What is the largest and safest enclosed trailer that can be hauled using a 1995 Ford Taurus? Going a distance from WI to OR. This will not be for transporting animals, more just personal belongings.Opinions?Thanks
Posted 2007-04-17 4:59 PM (#59475 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Originally written by GtSaucke on 2007-04-17 4:43 PM
What is the largest and safest enclosed trailer that can be hauled using a 1995 Ford Taurus? Going a distance from WI to OR. This will not be for transporting animals, more just personal belongings.Opinions?Thanks
Hi and Welcome.
The RIGHT answer is to check with your owner's manual and if you don't have that go to the Ford web site and look it up.
My informal guess is that your car is unlikely to be rated any higher than 2,000 lbs.
Be careful with those little U-haul rental trailers, they can take a lot more weight than most cars can (safely) pull, steer or stop.
Posted 2007-04-17 5:38 PM (#59477 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 644 Location: Odenville, Alabama
If you're thinking about pulling that person's horse trailer with a Ford Taurus. think again. Let me know the direction you'll be traveling, so I can stay off the road
Posted 2007-04-17 5:51 PM (#59478 - in reply to #59477) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Originally written by N2ridin on 2007-04-17 5:38 PM
If you're thinking about pulling that person's horse trailer with a Ford Taurus. think again. Let me know the direction you'll be traveling, so I can stay off the road
Posted 2007-04-17 6:40 PM (#59485 - in reply to #59478) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 238 Location: West Coast
Originally written by Reg on 2007-04-17 3:51 PM
Originally written by N2ridin on 2007-04-17 5:38 PM
If you're thinking about pulling that person's horse trailer with a Ford Taurus. think again. Let me know the direction you'll be traveling, so I can stay off the road
You REALLY need to read before replying.
I knew what N2Ridin was referring to also, she read it right
Posted 2007-04-17 6:48 PM (#59487 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 5
Location: Oregon
Ok, thanks to all that responded, but I replied to the other post about hauling that persons trailer for him before I started my own. Lemme just clarify here. My brother is moving from WI to OR to live with me, and the cost for me to move here two years ago using american van lines was about $3k for a full move like a house worth of belongings, my brother is moving a very limited amount, maybe one bedrooms worth, but more than he can fit into his car. So he needs to find the "largest" & "safest" trailer he can tow with his 95 Ford Taurus. Now with all that said does anyone have any opinions. Brands, styles, cost? These are more what i need, I look forward to your educated and very welcomed knowledge on the subject of trailers. Thanks again.
Posted 2007-04-17 7:09 PM (#59488 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 238 Location: West Coast
The first step in deciding what size trailer the car can safely pull is to find out what the GCVWR (Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating) is. I'm imagining that it won't be capable of pulling a very big trailer. You might try renting a truck from Interstate truck rental. They have full sized trucks set up for towing. here's their website: http://www.goitr.com/
A word of caution, my husband and I discovered not too long ago that houshold items are much heavier than expected. We had to quickly move my husband's sister out of the house she had been renting because, due to a landslide, it had been red tagged. We had just a few hours to get a housefull of stuff out. We used our three horse trailer for the move. That trailer after it was loaded was far heavier than it has ever been for one of our fully loaded cross country trips with our horses.
Posted 2007-04-17 9:21 PM (#59499 - in reply to #59487) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Originally written by GtSaucke on 2007-04-17 7:48 PM
Ok, thanks to all that responded, but I replied to the other post about hauling that persons trailer for him before I started my own. Lemme just clarify here. My brother is moving from WI to OR to live with me, and the cost for me to move here two years ago using american van lines was about $3k for a full move like a house worth of belongings, my brother is moving a very limited amount, maybe one bedrooms worth, but more than he can fit into his car. So he needs to find the "largest" & "safest" trailer he can tow with his 95 Ford Taurus. Now with all that said does anyone have any opinions. Brands, styles, cost? These are more what i need, I look forward to your educated and very welcomed knowledge on the subject of trailers. Thanks again.
He needs to rent a U-haul truck for his belongings with an auto dolly and tow the car...This is the safest solution
Posted 2007-04-18 1:22 PM (#59548 - in reply to #59499) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Location: Oregon
He needs to rent a U-haul truck for his belongings with an auto dolly and tow the car...This is the safest solution
Well Realizing that this would be that safest solution now comes the part about the cheapest. And i know you can't have it all these days, but the reason for buying a trailer and doing it that way is to keep cost down, because the trailer could be sold once the trip is over. I do appreciate that advice though, I'm just pretty sure thats out of my bothers budget.
Posted 2007-04-18 1:37 PM (#59550 - in reply to #59548) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Originally written by GtSaucke on 2007-04-18 2:22 PM
He needs to rent a U-haul truck for his belongings with an auto dolly and tow the car...This is the safest solution
Well Realizing that this would be that safest solution now comes the part about the cheapest. And i know you can't have it all these days, but the reason for buying a trailer and doing it that way is to keep cost down, because the trailer could be sold once the trip is over. I do appreciate that advice though, I'm just pretty sure thats out of my bothers budget.
Well if he wrecks by hauling a trailer that is too heavy for his car...then he will get NOTHING...some of the hills in Idaho are not easy...
Travel costs are deductible on your income tax...
Depending on exactly how much weight his possessions come to, then he might want to buy a Wells Cargo utility trailer thru this outfit
Posted 2007-04-18 1:56 PM (#59551 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Here is a followup piece of information to consider...
1995 Ford Taurus LX was equipped with the optional 3.8-liter V6. With the same horsepower as the 3.0-liter but more torque lower down (215 lb.-ft. at 2200 rpm rather than 165 lb.-ft. at 3250 rpm), the optional engine has much better acceleration.
If your brother has the 3 liter engine...he will RUIN his car towing almost any horse trailer across country...165 lb.-ft. at 3250 rpm at every start across the country will do serious damage to the drivetrain...
Posted 2007-04-18 2:20 PM (#59552 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 5
Location: Oregon
The reply with the link to the enclosed cargo/utility trailers is a bit more what i was looking for, i would never want to advise him to pull a horse trailer or any trailer for that matter that would pose a driving hazard or could cause damage to his car. He needs to make it here alive in one piece and with a working vehicle.
Posted 2007-04-18 2:43 PM (#59555 - in reply to #59552) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 2828 Location: Southern New Mexico
You also need to consider depreciation on the new trailer. You will not get what you paid for it when you sell. It may be cheaper to get a rental trailer than to loose the money on a resale.
Posted 2007-04-18 3:54 PM (#59560 - in reply to #59551) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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Posts: 238 Location: West Coast
Originally written by PaulChristenson on 2007-04-18 11:56 AM
Here is a followup piece of information to consider...
1995 Ford Taurus LX was equipped with the optional 3.8-liter V6. With the same horsepower as the 3.0-liter but more torque lower down (215 lb.-ft. at 2200 rpm rather than 165 lb.-ft. at 3250 rpm), the optional engine has much better acceleration.
If your brother has the 3 liter engine...he will RUIN his car towing almost any horse trailer across country...165 lb.-ft. at 3250 rpm at every start across the country will do serious damage to the drivetrain...
I agree, just about any trailer that is big enough to haul even a small houshold is really going to stress the entire drivetrain especially the transmission. In a vehicle that is 12 years old, unless the transmission is fairly new and has a cooler on it, my guess is the tranny wouldn't make the whole trip.
Posted 2007-04-19 6:32 PM (#59637 - in reply to #59473) Subject: RE: Needing advice
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It isn't going to be easy, but if you/he can figure out what sort of total weight he NEEDS to haul (not what he wants to take) he might be able to do it with a snowmobile trailer.
Some have hard covers (clamshell), they're relatively light and he might be able to stay under the 2,000 GVW.
At a guess 600~700 lbs for a 2 sled trailer capable of hauling a pair of 600~700 lb sleds might do it.
If he has to go cheaper than that, delete the clamshell top and use tarps with LOTS of bungie tie downs. Carry spare tarps too, the wind will rip them on a long journey if they're not tied down WELL !
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