Date: Mon, 14 May 2001 09:28:51 -0600
Reply-To: John Brush <jbrush@aros.net>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: John Brush <jbrush@aros.net>
Subject: Re: Towing!!!
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> Mr. Goat Island asked about towing with his 86. Mr. Goat, if you search the
> archives you will find an abundance of info on this topic, but here is the
> sum up.
Steve, you are one of a few who have actually towed anything, so your
comments are needed and can now be found in the archives. If we do a
search for 'towing' we find the hitch you are talking about (is it
Dennis Haynes) and a lot of folks' opinions. Very little from those who
have actually towed something. I hope we can add to that data.
I only bring this up because I have asked more than my share of times
about towing and only got mostly opinions and theories, so I have
continued soliciting input from those with real experience. That way the
helpful facts also get into the archive.
To "Mr Goat Island?" I can say that I finally just bought a trailer and
found out for myself. The camper weighs 840 lbs empty, and there was
equipment for three, most of it inside the van. Unfortunately, my setup
is different in that my van is an 81 air cooled with about 200K on her.
It gets around pretty well, but does not care for long, steep climbs out
here in the Rockies, so I am limited and have to use my car to go on
longer, and higher trips. On fairly flat roads (whatever that means) I
don't think I have much of a problem, beyond the long term wear and tear
on the motor and the brakes. My children and I love the van, so if I do
in the motor, I guess I will have to replace it, but that is still less
than buying something else, and I want to use the van.
Like Steve said, stopping is the part to be concerned about. A vanagon
can pull most anything, but stopping is an adventure. Leave lots of room
ahead of you. If the trailer exceeds 1000 lbs, I would definetely make
sure it had its own brakes. Make sure your total package doesn't exceed
the GVW for the van.
Me, I won't stress my motor by trying the steepest passes, but for the
most part, it does the job. My hitch is one I found in the scrap yard
that bolts to the eyelets. Many, many folks warn that this can be a
problem, and its easy to see why. The hitch I found also bolts right to
the bumper, just above the hitch ball, which might give me a chance to
salvage the rig if one of the eyelets fails :-) If you can, you should
check into Dennis? Haynes and his hitch. Its a nice receiever and will
serve you well no matter what you put back there.
That said, I cannot imagine you would have too much trouble hauling a
small utility trailer with a few bikes on it. My plan for hauling is
that if it will fit inside the van, that is where it should be, and keep
the trailer as light as possible.
HTH a little,
John
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