Airstream Interstate X towing a Ford Bronco Badlands.
Some tips, tricks, equipment lists, and warnings, if you ever thought about flat-towing with an Interstate X or other Airstream coaches built on the VS30 platform.
If you don't want a Jeep, but still want off-roading and trail capacity or ground clearance, the Bronco is the only competent off-road vehicle with
native support for flat-towing without modification to the vehicle's drivetrain.
Something I did not want to get into.
Most Broncos are at the weight limit, and the heavily optioned ones are over it. So while it's right on the 5000-pound line based on vehicle specs, I haven't weighed it laden.
I am not super worried. It's sluggish uphill with the diesel V6 (think about getting the ECU tune), but it's okay when you roll and feel safe with a quality supplemental braking system.
This is the smaller 2.3 Bronco engine, not the 2.7 with the assisted brake problem.
That's a battle between the Bronco community, the NTSB, and Ford, who have only issued a workaround of pulling fuses so far and not a software fix.
If you are going with a Bronco, educate yourself on this problem. The 2.7 is the engine of choice for many Bronco owners, but those come with brake assist, and that brake assist will time-out.
(
https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threa...6#post-1766026)
Mule:2023 Airsteam Interstate X which is built on VS30 2022 MB Sprinter 3500 HD Dually.
Toad: 2022 Ford Bronco Badlands Sasquatch
But most any 2.3 Bronco is fine, but avoid the Hellcat [weight] and the 2.7 unless you are ok waiting for a fix or the workaround procedures Ford posted
Setup:
- RVI Ready Brake 3
- RVI Tire Minder TPMS
- RVI Towed Battery Minder
- Blue Ox Tow Bars
- Blue Ox Base Plate
- Roadmaster Diode 7-Wire to 6-Wire Flexo-Coil Wiring Kit
- Towmate Wireless Tow Light
- Towmate Wireless Breakout Box
The VS30 Sprinter requires load or resistance to enable the 12-volt on the 7-pin, which in turn, you may want or need to keep your towed vehicle battery in good shape. The Bronco LED Tail lights do not generate enough load alone. (
https://sprinter-source.com/forums/i.../#post-1273692).
So the Towmate Wireless Tow Light and Breakout box I bought was originally for back-up when I wasn't sure if the light diode set-up would work.
This was before I learned about the 12-volt power special conditions found in the VS30. It ended up not just being a backup but a workaround for this MB unwanted "feature" of not having "always on" on the 7-pin.
I just thought I would share some of the research I put in to get this all working well in case someone else is thinking about about a flat-tow setup.
Please note that if you are going with something other than a Bronco as your towed vehicle (Toad), you will have different challenges.
This is just my experience after nearly a month of dialing out all the kinks and getting everything working correctly.
30-second, unedited, untitled video of this setup at night
PS: In this video, I had not yet hooked up the brake away safely. It's the orange-coiled small cord hanging down attached only to itself.
Linear Mode
