Sobering information on using a proper tow vehicle !

Here's a link I picked up over on the TDR (Cummins) site. For all of those out there that insist that their "tow vehicle" can pull their trailer and car ..... read THIS

I pray that nothing like this ever happens to one of us ...........

 

Wow

 

Very scary!!!!!!!!! :eek2:

 

I experienced a similar incident (with happier outcome) when I was about 8 years old.

My family was moving from Colorado to Michigan, so we had 6 people and all our worldly posessions loaded in our '71 Plymouth Fury Wagon (yes, there's a tinge of Mopar in my blood) and the largest dual-axle U-Haul.

Dad needed a nap, so he was in the back seat along with me. Mom was driving. We hit a dip in the highway and somehow the whole rig went into oscillations -- side to side and up and down. I swear the back wheels must have been leaving the pavement and jumping from one lane to the other. :eek2: There was a steep drop-off and lake to our right. I calmly woke my dad (can't believe he slept through that) who instructed my mom to not touch the brakes but just let it slow by itself. Eventually the oscillations stopped. Seemed like about 30 seconds total. You should've seen the other traffic pass us afterwards. One guy drove in the median just to be safe and give us room.

Looking back, I'm guessing it was a combination of speed, not enough weight on the tongue, and weak (stock) shocks.

Be careful out there!

 

Too many people get in way over their heads when towing, thinking they know it all, are great drivers, have all kinds of experience etc. Yikes, summer tourist season is in full swing right now. ou:

This story makes a great case for special licensing for trailer towing, and tow vehicle inspections. I too hope that this doesn't befall anyone here.

On a side note, I just made a 3 and 1/2 day round trip to greater Chicago area and back, and saw at least 15 vehicles with flat trailer tires sitting on the shoulder. Now's a good time to check those trailer tires.

 

I am always alarmed at how fast some people will drive when pulling a trailer.
We pull an 18' pontoon boat with an '03 Jeep G. Cherokee and 60 is the max for me, even though it will pull straight and true at higher speeds.
Meanwhile, nuts are passing us at what must be 80 and above.
Some of these trailers are of questionable integritiy also.

Besides the possibility of having to stop quickly, you have to be prepared for a strong gust of crosswind, and driving fast isn't going to help matters.

Relax and slow down. Please.

 

tow vehicle

i see these clowns all the time when going to glamis..they drive like idiots
going through the desert..1/2 pickups and tahoes towing 30-32 foot toy
box trailers loaded to the gills..these trailers hold 100 or more gallons of
water..mine holds 110..thats a lot of weight. they cut people off, pass on
2 lane road and tail gate those of us going the speed limit..i read that and
really don't feel sorry for the guy, sounds cold but i experience that drive
lots of times and see how these people drive..i bet that guy was going 75. :rant:

 

That is a great thread for all my buddies who say, "so what I only tow 3 or 4 times a year and I don't want a rough ride or a noisy diesel".

My V10 F350 pulls as good as a diesel and makes FAR less noise, if I want a smooth ride I take the 1500 Hemi Ram.

 

a little bit of common sense goes a long ways

Just because Something is big and heavy doesn't mean it is free from having
a problem.
Lot's of different factors decide the cause of an accident.

Too much speed,poor judgement,lack of driver experience,etc.

:sleep:

 

Yah, usually a big case of H U A !!

.

 

It sure would be nice if EVERY state had the same licensing parameters for commercial and RV pullers... I have been trying for 6 months to figure out which states my motorhome/car trailer combo isn't legal in, so I know which to avoid. My diesel pusher motorhome weighs about 29,500 loaded, and my trailer about 10,000 to 12,000. MY GVWR is about 40,500... I have a 26,000# drivers license rating... not one state I have contacted yet can give me a straight answer on this. Do I need a different drivers license for every state I venture into?? sure seems like it.

JH

 

Commercial Drivers Licences are a Federally regulated through each state DMV. You can only legally hold one CDL from your home state. That should suffice for your needs.
If you did want to obtain a CDL, check with you DMV about what is needed to get one.
As for the 26,000 lb license rating, if you are grossing 40,000 lbs +, and get into an accident, you could be held liable, regardless of who is at fault. Something to consider when looking into license upgrading.

 

When you read the WHOLE story, it's unbelieveable how consistently overloaded those desert tow monster's are...
The RV industry has some very vague issues on liscensing requirements in and of itself, that's for sure. There are literally thousands of RV owners out there, maybe into the ten thousands with inadequate driving talents and license issues. Since an RV isn't commercial, I have insurance documents stating my situation is legal, (as long as the combined GVWR isn't breached) but may vary from state to state, regardless of where the issuing license state is. My coach/trailer rig is 68', Fla now only allows 65' total :rant:
Ya gotta admire that one guy offering all of his business scales for public usage, to those that want to check things out, now THAT was a class move, IMO. :TU:

JH

 

Your right Tom, but missed Casey's point.

The accident cause COULD have been many things.

Bottom line what COULD have been an accident without litigation, turned into negligence and litigation because of a truck not rated for the trailer.

Tires are another. I've seen folks putting tires on that aren't even rated for the truck, or the trailer for that matter.

 

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Did you ever compare the actual load rating of a BFG Radial All Terrain P285/65R16 (which, as you know, is a D rated tire) with a P24565R16 Cooper (or BFG Rugged Trail), which you also know are E rated tires? If I put 80 psi in them, you may have a point. But I don't need to put 80 psi in my rear tire3s, 65 is plenty.

I'll take a tire that gives me an actual load rating number over a lawyer inspired alpha letter code that's assigned for people that don't understand numbers.

p.s. I do run trailer rated tires on my trailer, too. Only problem I've had were the correct rated "Nanking" tires bought at Belle Tire tthat both failed within 500 miles at the correct rated pressure.

Now towing 6500 # (car and trailer) with 1/2 ton trucks is another whole ball game. I had 2 very bad scares with my F150, and 2 similar situations with my F250HD that were no sweat. No comparison. Even with "legally underrated" tires. :shock:

I love your tenacity, though. :TU: :TU: :TU:

 

Dave,

This is why you keep stressing to me at least a 3/4 ton for towing! I saw a guy headed out of the pits yesterday with a Nissan X-terra pulling an open trailer with a '69 drag racing Camero. It looked as if the back wheels would rub the tops of the fenders if they hit a bump! ou:

 

you guys are making me nervous pulling a 3100 pound car on a 1200 pound trailer with a 7000 pound rated 1/2 ton PU ..........

 

I was referring to my former neighbor, who kept trying to get me to run a bigger, lower load rated tire on my '92 Dodge.

But now that you mention it, regarding load rating, I agree. The load range D tires Belle installed on my '01 by mistake had several hundred pounds less load rating than the correct E load range tires for the truck. Those got swapped promptly.

Why would you run a D load tire at 80? I don't think they are rated above 65.

 

Sorry about that, Brian, I thought we were going back to the conversation we had when I put the All Terrains on my truck last month.

I don't run that kind of pressure, but the sticker in the door says to do that in the rear if you're running the vehicle at Max load capacity. The "expert" at Costco that was trying to sell me the E rated pieces of $hit pointed that out to me and said that's why he wouldn't sell me the tire I wanted. I had forgotten that Costco is owned by the Chinese. :Brow: How silly of me.

Traction (wet and dry), road noise, treadwear, ride quality, and noise are other factors that I considered when I decided on the upsize All Terrains. Fact that they were cheaper also helped. BFG has been hurting since the tire rating system came out (thanks again, Ford Engineering and legal staff) since their best tires aren't rated for most of the SUV's. They're working to get their good tires (their spec, not the car manufacturers) legal top the E ratings. Their E rated Rugged Trails were developed for Toyota and aren't doing so well on the US SUV's and trucks. But they do have the right rating on them.

 

No I didn't

I didn't miss anything :grin:

I was simply making a TRUE statement :Smarty: Or are you going to argue
about that too? :sleep: :sleep: :sleep:

Your Right Dave, he is grumpy on Mondays :laugh: