Trying to overcome discouragement

[Chesley]

We bought our new 2019 Geo Pro 19FD this past spring. It sat in the yard about a month waiting for a dedicated 30 amp circuit to be installed. Once installed we could hook up the unit and test things out. The AC would not work. Took the TT back to dealer where it sat for six weeks before new AC unit was installed. Brought it back home and began getting it ready for first shake down trip. Mid Sept. we set out for Myrtle Beach, about 180 miles from us. Got about 60 miles from destination and the truck transmission gave out. It was a 2007 Silverado 1500 with off road and trailer tow packages, and had less than 90,000 miles on it, and well maintained. Had to have truck towed to nearest Chevy dealer and TT towed to nearest campground. After new transmission was installed and truck was picked up, we went to campground to pick up TT and headed home. The new transmission did not operate right (very high transmission temp, very high rpms, would not downshift, and minimal power). Chevy service manager would only advise to have transmission fluid checked.
Anyway, I decided to get a new truck and opted for the Jeep Gladiator Sport with max tow package (rated tow capacity of 7650 lbs/max tongue weight of 765 lbs). Having done much research re the various weights regarding TT and truck, etc., I thought I was good to go with no more concerns, having a vehicle more than adequate to tow the Geo Pro and more than enough tongue weight capacity. I do use WDH and sway bar. Then, last night I learn of another thing to consider with towing TT that I never saw or heard about before...”wind surface/resistance”. The manual says max wind surface/resistance for Gladiator is 55 sq. ft. Geo Pro is 7ft wide and 8 ft top to ground, but does have aerodynamic rounding of the cap, so should be less than 56 sq. ft. I can’t imagine many people consider actual surface area of trailer and wind resistance.
So, am I over analyzing? I am confident I’m good to go, considering there are those that tow Geo Pros with smaller (less capable?) vehicles. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

[whirledpeaz]

Based on your numbers I can't see why you would have a problem towing the Geo pro. What is your payload capacity? It is on the door jamb sticker with the yellow stripe.

[SeaDog]

You should be fine and have done your homework you may be over thinking this situation. keep in mind when considering surface/resistance this is not a fixed figure and as your speed goes up so does the power requirement to maintain that speed. Drive normal and I don't believe you will have any problems.

[HangDiver]

Much depends on how its equiped but I believe the Gladiator with 8-speed auto trans/4:10 rear axle with max tow package will be upwards of close to 1,500lbs payload - again depending on accessories.

I wouldn't hesitate to tow a Geo Pro 19fd with the OPs Gladiator.

[Chesley]

Originally Posted by HangDiver

Much depends on how its equiped but I believe the Gladiator with 8-speed auto trans/4:10 rear axle with max tow package will be upwards of close to 1,500lbs payload - again depending on accessories.

I wouldn't hesitate to tow a Geo Pro 19fd with the OPs Gladiator.

Yep, this is what I have, with only about 60 lbs additional accessories added so far, and plans for not much more.
Thanks for the feedback, guys, and the confidence boost.

[NJKris]

Don't feel bad man, I have the same trailer and first time I went to fire up A/C in Spring it didn't work. Was bad from the get-go. Luckily I called Air Excel and they directed me to a repair shop 20 minutes from my house that put a brand new unit on when it came in, didn't have to leave it there. They must have had a bad run of A/C units.

[RSchleder]

"Am I over analyzing?" YES!!!!

[RMFP]

I may be in the wrong thread but two comments in this mentioned bad A/C units with the Geo Pro 19FD. I am looking into purchasing the same TT, so am I correct in assuming that the dealerships don't have Shore Power in some instances to check the A/C during the PDI? Should I demand it be checked seeing that I would buy in Florida? Since I am new to Forum can someone direct me how to get to right thread to ask question about House batteries and Solar? Thank You.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by RMFP

I may be in the wrong thread but two comments in this mentioned bad A/C units with the Geo Pro 19FD. I am looking into purchasing the same TT, so am I correct in assuming that the dealerships don't have Shore Power in some instances to check the A/C during the PDI? Should I demand it be checked seeing that I would buy in Florida? Since I am new to Forum can someone direct me how to get to right thread to ask question about House batteries and Solar? Thank You.

If not then they're the WRONG dealer to be buying from.

[NJKris]

It was too cold to run the AC when I picked mine up in PA in November last year. They assured me it worked. I briefly turned it on and the blower blew cold air (it was November, even without A/C it would have been cold and you really should't run A/C when it it that cold). First time I ran it at home in the Spring I noticed no cold air, and the amps it was pulling was very low. If it was ever good at all, the refrigerant leaked out over the winter, or the compressor was bad. Could not detect this even after the 4 hour PDI I conducted, lol, you should've seen the guy's face when I showed up for the PDI with a clipboard, video camera, and mechanics creeper! And Yes, if you are in Florida, you will be able to check yours on site at the time of pickup, and I would insist on all systems be demonstrated and in working order.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Chesley

Then, last night I learn of another thing to consider with towing TT that I never saw or heard about before...”wind surface/resistance”. The manual says max wind surface/resistance for Gladiator is 55 sq. ft. Geo Pro is 7ft wide and 8 ft top to ground, but does have aerodynamic rounding of the cap, so should be less than 56 sq. ft. I can’t imagine many people consider actual surface area of trailer and wind resistance.
So, am I over analyzing? I am confident I’m good to go, considering there are those that tow Geo Pros with smaller (less capable?) vehicles. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

I don't think you're over analyzing. I think most people don't "analyze" enough and it often gets them into problems.

Wind surface/resistance is often referred to in vehicle manuals as 'frontal area' in the towing section. This is a major factor when towing at the higher freeway speeds. Takes horsepower to move air out of the way and unless you have LOTS of horsepower this resistance is going to limit speeds and increase fuel consumption.

Some good news though. You've already cut a hole in the air with the tow vehicle so most of this wind surface/resistance is now caused by the frontal area exposed above the tow vehicle. Naturally there will be turbulence between tow vehicle and trailer so you don't eliminate the resistance caused by the frontal area down low but it is reduced quite a bit.

Towing your new trailer should be just fine but I would recommend a more conservative speed. Most States limit vehicles with a tow to a lower speed, usually 10 mph less than the posted max. An example of an extreme is California where the limit for vehicles with trailers is only 50 mph. Not like anyone follows it but it is the legal limit. Here where I live it's 60 where the posted limit in rural parts of our Interstates is 70.

To illustrate how much drag a trailer can create, Friday I came across the pass on I-90 that descends toward Seattle. A long, steady, grade that when I'm driving without my trailer behind my truck I literally coast down and reach 75-80 mph by the time I reach the bottom. With the trailer and coasting I can only reach 60 mph at the bottom.

[Barb RPod CA]

I compared GeoPro and RPod before buying two years ago. No problems with RPod. If buying, check out RPod's specs and types.

[Jeffjeeptj]

It is easy to get discouraged. I feel for you in this situation, especially with a new camper. Was the actual camping time good? Assuming so, keep focused on that.
I have had problems getting to my destination, but, once there we had a wonderful time.
I could recount some discouraging experiences (not too different from yours), but, there far more wonderful times/events to count that far outweigh them.
Coincidentally, wife and I are getting to ready to leave for 5 months. Especially exciting as I will be seeing my brother who I have not seen in an extended time.

We also were recently looking at pictures of previous camping events with our daughter and her children. Daughter participated in many of them and her children were very curious, asking when they could go.

[HangDiver]

Originally Posted by RMFP

I may be in the wrong thread but two comments in this mentioned bad A/C units with the Geo Pro 19FD. I am looking into purchasing the same TT, so am I correct in assuming that the dealerships don't have Shore Power in some instances to check the A/C during the PDI? Should I demand it be checked seeing that I would buy in Florida? Since I am new to Forum can someone direct me how to get to right thread to ask question about House batteries and Solar? Thank You.

RMFP, if you go to the home page and scroll down to "Forest River Tech Talk" with a subtitle "General Tech Repair", you will find section there for posting questions regarding "Electrical, Charging Systems & Solar." And welcome to the forum!

[bikendan]

Personally, if I'd had your tow vehicle problems, I would never have chose a brand new and untested platform, like the Gladiator. When I say untested, I mean by a number of real world usage by the public.
I'd feel the same about buying the first year of the new Ford Ranger or Canyon/Colorado.

[CaptnJohn]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Personally, if I'd had your tow vehicle problems, I would never have chose a brand new and untested platform, like the Gladiator. When I say untested, I mean by a number of real world usage by the public.
I'd feel the same about buying the first year of the new Ford Ranger or Canyon/Colorado.

X 2, Jeep tried trucks and earned a bad rep with them even on one of their proven platforms.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by CaptnJohn

X 2, Jeep tried trucks and earned a bad rep with them even on one of their proven platforms.

Yeah, but the old FC-150 was a classic. Love to have one of those. I'd even settle for an FC-170.

[Chesley]

“ Was the actual camping time good? Assuming so, keep focused on that”. = haven’t camped in the TT yet due to time it took to resolve AC issue and it being too hot to not have AC; as well as Silverado transmission issue and not replacing it until two weeks ago.

As far as the Gladiator being unproven as a tow vehicle, I’m not sure it would get used a lot for that purpose. We really like exploring off road (not rock crawling) and really enjoyed doing it in a Wrangler (my second favorite vehicle I’ve ever owned; 1969 Camaro SS396 purchased upon returning from Vietnam, being my first favorite) years ago. I was thinking the Gladiator would be a good fit for the exploring and at the same time be capable of towing the TT when we wanted. Plan B...if Gladiator were not to work out as a tow vehicle, I’ll sell the TT.

[tc cruiser]

Chelsey
With those numbers for the Gladiator you should be good to go. I'm towing an e pro 19 fbs with a 2017 honda Ridgeline with 5000 towing capacity and it tows like a dream with only a 6 cyl engine.
Tom

[Chesley]

Originally Posted by tc cruiser

Chelsey
With those numbers for the Gladiator you should be good to go. I'm towing an e pro 19 fbs with a 2017 honda Ridgeline with 5000 towing capacity and it tows like a dream with only a 6 cyl engine.
Tom

Thanks, Tom