Show us your stuff!

judymac

Wanderoo, moving along. As soon as this horrible weather passes through, we plan to do an overnite with shore power and heat just to check other things out. Renfro Valley , Kentucky's Country Musical Capital, has begun their Christmas In The Valley show. Although an easy drive there, we thought we would start locally. We have a plan.

Michigan_Mike

Tardisman - Love the cocktail table!!!  Well done!

And to everyone else, GREAT pics and some very cool set-ups!  Thanks for sharing!!!!  

Justjudy

Ooooh. Love that kidney-shaped cocktail table!

Deltaboy59

Nice pics...

mawebb

Deltaboy59 I am surprised to see you using a Honda CRV for your TV. I had the same model year and color CRV and my T@B is the same colour combination as well. I traded in my CRV for a new Pliot for the towing capabilities. The specs on the CRV state a maximum towing weight of 1,500 lbs. The T@B is approximately 1,650 lbs. Are you finding the CRV is working well? Did you add an oil and transmission cooler? I loved the CRV and would have kept it if I had felt it was suitable. The Pilot is excellent as well, but it's a larger vehicle than I need for most trips and the fuel economy is not as good as the CRV.

Deltaboy59

Love the crv... 16mpg... No tranny cooler...honda does not recommend it...tow in 3rd gear... 62 mph all day... No problem in higher elevations... Except mpg dwn to 12mpg...have you read the international specs for crv towing ? Same model in usa... Handled very strong crosswinds in Kansas like a charm...Suitable for me...See On this forum where many who upgraded their TV from 4 cylinders to 6 or 8 were disappointed in performance declines... Glad I gave the crv a chance...perfect.

mawebb

I did read somewhere, that in Europe, the CRV is rated for 3,000 lbs. towing capacity. I was not too sure what to make of that. I have to assume that it's the same vehicle world wide, albeit for minor changes to emission systems and some safety systems. So I guess in North America Honda is being particularly conservative for some reason. The T@B and the CRV look great together, particularly with the color combinations you have. Now it makes me wish I still had mine

jdargis

My two concerns would be: 1. Transmission, drivetrain warranty work will be refused by Honda.
                                         2. Insurance lawyers will have a field day, if you are the cause of an
                                             accident.  They will show proof of your vehicle being used beyond
                                             the specifications of Honda.

I went through these concerns when we bought a 2014 Subaru Forester.  We traded it and bought a 2014
Jeep 2dr Wrangler.
 

Verna

I agree with jdargis. I error on the side of caution, and if my specs say I can only tow 3,500 lbs with my Escape in the United States, then I will not try to tow 4,000 lbs. Others are too sue happy, and that sure would be a situation that you knowingly towed more than your vehicle's specs specified. And, once you type it on the Internet, it is always on the Internet.

Michigan_Mike

I have damaged a transmission pulling at the threshold of the 1000# tow rating of a 2004 Monte Carlo.   I replaced the transmission and after pulling my former 5-wide with the same vehicle, I started experiencing some strange RPM upticks as I could see the RPM's raise up (couldn't actually feel the slip going on) and knew something was amiss.   I ended up selling the vehicle.  

We have beat this subject up on the forum many times in the past and if you use the search function you can find information that is out there.  I'm pretty staunch on this subject and will tell you that the specs on vehicles aren't arrived at by flipping a coin.  Large automakers "test" these vehicles, know the rating of their parts and components and list these specs to protect people driving their products.  You can obviously get any load to move on a flat surface.  And if you are pulling a load beyond the "manufacturer's maximum range" you are throwing safety out the window.  You risk brake failure as these parts are rated for the specifications stated in the owner's manual for your maximum tow rating.  You also compromise your ability to bring the tow vehicle and trailer to a safe stop.  This often results in vehicles and trailers rolling over, resulting in fatal consequences when animals dart in front of people, when the road surface changes via weather, icy conditions, rain, the resulting hydroplaning effect, etc.  

This is your choice as owners and as citizens to totally disregard and turn your back on the specified tow ratings put forth by manufacturers, and I apologize for my staunch point of view (and rant) on this subject, but when I see these things taking place it boggles my mind completely.  I cannot in good conscience condone it and I would never jeopardize or compromise the safety of my family, another human being or any oncoming motorist.  I have all I can do to safely haul my trailer from point A to point B on trips and know that there are times when the trailer, added cargo, occupants and tow vehicle are hard to bring to a complete stop and have experienced "push" via the weight of everything.  

My recommendations to all are to think about these decisions/actions, to tow with a vehicle that is rated well within the range of the trailer (and manufacturer's specifications) and load pulled and to never compromise the safety of your family members, nor anyone else out on the highway.  If I have offended anyone I apologize, but state the above in the interest of safety and not to point the finger at anyone.  When we discuss these issues on the forum we do so to help people, to create an awareness and to hopefully educate others  as well.  We also can learn from others experiences, knowledge, expertise and wisdom.

TabyDD

Clearly the dealers that sell the T@b trailers need to be Very definitive about having capable vehicles to tow their products.  They will lose sales for being honest however, not everyone can go out and replace a vehicle.$  I bought a new car (2015 Subaru Outback 4 cyl) on the recommendation from my dealer. 

tabou

Taby DD i've been pulling a Clamshell with a Subaru Outback 2012 for a month in last september and never experience any problem

Michigan_Mike

TabyDD said:

Clearly the dealers that sell the T@b trailers need to be Very definitive about having capable vehicles to tow their products.  They will lose sales for being honest however, not everyone can go out and replace a vehicle.$  I bought a new car (2015 Subaru Outback 4 cyl) on the recommendation from my dealer. 

Couldn't agree more!  The issue here I believe is that some of these folks either don't know or see no correlation therein and thus don't let the customer know.  One lady had a Honda Civic and pulled her T@B home with that!

And as I said above "you can get these trailers rolling" with about any size vehicle.  But you compromise your braking system, have exceeded the weight limitations for your vehicle and could compromise your own personal safety (via your inability to slow the load down, resulting in push) and those traveling with you and this could result in a rollover situation, etc.  vehicle problems normally don't show up until you are a considerable distance from home and it's no fun sitting in some small Podunkoutpost 2K miles from home waiting for parts and getting a broken vehicle fixed and trying to figure out how you're going to get your trailer and gear home.  

I have traveled across the US and have held onto the seat of my pants traveling down out of the mountains, most recently the Bitter Root Mountains out in Idaho, one of the longest inclines I've come off from in a while.  I've done the Rockies, Appalachians, etc. and remember them all well.... Point being, even though my TV is rated well above my load, it gets hairy sometimes and I cannot imagine what these situations would be like if I was pulling a load beyond the rated capacity of the TV.  Ask Verna about split second situations and what happens when you are forced to react to some knucklehead out along the interstate...   

Deltaboy59

Many variables go into the equation that results in a safe towing experience... Greasing bearings every 5,000 miles... Inspecting elec brake magnets every 6,000 miles...torquing wheels to spec q 3,000 miles...re calibrating elec brake controller... Checking tread height on tires...driving 25 percent below the speed limit....do you do all of these thing consistently and document your actions for future legal scrutiny... I bet not if truth be known... It is Perfectly Legal to tow with whatever TV I choose... My insurance company gladly insures my RV and TV...I bet there are problems or something amiss with most RV setups that potentially put the driver or others at risk for injury or accident... Lawyers will always dwell on small details...the push that you refer on your RV probably means you need to adjust your elec or hyd brakes..hitch height is incorrect or RV angle is incorrect... I believe that my overall RV setup is adequate.... safe...and that I am a a safe courteous driver... Lastly I am not convinced that this is a Moral Decision ....nor a Legal Decision but an Informed Decision based on Recommendations. As for the TV... It is used continuously as a tow vehicle... Serviced by honda.... 70,000 miles... Change tranny fluid every year... No ext tranny or oil cooler... Per Honda... Paid for...runs like new and when it dies then I replace it with a new TV...since jus trading up sure puts out a huge ecological footprint that potentially compromises the existance of all humanity....lol

Deltaboy59

Photo

RZRBUG

I was doing some research on tow chains when I ran across this paper produced by the Purdue University Extension Service.  It is an incredible presentation of does and don'ts and the safe operation of towing.  It is a 24MB pdf, so will take a little time to download but a good read if you are really interested in information presented by some folks who have spent some time studying and researching such things.

https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/PPP/PPP-92.pdf

Tardisman

Thanks for the article on trailering RZRBUG. A good safety reminder and will cause me to review the ratings on my system.

TaBFan

RZRBUG that is a "must read" that anyone towing any type of trailer! Thanks for the link, it should also be copied to the forum on towing and safety. 

Deltaboy59

The 2011 Honda CRV is engineered to tow 4409 lbs.
Recomendations are suggestions made by each Honda entity for that particular country in which it is sold.

Deltaboy59

Thought this was show us your stuff thread, not give your opinion on my choice of TV....
Did we get off track ?
lol.

RZRBUG

Agreed that towing specs is not really the right place for the category, "Show Us Your Stuff!"  Maybe one of the moderators could do some rearranging.  Regardless, the discussion has been going on for a while, and I though the article would be helpful to those who wanted some in-depth information.  It was not intended to prove any point.  Hope it is helpful.

TaBFan

Hey Mike, Can you move the comments from Dec 2 to today, to a forum on TV's. the're just not relevant to "SHOW US YOUR STUFF"
Thanks,
Jerry 

Michigan_Mike

Back on track folks!   I removed the large post and in the future should anyone want to post specs, etc. (in large quantities) please create another discussion on it.....  No offense taken here, but let's get back on topic as we have definitely drifted off course and into uncharted waters here.  *snicker*  

PS - My apologies too, as I do not have the ability to move large blocks of postings   into another discussion area as there is no function to do that.  

jcfaber1

Lunch in the Badlands

judymac

Beautiful 

SailTab

"SailTab" 2006 Q Tab

SailTab

SailTab

How do you shrink pic when posting?

judymac

Like those wooden shelves.  Now is the whistle for the Bears or the human? 

Michigan_Mike

jcfaber1 said:

Lunch in the Badlands

That is one of my favorite places....  Love the Badlands area!   Did you happen to go down to Sage Creek Campground below the rim of the Badlands?  It's a cool place and is where the buffalo roam...