Pulling a Heavy Trailer Offroad - A Good Tow Vehicle

[BikePilot]

Between the Chevy and Ford I would suggest Ford for this purpose as I think you'll find the solid front axle better suited. Another benifit is that you can fit 37" tires with minimal work. Carli will have everything you need to trick out the suspension. Another you might look at is a Ram power wagon. It'll already have low gears, lockers and a winch. I just built up Ram 3500 diesel with a similar result in mind. Gears, lockers, Thuren suspension, and 37s.

 

[DFNDER]

Believe it or not, I know a guy (who now has an Oliver) but who has taken a big Airstream all over the west - and he is not a campground camper. He's a geologist who loves to roam. He has a Powerstroke - lots of torque - and he modified the Airstream - increasing its clearance and making sure that everything was nailed down securely.

Ok. More power to him. Still wouldn’t do that with an Oliver.

 

[Cortttt]

Between the Chevy and Ford I would suggest Ford for this purpose as I think you'll find the solid front axle better suited. Another benifit is that you can fit 37" tires with minimal work. Carli will have everything you need to trick out the suspension. Another you might look at is a Ram power wagon. It'll already have low gears, lockers and a winch. I just built up Ram 3500 diesel with a similar result in mind. Gears, lockers, Thuren suspension, and 37s.

Thanks - yes, a bit stouter axle there. I also heard that you can get a front locker in much more easily in the Ford - don't know how much it costs though. Do you know how much it costs to get one in there?

I hadn't thought about the Power Wagon. It may be too expensive but I will check it out. They are making darn good trucks now. I didn't know it came so well-equipped. Diesel's are an option as used ones are not as expensive as I'd thought and I love the torque. My one concern is repair costs if the emission systems bug out.

 

[Cortttt]

Ok. More power to him. Still wouldn’t do that with an Oliver.

He may be an anomaly - he can probably get things places that others could not. I would be more comfortable in a Conqueror for sure.

 

[BikePilot]

Thanks - yes, a bit stouter axle there. I also heard that you can get a front locker in much more easily in the Ford - don't know how much it costs though. Do you know how much it costs to get one in there?

I hadn't thought about the Power Wagon. It may be too expensive but I will check it out. They are making darn good trucks now. I didn't know it came so well-equipped. Diesel's are an option as used ones are not as expensive as I'd thought and I love the torque. My one concern is repair costs if the emission systems bug out.

You may be able to get a front locker in the Ford from the factory, but I haven't looked. I put an ARB air locker in the front of my 3500. The rear on all 3500 Rams comes with a helical locker so I stuck with that. An ARB is about $1200 for the locker. You'll need an air source and of course install as well.

 

[BikePilot]

Btw for diesels imo the 6cyl Cummins is pretty manageable. Generally super reliable and it's pretty simple and inexpensive to repair as compared to the v8 diesels. A power wagon is probably a lot cheaper than buying a typical truck and adding lockers and a winch. You also get other goodies like sway bar disconnects and more flexible suspension. Payload is pretty limited due to the soft suspension though.

Gas trucks will generally be significantly lighter than diesel. With only 8k lbs s big gasser should haul it just fine. That's not much weight in the HD truck world.

 

[BikePilot]

 

[Cortttt]

You may be able to get a front locker in the Ford from the factory, but I haven't looked. I put an ARB air locker in the front of my 3500. The rear on all 3500 Rams comes with a helical locker so I stuck with that. An ARB is about $1200 for the locker. You'll need an air source and of course install as well.

Thanks for the info

 

[Cortttt]

Btw for diesels imo the 6cyl Cummins is pretty manageable. Generally super reliable and it's pretty simple and inexpensive to repair as compared to the v8 diesels. A power wagon is probably a lot cheaper than buying a typical truck and adding lockers and a winch. You also get other goodies like sway bar disconnects and more flexible suspension. Payload is pretty limited due to the soft suspension though.

Gas trucks will generally be significantly lighter than diesel. With only 8k lbs s big gasser should haul it just fine. That's not much weight in the HD truck world.

Good to hear about the gasser handling the weight. I've heard the Cummins diesels are quite reliable. I will check them and the power wagon out. Nice to see the options expand

 

[Cortttt]

The old van suddenly broke down and for a lot of rather complex reasons, I went with a new Chevy van with the new 6.6L engine. It has better low-end torque than the older gassers but nothing like a diesel.

I plan to add 4wd, a small lift, and a winch and boost the gearing. I don't think they do front lockers with these things.

With the Conqueror 19 dead at ROA and with money concerns we're likely going with a used Oliver. We'll mostly be on pretty good roads. I'll report on how it goes.

 

[Corbet]

Warning well taken! The more I get stuck and I've been stuck many times in the van - the more careful I get. That's a great example of what looks like a highly capable truck getting stuck with a not-very-big trailer behind it.... Was the problem - not enough oomph from the engine?

My nightmare is getting stuck way out there with this big trailer. My plan is to be quite conservative

More a lack of traction in the sand. The photo does not do the creek bank justice on how steep/high it was. Both Cruisers are on 37’s mine is turbo’ed and the recovery truck has a LS conversion. Took 3 attempts to recovery leading up to full wide open throttle of both to get out.

Wheeling with a trailer is all about momentum while going slow enough not to break stuff. (Cargo or equipment) It can be a very fine line.