I might, just might get something (something:job) which will enable me to purchase a PU, or, for the same money (my PU requirements are high), a 17 Bantam which is on clearance (That s why I am asking so eagerly, because if I get the job, I will call and put a downpayment on it before somebody grabs it, it is soooocheap right now). They will even throw in the hitch/brake controller/wiring etc ...
Now, if I get this bantam, with a GVWR of 3,000 Lbs, I am thinking we will be ok towing it for couple of hundred miles with our windstar till we can get that exploder.
What do you guys think ? The GVWR of windstar and Bantam will be around 93% (IIRC) of GCWR of the windstar, so we will not be going anywhere fast or climb the HImalaya s at 65 miles an hour. Will we be able to get away with it for a year or year and a half ?.
ALternative is to get a rockwood or viking with shower/potti which will cost almost the same and I know wife won t really want to go, to be honest I also want the Bantam, but if I can t get away with it, I am ok with a PU.
Fire away ..........
birolStarting to sound like you & me are the only ones on today...
IMHO, camping is a family affair. If Babette is less likely to enjoy...well, " if momma ain t happy, aint nobody happy."
I know I wouldn t tow a 3000 lb trailer with a Windstar. But then, there s lots of things I woudn t do that others do.
Good luck.
Austin
birolMaybe I should test tow one and see how it feels. oz&us was talking about one RV dealer allowing test tows with their windstar (Ruston was it ? ) Maybe it is a good idea to ask Campkins to let me do the same and see how I feel .....
I am not one to jump into hot water so easily, coming from you, makes me think once again ...... [:(]
birol
QuoteORIGINAL: birol
Maybe I should test tow one and see how it feels. oz&us was talking about one RV dealer allowing test tows with their windstar (Ruston was it ? ) Maybe it is a good idea to ask Campkins to let me do the same and see how I feel .....
Not a bad idea.
QuoteI am not one to jump into hot water so easily, coming from you, makes me think once again ...... [:(]
Now, now, don t cry. I didn t say don t do it...I said I woudn t. If it was another 500 lbs., I would say don t do it. If you are only going a short distance, and this is a temporary arangement, you could leave both trailer and minivan empty, and put all goods and other people in a second vehicle. That way, I think you would be in spec for weight (though I don t know about front surface area). Obviously, this arrangement would not work if you were travelling to British Columbia.
Austin
birolI think, (a big " think" ) we would be within the allowable maximums, but not at 75% of them. We will be exceeding the front surface area by around 6 sq or so, I had that calculated but lost it, I will have to look into it.
I am waiting for tomorrow, if eh says yey, I will call campkins and see if they will arrange it for me. If I am going to spend 15,000K , I had rather get a Hybrid than a PU.
I was thinking of driving to Florida with it [8D], I love those Mountains in Virginia, or was it in West VA, there was one stretch we climbed continuosly for 10 minutes or so, it was incredible, I am sure the windstar would not survive that climb !
Can t wait till tomorrow can t wait till tomorrow can t wait till tomorrow ....... If this goes thru, we might make it to the rally even ! I will personally bore eveybody to sleep [:D]
birolIMHO locally you ll be close but OK, now on the highway it s going to be a different story. Towing that brick is going to be tough maintaning highway speeds. Even at Ford s frontal limit it drags you down and knock the heck out of your milage; and on ramps will become your worst nightmare. Just as you think you ll get up to speed the combo will act like the trailer s suddenly added several thousnad pounds.
birolBe careful, but go for it. You are doing the right thing.
birolWhile it s perhaps not a good idea, as long as you re within the limit s then you should be ok. Just don t push it, and stay away from the Canadian alps!! [;)]
If you re anything like most of us, you re only going to use it oh so many times in the season, and go only so far. Being you re going to be just starting a job, it s a safe bet that you re not going to get much vacation time this year anyway. A few weekends close to home, and maybe a long weekend or two with some moderate distance shouldn t kill the van.
Of course, the weight limits on the Windstar are 3500#, and you re talking about a 3000# trailer.
I ve learned a lesson about buying what is available rather than what I want. I haven t had the Coleman for a year yet, but am now selling it and going after what I wanted in the first place!
birolHey, if you are going to sell it anyway, go for it.
birol
QuoteI ve learned a lesson about buying what is available rather than what I want. I haven t had the Coleman for a year yet, but am now selling it and going after what I wanted in the first place!
Gone-Camping,
What did you want? Don t keep us wondering. Good Luck on what ever you wanted.
Gone-Camping
QuoteORIGINAL: Gone-Camping
While it s perhaps not a good idea, as long as you re within the limit s then you should be ok. Just don t push it, and stay away from the Canadian alps!! [;)]
Canadian ALps, I wonder if we can climb those at 110 Km/h with the Bantam behind us :) Just tell me where they are locatd and I will attempt to do it :)
QuoteBeing you re going to be just starting a job, it s a safe bet that you re not going to get much vacation time this year anyway. A few weekends close to home, and maybe a long weekend or two with some moderate distance shouldn t kill the van.
I hope it works out, can t wait , we will see. I can t take the weekends off, I will be working but a few days in middle of the week during the summer vacation for the kids is possible
QuoteI ve learned a lesson about buying what is available rather than what I want. I haven t had the Coleman for a year yet, but am now selling it and going after what I wanted in the first place!
What are you getting now ??? I am curious !
birolI towed with a 99 Windstar for 3 years. Loaded my trailer was about 3000 lbs. The Windstar didn t do the job my Explorer does, but we went on at least one trip a year that was 600 to 750 miles each way. The Windstar did have the towing package and the van didn t have a lot in it. Most stuff was in the trailer. I hope you do make the rally and bore me to sleep.[;)]
birolTlhdoc, did you tow a TT or a hybrid ? How did it feel ? DID it feel insecure ? sway ? did you say, man oh man, I can t wait till we get a proper tow vehicle ? Did the towing experience become so demanding that it took away the fun from camping ? Did it make you hesitate to go, because you would have to tow the TT again ?
Birol the asking the right questions award winner (Self proclaimed [:)])
birolbirol I towed the same PU I have now. A 1999 Coleman Nevada. No I didn t have sway with it (no sway bar either, I do have one now on the Explorer) Up hill climbs tended to slow us down and getting up to speed on an on ramp took a little longer that I liked, but we went. I feel much better towing with the Explorer and looking back I can see that the Windstar is not a 5 star TV, but it did a good job. I did not hesitate to go ever. We towed an average of 3000 miles a year. We did not have the frontage problem that you will have with a TT. Good luck.
birol
Quoteexploder
?? [&:]
sounds bad to me already [:D]
birolFord Explorer, also known as Ford Exploder .....
I hope they are not as unreliable as Ford Windstars ... Which are now named Freestars.
Does that mean they are worry free ? or do they give them away ?
birol
QuoteORIGINAL: birol
Ford Explorer, also known as Ford Exploder .....
I hope they are not as unreliable as Ford Windstars ... Which are now named Freestars.
Does that mean they are worry free ? or do they give them away ?
LMAO!! Ok, well then your problem could be solved. If you ruin your Windstar towing that big trailer, then I guess that means you could get another Freestar......since they re free[;)][:D] No worries...no problems...[:D][:D][:)]
birolI have had the Ford Explorer (1994 model) and a Ford Windstar (1996 model) and you would have thought they came from two different companies. I never ever had a single problem of any kind with the Explorer. It was a good lookin and good drivin truck. The Windstar had problems with the brakes and transmission. The transmission totally went out when we were on a family trip to Disney. We were less than 10 miles from the hotel we were going to when we started to notice problems. We pulled off one of the exits to take a family potty break and noticed a big puddle of fluid under the front of the car. I checked the oil (ok), checked the power steering fluid (ok), and then checked the transmission fluid (NONE). I went into the convenience store we were at and bought two bottles of trans fluid and as quickly as I poured it in.... it came right out and spilled to the ground. It was a pretty new van at the time (less than a year old and under 30K miles). Everything was covered under warranty and fixed at an Orlando Ford dealer, but we didn t have a car for 5 days. Good thing that we went with friends. We just traveled with our friends during the week and got our van back in time to go back home.....