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Old 05-30-2021, 07:40 AM   #1
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Car and Driver confession!

Not trying to create a flaming event here but I do believe that this behavior is more common than you might think…
I am not as critical of the choice of tow vehicle as I am the lack of proper setup and driving skills…

https://www.caranddriver.com/feature...airstream-tow/
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Old 05-30-2021, 08:02 AM   #2
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scary Darwin moment.
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Old 05-30-2021, 08:31 AM   #3
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very scary story.
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Old 05-30-2021, 08:35 AM   #4
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My late husband said he would never tow anything, and this kind of story would be why.

Glad no one was hurt, but that could have easily happened.

Maggie
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Old 05-30-2021, 08:46 AM   #5
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Wow, that is a very public admission of gross lack of preparation.

I just towed 3000 miles across Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, Idaho and Washington. Every now and then I noticed it was windy, but it was the trees telling me about the wind, not the trailer.

Set it up right with the right hitch and enjoy.
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Old 05-30-2021, 09:02 AM   #6
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I think this type of scenario is quite common. More people than ever before are buying RVs, and most of them know nothing about proper loading, weight limits, cargo limits, etc.

I recently spoke with another RV owner who was pulling an 8,500+ lb. trailer with a Toyota 1/2-ton truck. I asked him how it towed, and he said it was okay but he occasionally had to stop because the truck’s brakes were overheating in the mountains. He’s now considering putting a motorcycle in the bed of the truck to take on camping trips. I asked him about his tongue weight and his cargo capacity and he had no idea. If it fits in the truck, then it must be fine. Right? Ignorance is bliss, I suppose.

It reminds me of somebody who never goes to the doctor or checks any of their vital stats because they feel fine. Everything is great! Until it’s not....
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Old 05-30-2021, 09:17 AM   #7
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So many things that could be said for this one, but I'll bite my tongue on most of my comments.

1. "A barrowed truck and trailer" (No sure who the dumb** was that loaned it them out)
2. "Never towed before" (But let's start with the one of the largest Airstreams made)
3. "No understanding of setting the tow/trailer up (30 minutes of Andy's video)
4. Most likely has never driven anything bigger than a Toyota Prius (scary thought)
5. Then writes an article for Car & Driver about the trip (#3, but yet I'm sure has a degree in journalism)

Lucky they didn't kill someone, or themselves. Should stick to driving the Prius and take up tent camping.

But the best part, there is a "Gofundme" for the writer from 12/1/2019
https://www.gofundme.com/f/john-pearley-huffman

Oh Well,

Just Saying,
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Old 05-30-2021, 09:19 AM   #8
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When I was starting out, an old cowboy friend with tons of experience said to me, loosely quoted, "Once the crap starts hitting the fan, it's a bit late to trade up to a bigger tow vehicle". We've towed our 25' over 50,000 miles in the last 4 years with our F250 without even a single event that resulted in increased heart rate. You've made great choices in both your trailer and tow vehicle.
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Old 05-30-2021, 09:40 AM   #9
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Hi

Indeed, glad nobody was hurt and they didn't have a many 10's of thousands of dollars repair bill .....

One *might* note the lack of any mention of a WD / AS hitch in this mix. That's not to say you can be *sure* it wasn't there. Based on mention of "overloading the rear axle", I'd bet a case of beer that they were towing on the ball.

I can indeed say from first hand experience with a 30' Classic, above about 60 MHP things get a bit wobbly when you "only" have a F-250 as a tow vehicle and you are towing on the ball. What happens above that speed, I've never been crazy enough to investigate.

Yes, there are some tricks on the Classic. You want to tow with a full fresh water tank. You do *not* want to load those back upper cabinets with your gold bar collection .... Even with those tricks, 60 plus the "wrong" wind towing on the ball .... keep one hand on the trailer brake controller ....

Bob
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Old 05-30-2021, 09:48 AM   #10
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They say that God watches out for children, drunks and fools.
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Old 05-30-2021, 09:57 AM   #11
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I don't even want to talk about stupidity: trailer-rollover-sway-accidents-part-1/
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Old 05-30-2021, 11:18 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by drbrick View Post
I don't even want to talk about stupidity: trailer-rollover-sway-accidents-part-1/
Hi

The *only* part of that I'd take issue with is the "trailer GVWR 50% or less of the tow vehicle GVWR". Classic 30' is a 10,000 pound GVWR trailer. A Ford F-550 (no not a typo) comes in at 19,500 pounds. It only comes *close* to that requirement. Anything else in the lineup falls way short. The 450 comes in at 14,000 pounds. The 350 is in the 10,000 to 14,000 range "depending".

If a 550 is the minimum safe tow vehicle, I don't think I have ever seen anybody safely towing any of the Classics.

Why does this mater in this context? Accuracy matters. Toss in something that's over the top and all the rest of a very good set of information gets mentally discarded. That's not good. It leads to folks doing stupid things.

Bob
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Old 05-30-2021, 11:52 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by uncle_bob View Post
Hi



One *might* note the lack of any mention of a WD / AS hitch in this mix. That's not to say you can be *sure* it wasn't there. Based on mention of "overloading the rear axle", I'd bet a case of beer that they were towing on the ball.


Bob
At the end of the article it says they were not using WD.
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Old 05-30-2021, 12:23 PM   #14
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I have been on a lotta caravans. I have checked out a lot of rigs on departure days. I have never seen anybody towing an Airstream "on the ball" on one of the caravans. Why would a Car and Driver writer do that? Because he did not know better. I wonder if he does now? I do not think this article really shows much except that the people who "lent" this guy the equipment were taken advantage of.
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Old 05-30-2021, 12:42 PM   #15
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Old 05-30-2021, 12:51 PM   #16
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If you read the comments below the article, you’ll see one about the writer aiming for “I’m so stupid it’s cute”. I wrote that response. “ISSIC” is all too pervasive in Hollywood offerings, and TOTALLY inappropriate in a car magazine. I am a long time subscriber to that magazine. Soon to be “was”.
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Old 05-30-2021, 02:49 PM   #17
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Did anyone else notice the complete lack of, "Don't do what I just stupidly did; instead do this..." as a closer to the article?

Not only is this moron endangering others by his incompetence on the road, he perpetuates it by not learning from the experience! The level of irresponsibility by the author is reprehensible...
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Old 05-30-2021, 04:14 PM   #18
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Originally Posted by Steamguy View Post
Did anyone else notice the complete lack of, "Don't do what I just stupidly did; instead do this..." as a closer to the article?

Not only is this moron endangering others by his incompetence on the road, he perpetuates it by not learning from the experience! The level of irresponsibility by the author is reprehensible...
+1

The author sounds like a clueless moron. He’s lucky he didn’t badly injure or kill someone.
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Old 05-30-2021, 05:01 PM   #19
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I worked in Yellowstone for many summers. One of my routines was a weekly foot patrol of our campground (Bridge Bay).

You would not believe how many people just purchase, hook-up and go. The remarkable thing was that they made it that far.

This guy is not helping correct that…
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Old 05-30-2021, 05:08 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by n2916s View Post
I worked in Yellowstone for many summers. One of my routines was a weekly foot patrol of our campground (Bridge Bay).

You would not believe how many people just purchase, hook-up and go. The remarkable thing was that they made it that far.

This guy is not helping correct that…
Well actually, he may inadvertently be doing exactly that!
I always shake my head at the reports of uninformed sales people telling customers that this can tow that… or this is rated at that. The reality is that many sales people are focused primarily on the sale. Lots of bad advice out there.
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