

X

[Big Dee]

Sure is a nice lookin' rig, Xray!! Have fun!

[67caravel]

Thanks Dee!

[jordandvm]

Poetry in Motion! Sure would like to see what you did with your new curtains from Smith & Noble. What the heck is barley pop (new one on me) ? You must have some serious power in that VW frame. Haven't dared to pull my 22' CCD trailer over over 65mph yet. Just bought a new Chevy Avalanche 2500 to tow with. Have taken one trip 360 miles RT. Towed great. We love our CCD also! Did you boondock the whole trip? What generator do you have?

[Safari Tim]

Nice setup Xray!

Wow, three dogs! So your setup sleeps five then?

[Stefrobrts]

Congrats! Sounds like a nice trip, and the scenery looks beautiful!

[john hd]

congrats x ray!

very nice pics, gotta love pulling a well behaved rig. i get the same look from the white box folks when i pass 'em too! "the horror!"

at least i know what "barley pop" is!

john

[Pick]

I would have loved to see the look on the fiver driver's faces! Over in the U.K. the Toureg is available with a diesel engine that puts out 375 HP at something like 635 ft lbs of torque. Imagine pulling a 34' with that! That's more power than any of the big 3's diesel pickups!!!!

I am a big fan of "barley pop", like John HD.

[cmock]

Congrats on your rig. What a great looking pair. We looked at the Toureg but it was just too much $$$, I had no idea how well it would pull. We enjoy pulling our 19 ft CCD behind our Avalanche. I was awed by a 25 ft CCD I saw at a dealer last weekend and already want to trade up to a 22 or 25. Barleypop - just heard that a few months ago for the first time. New slang or is the south just behind ?

[67caravel]

Thanks, thanks thanks!

"Barley pop" is a term of endearment for "beer". LOL!

Didn't think I would "getcha" on that one!

[norbert]

A tasteful touch for the table! i am reminded of an old car ad that showed little flower holders mounted in the back seat on the sides....dont remember the car name...maybe that would be a nice option for an airstream!
norby

[Happycampers]

Nice setup x-ray, I am waiting for the diesel to come out, hope it isn't too high priced.
Norbert, the car you are thinking of was the Packard, had a bud vase on the door pillers.

[67caravel]

The diesel's out - priced in the $60's.

[Chuck]

yikes! why so expensive? are they carved out of a solid block of gold, or something?

[Happycampers]

That is more than I want to pay, that converts to 81264.00 Canadian. Have to look at something else if I go to a diesel.

[67caravel]

Yep, they are expensive... I recall the gas Touareg's in Canada were in the 7x,xxx range CDN.

[KIMILI]

X ray that is one fine set up!! All our best.

Just out of curiosity where did the 3 pups sleep...?

Our husky took possession of the den space under the dinette and is incredibly happy there but our shepard has yet to settle. No matter where I place her bed she'll pull it to a different area each time!

[overlander63]

X, I am glad to see I was wrong about the towing cap. of the Toureg. Please keep us up-to-date of future trips, and any towing-related issues you experience (good exp.'s too).
Terry

[norbert]

Originally Posted by happy82301

Nice setup x-ray, I am waiting for the diesel to come out, hope it isn't too high priced.
Norbert, the car you are thinking of was the Packard, had a bud vase on the door pillers.

i think you are correcto mundo... my father was a packard man...
norby

[67caravel]

Kimili, we made the dinette into one bed for the German Shepherd (put a sheet and two sheepskins on it to protect it and to "soften" it up. Underneath, the Pekingese slept on her dog bed (muffled her snoring). Of course, the Jack Russell slept with my wife and me... Where else?

Took some getting used to, tho, gotta admit.

We replaced the factory mattress with one made to our specs (organic wool and cotton and natural latex). Most comfortable sleep we've had in quite awhile. The company that made it needed a template that Airstream sent me before the trailer was done. Really nice craftsmanship (Lifekind Products)!

The twin Fantastic Fans were a big help. The Front Range of Colorado was breakin' temp records... We did not have to boondock but did not run the A/C either. We were cool and collected.

One thing that was a big improvement was the reliability of the new Dometic fridge versus what we had on our vintage. Kept the temp constant throughout the whole trip. Nice! Used propane exclusively.

Also, we did not mind the wet bath on the '22 at all - worked for us just fine. Actually pretty efficient when you start to use one. Wet yourself down, lather yourself up with a natural sponge and your favorite body wash and shampoo, shave in the mirror, and rinse the whole thing down. Dry the shower out with your towel before getting out.

Adios!