The other day as I was approaching a junkyard I passed someone on the shoulder making adjustments to a load on a trailer. Upon leaving the junkyard some time later, I was delighted to see that same someone stopped in the same parking lot I was in and I decided to snap a few shots as something struck me about it. Later that evening after doing a little math I realized that something was more than just a little off.
Let’s take a closer look at what’s here. It’s hard to figure out the exact year of these Chevy Express vans but zooming in verified that it is a 3500 model, the heaviest duty normal van on offer, sold since 1996 and still sold today. It has been converted to a living room on wheels some time back by the Explorer Van Company, based in Warsaw, Indiana, ground central for conversion vans.
Clearly it’s not a brand new van but if it was then the largest engine on offer is Chevy’s new 6.6liter V8, and in the van’s case would be limited to a trailer weight of 10,000 pounds if it was a bare bones cargo van. However it’s much more likely that at most the van has the 6.0liter in which case it would have a trailer rating of 7,400 pounds.. Possibly it has the 4.8liter V8 in which case the tow rating would be around 6,000 pounds, again figured for an empty cargo van in peak mechanical condition. It could also have the 5.3liter V8 if it was an early post-facelift model.
That trailer is about 40′ in length and likely weighs at least 4,000 pounds. The Impala is another 3,500 pounds or so, the Honda Odyssey around 4,500 and the Mitsubishi Lancer a conservative 3,000. That adds up to 15,000 pounds and as we can see the man is loading more metal into the Impala (doors in this case) so who knows the actual weight. For reference the Silverado 2500HD as reviewed this week can legally tow 12,000 pounds conventionally.
I was able to snag some video as this rig was leaving while I was behind him waiting to negotiate the corner in the lot. (turn down your volume to avoid my tunes…)
Let’s all hope the DOT or a intelligent cop shuts this down.
…before the runup to the Eisenhower Tunnel does. Or worse, the run down from it.
Let’s think about this….
Vans are just pickups with a different body. As we all know, all pickups are created equal – just reference the number of times we’ve seen somebody posting a picture of a two-wheel drive S-10 next to an F-250 4×4 along with the predictable lamentations about how pickups have grown; this certainly seems to indicate all pickups have equal capability.
So, this guy should be golden. I don’t see any problems here. Hell, I’d strap a refrigerator to the roof of the Honda to make the trip worthwhile.
Sarcasm off.
If this van is even semi-capable of pulling this (let’s not discuss stopping), it does make me wonder how underrated light duty trucks are. However, from pulling 8,000 pounds with a half-ton rated for 6,500 pounds, if they are underrated, it isn’t by much.
Stopping is the elephant in the room I tow trailers for a living fortunately with real trucks designed for the job either semi trailer or truck and trailer configurations, emergency situations are exactly what you need to be aware of and prepared for, that van is too small and light to be able to control the trailer from it if all turns to custard in front of him or if the trailer develops a mind of its own,
Wrecking companies here un named have a habit of double stacking as many cars as will fit on a truck deck then towing a trailer load put on similar fashion then one behind front wheels raised and a set of tail lights strapped to the roof as a trailer like this guy has it isnt legal as far as I know and having watched one come to grief it cant be pretty from inside the cab either,
the whole show began fishtailing in the wet going downhill when the truck towing it was already at maximum braking capacity, once the truck got sideways it was all over for him and fortunately he ended up off the side of the road or I may have joined him, my 58 tonne rig may have 32 tyres under it but stopping it takes more clear road than you think,
I saw that circus later on my return trip all stacked on a low loader semi one 8 tonne Isuzu 4 wheeler added to the pile one very lucky steerer to get out of that alive.
Bryce is spot on ~
Being farm boy I learned 50 + years ago that you can tow much more weight and size than your tug is but keeping it on the road is the pinch point .
Some years go my son fell into a sweet deal on a two axle ‘toy box’ trailer fully kitted out with bunks, kitchen and toilet, needed to get it out of Los Angeles A.S.A.P. .
I had a 1976 GMC 3/4 ton long bed pickup with a 292 i6 engine and Muncie tranny , it weighed less than the trailer did so I used a long circuitous route that avoided the intervening mountains and didn’t exceed 40 MPH, made the whole trip without drama .
I too have seen some horrible results of too loaded going too fast to be controlled .
-Nate
I wouldn’t want to be ahead of him or behind him on the freeway.
I’m hoping he took side streets and Jim went the other way.
On the corn harvest last season I was asked to take a trailer load of waste out of the factory and tip it at the regular dairy operation we supplied no problem other than on the weighbridge my empty 8 wheel Isuzu came in at 12 tonnes and the trailer at 19.5 and a twisty secondary highway to where I was unloading all braking and down shifting done only in a straight line and pull the trailer thru corners it worked ok except when unloading happened 8 lugtread drive tyres didnt like pulling or pushing the loaded trailer on wet dirt, hey but farmers have tractors big green ones.
In the 1960’s we had average size rusty green pre war Jhonny-Poppers, good rigs to be sure but wow slow .
-Nate
The Impala is agile, the Lancer aggressive, and the Odyssey persistent. It’s perfectly balanced.
I used to work for a fertilizer/grain dealer that sold to and bought from hundreds of small farms. You would not believe what they’d haul 4+ tons of fertilizer away with. Farm vehicles could get away with murder–when they weren’t near death themselves (many of the farmers were). One’s brakes burst into flame on our scales.
Geeez, that looks wildly unsafe. I would think the first DOT trooper would flag that immediately, hopefully before he hurts himself or others.
On another note, a work trip would take me past the Explorer plant in Warsaw each year. Quite the sight – acres and acres of Express vans! It’s right along US 30, you can’t miss it.
I would be suspicious of the above. I’ve been told such situations represent totaled cars that are moved from one state to another in an attempt to scrub the titles.
Not sure is if all accidents and repairs are captured by carfax or auto check. However, I still insist on running a report, even if I have to pay the fee. The average used car transaction price is near $21k for 2019. I want to hedge my bets the best I can.
You can tow just about anything with a car or truck. Stopping is always the limitation.
I’d be perfectly fine letting him tow that rig with the van but I’d limit him to 20 mph…. ;/)
yeah, it’s like the commercials where they show how strong a car or truck is by having it tow a 747, or a locomotive, or something — straight forward 5 yards on level ground at 2 MPH.
To a much lesser extent, I’ve done this too:
Not just once, but TWICE (and I’ve got all the hazard signs & lights too!):
Is that bed-trailer made from an ’80s Isuzu Spacecab?
The white trailer with the slow-moving triangle was built from an ’85 Nissan 720 but has hubcaps from a ’95 Ford Aerostar (same wheel size). The 2-tone trailer with side-rails is from a ’91 Chevy S-10. I didn’t build these myself but did a lot of “fix-up” work after buying them from local sellers. All lights are functional (even reverse!) through the use of a 5-flat trailer connector from both my 2011 Ranger and ’05 Astro, and the still-intact rear bumpers are perfectly able to handle the factory-spec 2000-lb. tow rating.
The other white trailer is a 2015 Wells Cargo MW6, an actual factory-built trailer for more serious cargo hauling. For anyone concerned about safety, I don’t do these “road trains” often at all, although the idea is very entertaining for some people.
Decades ago, I used to go to the impounded car auctions down by the border. The most interesting element of the entire day was watching the different ways in which the auction winners would take the cars home. A lot of strapping cars to other cars, and building little trains of vehicles.
Check out what chud327 does in this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBXyzoURltQ
I recall years ago seeing a Chevy Uplander towing a Silhouette which was also towing a circa 98 Malibomb. It was a sight to see, though I’m not sure how well that went considering the Uplander was FWD if I’m not mistaken.
Side note, and pardon my ignorance: why is it more difficult, or inadvisable, to tow with a front wheel drive vehicle? I’ve never done it, save a little jetski in a circa 2000 Lumina.
For one thing, any weight on the tail pulls weight off the front wheels.
Without a specialized weight-distributing hitch, ALL of the the tongue weight goes down on the “wrong” axle. In addition, the transmission is more likely to fail in a front-wheel-drive tow vehicle due to being packed much closer to the engine, hence more potential heat build-up. This video makes the the first reason VERY clear:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByyR_oLEIoA
This guy’s lack of concern over towing safety aside, I am trying to figure out what happened to that Lancer.
The car looks intact, except for that driver’s side rear door which looks like it was mounted to a car that rolled over 5 times.
One wonders what happened there.
Sometimes around here, you see trailers like this (or even bigger ones) loaded up with cars like a mini-car-carrier. But around here (Baltimore), the truck leading the parade is usually a very large dually like a RAM or an F-350, F-450, or even F-550.
I saw one of these rigs yesterday as it passed me (improperly on the right) going well in excess of 75 mph. Even though this was a properly configured truck and trailer set-up, such an excess of speed was disconcerting, considering the stopping power that would’ve been required had he encountered an emergency as many have cited above.
I would not want to pilot that monstrosity, or be liable for the consequences. Those cars bring back nightmares from my body shop days – the wrecked cars that are brought back to life by used car dealers and other associated characters.
I’m guessing he was heading South to the Mexican border. When I traveled Highway 54 in New Mexico, I’d see convoys of worn out vehicles towing other worn out vehicles, always Southbound. I don’t recall seeing a trailer setup like this one, but I did see trailers overflowing with bicycles and mopeds on occasion.
No front plate on the van, I’m guessing it’s getting on I-25 South to Mexico. The relatively low 8K’ Raton Pass with a max 3% grade is all it will have to handle. I wouldn’t want to be in front of it when it does so, though.
I’ve done the Raton pass a couple of times over the last few months, it may not be Loveland or Vail Pass but it’s sketchy enough with the curves it has etc. And the whole stretch around Colorado Springs with the never ending freeway construction is hard enough in a car without any trailer, let along something like this. Semi-temporary K-rails on both sides of narrow two lane freeway with weird direction changes and large transition bumps, if he’s truly going that way I don’t envy him at all.
I don’t have a front plate on two of my current vehicles here either but can’t recall what the van had on the back, I don’t believe it was a Mexico registration though, usually I notice that. You could certainly be right though.
The Springs at 2am, Raton at first light, Juárez by nightfall. If I were ~30 years old with a wife and kids who needed feeding and shoes and school books back in Mexico, I’d do it.
First-world values…safety is relative.
Thank you for saying this. I wholeheartedly agree.
You said it guys ~ Southbound old pickup trains going from Wa. state to Mexico are a daily experience here….
As soon as an old vehicle fails smog testing it’s U.S.A. sales value drops to scrap metal, many wind up in the many self service junkyards, others go South for a few more years on bad roads with bald tires and so on…
-Nate
Truly amazing. Only in America.
I towed some ridiculously overweight trailers with Bocats on them in my ’66 F100, but I never exceeded 30 mph or so. Speed is the enemy of towing inappropriately.
This isn’t strictly an American phenomenon. These sort of “caravan of horrors” are quite common in Eastern Europe. Normally these consist of cheaply bought used cars from Western Europe that are “expediently” moved to Eastern countries. For a while there was a whole sub-genre of news here in Hungary that were dealing with these safety hazards. Here’s an article with pictures: https://totalcar.hu/magazin/kozelet/2019/07/04/horrorkaravanok_magyarorszagon_semmit_nem_kockaztatnak/
That is some seriously scary stuff.
A vehicle’s towing capacity isn’t just about the power of the engine, though that certainly is important.
Brakes are pretty low as the trailer brakes, which are required on a trailer of this size/capacity, *should* be sized to stop the load the trailer is rated for. That of course assumes they are in proper working condition, something I think is unlikely based on everything else.
The scariest part however is the fact that he is using the end of the trailer as a car dolly. Good tow dollies have pivoting decks where the two wheels of the car go. That of course is to limit tire scrub and to prevent the dolly from pushing on the tow vehicle when you go around a corner. With that much distance between the trailer’s axles and the rear tires of that car the scrub forces are going to be huge and I’d fear that it would break what is used to tie it down, or the points on the trailer that it is tied to.
The fact that it is a van with a relatively short wheel base also means that the trailer has a lot of leverage to push around the van even if there wasn’t that extra set of wheels from the 3rd car. There is a reason that those who do this professionally use crew cab 8′ bed trucks, even though they never put a thing in the back seat or bed. They do it because a longer wheelbase gives the truck more control and the added mass doesn’t hurt either.
The video shows the massive scrubbing very well. It looks more like a slow motion drift video…
Didn’t watch it earlier, but yeah it does look like a slow motion drift. I don’t want to imagine how hard that mess would be to control in an evasive maneuver. Can you say Jack Knife? Probably not as quickly as that combo can perform it.
Sawv a nice car hauling rig at a fuel stop recently Ram flatbed with part dismantled 1930 Dodge aboard, trailer behind with a restored Morris Minor pickup riding on it, trailer behind that with a boat on it a proper professional setup, all legal and certified, the Ram naturally was Cummins powered and according to the driver had done 640,000 trouble free KMs it was 3 years old.
Needs a RWD car on the end and a pilot in constant communication with the driver to push the brake pedal or accelerator as needed, like a ladder truck!
Jim: I am trying to guess where that is. I think somewhere along US 85 and more northerly but this is something I’d expect to see around Brighton or Fort Lupton. Can you disclose?
Littleton off Santa Fe, south of 470, west of 25, near Chatfield. So the other direction from my normal haunts.
I’ve seen a lot of the “repairable trains” Three “road worthy” vehicles hooked together with the least damaged unit pulling the train. Pretty scary when you come across them on I-80 at 75 mph. Funniest one I ever seen was only funny because there was no one around to get hurt. I worked near an auction house. The driveway is up hill to the road and the road slants down to the inside lane. You are going over a hump to get on the highway. The transporters have to be careful they don’t high center the trailer going in or out. This tow truck came rolling up and out the driveway, swings to the right. What he doesn’t know is that the car he’s hauling(backwards) wasn’t secured properly. It has detached shot thru the median ditch, crossed two more lanes of traffic and is rolling on thru the ditch and off into no mans land, a swamp.
That reminds me of the Toyota pickups going south. Several times in the past when traveling south on I5 from WA to CA I’ve passed many an old Toyota pickup towing another old Toyota Pickup with a Tow bar. Usually it was a convoy of sorts with two pair obviously traveling together. Washington and Oregon plates on them. It wasn’t uncommon to pass more than one pair on a given trip. They typically were very slow up the passes and thankfully they seemed to keep it slow on the way down since they only have 1 trucks worth of brakes to stop 2 trucks.
In more recent years, on a couple of occasions I saw a very old car hauler parked in a lot near the freeway that was being filled or was filled with old Toyota Pickups.
I assume they don’t stop until they make it to Mexico as they were usually quite used and abused.
A Polish colleague once used a Vauxhall Vectra to move a huge boat for a friend. IIRC it was over double the rated towing capacity of the car.
To make matters worse, he was taking it over the Forth Road Bridge with its bouncy expansion joints and strong crosswinds, and the trailer brakes weren’t hooked up.
He lived, and said it was “no problem”.
This reminds me of the YouTube videos showing EXTREMELY overloaded vehicles in countries seemingly with little or no regulation/enforcement. The results are always disastrous, and sometimes fatal for the driver.
By chance did the tow van have a Mexican state license plate? These caravans of high-mileage, damaged used cars bought at dealer used car auctions and directly off dealer backlots are common. Buyer from below the border take whatever low value, unsaleable used cars south for repair and resale there where the standards aren’t a strict.