towing a pup with a car

[haroldPE]

excellent.  here's the type of brakes on our Pal Mustang:
http://www.al-kousa.com/

I will definitely look into putting electric brakes on the trailer over the winter. Anyone have any suggestions for brands or types of brakes I should look into?  Thanks again, Alan

Suggest you get it weighed with gear and family.  Deduct car curb weight and your weight (generally assumed 150lbs. by tow raters(?)) and that will give you an idea of how much of your towing rating   I bet you lunch, that with your gear and family, you are overweight and your trailer does not weigh 1700lbs.  

Happy camping.

I have found numerous links (including from GM) indicating that the towing capacity is 2000 lbs.
 http://www.westherr.com/Vehicle_Search_Wizard_View_Review.cfm?make=Buick&model=Century&year=2000

[pakalolo]

With that car you could pull Alan's Buick with his camper on behind!!:yikes:
 
So if I may ask, what kind of gas mileage do you get with your Roadmaster both when you are towing and when you aren't?
 
I am going to make a guess of 23 MPG empty and 17 MPG towing.
 
In all reality a vehicle like your will make a monkey out most minivans, mid-size SUVs and all crossovers for almost everything people need them for. I am assuming it plays with your Niagra.

I wish I got those kinds of numbers. The earlier RMWs (throttle-body injected, instead of direct port) were able to see that kind of mileage. My firebreather, however, is about 13.5 in the city (I drive in traffic almost all the time), and has gone as high as 21 on highway, loaded, but not towing. Since the swap to 3.73s, it's more like 19 to 20 on the highway at 75 to 80.

I haven't towed very far with it yet, but tomorrow I'm riding to Tampa from Miami, towing, so I'll let you know. I'm budgeting it based on 13 mpg, as I doubt it will be worse than that (I hope!).

On the positive side, it's faster than a lot of cars on the road, and has the potential to be even faster with some hot-rodding. All that fun for $4k

Anybody else towing a pop-up worth more than their tow vehicle?

[camping nuts]

I wish I got those kinds of numbers. The earlier RMWs (throttle-body injected, instead of direct port) were able to see that kind of mileage. My firebreather, however, is about 13.5 in the city (I drive in traffic almost all the time), and has gone as high as 21 on highway, loaded, but not towing. Since the swap to 3.73s, it's more like 19 to 20 on the highway at 75 to 80.
 
I haven't towed very far with it yet, but tomorrow I'm riding to Tampa from Miami, towing, so I'll let you know. I'm budgeting it based on 13 mpg, as I doubt it will be worse than that (I hope!).
 
On the positive side, it's faster than a lot of cars on the road, and has the potential to be even faster with some hot-rodding. All that fun for $4k
 
Anybody else towing a pop-up worth more than their tow vehicle?

Well our 2000 Windstar is probably worth less than our 2006 Jayco. But a couple of weeks ago we traded our 2003 Impala for a 2003 Windstar so once we start using the 2003 instead of the 2000 to tow with it will be worth more than the PUP. Remember those PUP tires aren't rated for more than 65 MPH... Don't want you to have any unplanned stops....

[pakalolo]

Remember those PUP tires aren't rated for more than 65 MPH... Don't want you to have any unplanned stops....

Good to know! I didn't realize that. I was thinking of upgrading to some 14" radials when it's time to replace the original 13" bias plys. I wonder if that'll help. Guess it's time to start researching on the good ol' Interweb.

[wavery]

Good to know! I didn't realize that. I was thinking of upgrading to some 14" radials when it's time to replace the original 13" bias plys. I wonder if that'll help. Guess it's time to start researching on the good ol' Interweb.

Make sure that when you purchase tires that you get "Trailer" tires (LT or ST) and don't use automobile or truck tires. They are subject to different stresses and are built differently. Here is a good place to start learning about trailer tires:
http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/infoTrailerTireFacts.dos

[ScouterMom]

I don't know much about towing ratings - I have a 1999 chevy astro and a 1973 Starcraft Starmaster 6.  I know I'm well within my ratings as given by my vehicle manual.  

However, I used to tow my little starlette with a 1993? olds ciera.  But let me stress that that pup was TINY.  the beds didn't slide in - they folded. they were basically hollow core folding doors with pads on them. the pads stored down the center of the tiny dinette and took up all but about 1' of floor space.  We took out the water tank for storage, and only had the two 3 1/2 ' dinette seats for storage of all our gear.  the trailer was so light, I could push it around a lumpy campsite like a big wheelbarrow.

someone above mentioned that 'pulling' wasn't the problem - stopping was.  this little camper was so light that even with the ciera, I never knew it was back there unless the tires were low or there was some other kind of problem. (it tended to fishtail a bit if the tires weren't properly inflated.)

What I have seen way too many people do is get a trailer that their vehicle can tow - be it a camper, boat or flatbed - and then WAY overload it and the tow vehicle with stuff.  it is amazing how quickly the weight adds up. you also have to have an eye to balancing the weight - not put too much toward the front or back, or on one side. My SO tends to want to FILL the whole space of the passenger side dinette seat with heavy tools - it has an access door right at the camper door - so we can grab tools if there's a breakdown on the road without popping up.  This was undoubtedly handy when we DID have to change a flat on the tow vehicle on a nighttime wisconsin highway, but we have to constantly make calls on what we REALLY NEED and what we think we need.

so watch the loading of your camper, too.

laura

[camping nuts]

Make sure that when you purchase tires that you get "Trailer" tires (LT or ST) and don't use automobile or truck tires. They are subject to different stresses and are built differently. Here is a good place to start learning about trailer tires:
 http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/infoTrailerTireFacts.dos

Your absolutely right. Trailer tires have much stiffer sidewalls and use much higher pressure. Using auto or truck tires will result in serious sway and bounch issues. Campers don't have advanced suspension like cars or trucks.

Also make sure you also pay attention to the load rating. I was looking at tires Wal-Mart. The best ST (Special Trailer) tires they had Load B rating. My PUP needs Load D rated tires.

Lastely keep the tires inflated near the max pressure rating. The dealer we bought ours at had the tires inflated to 35 PSI. After doing some checking I found out they need to be at 50 PSI. The reason I was checking was I noticed after our first trip that the tires were warm to the touch when they were at 35 PSI. The rolling resistance is lower when they are inflated properly.

[pakalolo]

The tires on our Niagara are supposed to be at 60 lbs. They're size c78-13st. I was thinking about trying to get something with a higher rating, because one of my concerns with our Niagara is the extremely limited cargo carrying capacity. The whole trailer is limited to 3,350 and I believe with accessories, it's already there. Doesn't leave much room for cargo!

Anyone know what other size wheel and tire I can squeeze under there and get a higher per tire rating?