Vintage tow vehicle

[J. Morgan]

Ok, as soon as I saw the campground picture the first thing that came into my head was southwest Tucson, then I said that could be near Oro Valley, or even along the Salt river.... With a possible chance of near Wickenberg, or north of Scottsdale....

Ok, so are any of my guesses close?

[J. Morgan]

By the way. I love you truck and trailer, very cool!

[J. Morgan]

Wait... Casa Grande?

I can't quite peg the hills,,,,, the flora makes me want to say Tucson, but the hills don't look just right....

[Klatawa]

Usery Mountain, Mariposa county park near Apache Junction. Nice park.

[J. Morgan]

Looks a little green for AJ, must have been some good rains around about the time you were there.

Very nice country!

[safari57]

This is the same version as Klatawa's, a year newer. I do not know he owner but have seen this rig at various car shows in the area and it is really nicely done. I've also seen the next series (67-72) for sale frequently on the other site below.

First off the '66 'Burb

1966 Chevrolet Suburban Custom cab Outside Victoria, Victoria


And for the next series I've seen many really nice units here.

Suburbans Cars For Sale

As always, what ever you were interested in would need to be checked thoroughly by someone local who is not connected to the seller. I've lusted after the '66 and was coaching my neighbor who is restoring a '48 Airstream (he currently has a 58 Silverstreak) to pursue it but he wants the 48 to 54 series that he will update with newer frame/power train.

We travel often with Klatawa and I must say that where we get to pull in,unhook, and get settled, they spend much of their time talking about their rig with others. When we use our '57 Pontiac we have the same thing happen although we do not use it for the extended trips Klatawa do. They truly use their 'Burb as the tow rig for their trailer no matter where they are going and they put thousands of trouble free miles a year on it.

Too often we forget that these are the rigs that towed our vintage trailers when they were new. I have to chuckle when folks are amazed that we can pull our vintage Airstream with our vintage car and the look of surprise and "oh yeah" that comes to them when I remind that these were all that was available for the most part back in the days when these trailers were built. With upgraded suspension and brakes, and often power trains if one chooses, they are wonderful vehicles to tow with. Bredlo on the forums is currently doing a complete update on an early 50's Chrylser product, a Dodge wagon if I remember correctly but he will correct me if I'm wrong. He will have a late model tow vehicle disguised as a 1953 or 54 station wagon.

[J. Morgan]

Many vehicles from the 50s and 60s were a lot more capable that many give them credit.

[64Lincoln]

I've pulled my '64 Airstream with my '64 Lincoln on several trips since finally getting the hitch on it in November, and it's done quite well. I was towing with a '99 Durango before. I towed my teardrop, Chris Crafts, and an occasional car trailer with my '69 Cougar for twenty years. When I got the Durango, I remember thinking it was the best tow vehicle I had ever driven. The Cougar really isn't big enough for some of what I had it do. It had the power, but... Actually, worse than that was when I was in high school in the 1980's, I used to pull the Chris Craft with a '40 Ford Pickup I used to have. It had a Chevy 350 in it and a turbo 350 trans, but the brakes and steering were all original. Those old wood boats are heavy too.

I'm taking the Lincoln and the Airstream to the Pismo Beach Rally next weekend which is about 300 miles south of here. I can't wait.

[J. Morgan]

I have thought about wanting to pull my Airstream with my 55 Lincoln, and I might,,,,, if I ever get a smaller Airstream....

64 would be a 430 MEL? I am sure it pulls pretty strong.

[64Lincoln]

Yes, the 430 MEL with a Carter AFB pulls well, and going to Mariposa last week, it did real well on the hills.

[CaddyGrn]

We do like pulling our vintage Airstream with our vintage truck... a 1968 Ford F-100 4 x 4. Has some newer goodies.... still working on all the comfort items, but our insurance is considerably less than a new truck, our license fees are also considerably less, we have the "vintage" factor as we drive down the road... sometimes it would be nice to have a newer tow vehicle, but I think the benefits outweigh the negatives...

[tevake]

I too love older things with character, which is a good thing, as that's what I'm becoming. :-)

Some here have really done well in pairing classic T Vs with their classic R Vs
Inspirational !


There is some satisfaction to be had in keeping and upgrading older machenery to be able to operate on modern roads.

Another good source to watch is BAT. Bring a Trailer. Online classic classifieds

Here is one listed that has some interesting potential.

59k-mile 1972 Cadillac Coupe deVille

But the body on this old ambulance is very blimp like, what a match for an earlier airstream trailer.

BaT Exclusive: 1952 Cadillac Meteor Ambulance Project

I'm enjoying this thread a lot!

[Pat Conway]

There is a 1953 Packard advertised in June Hemmings that really strikes my interest as a great potential tow vehicle. 1500 miles since $60,000 resto, stock look with crate 454, turbo 400,Ford 9", ps,pb,fast,smooth,reliable, drive anywhere, $24,500 interesting trades considered. It is silver with black top.

Go to Hemmings.com, select Cavalier under Packard and you will see it. It is in Beaumont, Texas. If I didn't already have a nice TV I would probably check it out.

[ScoobyShack]

I just bought a 1977 Ford F-350 SuperCab Ranger XLT Camper Special/Trailer Special 460 to pull my 1976 TradeWind. Might be a slight case of overkill! Lol!

It's a nice, low mileage, rust-free example, loaded with every option possible on the F-350 SC. It was ordered with towing in mind.



I think it will be the perfect vintage tow vehicle for my vintage Airstream! I'm saving now just to put gas in the tanks!

David

[Hittenstiehl]

That is going to be a nicely matched pair.

[safari57]

Nice score Scooby. My brother had a similar truck. He bought it new, sold it in '96, still has regrets other than the gas mileage was a bit hard. But for many of us it's not about the miles, its about the smiles per miles that count

[FreshAir]

Originally Posted by Denis4x4

Over the years, I've had a number of cars plus an antique Chris-Craft insured with Hagerty. When I discussed insuring a 60 year old travel trailer (restored), the sticking point was the propane stove and heater. Never got coverage and it was destroyed when the storage shed it was in caved in under a heavy snow load. Too, if you have an umbrella policy, some companies will not extend that coverage to vehicles covered by another company like Hagerty.

Ah...the insurance dilemma. I've given up after trying, what must have been, every insurance carrier. 'They will cover my Trade Wind, My '71 Buick convertible and my '69 Olds Ninety Eight separately but NOT if I tow a trailer with my classics. Maybe those companies have changed.....?????

Neil

[captmatt]

I still am so glad to have found an original condition 1997 F350 7.3 with less than 100,000 miles, way less, still not there less! Spent big $ repairing my diesel 'learning curve' mistakes but it is still running like new. Nice thing is it was the last year of that body type so with a quick mirror change it looks like a MUCH older truck.

[64Lincoln]

I had my '64 Lincoln insured with Hagarty until I decided to tow my Airstream with it. Then I had put the Lincoln on my modern car policy with Allied. They are also insuring my '64 Airstream Safari. Both the Lincoln and the Safari are being insured as modern vehicles.

[safari62]

John Wayne’s “War Wagon” IH Travelall heads to auction | Hemmings Daily

I do not know if this has been discussed here but I thought many would like to see it. This is what a vintage tow vehicle should look like.

I'm not gonna to hit YOU......the HELL I'm not. John Wayne