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11-25-2015, 08:06 PM
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#61
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: St. Thomas not BVI., Ontario
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0TA / 2016 Ram Eco Diesel 4X4
Posts: 8,038
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GusGill
Last Sunday, I finished driving my 2013 Tacoma TRD Sport 2WD w/ tow package truck from Chilliwack, BC to Florida as I brought my new 5.0TA home. It was about a 4K drive. I knew I was light on truck when I started and it preformed pretty much as I expected. You won't be passing much and the vehicle felt best at 60 to 65MPH. I also felt we maintained control of the vehicle well as, remember the main concern is stopping the rig. We will be added some additional supports to the leaf springs but overall I think it went very well. I got between 14 and 18 mpg. The 18 was with a 40 mph tail wind out of Vegas where the main problem was keeping it under 75mph. I get 17 around town wo/ the trailer attached. I think having 8 tires on the ground helped and wind caused by passing semi's or natural cross winds didn't cause much concern. We also dealt with ice, snow, rain and it worked out fine. Slow and steady and don't lets the other fools on the road bother you. I also found the long haul truckers to be very professional and I swear some ran traffic interference for me in Salt Lake and Dallas. I would offer that I plan to get to a full size truck in a few years after I retire as I want to visit the Rockies but the Tacoma will be fine for the flat lands of Florida and SE USA.
BTW, and as expected the new 5.0TA, or "Escape Pod #58" as I like to call her, was awesome to travel in. There are only 58, by now maybe 60, of them in the world. Everything worked great and we stayed warm and comfortable. Meeting all the staff at ETI was great too.
But to answer your original question, if you're going to be in the mountains the majority of time, or if you like to drive fast you might want to trade up to a full size truck.
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Hi: GusGill... Welcome back into the East from #2... We try harder. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
__________________
Quote Bugs Bunny..."Don't take life too seriously, none of us get out of it ALIVE"!!!
'16 Ram Eco D. 4X4 Laramie Longhorn CC & '14 Escape 5.0TA
St.Thomas (Not the Virgin Islands) Ontario
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11-25-2015, 08:24 PM
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#62
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Denison, Texas
Trailer: 2015 21'; 2011 19' sold; 4Runner; ph ninezero3 327-27ninefour
Posts: 5,136
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian B-P
Less shell? The 5.0TA is a 21' plus a big bedroom loft right up front, with an extensive frame to rise up to in and support it, a massive pin box (designed for an eight-ton trailer, because lighter pin boxes are not readily available), and whatever is in the loft (cabinets, mattress, whatever stuff people put up there). That's not a criticism at all, just an acknowledgement of reality.
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Just noticed this. I understand that the 5.0ta is like the 21' from the 21' door back. The front of the 21' includes the big bed and bath area. Don't know if there is less shell on the 5.0ta but the 5.0ta is not the loft added to a 21', as far as has been said elsewhere anyway. It is only part 21', right?
__________________
Cathy. Floating Cloud
"Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.... "
Emerson
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11-25-2015, 11:57 PM
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#63
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Trailer: 1979 Boler B1700
Posts: 14,935
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Floating Cloud
I understand that the 5.0ta is like the 21' from the 21' door back. The front of the 21' includes the big bed and bath area. Don't know if there is less shell on the 5.0ta but the 5.0ta is not the loft added to a 21', as far as has been said elsewhere anyway. It is only part 21', right?
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The overall length of the 21 Foot and the 5.0TA is about the same. In the 21, about three feet of that is tongue with no body on it, while almost the whole length is body in the 5.0TA - in the upper part the shell is certainly longer on the 5.0TA. The lower part of the 5.0TA may be shorter than the 21, but not by much. The 5.0TA is not simply a 21 with loft grafted on, but it certainly appears to have more body... and this, plus the extra structure and heavier hitching hardware that I mentioned, accounts for the 650 pound higher weight of the 5.0TA (3700 lb versus 3050 lb, both base, dry, and empty). The leaf-spring suspension might be heavier, too.
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