Fast Movers.....

[frank4711]

Couple days on I-75 bringing Dad to and from my daughters wedding. Passed quite a few 5th wheels most cruising 65-70, but passed 2 Montana's going close to 80 my cruise set on 80 .... any upgrades that make if safe for them to go that fast?? I say No ...... Thanks

[formerFR]

you're welcomed...

[spock123]

I normally start out at 63mph but I get tired of all the Fords passing me pulling big fifth wheels and I speed up. Pretty soon I’m running 75mph or more, my Goodyear G614 are good to 75. Works for me

[B and B]

To answer the OP.

Anything over 65 mph is unsafe unless you have a Medium Duty truck and disc brakes on the trailer. The thing needs to stop.

[spock123]

Two things I think every camper should come standard with, TPMS and disk brakes, I have both. I can stop my camper before a commercial truck can stop his rig

[CincyGus]

Tires all have different speed ratings that they are approved for. Knowing your rig and how quickly you can get it stopped determines your following distance required after adding in some additional safety margin which should increase as speed increases. Experience level determines confidence.

All that said, some don't have an experience of bad or unexpected things happening and are over confident and drive faster than is prudent or safe. They can do it for years without issue and will tell you so. I've seen bad things happen with only two vehicles passing each other going the same direction and no one else within 200 yards of them so caution is ALWAYS a good idea.

I generally set my cruise on or a few miles over the speed limit on open highway with light traffic that I can maintain a good following distance (4-5 rig's length worth). Never over 70mph. The 45-60 minutes I might save by going 15 MPH faster on a 4-6 hour trip isn't worth the risk of a possible fatal or critically injured accident.

[MR.M]

Originally Posted by frank4711

Couple days on I-75 bringing Dad to and from my daughters wedding. Passed quite a few 5th wheels most cruising 65-70, but passed 2 Montana's going close to 80 my cruise set on 80 .... any upgrades that make if safe for them to go that fast?? I say No ...... Thanks

only 80 mph on I-75 must have been a slow day as many times i see 90+ . TT tires are coming out with higher speed ratings, 81 on my carlise's . some even higher . people drive in their comfort levels so to each their own . everyone could be driving 55mph and still have the same amount of accidents . i rarely go over 70 , but have done 75 to 80 a time or 2 depending on conditions . since i mostly take secondary hwys it's 65 . sometimes traffic makes you go faster . nothing like everyone doing 80+ and having a tt doing 55 causing safety issues .

[upflying]

55 is the tow speed limit in Ca.
Good luck on finding any enforcement.

[Mr Towed]

When the speed limit is 70 I do 70, maybe up to 75, but usually more like 72. With our new Goodyear Endurance tires I do have a lot more confidence keeping up with traffic because they are rated at (i think) 87mph. Those speeds did reveal some balance, level and WDH issues we had with the new tow vehicle, which we were able to sort out by tweaking things over the first few days, and then we were able to drive comfortably at those speeds.

The RVs we tended to mostly get passed by were 5th wheels and large Class A rigs. Other Travel trailers and class B type rigs tended to keep pace with us in general.

[TitanMike]

Funny thing about driving at high speeds. When you have an accident you have to search farther to pick up all the parts.

[Wisconsin-1]

Reading on this site and others I keep within the speed of the tires. Mine is 65 and I normally keep the cruse and 62 or 63 even though the speed limit is 65 or 70. Let them pass. I am on vacation and not in a hurry. Dont get me wrong when I am not hitched I am going faster.

I talked with a friend last year about this last year and asked him what he was doing and he said 75-80 with a questioned look on his face. I said look at the speed rating on your tires and how old are they? He also tow's a 25' camper with a Expedition and no sway bar. I said no thank you, I will stay in the right lane with the cruse on! The faster you go the longer it takes to stop and also correct any sway that would happen. To each their own

[nayther]

being in CA we're limited to 55 towing speed, dumb. While in Utah, which has not trailer speed penalty and on I15 the speed limit is 80. I tried towing my 2007 Toy Hauler at that speed and it was not very pleasant, slowed back down to about 70 and was comfortable but doubles and triples commercial trucks were passing me like crazy. New trailer is much lighter but still not comfortable much above 70 or so. Tires, etc. are all good, just me.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by nayther

being in CA we're limited to 55 towing speed, dumb. While in Utah, which has not trailer speed penalty and on I15 the speed limit is 80. I tried towing my 2007 Toy Hauler at that speed and it was not very pleasant, slowed back down to about 70 and was comfortable but doubles and triples commercial trucks were passing me like crazy. New trailer is much lighter but still not comfortable much above 70 or so. Tires, etc. are all good, just me.

Towing faster is not only unpleasant but the tow vehicle consumes a lot more fuel.

For my "gasser" when I tow at 55-60 I get almost 11 MPG average. 65 + and it goes south of 8 mpg.

Most travel trailers have the aerodynamics of a barn.

[Wisconsin-1]

"Most travel trailers have the aerodynamics of a barn"

I almost fell of my chair laughing!!!

[cmysstailights]

I dont go faster than 62 63 with my tt. Fuel.mileage tanks big time after that and the additional 15 minutes i would gain by going 70 doesnt make sense.