# Would you feel safe pulling a 2 horse slant w/ a vintage truck?



## Chevaux (Jun 27, 2012)

The lack of power steering would put me off but otherwise I would not rule out a vintage truck. The first truck I owned that I hauled with was a standard and no power steering -- I confess to disliking backing up and fussing around with the trailer attached but on the plus side I developed really strong arms. Also, I see a number of farmers around me who still run vintage trucks as their every day knockabouts so it can be done.

The biggest thing is to know the complete history of the truck with regard to maintenance and repair over the years plus getting an expert (assuming you're not one of those mechanical savants that can keep anything with wheels in good shape and running) opinion based on an indepth look into its current structural and engine status. So, in other words, would it pass a stringent pre purchase exam? A consideration that needs looking into would be the availability of parts in the event work is needed. And another consideration would be for a mechanic (see my earlier assumption) with knowledge to do the work.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

If the truck is in good mechanical shape, why not? Truck price fits your $$ wallet....
Full size truck isn't it?
Regardless of age, all trucks have limitations to what they can safely handle weight wise. 
As long as you are within those weight boundaries and add the safety features that trailer or any trailer should have....
I would not use it though unless it has a brake controller installed so the stress of stopping and controlling that trailer is off the truck as much as possible. 
Todays trucks have disc brakes most of them or assisted braking power.. this older truck has drum brakes and no assistance so it is your responsibility to add that so you are safer while trailering.

Actually, I bet you have more power, engine power, than most newer trucks with the same size engine. Having "0" emissions on it... 

If you are comfortable behind the wheel and will drive the truck often, no power steering, no power brakes are not a deal breaker to me a and a manual transmission.... _Many trucks today have manual transmissions so that is a non-issue as well._
Many today though are very spoiled by a automatic transmission and don't know how to drive a stick...their loss!!
*Get a thorough professional evaluation of the trucks mechanical systems and structural things like the frame and such.... if all are good... you have yourself a truck.*

_OK...just did some searching in archives for the numbers and some information you need...
Ranger was the line of comfort features the truck had. It would be equivalent to what you recognize today as XL, XLT, Laramie and Eddie Bauer editions.
So that said, that year truck had many options available.
What I could find though is a rating of *(7,500 GVWR max)*... that number though I would want to stay far from.
Here is a link and look for the 5th generation of truck, which matches the year of manufacture. _
_http://www.ford-f250.com/

 *On second thought....if this truck is as rare as it might be, in good condition..*..
Buy it, then advertise and sell it to a collector and buy a newer truck.
The truck is old, collectors old.....

Get a good honest evaluation of the condition, expect to put money into it to keep it in good shape as you are of the age everything may again need replacing, find a mechanic who knows how to work on a aged truck and no computerization to diagnose or fix, and a healthy pocketbook to afford the gas it will consume. Older trucks although no emissions also didn't get good gas mileage, something we actually do now have in newer models. They did have "power" though so a trade-off.

Some decisions to make....

Good luck and happy shopping. :wink:
_


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## PrivatePilot (Dec 7, 2009)

Take a look back through old RV photos from the 50's and 60's and you might be surprised at the monster trailers people pulled with old cars and trucks. A 2 horse slant pales in comparison.

The towing mindset has changed a lot in the last 30 years and now there's a lot of people online who consider towing a popup tent trailer with anything less than a 1-Ton dually diesel "dangerous".

Yes, vehicles have changed, which is important to keep in mind, but so have the skills of most drivers degraded as well...and of course there's always the overzealous "CYA" of the car manufacturers who rate vehicles artificially low in order to save themselves the potential legal issues of an accident caused by a stupid driver pulling a big trailer with a smaller-sized vehicle. Simply look at the tow rating differences on the exact same cars here vs europe - many cars and small SUV's are rated to tow many multiples of their ratings here over there. 

So yes, it's fine..but make sure you're setup correctly - a proper and solid hitch (at least class 3), a weight distributing setup as well, and a good brake controller - brakes on these old vintage trucks are their biggest downfall - it's apt to be drums all around which were notoriously weak and subject to rapid fading. This is where the skill part comes in that many people are now lacking - you have to drive within the abilities of the truck and not expect all of todays safety systems to save your butt instead.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

Is that four on the floor with bull low? Power steering isn't necessary. As long as the truck is moving the steering isn't bad. If it's a standard, there's a lot of braking power when double clutching and down shifting. That was all I could afford at one time and it clocked just under half a million miles with minimal repair needed.


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## ducky123 (May 27, 2014)

I have a 76 chevy 3+3 as my tow vehicle (wife is embarrassed to be seen with it) so I do value old trucks. But the three most important mechanical features of a tow vehicle are missing from your truck: the power steering, power brakes, and auto trans.

While it's true you won't need power steering while moving, when it comes time to hitch up the trailer, you will hate it. Ready to back it up? I guess if you are one of those first time every time backer-uppers, no issue. The two to three backs and fourths that I average would suck big time.

No power brakes? That's enough to scare me off.

You'll be putting big time stress on the manual transmission.The nice thing is you'll get plenty of warning when it starts to shoot craps.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

*You'll be putting big time stress on the manual transmission.The nice thing is you'll get plenty of warning when it starts to shoot craps.*


_*I don't agree with that part of your statement at all......*_

It is only in the recent past that trucks were made with automatic transmissions, power assisted brakes and power steering as the norm.....
We have all gotten lazy with technological advancements... driving skills are less now that computers have taken over so much of the vehicles operations...things the driver use to need to do now is done for you.

As long as you drive appropriately you have_ {to me}_ less chance of blowing up or damaging the transmission as it is a manual.
Having your truck equipped with a brake controller to let the trailers brakes take the stress off your tow vehicle is the only way to safely tow regardless of the age of the tow vehicle!

I think it is more a personal thing....
Trucks today are commonly seen as the family vehicle of choice.... a status symbol for some and a necessity for others with large families and cars made smaller so you don't fit so well in them.
It is only since trucks became a refined mode of transportation and comfort features included have all of these "extras" come about. 
You can still order trucks with manual transmissions and without all the comfort features.... some creature comforts are just a must as that is how the entry level of trucks are made today.
Now, my truck _has_ a manual transmission but also has some creature comforts...
I tow no problems with it in all kinds of terrain and for hundreds of hours over the lifetime of owning the vehicle..all problem free. _Better believe it has a brake controller in it too and properly adjusted to the load weight as needed._

I remember my dads old truck having a stick shift, no power steering and pretty sure no power brakes. He drove that truck to death, and towed with it all the time with no problems. It was a 1960's ??? era .....
I also remember a car I learned to drive that had no power steering, no power brakes and a stick on the steering column. My parents believed in you need to know how to drive it in case you ever must... as in a emergency! 
Was a Nova come to think of it, yellow in color. Oh...had no automatic shoulder belts either but did have lap belts.... _ 
Come to think it *did* have shoulder belts stored above the doors unless YOU manually hooked the thing together on a pin on the lap belt! :shock: 

_ _Yup, my age is showing!! _:lol:

_jmo..._


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## PrivatePilot (Dec 7, 2009)

horselovinguy said:


> *It is only in the recent past that trucks were made with automatic transmissions, power assisted brakes and power steering as the norm.....
> We have all gotten lazy with technological advancements... driving skills are less now that computers have taken over so much of the vehicles operations...things the driver use to need to do now is done for you.*


*

This. 

A lack of power brakes, sure you need to keep that in mind however the whole idea behind trailer brakes is that they are designed to provide an equal amount of stopping ability to the weight of the trailer, so ideally when set up properly you shouldn't stop any worse with a trailer behind you as you would without one. If you feel the trailer pushing the tow vehicle or your stopping distances increase, your trailer brakes are not setup properly. 

Lack of power steering is only an issue when you're not moving. Once you're underway vehicles without it steer just fine. Again, drive within the abilities of the truck. 

And manual transmissions are superior in almost every way for towing. They are stronger and don't suffer from torque converter heat buildup issues that automatics do. There's a reason tractor trailers or almost any class 7 or above trucks don't have automatics. 

People would have towed well north of 10K trailers with that same truck (or hell, the family sedan) back then. Today's "Omg you need a new dually to handle that trailer" viewpoint often isn't warranted.*


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## Ike (Sep 1, 2013)

*old trucks*

I would not be opposed to using an old truck to pull a trailer as long as it was up to the task.

Personally, the drum brakes it probably has are not up to the task even with trailer brakes so I'd look to swap them out for newer factory disk brakes. With that would come the new master cylinder and power brake booster.

Manual steering is fine as long as you are up to it. If not then a factory power steering set up shouldn't be that expensive since you could probably find it in a local salvage yard.

Manual transmission is my preference for trucks. But then again I use my truck as a truck, pulling hay trailers in the field, hauling heavy loads, etc.

Ike


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