SAFE TOWING SPEED

TonyDtorch said:

I thought I remembered another Japanese truck you were proud of ?

did you receive your dashcam yet ?

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Hasn't got here yet....yours? 

Frizlefrak said:

Hasn't got here yet....yours?

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it's probably still on the boat from China..

Is this like a safe driving test?

Personally I have a check-off list. Are my trailer and tow vehicle in tune with each other. In other words does the rig travel in a straight line? I don?t want the trailer ?dog walking? into other lanes. Is the whole rig within it?s weight range? Is it balanced with all the brakes working and in good condition? What are the traveling (road) conditions? If all those areas check in the green I?m good to go for the posted speed limit. Oops, need to make sure my tires are rated for the speeds I want to travel. The tow vehicle and trailer are built for highway speeds. No sense in letting the 18 wheelers blow me off the highway.

I abide by every state?s speed laws for towing vehicles. Here is a reference to refer to while traveling around the country.

http://towingworld.com/towinglaws.cfm

Real world, I?m practical. Thru trial and error my rig gets it?s best fuel economy at 2100 -2200 RPMs. Anything lower than that the trans will start constantly down shifting. My tow haul mode is very good around town but is junk after 50 MPH. In the steeply graded country I do as the 18 wheelers do, go like hell down hill so my momentum up the next one will keep those turbos from whistling too soon.

So, for me what does that all boil down to? I air my LRE tires to 82 psi and travel at 67 MPH on any open road that will allow that speed.

FastEagle

I have had 5 travel trailers, 2 fifth wheels and tow a car carrier sometimes with a bob-cat on it.  I have found that a particular rig, and tow vehicle will find a speed that "feels" right.  All are different and all I have found are comfortable at no faster than 65, most around 60.  On the rare occasions that I have gone up to 70 (long downhill on a freeway) I have been uncomfortable, and worked to slow down.  I've got about a million miles on me now, never had an accident (probably good luck) and hope to stay at a speed where I'm comfortable, the truck is happy (2000 to 2200 rpm) and the trailer stays back there where it should be. 
johncmr

FastEagle, I assume it's the trailer tires you inflate to 82 lbs, which is above most LRE's recommendation for inflation.  On your truck, the dually tires should most likely be inflated to 65 lbs. unless RAM has made a major change in the past.

55 to 58mph

I wish that RVers were ticketed more for their speeding, if you're in that much of a hurry in an RV,
you don't belong on the road. There are enough idiots out there already.

I think the safest towing speed will depend on many factors, but the faster one travels the more of a risk you are to others.
If the towing speed in a specific area is 55 mph, you shouldn't be going any faster than 60mph, even at the best of times/conditions
regardless of what you think you are comfortable with.

I travel extensively between California and Arizona and I can tell you straight up that I have never seen anyone in an RV (of any type) drive 55 mph.
I'm pretty sure what I'm seeing is at least 70mph.

It's bad enough driving a safe speed on a two lane highway and having every idiot in a car/truck try to dangerously pass you, let alone your fellow RVers.
Another thing that I've noticed is weight and towing standards are rarely followed, especially in Arizona, which just makes it that much more for an unnerving drive.

If you visit us in California
Towing speed:
RV pulling toad
5er
legal speed limit is 55 MPH

jb

I am fairly new to towing my new 5Th wheel and stay between 55-60 where I feel comfortable, stay within the speed limit....almost  :-\ and meet then demands of my tire limits.
However, my biggest gripe is with the idiots that merge on the freeways expecting me to slow down. Since I am usually traveling in the slow lane, I see too many drivers that don't understand that I have the right of way. They don't understand that they are responsible to increase speed and merge in to the slow lane without disrupting the flow of traffic. Like either speed up or slow down and put your vehicle in the lane without any major disaster. I am always defensive when I have merging traffic coming my way, but a few times I have said screw it and kept the same speed to see what the driver will do and low and behold.......most of the time I either let them in or.............understand that I am still number 1 in their book. 8)
I guess if I was driving a 40 footer or a set of doubles they might think twice.
Some things just never change.

This is all we have for roads in Idaho. Interstates or freeway ar a very long ways from me. As for speed and towing speeds.

Here is another article I put together for Idaho highway travels.
http://articles.mopar1973man.com/members-rides/17-mopar1973man/459-speed-mpg

donuts said:

but a few times I have said screw it and kept the same speed to see what the driver will do and low and behold.......most of the time I either let them in or.............understand that I am still number 1 in their book. 8)

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I too have been number one in someone's book on more than one occasion.  So nice to see them express their adoration. 

I had a similar incident going to Chama last summer.  Two lane road with the occasional passing lane, I'm running 55...speed limit is 65.  When the passing lane was there, I'd move to the right  and let everyone around.  Got about 6 of them past me and I was running out of passing lane, so tapped the left signal to move back into the single lane.  As I was almost out of passing lane a kid in a ratty Civic tried to go around me.....and he had neither the power nor the room to complete the pass. 

I had three choices....lay hard on the brakes to let him around, move back over to the single lane, or go off the edge of a 50' drop.  #3 wasn't going to happen....and I decided #1 wasn't either.  I gradually started moving over....but he decided to push the issue.  There wasn't any oncoming traffic, so he could have just grabbed the opposing lane and finished his pass, but he's one of these young 'uns that thinks the world owes him something.  It doesn't.  He weighs 2800 lbs.....I weigh over 15,000.  He'd have lost.  To be fair, I gave him all the room I could....he just made a bad decision and didn't have the sense to pull back in behind me and wait until his next opportunity to pass.

He finally grabbed the opposing lane and finished his pass, and turned around to give me the single finger salute.  I returned the favor, only to see my lovely bride of 25 years with a very angry look already saluting him too.  There was a LOT of love going around, I tell ya. He didn't stick around long enough for me to show him any further hospitality, which is a shame, because I was in a very sharing mood at that point.  Once he sped off (well, as speedy as 1.6  liters of fury will do) wifey and I cracked up laughing.  Good times.... 

Frizlefrak said:

As I was almost out of passing lane a kid in a ratty Civic tried to go around me.....

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Don't you know? Those add-on exhausts for those Civics turn them into instant sports cars. They add 15db of (annoying) sound and 1 extra HP of power.



Michael

Tinmania said:

Don't you know? Those add-on exhausts for those Civics turn them into instant sports cars. They add 15db of (annoying) sound and 1 extra HP of power.



Michael

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Honda.....converting gasoline to noise for over 40 years.... 

John From Detroit said:

Others,,,, Well,, Many Americans think the speed limit is for other people, It does not apply to them (Until, that is, it does, sometims with fatal results).

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I guess you have never been on I-5 and I-90. Those pesky Canadians dont even bother to know what a speed limit is. The wife and i always cheer when we see one of them pulled over by our own WSP's.

Frizlefrak said:

Honda.....converting gasoline to noise for over 40 years.... 

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Ok,  that's actually funny.

Personally I like 60 that's where my truck is most comfortable, my old trailer was a lot lighter but still liked 60- 65 but as a kid my dad pulled a 20 ft trailer single axial all over Europe at over 70 mph with never an issued that was the late sixties early seventies which was crazy and we had a 1969 sprite muskateer and Austin maxi 1750 my dad used to borrow my moms bathroom scale to measure the pun weight ( he was an engineer)

dustym said:

I guess you have never been on I-5 and I-90. Those pesky Canadians dont even bother to know what a speed limit is. The wife and i always cheer when we see one of them pulled over by our own WSP's.

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Gotta love those pesky Canadians pumping billions of dollars into that saggy wash economy ( don't be offended all my best friends live in wash and we come down 4-5 times a year we love you all)between me my kids and our friends 20-30 people we are probably good for $30-40000 a year if not more -pesky to say the least lol

OK people, let's play nice.  I had to move 4 messages out of sight because they degenerated into personal attacks. 

never mind
 

TonyDtorch said:

Ok,  that's actually funny.

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Jeez Tony....I drop a Cummins joke right in your lap and you don't take the bait?  You're slippin' bro.....  ;D

;

Frizlefrak said:

Jeez Tony....I drop a Cummins joke right in your lap and you don't take the bait?  You're slippin' bro.....  ;D

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sorry... didn't hear it.... a Ram went by.