Towing an Airstream with K5

[kiley]

I put this in the Blazer forum but it's going a little slow so here it is.

I'm about to get a '78 31 foot Airstream travel trailer. I'm concerned about towing. I'll be going through mountain passes alot. I currently am set up with 33" tires and 3.73 gears, fairly stock 350 and th350. Should I be concerned about going to different gears? A 383 will be in the future so should I just get by until then?

I'm about to install ARB air lockers in the front and rear and don't want to do it twice.

Thanks for your input.

[rbnative]

Good luck....

I towed a 24' camping trailer w/ a '70 Suburban, 350 and 3.53 gears. It was marginal at best in the mountains. We could barely do 20 - 25 MPH. And it loved to overheat. And Airstreams are the heaviest trailer on the road, by a wide margin.

Never again...

[tom hand]

31 foot? I would want a 3/4 ton with a big block to go anywhere near a mountain...I believe those things weigh better than 6000 lbs

[kwmech]

The weight of the trailer and the short wheel base of the k5 doesn't seem safe to me, I agree with at least a 3/4 ton long wheel base. I have a 28 ft trailer that I tow with my suburban and sometimes that is a chore in the mtns.

[oldsub86]

I thought that Airstream trailers were very light. Are they not the ones with aluminum frames etc?

Have you towed anything else? If so, you should have some idea how the truck will perform based on weight comparisons etc.

I am guessing it will not be very good as is.

[Longhorn Man]

If the trailer is 6000 pounds, you'll need more than the little k/5 to do it.
Anyone have GM specs on the towing limits on a K/5 for sh!ts and giggles?

[kiley]

Yes they are supposed to be light. Dad said it is 6000lb empty. They are made largely of aluminum but I'm not sure if the frame is aluminum. Going over Raton Pass in and out of Colorado we used to have to go to 4 lo but it seemed to do fine elsewhere. We weren't burining up the pavement by any means but it seemed to pull the trailer just fine. I've pulled a long, steel, flat bed car hauler with it and things seemed good but the Airstream is very different.

The Airstream dealership never made any big deal about it but then again it might not have been their place to make judgement calls about it. I do remember advertisements about cadillacs or licon continentals towing them but they might have been smaller trailers.

Thanks for the replies.

Has anyone else pulled a big trailer with a K5?

[cdowns]

mountain passes ??? i'm bettin you blowup and wreck both vehicles

[Leinie]

I pulled an u-haul car trailer ( heavy sob )with a cavalier on it from Denver to Minneapolis ( no mountains ). I'm guessing it was about 4500# total. I have the same drivetrain combo as you do with 31" tires and it pulled ok from a power standpoint. I did not like the handling at all, it was just downright scary with the short wheelbase and heavy trailer.

[ChevLoRay]

I had a '76 Blazer K5, 400SB, automatic with a Part-Time conversion. It had both 2 and 4 WD, in High or Low range. I was pulling an '83 (New at the time) Nomad 25-ft bunkhouse, and had the whole family...all 5 kids in the Blazer. Drove it up into the hills of Arkansas. Never any problems. You'll be at a higher altitude than I was at. My Blazer had 3.08's, and a set of Goodyear Wrangler 31x11.50-15 Radials. I loved the 2WD Low range for parking the trailer. With an equalizer hitch and anti-sway bar, I never had any problems with it...short of never enough time to use it.

As for the Raton Pass, I know it is a long grade, but I have only been down it, from Pueblo. Drove to Pueblo from Durango.

From what I remember, I think the trip from Alamogordo, NM over the "hill" is worse going to Las Cruces, NM, than what I remember about Raton, CO.

[SWEET7T]

Get an equilizer hitch for it, that setup will want to sway and fishtail soooo bad!!!! The K5 is just too short, but it will pull it. I just wouldn't go very fast...

[Yukon Jack]

Originally posted by kiley
Going over Raton Pass in and out of Colorado we used to have to go to 4 lo but it seemed to do fine elsewhere.

If your actually putting your K5 in 4wd low range on pavement pulling a trailer, you are going to do damage sooner or later to your drivetrain.

All in all I think your going to be taxing the K5 pulling that long of a trailer. If you do it make sure your brakes are in good shape, maybe think about adding a transmission fluid cooler and consider a load equalizer hitch system.

[6869704X4]

I think you are living on the edge pulling that with a Blazer but if you take it easy you should be fine. Are you an experienced trailer puller?
I didnt see a transmission coooler mentioned. Get the biggest one you can find. A remote filter aint a bad idea either.
If you twin stick your x-fer case(I'm guessing you have a NP205) you can drive in 2wd low.
My brother has a equalizing hitch with a sway dampner. Works great.
And the most important thing, brakes.

[JimKshortstep4x4]

If your trailer weighs 6000 lbs., you may want to get a larger vehicle. Suburban 3/4 tons are recommended for trailers up to 6000 lbs. and they would be a lot more stable. I believe using a Blazer for the duty you describe would be asking for trouble.

Jim

[jcueckert13]

i have a 1963 28 foot airstream and the pathetic motor (warn out 350 smoking out the valve covers and exaust and stock had 165 hp) in my truck can tow the trailer fairly well.

[bouncytruck]

Coming down the other side of the pass is where I'd be conserned. The tailer is going to pull that rig all over the place. Especially if you hit any wind. If you were just pulling the trailer across flat, or reasonably flat land, it wouldn't be so scary.

[Davy]

OK...everyone is kind of tip-toeing around it, so I'll just say it...

You'd be absolutely crazy to use a K5 for pulling the trailer you specified. Short wheelbase and less than 4000 lb vehicle pulling a 6000+ lb (empty) trailer. Mountain passes???? I hope you don't have any kids or love ones in the vehicle with you.

Of course this is just my opinion..take it only for that.

Davy

[BILELL]

WE TOWED A 31' AIRSTREAM FOR A COUPLE YEARS WITH A 1971 LONGHORN 350, ( EVEN AS MUCH AS WE LOVE OUR LONGHORN , STILL LEFT A LOT TO BE DESIRED) JUST MY TWO CENTS WORTH

[ljbear]

I have to agree with Davy, that short wheel base isn't for that kind of load. I used to pull an 1800 pound boat and trailer behind my K5. Plenty off power, but that boat would push the back end of that blazer all over the place in turns. A guy from work was pulling a 28' travel trailer behind one of the big Broncos. He crested a hill, tapped the brakes and the Bronco started moving from side to side until it flipped. Sure, lots of variables here, but that's kind of the point. If the trailer is loaded right, if the trailer brakes are set right, if you drive safely, if, if, if... The trailer dealer will sell you anything to get the sell, don't expect them to tell you the truck isn't up for the task. I'd think this through before doing it.

[kiley]

Well thanks for everything guys. I do have a lot to think about. After reading all this I was thinking of looking for a 3/4 71 or 72 Suburban. I'm real picky about the year model and options. They are real hard to find, at least around hear. Pickup are all over the place but 3/4 ton, 4x4 suburbans with rear air and in good shape are hard to find. Anybody wanna trade

[67sub]

3/4 ton with equalizer hitch and trailer brakes would be a must for me to pull that size travel trailer. Using a blazer you would wind up with the tail wagging the dog in any kind of wind or adverse weather conditions. Personally I'd suggest a big block or at least a 406 small block. We built a 406 for my parents van that would top Raton pass at 60 with a 28 foot travel trailer behind it.

[kiley]

How did the 406 hold up over time. I've heard that 400's and up tend to destroy themselves and that's what makes a 383 so popular. They can be made reliable supposedly. I don't know and am on a quest to find out before I spend the money.

[Longhorn Man]

400 small blcoks are fine if the builder knows what he is doing.

[Grim Reaper]

Originally posted by kiley
Yes they are supposed to be light. Dad said it is 6000lb empty. They are made largely of aluminum but I'm not sure if the frame is aluminum. Going over Raton Pass in and out of Colorado we used to have to go to 4 lo but it seemed to do fine elsewhere. We weren't burining up the pavement by any means but it seemed to pull the trailer just fine. I've pulled a long, steel, flat bed car hauler with it and things seemed good but the Airstream is very different.

The Airstream dealership never made any big deal about it but then again it might not have been their place to make judgement calls about it. I do remember advertisements about cadillacs or licon continentals towing them but they might have been smaller trailers.

Thanks for the replies.

Has anyone else pulled a big trailer with a K5?

a 31ft of that vintage is pushing 7k with gear.

www.airstreamforums.com Come on over there and they will give you an earfull about short wheelbase and big trailers. I'm 59Toaster over there.
I sold my 79 K5 because I was afraid of using it as a tow rig for a MUCH lighter 22ft.

[Grim Reaper]

Originally posted by oldsub86
I thought that Airstream trailers were very light. Are they not the ones with aluminum frames etc?

Have you towed anything else? If so, you should have some idea how the truck will perform based on weight comparisons etc.

I am guessing it will not be very good as is.

Never had Aluminum frames. They are Monocock though. The body work is a LARGE part of their strength. The frames will sag badly without the body. My 22ft has a 2x4 14 gage box frame. That 31 will have a 2x6 Ch channel frame about 12 gage.