Best vehicle for hauling Scamp

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Thanks for the info I got so far about towing a Scamp, but what I really want to know is which is the BEST vehicle for towing a Scamp. We're considering getting a different vehicle.

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Sorry about that, Pepper. We have a tendency to do that some times. 'Best' is pretty ambiguous and is really personal opinion.

What do you have on your Scamp? Does it have a bathroom? Does it have the deluxe pkg (wood cabinets)? All of this makes a difference.

I am NOT the expert here, but first you need to establish what type of vehicle you want then we can go from there. Do you want a car? SUV? Truck? All of these will do the trick very well, but let us know what direction you are thinking.

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Patricia,

There is no best. Tow vehicles are a matter of what are your needs, and what is your budget.

Many people prefer a Pick-up (Ford, Chevy, or ?). I prefer a SUV Chevy Tahoe 4 door. Then again, I know many people that like their mini vans.

For me it boils down to size, horse power, locking stuff up, and being able to go out to dinner with friends. My vehicle has to also double as a work vehicle at home.

I hope this helps.

PS: My favorite would be a Hummer.

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For instance: A Suburban would be great...probably tow it like nothing was there...but is that more vehicle than you want? Would you rather have a truck?

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Suz
We would prefer a passenger type vehicle because we already have a truck that we don't want to haul with. Have you hauled a light trailer with a Suburban?

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The Scamp we have is not the deluxe cabinet model but it does have bathroom, furnace, and air conditioner.

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Wow...the best tow vehicle. Honestly, there are miriad good tow vehicles. But, best? Well, rear- or 4-wheel drive will always tow better than front wheel drive. Body-on-frame construction, rather than uni-body will give you higher towing capacities. There are relatively few body-on-frame models. In full-size, you've got pickups, Suburbans, and the like. In mid-size, you've got the Jeep Wagoneer and Sport, Chevy Blazer/GMC Jimmy (TrailBlazer/Envoy now), Ford Explorer. I'm not sure about the Toyota 4-runner (but these aren't real powerful). However, as Jana can testify, a unibody such as the Escape and many other similar models can do just fine for these trailers. Myself, I'd buy another Jimmy - it's been bulletproof and strong for about 160,000 miles now.

I tried towing a 2000 lb camper with my Plymouth Grand Voyager minivan (3.3L), and it was pretty shaky. With front wheel drive, the tongue weight can take too much weight off the front wheels, and handling gets skittish.

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Patricia,

What you need to do is go to several new vehicle dealers and check out several different types and brands. Ask the dealer what the books suggested towing weight is for the ones that interest you. Then make a decision between the ones that will meet you needs and wants. After you have done your research, shop for a new or used vehicle of you decision.

Make sure that you buy a vehicle that will tow more trailer weight than you need. If possible get one with a manufacturer installed tow package. They are built to handle the stress of the additional trailer weight.

I have a 2002 Ford Explorer Sport Trac with a class III WDH and sway bar.:steer

Mine is fine for me but maybe not for you. That is why you really need to look around after you have listened to anyone here.

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I don't pull with a Suburban, but Charles does and I'm sure he will be happy to tell you how it performs when he comes back on the board. He pulls a 17' Casita with his suburban.

I have a 2002 Envoy and it tows my 16 footer like a dream. I have not had it on any mountains, been pretty flat so far, but nary a hiccup getting on the freeways, interstates, etc. The Chevy Trail Blazer (although different body style and trim) is on the same platform and should do quite well. They are longer (8 inches) and wider (7 inches) than the '96 that I had and has larger tires. It is a straight 6 vs the old v6 which gives 270 hp vs old 190 hp. I'm starting to get pretty techical here, which is not what you asked, but just want you to know the difference.

You can go smaller or larger, but this does the trick quite well with my '89 16' Casita.

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I know of someone who pulls with a Cadillac. Talk about a nice ride, mmm mmm.

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Also a great vehicle to tow with - you would not even know the Scamp was behind you. It also seats up to 8.

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Hi Patricia!

Yes I tow with a Suburban ... not because I need to obviously, but because my wife wants me to (and being a good husband, I always do what she tells me to do!).

I'm a big guy and feel more comfortable inside the Suburban than I do in something smaller. Besides, I need lots of room for my "stuff" since we often travel for more than 6 weeks at a time.

Interestingly enough, the cargo carry capacity of the Suburban is almost large enough for me to carry my Casita up on the luggage rack! Talk about overkill!:)

The best "tow bang for the bucks" for our little fiberglass wonders, in my opinion, is the Chevy Astro van. No, it's not popular ... but it's a real workhorse and it's design has been around for years ... and dealers are more than willing to deal. (If you go this route, make sure you get an Astro with the 3.73 rear axle!)

For pure "gee whiz" towing, I think the Dodge Durango was designed to tow a little fiberglass trailer. Both look all curvey and rounded. A white Durango towing a snow white Scamp would look really spiffy!

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Our "tt" is a fifth wheel (Scamp); so the tow vehicle question is reduced to "which brand of pick-up". IMHO, where you live and where you'll be going plays a role in deciding "brand". :chin

We live in a rather rural area which has a local Ford dealer. Chevy & Dodge dealers are one hour away (one way); Toyota and Nissan are 2 hours away (one way). Large dealers (of whatever make) are 4 hours away(one way). So we drive a Ford F-150, which was my wife's "baby" before we considered a tt. :thumb

While on the road (usually heading for an "outback" location), we have some of these same concerns; if there is a problem, can we find a mechanic that can even SPELL the brand of our tow unit, much less get the right parts and know how to repair it. :o

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Pepper,

Welcome to the board.

The first thing you should do is weigh your Scamp. One of the truck stops in Globe or Miami probably has a CAT (Certified Automatic Truck) scale. Get the total trailer weight loaded for travel and get the tongue weight separately. Don't just use the published weights, they're notoriously inaccurate.

Armed with that information, you're ready to go to your local dealer and discuss towing capabilities of the vans and SUVs offered. Many things affect the towing capability of a vehicle: weight, wheelbase, suspension, horsepower, torque, transmission and gear ratio come to mind.

Just remember you'll be going up out of the Salt River Canyon to the White Mountains so you'll need the power to pull. More importantly, you'll be coming back down, so the van or SUV needs enough beef to control the trailer.

Avoid short wheelbase vehicles like the 2-door Explorer, all Jeeps or Subaru Brats.

I don't think anyone is going to tell you which is the best tow vehicle for your Scamp. I can tell you the best tow vehicle for my Casita is the Ford F-150 I use. It wouldn't work at all for you.

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Orginally posted by Morgan Bulger
It wouldn't work at all for you.

Is that because you won’t loan it out long enough? Or maybe it’s not for sale?

Oh, I know what you mean; I bought a CHEVY! :duck

Just kidding...:quiet

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Orginally posted by Michael Sanders

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE

Orginally posted by Morgan Bulger
It wouldn't work at all for you.

Is that because you won't loan it out long enough? Or maybe it's not for sale?

Oh, I know what you mean; I bought a CHEVY! :duck

Just kidding...:quiet [/quote]

Everything I own is always for sale at the right price. :lol2

I said that because Patricia had already said she wanted a passenger vehicle; she has a truck. :thumb

Happy b'day webguy. :wine

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Orginally posted by Morgan Bulger
Happy b'day webguy. :wine

You Guys & Gals sure make it easy to turn 60.

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As stated earlier - 'best' is a highly subjective concept. Depends on what your needs and personal preferences are. It's like asking 'what camera is best' (I'm also a photographer). Kinda depends on what you're doing with it. The idea of passing out disposable cameras at weddings is really great. Using one to take a negative you want to blow up poster-size is a really bad idea though. On the other hand - an 8x10 view camera would be a poor choice for taking family snaps and vacation pics.

That being said: We pull our Boler (which weighs under 900lbs dry) with a Dodge Ram 1500 Conversion Van. The van is actually bigger than the trailer is (all the more storage capacity). Is that overkill? You betcha! Reasons: partially it's because I prefer overkill. We knew we planned on driving out west into the mountains - so nudging ourselves up to our limits would be difficult at the time, and very hard on the van. More importantly however - we were concerned about the general comfort level of our butts on long drives. With the van, we can stick a 13" TV/VCR between the front seats - a small console between the middle seats - and load the back end full of camping gear. The kids are comfortable and happy - that keeps them quiet. That (in turn) keeps Mom and Dad comfortable and happy. :) The van is already wide enough that we don't need any special mirror extensions to see around the Boler. To be honest - I've gotta stretch a bit just to SEE the Boler in my left side mirror (it can't be seen at all in the right side mirror). If the Boler was just a little bit taller - I could see perfectly THROUGH the thing (those big front and rear windows). As it - we see pretty well through it - it's just not a perfect straight shot. :)

So - for us - the primary criteria became the ability to seat the 4 of us comfortably for the foreseable future (I expect the kids to be tall like me so the large space was muy important). The Boler COULD have been pulled by darn near anything - but the van was a better fit for our family.

mkw