Tow Car Equipment - Airstream Excella 500 1973 Owner's Manual

Tow Car
Equipment
If you plan to buy a new ear to tow your
Airstream, we suggest that you include in
your purchase the trailer towing options
offered by most automobile manufacturers.
These include such things as an oversized
generator and radiator, heavy duty springs
and shock absorbers, automatic transmission
cooler, oversized fan, heavy duty flusher unit
and others, depending on the make of the
vehicle.
Transmissions may be manual or automatic,
but an automatic transmission will prolong
your car's engine life and does a better job of
controlling engine loads than the average
driver using a manual shift.
Having adequate power is very important
when considering the purchase of a new car or
the trailer towing capability of your present
one. Emission controls that are required by
the Federal Government have reduced overall
engine power. To determine generally what
the tow capability of your car is, divide the
total weight of your trailer by the cubic inch
displacement of your automobile engine. This
ratio should be between 10 and 20 pounds of
trailer weight per cubic inch of engine dis¬
placement with 15 pounds per cubic inch
considered optimal. For example, with a 31'
Airstream weighing 6500 pounds totally
loaded for travel and a car with 400 cubic
inch displacement engine, divide 6500 by 400
giving a value of 16.25 pounds of trailer
weight per cubic inch engine displacement.
This is very close to the optimal value and the
automobile should have adequate power for
towing the trailer. Remember that engine
power is only one indication of the car's
towing capabilities; the axle ratio and cooling
capabilities certainly must be considered. We
suggest you review the owner's manual of
your present car and discuss your automobile
towing capabilities with your Airstream dealer
and your automobile dealer.
The majority of new trailerists carry more
food and other supplies than really needed.
Remember that every item you take along is
one more thing to stow and adds weight to
the total load you must pull. Consolidate
items in shelves, lockers, and in the refriger¬
ator. It is better to have one full and one
empty locker than two half empty ones.
Special care must be taken not to overload
the front and rear ends of the trailer.
See tire section for correct tire sizes and
pressures for your trailer and load on page 13.