West 4x4 Tow Vehicle or... not

[nswhite]

In the midwest we have this green stuff called grass. Morning dew was guaranteed to make your rear wheeled drive vehicles slip. It was always good to make friends with someone with a 4x4 to pull you out.

[guskmg]

If you have a 4x4 it will save rock and gravel dings on the rock guards and the trailer front panel. It is most useful on wet gas or slick roadways. It may mean the difference between getting to emergency medical care or being stranded. I would not leave home without it.
guskmg

[mkcurtiss]

Originally Posted by Dave18134

Question. We love boondocking in wild places - towing a 2017 FC 27ft FBT with an F250 Powerstroke. Our biggest problem is the Airstream shaking apart. Shower door broke, kitchen cabinet hinges broke, underseat drawer broke, rivets fall out, the kitchen faucet shook on once when we forgot to turn off the pump - flood.

How do yall address this when on rough roads?

Dave this will probably pi** you off, but on my 52 year old airstream, nothing ever breaks while traveling....Maybe it is because the old stuff was engineered differently, used different materials, etc., I don't know, but I do know that every thime I get on here and read about the problems with new Airstreams, I am so glad I have an Old '68....

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by Dave18134

Question. We love boondocking in wild places - towing a 2017 FC 27ft FBT with an F250 Powerstroke. Our biggest problem is the Airstream shaking apart. Shower door broke, kitchen cabinet hinges broke, underseat drawer broke, rivets fall out, the kitchen faucet shook on once when we forgot to turn off the pump - flood.

How do yall address this when on rough roads?

Hi

Do you have a WD hitch? If so back off on the WD. Cant't do that and still have the TV in spec? .... probably a good time to start shopping for another TV ...

Next - how fast are you driving? Ok, cut that number in half or more. You judge "to fast" in the TV with a fancy suspension. The trailer (any trailer) has a much more basic setup. Whatever is happening in the TV, *lots* more is going on back in the trailer.

How rough a road is it? Maybe this road is a bad idea. Most of the dirt roads we go down are pretty smooth (at low speed). If you run into deep pits and boulders in your path ... find another road.

How much clearance do you think the trailer has? Take a careful look. Now watch as you to over a hump (or dip) in the road. Not as much room under the rear bumper is there .... yikes. If the back of the trailer contacts, the "flex" will create all sorts of issues.

What do you have up in those cabinets? For that matter, when you weight the trailer how close to limit are you? There is only so much you should be putting here or there. The "high" cabinets are for light stuff, as much for stability reasons as anything else ....

When was the last time you used your torque wrench on the wheel lugs? ...

(yes list keeps going on and on ....)

Bob

[Bill M.]

If you buy a truck off the lot instead of ordering one it is a pretty simple choice. 4 wheel drive or 2 wheel drive. I went with the 4 wheel drive in spite of the extra complexity and height because a 2 wheel drive with a heavy diesel engine up front and a stiff suspension will get stuck on dew. And because the truck I liked and could get a real good price on was 4 wheel drive. I have not used it much. It has saved a couple of tow jobs though. I got stuck once with the 4 wheel drive where I should not have been and had to be pulled out. By luck there were several people around more experienced in the things than me so I was saved from a long wait and a big bill. Overall I like knowing the 4 wheel drive is there. I have needed 4 wheel drive for the trailer twice I can think of offhand. Once when I pulled into some deep gravel in Yellowstone and once when we had 11 inches of rain in Lewiston at the international and I was parked in a low, soft field. I have put u joints and ball joints in the front once so far. I have a friend who is proud of ordering his truck without 4 wheel drive. But he mentioned that when he bought his motor home he had to keep the truck because nobody really wanted to buy a used 2 wheel drive heavy duty truck at the time.

I try not to pull the Airstream on really bad roads. I would slow down and take the WD bars off if I had to do it. Not sure a soft sprung truck is much easier on a trailer than a stiff one on a rough road with no WD bars.

[Mr. Merk]

I've spun the tires plenty on the grass at my in-laws. If I'm in my 2wd 1/2 ton I normally just unhook the WD and let the locker work. The 3/4 ton has needed 4hi engaged every time so far. New MT tires going on next week so that may change. The Cayenne has 295s and AWD so it has never had traction issues

[Ray Eklund]

Stop at a Ranch or Farm.

4x4 or 4x2?

Stop at a RV Park.

4x4 or 4x2?

Check out the ATV trailer towers in the mountains.

4x4 or 4x2?

Now you have your answer. Much like having Insurance on your Tow Vehicle and Trailer... everyone has choices. When you are towing, I prefer having the OPTION to use all Four Tires for traction and the two to four tires behind me for Braking.

I have been STUCK ONCE in my lifetime. I was 21. Rebuilt the engine and clutch/pressure plate/bearing/etc. on a 1957 Ford Pickup. Cheyenne, Wyoming. Two wheel drive. Took it out and wanted to bust some snow drifts to test it out.

I was wise enough to have brought a shovel... I learned the difference in 1971. Been smart ever since.

[TravisH]

4x4 worth it on every level of consideration!

Like a firearm better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it!

I have a Tundra TRD Off Road model and it's a beast! I have a nice obstacle back home I take my new vehicles to to see how they behave.

My first was a 4Runner Ltd with elocker. I used to have to engage the elocker to clear one obstacle. I figured the Tundra would struggle with longer wider wheel base and no locker but it walked right up! Maybe the lower rear gear ratio....

I got stuck way too many times (once is more than enough!) with 2WD trucks over the years. My most drastic was simply pulling over on a shoulder that looked fine but was muddy. I sank pretty deep and no traffic to help. It was a good hour of digging and and filling with rocks to get out.... and again it looked fine a shoulder of a 55mph 2 lane hwy....Could very easily happen again!

Trav

[rmkrum]

Yup. Similar experience. Pulled off a paved road to check a map and ended up in super soft sand.

No go in 2WD, front tires sank in, right rear just spun. Put the Tacoma in 4WD low range, locked the rear differential and crawled right on out. When you need 4WD is unpredictable, but vital when you do need it. I’d rather not spend hours digging in the hot sun...trick is to not get impatient and dig it in deeper. Stop, think, and plan the exit. Brute force in not necessarily your friend.

[Gearheart]

I tow a boat when not towing the trailer. I have seen some really sketchy launch ramps. To have 4WD and not need it is OK. To need 4WD and not have it is not good.

[mythbuster88]

We use 4WD constantly, gravel driveway and all.
Can't imagine not having it.
And when you get to wherever your going its so much fun!

On MULTIPLE occasions it has been a real life saver.
Deep sand, mud , steep dirt, snow...

Oh and the low range sees a lot of action

[JCWDCW]

My first tow vehicle was a 4WD 1500 GMC Jimmy
I only needed it when I knew I would get myself into trouble. I now only have 2WD with limited slip differential and I deliberately avoid getting into trouble. However there have been times when 4WD would have helped, like turning too tight on sand or slippery grass. Both times I got out of it by disconnecting and re aligning the TV with the Trailer.
JCW

[drbrick]

Like Ray 95+% of our camping is "boondocking" ... we travel the forestry roads to get to our loved lakeside campsites. our FX4 comes with off road package (undercarriage Shield guards etc), 4x4 high/low and locking rear end - we run E rated KO2s on the truck and E rated GYE on the AS. Would NOT leave home (where we go) without 4X4,,, just saying.

[pryner]

I've used my 4wd several times down here in Florida and on fairly flat terrain in the Midwest. As others have mentioned, when grass gets wet it is very difficult to get traction with a 2wd. Using 4wd saved my friends and my lawn trying to park after or during a rain. I also use the 4wd while not towing which is a plus for us. Our last three tow vehicles had 4wd and I wouldn't consider a 2wd.

[Ray Eklund]

Location, location and location make a difference in 2x4 or 4x4.

Rocky Mountains provide plenty of challenges, year round. I include four photographs I pulled off the computer.

1- March 27, 2009 Gila National Forest, New Mexico
2- April 18, 2009 Roxborough Park, Colorado (Front Range near Littleton)
3- May 23, 2020 Beaver Rim, Wyoming (southeast of Lander, Wyoming)
4- December 31, 1998 Lake Mead, Arizona (not far from Boulder Dam, Nevada)

Be prepared for anything when Off the Grid Boondocking.

[JonDNC]

Originally Posted by drbrick

Like Ray 95+% of our camping is "boondocking" ... we travel the forestry roads to get to our loved lakeside campsites. our FX4 comes with off road package (undercarriage Shield guards etc), 4x4 high/low and locking rear end - we run E rated KO2s on the truck and E rated GYE on the AS. Would NOT leave home (where we go) without 4X4,,, just saying.

This ^^. Except we’re not 95% probably 50/50

[Overstreet]

This is like people that don't use the toilet in the RV cause they don't want to drain the tank. I don't understand or really care.

I've had a 4x4 since 2001. It has been good. I've needed it to pull people out of the sand at work, at the beach, pulling mowers out at the farm, dump trailer work at the farm, boat trailers at the boat ramp, pushing the AS back into a sand parking space, pulling AS out of spaces, on the grass at the father-in-laws place so not to "burn" holes and at the lake during the wet season. I've also used it to reserve my parking spot at work. No one else could park there. I've driven it in snow in Indiana, but decided to stay home and watch movies.

Naw, I don't need it, but I want it.

[Ray Eklund]

Oooooh Weeee all you Wyoming and Nebraska Cow Patty crusted fender well Boondockers may not need 4x4 here. Maybe... all depends.

A beautiful Off the Grid Boondocking area has a Forest Service campground that has a Water Hand Jack Pump, that I oiled and got it working in 2016. I do not camp there, but you can take a look around. There are 1,000's of acres of open areas to DRY camp... if it does not snow, rain, drizzle, get foggy... those kinds of things.

Taylor Reservoir, north of Gunnison, Colorado on Highway 135 north and take Forest Road 742 from Almont which takes you to Taylor Park and Taylor Reservoir. It may still be on the Colorado map. You can have breakfast in the small community at the SE part of the lake. Also rent a snow mobile...if you are unlucky to have a big snow late in the season. Also propane at, no doubt, an inflated price for those who come, unprepared. The food is good and reasonable. Ray and Nancy are very... lets say... conservative diners.

The photographs are beautiful. They may also be of this area. Maybe western Kansas for some of you from Hays, Kansas. You find out and report the good or bad news. We want you to be... maybe happy.

You are also near Crested Butte had you took Highway 135 PAST Almont and kept going for a packed tourist and ski town in the Winter. You will think you drove into Switzerland. No kidding. It is a real nice area to visit.

You DO NOT NEED 4x4 to get to Taylor Reservoir. Crested Butte has a nice paved road, parks and busy downtown for a small Colorado town. Good fishing in the Taylor River. Biggest fish at the bridge when you get to the reservoir.

My dates seem to be June 12 to 14, 2016 for the photographs. This was the Green Horn Boondocking Adventure in 2016 and found somewhere under Boondocking. There were survivors. All, in fact.

Oh... beside the point. Between Gunnison and Poncha Springs, Colorado on Highway 50 is the... Monarch Pass at 11,312. Or take Highway 114 going around Monarch Pass to the south. If have taken the Monarch Pass route... you probably NOW take the 114 and avoid the screaming wife, family and dogs.

If you want to live on the edge of the living... Monarch Pass, my friend. You had bette like to sweat profusely going UP and a raised pulse and dehydration going... down into the bowels of the EARTH, it will seem. It does end... but you will dream about this one for a long, long time.

This is an EL Public Airstream Service Owners advisory. An El PASO... for... all Texas residents to Do IT. Find the Greenhorn Thread, I could not find it, but I am sure everyone will warn you NOT to do it.. a second time. I have. That is why I seem... normal.

I was told Cottonwood Pass is paved to Buena Vista... but maybe trailers were not allowed. We were at the Pass Pre-Paved. Had a snowball battle with fellow owners at the Pass.

[new2trailer]

Originally Posted by Ray Eklund

The majority of Airstream Owners, or anyone towing a trailer DO NOT NEED A FOUR WHEEL DRIVE TRUCK. Although I do as we Off the Grid Boondock...I NEED 4x4.

Ray, I hate to break it to you but you don't need 4 wheel drive. You choose to travel where you utilize your 4X4 more than other Airstreamers.

I posit that 4X4 is more important to those who don't travel the back roads. They want to be ready for unexpected conditions they haven't experienced. Having 4X4 provides more peace of mind to them than it does for you; in my mind making it more essential for the trepid than the intrepid traveler.


Nice post btw.

Mike

[Ray Eklund]

Originally Posted by new2trailer

Ray, I hate to break it to you but you don't need 4 wheel drive. You choose to travel where you utilize your 4X4 more than other Airstreamers.

I posit that 4X4 is more important to those who don't travel the back roads. They want to be ready for unexpected conditions they haven't experienced. Having 4X4 provides more peace of mind to them than it does for you; in my mind making it more essential for the trepid than the intrepid traveler.


Nice post btw.

Mike

*******

I was out in the countryside in central Missouri. A farmer got his big tractor stuck alongside the dirt road in the mud culvert. He was trying to pull the tractor out with a big farm truck when I arrived. The tractor did not budge. The farm truck just dug a hole in the road.

He asked if I would drive the tractor and he would pull with the truck. Being ambitious kind of person I did. Ohhh boy, was he stuck. That tractor did not budge even with me giving it Diesel on the pedal. Maybe Gas, I know nothing about Farm Tractors.

I was driving a 4x4 Toyota 1981 pickup. Six cylinders. Shell on the back. Great Michelin Tires.... lots of traction. Low and High 4x4. Oh yes... I see you are already wanting to know what I am up to.

I started my Toyota and... drove around the farm truck. Sometimes 4x4 just is not going to make any difference. I have to agree with new2trailer. This time.

If you get stuck... borrow a Farm Tractor. Your vehicle will be a foot or two longer after getting pulled out.