Silverado Towing
Q: I am investigating the purchase of a new Silverado with the 5.3-liter V-8 engine and a four-speed automatic transmission with a rear-locking differential. Noting your 2005 towables guide, you only reference four-wheel-drive Silverados as being towable. Please explain whether the two-wheel-drive version is four-down towable. If not, what do I need to do to modify to tow?
Douglas Jozwiak, F271822
Berkley, Michigan
A: The two-wheel-drive automatic-transmission Silverado is not among the vehicles that can be towed four wheels down without modification. You may wish to contact Remco for information about the modification products that they offer. The company can be reached at (800) 228-2481. If you decide to purchase a four-wheel-drive Silverado instead, all you need to do to tow it is to turn the key to the proper position to release the steering wheel and place the transfer case in neutral.
Motorhomes And Driveways
Q: What advice would you offer regarding parking a 27,000-pound motor coach on a standard residential driveway?
Sheryl Rissel, F362345
Lake Orion, Michigan
A: In Arizona a typical concrete driveway is rated at 2,500 psi (pounds per square inch), with the next higher thickness being 4,000 psi or 4,500 psi, depending on the contractor. In my opinion, the typical 2,500-psi concrete driveway would be able to handle the weight of a 27,000-pound motorhome. However, should you move up to a large diesel pusher, I’d recommend the thicker concrete pad if you plan to keep it there for extended periods. If you’re still worried, position 1-inch-thick plywood pads under the tires; this should spread the weight sufficiently to be safe with the standard driveway. I think all of us agree that you shouldn’t trust asphalt without plywood pads, especially in summer weather.
One of the other technical correspondents laid a 5-inch-thick, wire-reinforced, 4,000-psi transit mix parking slab over a compacted base and he said that it holds his 54,000-pound coach with no problem. He went on to say that the strength of materials normally will increase with the square of the thickness “” for example, 4-inch material will be four times as strong as 2-inch material “” just as a rough rule of thumb. He believes that the average driveway, which is normally 4 inches thick over a compacted base, would be sufficient for a 27,000-pound coach.
Emergency Shelter
Q: Having had Hurricane Rita just miss us and wanting to prepare for the next one, I wondered whether you had any idea what wind speed would knock over a motorhome from the side? Also, would it be better to put the jacks down in high winds?
We decided too late to leave our home in Houston, so we parked our motorhome between our house and our neighbor’s house. We did not get heavy winds, but our power was off for two days. I ran our generator to keep our house’s refrigerator and our neighbor’s refrigerator going.
Bill Nippress, F310437
Houston, Texas
A: Bill, there is no way that we could estimate safe side winds that your coach could survive “” there are too many variables involved. Gusty winds, steady speed, sudden direction changes, etc. all would factor in. While it’s a good idea to use the generator for emergency electricity, a better idea would be to get out of there in plenty of time to be safe. Next time, don’t wait “” vacate!