Tell me why I should NOT make this my tow vehicle

Let's start by giving some information regarding this.  My in-laws picked this up a couple of years ago and have gone through the motor and brakes. Redid the interior so that it has some modern-ish stuff to go with it.  I was looking at it as they went through it, giving little indications about how it would be kind of neat to "borrow" when my wife and I would go to Watkins Glen and tow the Porsche behind it.  Well, after their first real trip together down a highway, it was blown all over the place, and kind of scared my mother-in-law, bringing their marriage to the edge.  To say the least my in-laws then decided, because of my interest, to graciously "gift" my wife and I this vehicle.  So without further ado, here it is. 

They have removed the old hot water tank, replaced it with a Tankless hot-water heater, removed the table and replaced it with a Full bed.  It still has the fridge and sink, no stove, but that is easy to add.  The motor is a 350 with 4 barrel carb, so there is not a gas station that it does not like.  It also would need to have a trailer hitch added.  I also have no place to store this little rig.  
 

In reply to Mike924 :

so if you don't have a place to store it, where are you going to work on it? 

 

Because it's an outdated, underpowered, overweight van with a poorly constructed house on top?

Nah, go for it 

You’re not towing much of anything with that much overhang on that chassis

Chevy vans can run forever, they just need a little love now and again. And don't let the low power put you off, that just means you'll have more time to enjoy the scenery when going 32mph on the highway.  The biggest concern I would have is what happened to the original frame of the vehicle out back and can you reliably add a trailer hitch? Other than that, you need to pick curtains and pillows. 

That thing looks pretty sweet. Proper shocks for the application are going to make a big difference in a vehicle like that. Just because shocks will bolt to a Chevy van's hardpoints doesn't mean they'll be the right shocks for this. I'd also run the rear tire pressures on the high end of whatever their max pressure is, at least while towing. 

Frame extensions can be kind of scary on some of these. Study them well before adding a hitch out back.

If it's getting blown all over the road, check the sway bar bushings and steering stabilizer. Also check that is has proper tires on it. The tires on my Class A were undersized when I bought it. A tire swap and sway bushings made it drive like new.  

Weigh it. It could be close to its GCWR as it sits. Class Bs are frequently close to max load. If so, that doesn't leave much room for a trailer and car. 

Don't forget a brake controller and trailer brakes. The RV brakes are going to be well loaded just stopping the RV. You don't want to stop the trailer with them. 

In terms of power and fuel economy, is there a reason why you would not do a straight LS entire powertrain swap from a modern van?

Tires and suspension- there are bigger vans out there that are not scary to drive, so this one has solutions.  

Heck, while you are under a donor van, is there a reason one could not swap over the suspension as well?

Suspension was the first thing I was thinking of.  Beefing it up in the back was #1 on the list.  Trailer brakes, after using my Dad's Dodge Ram with the Cummings Diesel and 6 speed manual, yes they are imperative.  I still need to decide if I am keeping this thing or not.  Staying at the track would be awesome, we always eat out on those weekends so not having a stove is fine by me.  

A little creativity (ok, maybe a lot) with a sawzall and a welder and you have a ramp truck with an air-conditioned sleeper.

If you decide you need a stove, I have a extra I'd be willing to box up and send to you for the cost of freight. It's a 3 burner with a stove. 

Freight might be a little expensive to Canada though. 

That is a terrible idea and you should absolutely do it!

Downsides:

- It's already pretty much overloaded
- The frame may have been extended to the back
- Van engines are a PITA to work on and the older the engine the higher the likelihood of work
- RVs can be a maintenance n*i*g*h*t*m*a*r*e
- "Can be"!?  WTF am I saying.  They ARE a maintenance nightmare...
- Finding a place to store and work on one can be an additional monthly expense
- Not every place that will let you store the unit will also let you work on the unit there
- You're absolutely right in that you will stop at basically every gas station
- Not the easiest thing to drive in wind

Upsides:

- Waking up in the paddock in your own bed, using your own bathroom, taking a shower, and having a cup of coffee before ever setting foot outside
- Going inside to the air conditioning on a hot day and eating your lunch in comfort
- Don't want to make the whole trip in one sitting?  No problem, stop pretty much wherever you want, no need to unpack and re-pack, just have a meal, suck down a beer, go to bed, get up the next morning, take a shower, make some breakfast, hit the road
- Weight of the rig means your trailer's manners will become mostly irrelevant

You do you, but in my opinion the benefits of the upside of this Schwartz totally outweighs the downside!

Check the underside in the back.  Many manufacturers took the stock chassis from whomever (Chevy in this case) and if it wasn't long enough affixed frame extensions to the existing frame rails.  This wouldn't be a problem except for the fact that they usually took a bit of C-channel and butt welded it.  And by "welded", I mean that they hired a blind man who never touched a welder before and was only vaguely aware of the principles of attaching bits of metal to other bits of metal and gave him about 15 seconds to attach both rails.  The problem that you'll run in to is that the force on the trailer hitch will travel from the ball to the tongue to the receiver tube to the hitch to the frame extensions but the craptastic welds will not be able to effectively transfer that force to the real frame.  That will cause those extensions to break loose and sag causing a best-case of simply causing the back cap of the RV to separate from the rest of the RV.  Worst-case, of course, is that the extensions tear loose and join your trailer on a new adventure where nobody tells them where to go!  The fix there is to reinforce the frame extensions with some additional C-channel on the inside to ensure that the forces from the trailer get communicated all the way to the actual frame.

Once you've fix that, though, now you get to be a mechanic-plumber-roofer-HVAC tech-carpenter-electrician-appliance repairman as you chase after the things that will break.  The roof will leak if it isn't already, and water has other places it can get in as well.  Your appliances are old and go banging around down the road, so they will need attention from time to time.  Mice and other undesirables need to be kept out, and there's the winterization dance you need to do every year.  Tires will typically age out, although on an older C-class van chassis they shouldn't be too spendy.

All that said, though, it is so nice to be able to stay on-site and have your own accomodations.  It is nice enough to make all that other work absolutely worth it.

noddaz said:

A little creativity with a sawzall and a welder and you have a ramp truck with an air-conditioned sleeper.

Must have been reading my mind.

So their driving experince with it was terrifying, and you want to do that but also add a trailer to the equation? Aside from that I seriously doubt that's towing anything without a lot of frame stiffening, and even then with that much overhang you're only going to be able to have like 50lbs of tongue weight and still keep the front tires on the ground. That all said, camping on site and racing events is awesome but I really don't think that's the vehicle to do it with. For the amount of time, effort, and money it would take to make that work out you'd probably be better off buying a small enclosed trailer and some air mattresses.

If you want us to comment on the prospective tow rig, you're gonna have to move that camper-van out of the way. I assume the tow rig is stashed in that garage?

PS - that's a neat camper-van, though not sure what it has to do with the tow rig question. 

Those vans look awful to drive when not converted to an RV. I guess I don't see the appeal in a GM van that handled like a drunken cow when new and unburdened with an RV conversion, now shifted to present-day with RV stuff on it, a frame extension, and an open trailer wigwagging around behind it.

The ChevyVan and Vandura always seemed to be used in older episodes of 20/20 and Dateline about terrible things happening to people, so I also associate the nose of thse with dark brooding television scenes in which someone goes missing.

irish44j said:

If you want us to comment on the prospective tow rig, you're gonna have to move that camper-van out of the way. I assume the tow rig is stashed in that garage?

PS - that's a neat camper-van, though not sure what it has to do with the tow rig question. 

Tow rig right now, is No tow rig. I drive to and from the track.  Drive the car on the track, and if need then use my fathers Dodge and trailer to get the car home.  I was looking to see if this Camper Conversion was a possibility to use for towing my 944 with an open trailer on the back.  So really, just looking to know if this is a good thing to be "Given" from my in-laws or throw it up on the For Sale boards.  LOL

In reply to Mike924 :

say thank you, sell it, split it 50/50 with them, put $ towards a pickup.  Any pickup.  A 4 cylinder s10 will tow safer than that pig

Most of it looks pretty clean in the pictures, but do I see a lot of sealant smeared around the window and clearance lights in the bunk area over the cab?  That could mean water leaks.  I do agree that if it's scary in crosswinds now, it will be even scarier with a car trailer fastened on the back.

In reply to Mike924 :

Yes it could be used as a tow rig. Will it be the best tow rig? No. Will it be the safest tow rig? No. Will it be the fastest tow rig? No. But it could be made to do the job. 

I have been towing with a 31' class A RV. It's not fast, but it does the job just fine. 

I think some of the comments are a little over-dramatic. Given that it does depend on how fast you're trying to go and whether there are severe inclines or crosswinds involved, but there is definitely a scenario where this doesn't totally suck to tow with. I think the comments about making sure the suspension and tires are RIGHT (not just present) and looking into the strength of the rear frame are the real telltales to whether you're going to have a bad time.  

Now if you're trying to go 75mph for a thousand miles then i might just give up and look for something else, but if you're towing slower and shorter i'd definitely feel this out before deciding it's a terrible idea. As far as towing with RVs goes, the smaller the RV part that's been stuck onto the van part the better, and you've got a good start on that one. Downside to the size on this one is you've got a shortish wheelbase and a long overhang to where the hitch ball is going to be, so the potential to wag the dog is higher than average. Whether you can get enough tongue weight on it without making the front too light is going to take trying it to see. There are always weight-distributing and anti-sway hitch setups, but depending on how much suspension work, 6 (7?) tires and fancy hitch setups you actually need, you could be thousands of dollars into it before it makes its first comfortable towing trip. 

stuart in mn said:

Most of it looks pretty clean in the pictures, but do I see a lot of sealant smeared around the window and clearance lights in the bunk area over the cab?  That could mean water leaks.  I do agree that if it's scary in crosswinds now, it will be even scarier with a car trailer fastened on the back.

Thanks Stuart. I can attest that it does not leak. Surprisingly.  When we joined my in-laws for a day at the camp ground it Rained.  Of course, but it was nice and dry in the camper. 

Toyman:  You make a great case for these older RV's.

Mike924 said

Let's start by giving some information regarding this.  My in-laws picked this up a couple of years ago and have gone through the motor and brakes. Redid the interior so that it has some modern-ish stuff to go with it.  I was looking at it as they went through it, giving little indications about how it would be kind of neat to "borrow" when my wife and I would go to Watkins Glen and tow the Porsche behind it.  Well, after their first real trip together down a highway, it was blown all over the place, and kind of scared my mother-in-law, bringing their marriage to the edge.  To say the least my in-laws then decided, because of my interest, to graciously "gift" my wife and I this vehicle.  So without further ado, here it is. 

They have removed the old hot water tank, replaced it with a Tankless hot-water heater, removed the table and replaced it with a Full bed.  It still has the fridge and sink, no stove, but that is easy to add.  The motor is a 350 with 4 barrel carb, so there is not a gas station that it does not like.  It also would need to have a trailer hitch added.  I also have no place to store this little rig.  
 

With the 350 it will tow and move along fine just don’t except to set any speed records etc. Now if it had a 454 in it it would make amuch nicer tow vehicle though ofcourse it will use more gas.

The overhang will make for a sketchy drive. With a weight distributing hitch this was still the worst towing vehicle I ever drove. The front tires frequently left the ground on minor dips and bumps and even on the ground the steering was often more suggestion than command.  With a TBI 350 it got around three miles per gallon loaded and a top speed of about 60 on level ground.  I can’t imagine the single rear wheels will help your cause.  

looking at it, the issue is the rear axle. it only has a single axle rear on it. I think if you drop a duelly rear into it, most of your swaying and wind blowing issues will be a thing of the past. Combine it with proper tyres and it should remain good and steady and be able to tow more than it can now.

Cons will be two more tyres to buy when they wear out, or more likely, rot. and tolls will be higher with a duelly rear