*Truck and Towing thread........ask your questions here.*

Thanks guys - this one has me scratching my head. The old setup was higher in the nose than now, but definitely not extreme. Old photo below.

SDP

IMG_0238-L.jpg
 
I wonder if it is the hitch rocking a bit. Mine will do that if I don't have the lever's tight before I lock them. Do you have the factory under bed hitch rails?

j
 
I wonder if it is the hitch rocking a bit. Mine will do that if I don't have the lever's tight before I lock them. Do you have the factory under bed hitch rails?

j

That was my concern, that it's something coming between the hitch and the bed. Yes I have the factory hitch and tightened the bolts so I have to use a rubber mallet to get the levers into position.

Wife swears its coming from that roto-flex head, but how can rubber hitting metal make that noise. Clunking sort of noise.

i-qzZXbbd-L.jpg
 
I think next time I get hitch weight on the truck I'll check for looseness at those levers.
 


I have the exact same hitch. Mine has done it with 3 different trailers on it. I just ignore it now. Something in the base plate or maybe the rocking on the head makes a clunking noise. Haven't lost a trailer yet and I used to tow 10-12,000 miles a year when I was racing. :-)

j
 
That's not what I was hoping to hear. But still good to know it may not be critical. I'll try to retighten with the load on and see if it makes a difference.
 


Nice rigs MMNJ.

How did you like the Volvo? A lot of people on the RV forums have picked them up fairly cheap and converted them into crew cabs. They said the Volvos were easier (and cheaper) to convert than an IH, Freightliner or KW. I only use my truck to tow now and may go that route when I need a new truck.

j
 
Nice rigs MMNJ.

How did you like the Volvo? A lot of people on the RV forums have picked them up fairly cheap and converted them into crew cabs. They said the Volvos were easier (and cheaper) to convert than an IH, Freightliner or KW. I only use my truck to tow now and may go that route when I need a new truck.

j

The Volvo there is an automatic. The Freightliners are manual. Of all the auto rigs I like the Volvo best has the best acceleration. Tried a Freightliner auto and they are dogs. Volvo has a real nice ride. I personally would be happy with a Freightliner or a Volvo anytime. Worst IMHO is International. The MaxxForce engines in them are crap and they break down all the time. KW and Pete's are nice too. They are definetely not like they used to be. Lots of plastic parts now.
 
Worst IMHO is International. KW and Pete's are nice too. They are definetely not like they used to be. Lots of plastic parts now.
I have a good friend that drives OTR for Schneider. He concurs with the Freightliner assessment. That is what he has now.

Per posts on the RV forums, you can get a Volvo Class 8 for $40-50k. 3-400,000 miles, so lots of life left. They are chopping off the tandem drive axle and selling it to recover some of the cost. Beats spending $70k for a new F350.

j
 
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The Volvo there is an automatic. The Freightliners are manual. Of all the auto rigs I like the Volvo best has the best acceleration. Tried a Freightliner auto and they are dogs. Volvo has a real nice ride. I personally would be happy with a Freightliner or a Volvo anytime. Worst IMHO is International. The MaxxForce engines in them are crap and they break down all the time. KW and Pete's are nice too. They are definetely not like they used to be. Lots of plastic parts now.

So yes, this does come up some. I'm interested in your opinion on this. My concern is when we get where we want to go and having the tow vehicle to use to go places, like restaurants. For instance, when we go down to the beach. How has this been for you? Do you use the Volvo? Use a taxi?

Just curious on your experience.
 
So yes, this does come up some. I'm interested in your opinion on this. My concern is when we get where we want to go and having the tow vehicle to use to go places, like restaurants. For instance, when we go down to the beach. How has this been for you? Do you use the Volvo? Use a taxi?

Just curious on your experience.

When I used to drive over the road I would either bobtail or take a taxi if somewhere I really needed to be that I couldnt get truck to. Out west I always stopped at Casinos. Far better food than Loves/Pilot etc.
 
Found this one Michael. It's a Volvo. We could go in together. Has a hybrid so we should be able to get 12 or 13 mpg. It is missing the sleeper, so it would be hard to make a crewcab out of it, but I like a challenge.

MeanGreen7.jpg


j
 
I'm in...

Some of the 2013 and later Volvos even had the double bunk sleepers where the lower bunk is actually a dinette which would be great with the kids on the road.
 
Found this one Michael. It's a Volvo. We could go in together. Has a hybrid so we should be able to get 12 or 13 mpg. It is missing the sleeper, so it would be hard to make a crewcab out of it, but I like a challenge.

MeanGreen7.jpg


j

Good luck driving at night with that.
 
Howdy ya'll. I thought I would share our news about our RV downsizing. We recently sold the class A. We have a GMC Acadia which hopefully will be our tow vehicle. Yea I know it's not a great choice usually. We have ordered a new Jayco Jay Flight 174BH. This is 21 feet bumper to hitch and weighs 2950 unloaded and a max 3500. It is 7 ft wide and 9 1/2 ft tall including ac. It has no slide out. I am going to get the Equalizer brand WDH, rated 600 lb tongue weight. The travel weight of the trailer will be about 3400 lbs. The recommended 12% tongue weight is 410 lbs. I will load the trailer and adjust the load, weigh it to achieve this target. The 410 lbs plus the height of the hitch head will be about 475 lbs. the Acadia has the factory tow package. The receiver hitch is rated at 600 lbs max. The max tow rating is 5200lbs. The gross combined weight rating is 10200 lbs. The Acadia, passengers, loaded trailer, etc will be 9000 lbs or less. On paper it should tow fine, at least on relatively flat roads (no mountains). We have had two travel trailers in the past so I do have a lot of experience. We will test the rig out here in north east Texas which is typical of most any terrain from here to the Fort. If the Acadia seems to struggle I will sell my older Jeep Cherokee and get a pickup. We have a 2 week trip planned for next year late April and early May. Highlights are 3 nights at the Fort, 3 nights at Geiger Key Marina And RV Park near Key West, and on the way home 2 nights at Henderson State Park in Destin. I will update after towing in October. The trailer is scheduled to be built in the last week of September. For anyone interested, the trailer is the smallest, lightest bunkhouse on the market. We wanted a small camper for the wife and I and have bunks for our 2 small granddaughters to go with us occasionally. We wanted a traditional bathroom (no toilet in the shower), and did not want a pop up or a hybrid. This Jayco fit the bill perfectly for our needs. I have read on other forums, folks pulling larger, heavier trailers than ours with an Acadia and doing good. Oh yea, one more thing, I am installing a ScanGauge ll for monitoring the transmission temp.
Hello Fort friends. Here is a brief update on our new camper. We have towed it through the Ozark mountains to Branson Mo and back. I couldn't be any happier towing. This rig is absolutely rock solid, no sway at all. Big trucks have no effect when passing. I have plenty of power on the hills. Downshifted from 6th to 5th or 4th on the steepest longest hills, rpm running between 3000 and 4000. The ScanGuage 2 worked great. It showed my trans temp to run between 175 and 190 most of the time. It did reach 200 in the stop and go traffic of Branson while towing. I got 11.8 to 11.9 mpg running between 60 and 65 mph on this trip. This is much better than our 2 previous travel trailer rigs. I love the genuine Equalizer hitch. It's easier to hook up with the way the weight distribution bars sit on steel brackets instead of chains. Plus there is no anti sway bar to hookup. The small trailer is a bit of a challenge trying to store clothes for 3 adults and 2 kids. I can deal with that. Just love the easy pulling, easy backing, easy parking and great gas mileage. This brand new Jayco 174BH cost $12000 which is bargain to me. I wanted to tell folks all about this rig because most families have an SUV with a 5000 lb tow rating and could easily handle a travel trailer like this. The key is to get a camper less than about 23 feet overall length and less than 4000 lbs fully loaded. Mine weighs about 3500 loaded.
 
Benton,

Thanks for the update. I'm glad the combo worked out so well. It sounded like a pretty good combination. The right hitch is half the battle to making it behave on the road. Almost 12 mpg is amazing. If I slowed down to 60-65, I might be able to squeak out 10.5, but that's what 13 ft tall and 14,000 lbs does. I got 9.7 over the 2000 mile round trip to the Fort in September. I was pretty happy with that. And that was setting the cruise on 72 most of the time.

j
 

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