Community Forums

rhusak · 09-17-2013, 12:59 PM

Hi All..
\ I live here in the Rockies.. The best advice might be for him to drop his toad and have someone drive it in the mountains.. Then MAYBE the coach could handle the load in the flats.. I have had two DP coaches.. Going up MANY of the grades here is a 40 MPH pull being conservative and watching the heat..
Challenging at best in my 76 GMC I used to have. It was 30 MPH with a Tracker towed.. It would do it.. But it was a worry..
Ron Husak
Conifer CO
Living at 9200 feet looking down at ya!

topdownman · 09-17-2013, 01:05 PM

That is a LONG trip on an older motorhome towing a trailer that is much to heavy. It IS going to break down or worse. I used to have a P30 36 footer and no way it could tow something like that.

tropical36 · 09-17-2013, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frank calver

I am planing a trip from cincinatti to mt rushmore, yellow stone, redwood forest, grand canyon , vegas, pomona ca. then back to cincinatti. Towing a trailer with a full sized station wagon on it. the motor home is a 1999 bounder 36 s with chevy 454 18k miles seems to run great. am i asking too much of this engine to make this trip?

I'm most sure you're exceeding the GCWR, but assuming you're not over 5K lbs with the tow, your only weak place with that unit will be the transmission (4L80E) and it will go into limp mode on long 6% grades. Best thing, since you can't easily disconnect and have someone drive, like with a toad, will be to pull over and shift into low, limiting your speed to 25mph. This will allow for a 25% overload of the GCWR. No problem with the engine IMO unless the house on the chassis doesn't allow for enough air flow. Certainly not a power problem, as long as it stays cool. Speaking of cooling, you'd be smart to install a transmission temperature gauge and use it as a guide for when to pull aside and go in low gear. You can also give it a rest by running a high idle in neutral for a bit before proceeding. If you stick to the interstates, there shouldn't be too many grades that will cause problems and if any of this is a concern, then you'd be wise to just pull a small toad, all four down. Also be sure to have an aux braking system on the trailer or you might have a bigger problem with going down, than up. Along with that, one still must be careful to not be boiling the brake fluid, using proper braking procedures after you're geared down to what's necessary and as close to possible for not requiring your brakes.

frank calver · 09-18-2013, 08:19 AM

Thanks to all of you that have replied. I don't know why i did not think of checking the vehical tow capacity. It does clearly state 3500 lb. I'll be making other arangements . Not exactly sure what they will be but i"m leaning towords car rental at each location.
Thanks again for all of your excellent advice.
frank

Lued · 09-20-2013, 06:22 AM

I pulled a Cherokee sport, 4 down with my Chevy Bounder, great little jeep and under 3500 lb.

Winnebeater · 09-20-2013, 07:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lued

I pulled a Cherokee sport, 4 down with my Chevy Bounder, great little jeep and under 3500 lb.

Cherokee's are awesome, but the weight depends on the trim level. Ours is a limited and we are weighing in around 3900lbs.

tropical36 · 09-20-2013, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winnebeater

Cherokee's are awesome, but the weight depends on the trim level. Ours is a limited and we are weighing in around 3900lbs.

Just for my reference, could you both tell me how it does with long 6% grades of say 4 or 5 miles?

Winnebeater · 09-20-2013, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tropical36

Just for my reference, could you both tell me how it does with long 6% grades of say 4 or 5 miles?

A Jeep or the motorhome?

Nick-B · 09-20-2013, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winnebeater

Cherokee's are awesome, but the weight depends on the trim level. Ours is a limited and we are weighing in around 3900lbs.

Depends on trim level AND year. I have a 1990 Limited and it is exactly 3500 lbs across the scales. Seems like they gained weight every year of production.

Winnebeater · 09-20-2013, 01:33 PM

Either way our motorhome and our Jeep Cherokee pulls a 6% grade like nothing. My motor home has a 454/TH400 with a Bank Power Pack system. The Cherokee weighs in at 3960lbs. with a 4.0l inline six (great motor).

tropical36 · 09-23-2013, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winnebeater

A Jeep or the motorhome?

The Motorhome with the Jeep in tow, of course. Basicily asking how it does, pulling that much weight in the worst of the rockies? Engine get hot? Transmission get hot? Anything else?

Winnebeater · 09-23-2013, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tropical36

The Motorhome with the Jeep in tow, of course. Basicily asking how it does, pulling that much weight in the worst of the rockies? Engine get hot? Transmission get hot? Anything else?

I have not towed my Jeep with the motorhome because my motorhomes tow capacity is only 2000 lbs. I have towed a 2300 lb Mazda Miata and I can't even tell it's there, well till I try to stop. I have drive my motorhome up some 6-8% grades, but not with a car in tow. Mainly because I get 8-9 mpg solo and a steady 5 mpg with something in tow. Hard to justify towing something. It's generally cheaper to use the motorhome for transportation or rent a car once I arrive. To answer your question though, my motorhome has never ran hot, at all regardless of the conditions.

tropical36 · 09-23-2013, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winnebeater

I have not towed my Jeep with the motorhome because my motorhomes tow capacity is only 2000 lbs. I have towed a 2300 lb Mazda Miata and I can't even tell it's there, well till I try to stop. I have drive my motorhome up some 6-8% grades, but not with a car in tow. Mainly because I get 8-9 mpg solo and a steady 5 mpg with something in tow. Hard to justify towing something. It's generally cheaper to use the motorhome for transportation or rent a car once I arrive. To answer your question though, my motorhome has never ran hot, at all regardless of the conditions.

Yep, 2K is what it usually is by the time you load the coach as the P32 is pretty low on GCVW. Having said that, they do exceptionally well without a tow on any grade. They also do well with a tow even one as heavy as mine is, as long as the grade isn't too steep and too long. Otherwise you hardly know it's back there. As for braking, you do need something on the toad and my Readybrake is also without parallel for simplicity, effectiveness and the most bang for the buck as well. I sometimes think it stops better with the toad, than without it.
NOw, when you're talking toad weight restrictions and with close inspection of your gear, of course, what you'll find is that the whole math thing with the GCVW is about the transmission overheating on these long grades. ONe can always go in low gear at 25mph however which allows for a 25% overload or just disconnect when they're that bad and let the DW drive it for a bit.
We just returned from a 7200 mile trip around the US and did our share in the Rockies as well. We've also done it twice before without the...and might add...heavy toad, so I know where I'm coming from.