View Single Post
Old 11-07-2019, 01:20 PM   #43
SummitPond
Senior Member
 
SummitPond's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Northeast Florida/Southeast Maine
Posts: 784
Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTJH View Post
I agree. The reason that Keystone and most other RV manufacturers developed the "substantially lighter (and weaker) floor" was to provide consumers with a 32' travel trailer that weighs in under 5500 pounds. They cut corners on strength in the floor system, lightened the thickness of aluminum structures, used thinner mattresses and cushions, thinner vinyl flooring, 20 pound propane tanks (rather than typical 30 pound tanks), PEX rather than copper plumbing lines (likely to be seen as an improvement over copper), TPO rather than galvanized roofing, NOCO "unibody" frame rather than heavier steel I-beam frame, "innovative" insulation (bubble wrap) rather than fiberglass, smaller holding tanks and even thinner, lighter materials for the exterior of the trailer.

Essentially, in the "quest to tow a palace with a SUV" the consumer has driven this move to lightweight trailers....

I'd pose a question: Did we screw ourselves and get exactly what we demanded ?????
I'm no gearhead, but it seems to me that Detroit forced the move to manufacture lightweight trailers as their vehicles could no longer haul something substantial.

From the late mid-60s up through the early 70s my folks had a 31 foot (?) Holiday Rambler. No slides. I think it had a mid-ship kitchen; the back had twin beds that could be made into one large bed with a board and using the back cushions to fill. The dinette (as always) made into a bed, as did the up-front couch. I know the trailer was heavy, maybe not built like a tank but it had a metal roof and I suspect a solid wood subfloor. Somehow six of us and a large dog managed to travel around the country, pulled by (at first) a 1964 Ford convertible (don't recall the model); yes - some of us rode in the trailer while it was being pulled. Eventually my folks got a 1970 Plymouth Suburban wagon (no longer needed to ride in the trailer), and in 1972 they traded to a 28 foot Winnebago motorhome (but by then I was gone).

I suspect the trailer industry was adapting so they could continue to sell product to match the predominant (underpowered) tow vehicle most people had at that time.

Does anyone have any statistics on the TV population, meaning % of trucks (heavy duty vs mid-weight), SUVs and whatever else is out there that is up to the job as a function of time? It would be interesting to see if there is a correlation between the TVs and the GVWR of the TTs.
__________________

Now: 2019 Winnebago 2500FL w/e2 WDH;Sold: 2015 Bullet Premier 19FBPR (shown)
2012 Ford F-250 Lariat Super Duty Crew Cab (gas 6.2 L, 3.73 gear ratio 2WD, 172" WB)
SummitPond is offline   Reply With Quote