Am I crazy to tow a 20 foot trailer with my bus?

Len Silva · July 27, 2010, 11:23:44 AM

Yes, you are crazy or you wouldn't be involved in this foolishness!

edvanland · July 27, 2010, 11:35:45 AM

I have a MCI 7 and tow a 24 foot trailer which holds my jeep and Harley trike. When hooked together I am just at 70 feet long and I have had no problems. I have 12 volt electric brakes on the trailer as I have a seperate 12 volt system for them as well as running lights. To get out of the Verde Valley, AZ I have a 7 per cent grade no matter which way I go all about 10 miles long. The only thing I have to be careful of is the temp of the bus, as long as I can top the hill and not over heat I don't care what the mph is.
ED

rv_safetyman · July 27, 2010, 02:00:49 PM

Brian, I think you asked about mileage impact. I don't pull a trailer, but my service truck is about 9600 pounds. I have the 12.7 and you have the 11.1, but I don't think there should be any big HP issue. You may note some MPG loss on the big hills, but the real impact will come if you get on a two lane and have to go through a bunch of small towns. The acceleration at each town really eats into my mileage.

Jim

belfert · July 27, 2010, 07:46:20 PM

My friends are pushing me towards the 8x20 trailer though I may yet go with the smaller one.

Does anyone think tongue weight will be an issue? Trailer will be around 5,000 lbs loaded so tongue weight ideally should be 500 to 750 lbs. I do have the large C channel frame in the rear instead of a traditional engine cradle.

Busted Knuckle · July 28, 2010, 07:26:38 AM

Brian,
Go for it! Your bus will handle what you put behind it, no problem! As you have already pointed out your bus is built like a truck from the luggage bays back!
I wouldn't worry about length if you keep it under 70' I see 75'-80' rigs EVERYWHERE and nobody bothers them!

Shoot just check out some of the entertainer coaches rolling out of Nashville sometimes 45' coach pulling 24'-30' trailers heading out on tours. (and I guarantee they travel straight thru the states your worried about with NO PROBLEMS, or they wouldn't ever head out with them in the first place!

ruthi · July 28, 2010, 08:01:31 AM

Yep, BK, we see the same thing all the time. Nothing is going to drag that bus down.

belfert · July 28, 2010, 09:58:02 AM

I'm heading out to look at the 20 foot trailer in a minute. It has some damage, but that is why it is dirt cheap for the size.

4905 doc · July 28, 2010, 10:47:50 AM

20' worked just fine for us. hauled the camaro, motorcycle, and 2 electric scooters.

belfert · July 28, 2010, 09:05:17 PM

I went and looked at a used 20 foot trailer today. It was a total POS. Every panel was dented or had a hole in it. The whole front end needed new sheet metal. Neither the side door nor the ramp door close properly.

That trailer would probably need 20 man hours of labor and $500 to get it into decent. I would almost have to completely dismantle the trailer and rebuild from the ground up. (Not unlike some Eagles

)

I think I have a line on a trailer I can use for free this year while I look for an affordable used trailer.

Busted Knuckle · July 30, 2010, 07:55:27 AM

Brian as the old saying goes (and 9.9 times outta 10 is true) "Ya get what ya pay for!"

Sounds like there was a reason this trailer was cheap! (OK maybe not cheap enough, but I'm sure you get the drift!

)

BK

Ace · July 30, 2010, 11:15:47 AM

I too was hesitant when I wantes to pull a 20 foot stacker but was highly encouraged to so, and glad I did. As others stated, take off from a dead stop is a little slower but after that, it's Katey bar the door. 2 bikes, tools and golf cart not to mention odds and end toys etc. make it a no brainer for me.