'73 Country Squire DRW tow vehicle

NMNA

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2013/11/12/hemmings-find-of-the-day-1973-ford-ltd-country-squire-station-wagon/?refer=news

(oddly, the blog entry has more pictures than the ad)

Gotta love the air-brushed wood grain.

That's a wagon!

Wow. And it's in Ohio...

Good Lord that is awesome. I felt like crying tears of joy when I looked through the pics.

I don't understand why it is jacked up so much if its 2wd. Otherwise pretty crazy cool.

In reply to ArthurDent:

Because rural Ohio?

ArthurDent wrote: I don't understand why it is jacked up so much if its 2wd. Otherwise pretty crazy cool.

Probably because he didn't tub it, so it needs jacked up to provide clearance.

Oh !

NO !

WTF? I fail to see any point in this besides "Hurr durr, dually, murica berkeley yeah" It now rides worse, gets worse fuel economy, is slower, and can't tow any more than it could before.

just about an hour away, I politely disagree Kenny, that is a real tow wagon

"You think you hate it now?!?! Wait til you drive it!"

This one is done much better, IMO, although it still has a pig of an engine:

http://bangshift.com/blog/ebay-find-of-the-decade-a-custom-built-2004-c5500-topkick-gmc-van.html

Kenny_McCormic wrote: WTF? I fail to see any point in this besides "Hurr durr, dually, murica berkeley yeah" It now rides worse, gets worse fuel economy, is slower, and can't tow any more than it could before.

Agreed. I grew up in one of these wagons. I would much rather have it stock than the way it is presented here.

aussiesmg wrote: just about an hour away, I politely disagree Kenny, that is a real tow wagon

Not with a stock frame and a boat anchor engine...

In reply to bravenrace:

Seems like it would be easy to box the frame on one of those. I have a 72 4 door LTD and it doesn't look like it would be a problem.

As far as the engine....I would imagine the 390 would do just fine with the right gearing although I'd prefer a turbodiesel personally.

In reply to Cotton:

Sure, you can make anything into anything if you want to make changes. I'm talking about how it sits currently.

That topkick van is the stuff dreams are made of. The wagon is pretty rad, too.

Kenny_McCormic wrote: WTF? I fail to see any point in this besides "Hurr durr, dually, murica berkeley yeah" It now rides worse, gets worse fuel economy, is slower, and can't tow any more than it could before.

America isn't the only country that has duallies, and does crazy E36 M3 with them.

Rides worse: Well that depends..... do you like the ride of a waterbed or a log wagon?

Slower: I would think it depends on what other modifications were done, like gearing, but yeah I'd think the stock engine needs to go.

Can't tow anymore: I think the suspension, axles, and larger brakes go a long way towards handling a larger load.

bravenrace wrote: In reply to Cotton: Sure, you can make anything into anything if you want to make changes. I'm talking about how it sits currently.

I agree. I guess I see those as relatively minor changes considering the rest of the package.

In reply to Cotton:

You went from IFS and a passenger car rear axle to 500+ lb stick axles on both ends, That's a HUGE increase in unsprung weight. Which will slow it down and make it ride like ass, think of how that sort of suspension rides in the truck it came from that has twice as much weight over it.

It can't tow anymore because its still on a wagon frame and big car transmission, enigne, cooling system, etc, if anything the effective capacity has been reduced loading it down with those ridiculously oversized 1 ton tires, brakes, etc. When new these were used to tow more than most current half ton trucks are rated for with light mods.

I guess I'm just a fan of balance.

In reply to Kenny_McCormic:

I doubt they were going for sports car balance when they built that thing, but I also don't think it would take a whole lot to make it an effective tow rig. Now my definition of "a whole lot" and yours could be very different.

I agree on the performance. I don't think it's going to break any records with the stock engine and (assuming) the stock trans, which is probably a good assumption. Who knows what gears it has.

We'll have to agree to disagree on the 1 ton hardware. The point of 1 ton hardware is to add capacity. I do agree the wagon isn't there yet, but it's on the right track for a tow rig.

Most current 1/2 tons are rated to tow more than most 90s duallies....even the titan is rated at like 9900 lbs.

Whats the most you can legally pull on a class IV 2" receiver hitch?

People pulled big loads with full size cars back in their day. Here's Tommy Ivo's GLASS SIDED car trailer full of tools and spares, behind some Cadillac land yacht.

Read about it here http://www.nhra.com/blog/dragster-insider/2010/07/27/tommys-towing-toys/

bravenrace wrote: This one is done much better, IMO, although it still has a pig of an engine: http://bangshift.com/blog/ebay-find-of-the-decade-a-custom-built-2004-c5500-topkick-gmc-van.html

While I'd rather have the duramax, the 8.1 is in no way a pig.

In reply to Kenny_McCormic:

I think a class IV, just the hitch, is rated for 10-12k.

Regardless, that is an awesome trailer.