2018 Airstream Colarado dilema
Good evening all, (and apologies for this long post).
My wife and I have a slight dilema over the purchase of a MY18 Airstream International Colarado. The big problem is that we don't know what car will pull it. (There's also a small matter of insurance companies declining our proposals with only 2 out of 7 quoting so far).
As it goes the standard MTPLM of the Airstream Colarado is 2,400kg and has a manufacturers quoted payload of 265kg, but this reduces to about 32kg when all of the added extras are taken into account (Reich movers, Dometic AC, huge twin batteries, ZipDee Awning, solar, extra gas and water etc). I've done a few figures and it looks as if we will need to increase the MTPLM to its max of 2,680kg just to make it legal to carry a few personal items. Crazy!
I have already read some great advice on the Caravan club site regarding tow car calculations (i.e. the 85% rule) but if I apply that to the purchase of an Airstream Colarado at 2.68T then the results are that a suitable tow car must have a minimum kerb weight of 3,152kg.
The main problem now is that unless I buy something like a secondhand Rangey Sport/Vogue then there is no MY18 car with a suitable kerb weight. As an example, the likes of Range Rover have reduced their vehicle weights quite significantly over the last few years and I'm sure that most other manufacturers will continue to follow suit to help reduce emissions etc
IMO it looks as if Swift and Airstream have initiated the sale of the big Airstreams at a time when the manufacturers are trying to radically reduce their vehicle kerb weights - this is not great for future Airstream owners.
Can anyone give me some advice on which car to purchase or am I ringfenced into buying something secondhand. I'm just wondering if Airstream has introduced something which is not that adaptable for the future UK marketplace. These vans are not cheap and as such we don't want to buy something that becomes a complete pain to own in the future.
Regards to all,
Andrew
P.S. The hitch weight is approx 168kg based on a 2,680kg MTPLM.
Comments
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Sorry, I can’t help, Ayf.
Is the plan to buy an Airstream set in stone or could you buy something more towcar friendly?
Incidentally, the 85% weight ratio is a recommendation, not a rule
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We are motorhomers by trade but this is something which has just taken our fancy. We appreciate that it's a wee bit different and that's what appeals. If we don't purchase the Airstream then we will continue to roam around in the motorhome and enjoy the many Club CLs in our current van.
This is a huge financial buy-in for us so we don't want to make a mistake that we'll regret straight after purchase.
All the best,
Andrew
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Personally, I think I’d not buy it, Ayf. It’s your choice, obviously, but it sounds fraught with problems to me.
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We've only just met on this forum and I already like your wisdom. My wife and I are thinking the same.
I won't lie to you - I have spent days trying to work out this puzzle and after several consultations with a very helpful dealer then I'm no further forward.
It may interest you to know that no Airstream dealer has sold a Colorado this year (each dealer still has one for sale) so this may be an indicator on just how difficult these things are to purchase and live with.
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They are very heavy vans, but do you really need all those extras?
Unless you are planning to be off grid most of the time, could you cut out the "huge twin batteries, solar, extra gas and water" and some of the etceteras?
Carrying water at all is only necessary if you plan to wild camp.
Mover is essential, air con I would not be without, awning of some type, but could it be a lighterweight one?
Our twin axle van is "only" 1900kg max, and even at that weight our choice of towcar was fairly limited. We do however have a large payload for personal items even with the mover and air con plus bits and pieces we have added taken into account.
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Thanks for the compliment.
I'm a firm believer of keeping things simple and if that means buying run of the mill products, then so be it. I can do without the headaches that come with unusual items.
In terms of caravans or motorhomes, mistakes can be very costly and I’d be very, very wary in your shoes. I know nothing about you but suspect you could end up regretting the purchase.
I don’t know what driving licence entitlement you have and that might be another factor to consider. There's info in the Advice and Training tab at the head of this page.
Good luck with making the right decision for you, whatever that may be.
PS. I’ve just seen the price! Hell's teeth!😱😱😱😱😱
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Thats a great post-up, many thanks indeed. Your van is still a huge beast but at least I know that other guys ate struggling too in terms of vehicle selection. I'm having a real hard time and it looks as if the likes of vehicle kerb weights will reduce further as the years go by. Things will only get worse.
The batteries (50kg), awning (fixed and 40kg), AC (30kg) and movers (64kg) are all standard so it's just the 40kg of water which we can remove.
The missus and I really like the Club CLs and the simpler the better so solar and water (50kg total for both) is a must.
It looks as if this is a big unit with no spare capacity.
The hitch weight is also an issue and the only vehicle I can find to cope with a 170kg hitch weight is a Ford Ranger Wildtrak but with a kerb weight of 1-tonne less than what I need then it's not much cop
Cheers,
Andrew
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We still have our now 10 year old Sterling (made by Swift), it has been a great van and we have not seen any newer models that we like better (and could afford).
We tow with a VW Touareg, having traded in our 10 year old Volvo XC90 about 18 months back.
Some of the TA Swifts can get a good weight upgrade to cover the necessary "optional extras".
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How come, if these items are standard fittings, that they are not included in the MIRO? That is just nonsensical!
I would not consider the water essential, all CLs must have drinking water and disposal facilities, so all you need is a few litres in the toilet tank and a few litres for tea/coffee making en route. Then fill the tank once you get there. We have an onboard 40 litre tank, and an Alde heating system.
We have just returned from 13 nights on CLs with no problems, using our own facilities all the time (we have a great shower) but we do always use EHU so have not fitted a solar panel or extra battery.
We have Dometic air con and a Truma Mover. We used to have a Fiamma Zip on the van, but it died of old age so we now have a lightweight canopy with sides.
For gas we have a refillable Gaslow system, essential when touring abroad for a few months. We have 2x6 kg capacity bottles, but could manage with one.
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Surely the problem is finding a car with a high enough noseweight? Are these vans actually designed for touring or are meant to be sited on campsite?
David
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Interestingly you say that as we made a bit of a boo-boo on our first motorhome purchase and since then I've dug right down into the weeds on everything. I won't make the same mistake twice. I even detract a few kg's from the payload in the belief that converters/manufacturers take full advantage of EU Regulation 1230/2012. Sneaky eh!
I have all of the relevant licenses but the big constraint is the vehicle-to-caravan weight ratio which seems to be off the scale.
As an example: I have checked out the 10 largest (heaviest) pulling vehicles from Land Rover, Ford, Toyota, Mitsubishi and Nissan and they range from the caravan being 107% of the tow cars kerb weight, right through to 141% in the worst case (the Mitsibishi).
It is great to thrash this out with you guys as I seem to have uncovered a right hornets nest.
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We, too, made a mistake with our first MH purchase. In fact, many people do. The important thing is to learn from those mistakes.
Have you considered an American pick-up as a tow car? There you go, more difficulties.😏
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You're right David. The Toyota Hilux and L200 have hitch weights of about 120kg and then the rest mentioned have 140kg with Land Rover and Range Rover pulling up at 150kg.
The Rangey Vogue once weighed 3.5T a few years ago but since then it's been on a rather stringent diet and now it hovers at 2,410kg (4.4SDV8) to the Vouge SE at 2,504kg.
I'm just trying to juggle the 170kg hitch weight with the Club advice on having an 85% weight ratio.
Even if I ignore the 85% bit for a second and opt for a 100% ratio then the Airstream Colorado is IMO still dangerously overweight.
I've also considered the purchase of an Equalizer but from reading a number of US Forms it seems that an Equalizer does not remove any load from the towbar. It just spreads it.
Thanks for your help - I really appreciate it.
Andrew
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We saw a couple of those on sites on this last trip, they were pretty huge! However, the lack of a secure "boot" would put me off.
The last CL this trip, you would not get that Airstream round the bend at the entrance gate to the site. I struggled with our van, got in OK, but had to have a second attempt and some positioning help to get back out!
One CL we used a while back, the lane in the approach was barely wide enough to be able to make the 90degree turn into and out of the farm gate.
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I guess the body length is less than 8m? If it was over 8m you'd need to be towing with a vehicle over 3.5t. So I'd look at what's around in that group. Mercedes sprinter, transit, vw transporter etc. I'm not sure of the nose weight restrictions on any of these and a quick google hasn't helped.
Personally I think a Dodge Ram would be just the job
I love airstreams but I've not been a fan since swift got involved. I found the single axles that the previous importer sold pretty spacious.
Edit. The nose weight is shown as 140kg on a few sites. Why has it come out at 170kg? Does anyone know?
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I did consider them but only for a few minutes and that was in desperation. I like the look but they ride like a slab of concrete. I've spent a bit of time with the Americans and their trucks on UK roads seem like a duck out of water.
The Airstream is starting to give me the same impression.
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Good post and interesting info - thank you.
The Swift brochure has a hitch weight of 150kg for a trailer weighing 2.4T so they've calculated this by using a 6.25% ratio for the tongue weight.
I would register the Airstream Colarado at 2,680kg (its max MTPLM) so 6.25% of that is 170kg. It's really about 167.5kg but I've rounded up for ease.
That said, the other two smaller Airstreams all have a hitch weight of 150kg but the dealer can't shed any light on this. I'm stumped.
All the best,
Andrew
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The idea of an Airstream is quite romantic (according to my wife) but I'm rapidly beginning to think that it would be the biggest pain in the a....... if we were to buy one.
That said, it looks as if we can buy it but not move it. Great.
I have to merit Swift on such an ingenious partnership!!
I have spoken with the dealer who told me (apparently) that Swift saw an opening in the market and went ahead with the franchise.
Also, it is interesting to know that my local dealer is unlikely to be selling them next year.
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Jay, I think the Transits/Sprinters as suggested will struggle with the noise weight and may only have a towing capacity of 2000kg.
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Is it possible that you have misunderstood some of the figures given and what is or is not included?
The spec gives the hitch limit as a max of 150kg. We caravanners usually call this the "nose weight" and the caravan must be loaded so as to achieve the lower of the car's limit or the hitch limit. So it cannot be more than 150kg max.
Looking at the MIRO, this includes certain items......an allowance for gas, almost 20kg, allowance for water carried on board,a full tank, but not the toilet tank, and the weight of the water in the Alde system. That sounds like it is the using water, not the system fluid.
Otherwise the MIRO is the caravan as supplied so should include the solar panel if it is a standard item.Swift fit them as standard on their own vans.
Without the upgraded weight you then have 265kg to use. Out of that you need to take the mover, the air con, the awning and the batteries. You would still have some payload left, even more if you lose the drinking water.
Upgrading to the max would give you plenty of payload as far as I can make out.
Does nothing for finding a suitable tow vehicle however!
Have you considered the slightly smaller model?
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BTW....the days of noseweight being supposed to be7% of MTPLM are long gone. There is a minimum required now of, I think, 4%.
I would also not worry too much about the recommended 85% thing, with a twin axle you can easily go to 90% or even a little more.
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That's a cracking post with some good analysis (If I may say so).
The payload starts at 265kg but the non-standard bits (incl the solar unit @ 10kg) and the 40kg water tank, full, comes to 233kg, leaving 32kg spare. If I leave out the 40kg of water for a second then I'll have a 72kg payload to play with before any other extra mass is deducted due to the +/-5% EU directive.
If, for example, the Airstream is over the Manufacturers quoted MIRO by just 2% then my total payload reduces to nothing - and with no water on-board too.
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Looking again at the spec, I see a solar panel is NOT standard equipment, but note that it says "provision for two batteries", I would not take that to mean that you MUST have 2 batteries.
If you wanted to have 2 available, you could carry one in the tow vehicle.
A full tank of drinking water would weigh 45kg. That is allowed for in the MIRO, are you planning on carrying even more water?
The other thing I noticed was the width.....this is a "fat" van, not really suitable for touring in the UK, especially not for CLs down narrow lanes.
We see a few "fat" vans abroad, large Hobbys for example, but mainly they are permanently sited. Our continental cousins generally favour smaller caravans for touring.
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You've kindly mentioned going safely from 85% to 90% due to the twin axle set-up, but the only available MY18 vehicles with their respective kerb weights are coming in at between a 107% ratio (Range Rover) through to 141% for a Mitsubishi L200.
The Airstream Colarado @ 2.7T is so heavy that none of the MY18 vehicle kerb weights are able to get anywhere near 100% never mind 90 or 85.
It's a nightmare so it begs the question as to what to do next.
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This allowance for it being "overweight" on delivery.........looking at Swifts own vans, the stated MIRO includes what they call the "tolerance", so I would take that to mean that that is the most it would weigh.
Is that not the case, and are the Airstreams not using the same term?
You could always make having it weighed on delivery and it not being overweight a condition of the purchase.
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