XC90 towing Vintage Airstream?

VintageAirstream · May 27th, 2012, 09:50

Hi, hope to find some info here!

We have several vintage Airstream caravans, ranging in size from a 16' to a 34'er.

We know that the bigger ones are impossible to tow with an XC90, but at what weight and size has anyone towed a caravan and felt comfortable doing so?

The specs give it 2250KG, which is just under 5000 pounds, but I know thats not always whats comfortable going down the road. These are a little taller than most UK caravans as well and have some mass.

We're between this and a Merc ML270, which my husband wants, I'm begging for the more kid friendly and safer XC90. We know the Volvo is also more dependable.

To see some of what we will tow, see the Vintage Airstreams on this site.

Code:

www.eurostreamcaravans.co.uk

I was really shocked that the capacity was 1000KG's less, but still pushing for one! Thanks in advance for any advice.

rnlisg · May 27th, 2012, 17:14

i towed a compass rallye 634 caravan,overall length 8.06mtrs,max all up weight was plated at 1900kg,which was around what i loaded it to.
my towcar then was a discovery3 tdv6 2.7lt 7 seater auto.the car weighed 2.7 tonnes with a towball weight of 150kgs,so there was no problem at all,excellent outfit and got 20ish to the gallon,had it 3 years.
my concerns on your choice of towcars(both well known bits of kit) is the kerb weight,towball weight and legal weight they can safely pull.
hope my 2 pence worth helps
cheers
sandy
ps a freind used to have a huge airstream with power levelling etc,he hired it to film sets,but his tow vehicle was a huge 7ltr double cab american pickup truck(it did 10 to the gallon on a good day)!!!

VintageAirstream · May 28th, 2012, 03:53

Hi, and thanks, I appreciate the help!

The biggest we'd try to tow, would be a 1946 Spartan Manor 25' that weighs in at approximately 4000 pounds or 1800KGs.

The issue we're looking at is the mass of this trailer- its 8' wide and its rather tall. I'm worried not just about capacity, which its 1000 pounds under the maximum for the XC90, but will it be controllable.

If you go to this page and scroll halfway down you'll see 3 pix of them.

Code:

http://eurostreamcaravans.com/Eurostreamcaravans/The_Collection_For_Sale.html

The thing is that ML is rated at 3365, which is 1000 more than the XC90- it doesn't seem that its possible to have so much more, I'm curious if people have had good experiences with towing any heavy weight with these, or am I limited to one of the smaller vintage Airstreams like 16/18/22'ers?

Is it possible that Volvo under rated the towing capacity, and MB maxed theirs out? The size difference in the 2 is minimal, so its hard to believe that there is that much more going for the ML270 under the skin.

By the way, we have 2 of those F350 4X4 long bed crew cab pickups you're referring to. My husband pulls a 45' long triple axle flat bed car hauler with one, but thats in the USA, could never happen in Europe. Pix of that are on our site as well!

Thanks for all the advice, Ellie

rnlisg · May 28th, 2012, 18:30

hi ellie
had a look at your site,very interesting,i did not realise how many models they made,i saw a tv program about the airstream club( i think it was in california)there were a group of around 30 retired folk who toured for months at a time,they were very well organised with radio,s etc and when they travelled the convoy covered some 3 to 4 miles long.some of the tow vehicles looked like scaled down versions of comercial vehicles.
the former md of explorer caravans in the uk micheal hold,started up his own company and has a franchise of importing uk friendly size models into the uk,and again i noticed the adverts all had discoveries pulling them.
sandy.

May 27th, 2012, 09:50	#1
VintageAirstream New Member Last Online: May 28th, 2012 03:53 Join Date: May 2012 Location: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria	XC90 towing Vintage Airstream? Hi, hope to find some info here! We have several vintage Airstream caravans, ranging in size from a 16' to a 34'er. We know that the bigger ones are impossible to tow with an XC90, but at what weight and size has anyone towed a caravan and felt comfortable doing so? The specs give it 2250KG, which is just under 5000 pounds, but I know thats not always whats comfortable going down the road. These are a little taller than most UK caravans as well and have some mass. We're between this and a Merc ML270, which my husband wants, I'm begging for the more kid friendly and safer XC90. We know the Volvo is also more dependable. To see some of what we will tow, see the Vintage Airstreams on this site. Code: www.eurostreamcaravans.co.uk I was really shocked that the capacity was 1000KG's less, but still pushing for one! Thanks in advance for any advice. Last edited by cumbrianmale; May 27th, 2012 at 13:58.

May 27th, 2012, 17:14	#2
rnlisg Senior Member Last Online: Jun 8th, 2020 15:43 Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: lydd/kent	towing heavyweights i towed a compass rallye 634 caravan,overall length 8.06mtrs,max all up weight was plated at 1900kg,which was around what i loaded it to. my towcar then was a discovery3 tdv6 2.7lt 7 seater auto.the car weighed 2.7 tonnes with a towball weight of 150kgs,so there was no problem at all,excellent outfit and got 20ish to the gallon,had it 3 years. my concerns on your choice of towcars(both well known bits of kit) is the kerb weight,towball weight and legal weight they can safely pull. hope my 2 pence worth helps cheers sandy ps a freind used to have a huge airstream with power levelling etc,he hired it to film sets,but his tow vehicle was a huge 7ltr double cab american pickup truck(it did 10 to the gallon on a good day)!!!

May 28th, 2012, 03:53	#3
VintageAirstream New Member Last Online: May 28th, 2012 03:53 Join Date: May 2012 Location: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria	ML270 vs XC90 for towing vintage Airstreams. Hi, and thanks, I appreciate the help! The biggest we'd try to tow, would be a 1946 Spartan Manor 25' that weighs in at approximately 4000 pounds or 1800KGs. The issue we're looking at is the mass of this trailer- its 8' wide and its rather tall. I'm worried not just about capacity, which its 1000 pounds under the maximum for the XC90, but will it be controllable. If you go to this page and scroll halfway down you'll see 3 pix of them. Code: http://eurostreamcaravans.com/Eurostreamcaravans/The_Collection_For_Sale.html The thing is that ML is rated at 3365, which is 1000 more than the XC90- it doesn't seem that its possible to have so much more, I'm curious if people have had good experiences with towing any heavy weight with these, or am I limited to one of the smaller vintage Airstreams like 16/18/22'ers? Is it possible that Volvo under rated the towing capacity, and MB maxed theirs out? The size difference in the 2 is minimal, so its hard to believe that there is that much more going for the ML270 under the skin. By the way, we have 2 of those F350 4X4 long bed crew cab pickups you're referring to. My husband pulls a 45' long triple axle flat bed car hauler with one, but thats in the USA, could never happen in Europe. Pix of that are on our site as well! Thanks for all the advice, Ellie Last edited by cumbrianmale; May 28th, 2012 at 20:56.

May 28th, 2012, 18:30	#4
rnlisg Senior Member Last Online: Jun 8th, 2020 15:43 Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: lydd/kent	airstreams hi ellie had a look at your site,very interesting,i did not realise how many models they made,i saw a tv program about the airstream club( i think it was in california)there were a group of around 30 retired folk who toured for months at a time,they were very well organised with radio,s etc and when they travelled the convoy covered some 3 to 4 miles long.some of the tow vehicles looked like scaled down versions of comercial vehicles. the former md of explorer caravans in the uk micheal hold,started up his own company and has a franchise of importing uk friendly size models into the uk,and again i noticed the adverts all had discoveries pulling them. sandy.

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