Cheapo Tow Rig project

trailhugger said:
Ours can be put up by one person. It can definitely be put up by one adult and a 3 or 5-year-old.

<shrug> I have no dog in this fight, @CasterTroy drug my tent into the discussion so I provided additional info.

But mine is bigger that y'all's, anyway. ;)
Click to expand...

:smokin:
 
9DD584AA-8183-4278-B81A-B7EBDD5FFACD.jpeg
0176CCB4-8414-4E78-88BE-D04B3D046448.jpeg
So today I cleaned this thing up a bit. Took all the stickers off and washed it good. Amazing what soap and water and some good tire shine will do.

I was also able to straighten out the front bumper which made it look a whole lot better.

Still undecided on keeping the ladder rack. @Chris_Keziah turned me on to a cheaper camper shell I want to get this week maybe.
 
Here is the inside. Amazingly the seats are not real torn up. Just a few spots. I drop it off with my detail guy Wednesday evening. He is going to pull the seats out and clean it up. I will post some finished pics when I get it back.


Here is the plan:
Bluetooth radio head unit
Rear tires to match the nearly new front
Tow mirrors
Center console
Alloy wheels from nicer model

First of all I need to address one thing, it seems to have low oil pressure. I need to check with a mechanical gauge first, but if it is low I will drop the oil pan to check the O-ring on the oil pickup tube. Apparently it’s super common on the LS engines to cause low oil pressure.

9B76D82C-9C28-48B3-8CEF-887224520F69.jpeg
DB4B172D-866B-42A4-95BA-0D4756175CDC.jpeg
2D1B26B6-F502-4264-8C88-D5D8266CD0B5.jpeg
309E437D-BC75-41C3-953E-D08FC231A8E4.jpeg
3D90A65A-5DC0-49B1-91AF-1FB021B785B4.jpeg
641E8D2C-C447-4546-8E32-18EA6231044A.jpeg
 
20141012_175053.jpg

nothin wrong with a cheap tow rig...been polishing my turd since 2008. Now I have a new engine,new seat,new headliner,new floor cover installed last year and now a new trailer. I still have less in my setup than alot of folks have in a daily driver much less a truck to tow with. Rock on my friend...rock on!
 
It's possible the o ring is the issue...if I was going that far, I might would go ahead and do an oil pump and maybe timing set too. Make sure you get the red o ring.

What's the oil pressure now?

It's a shame that I already sold my old factory rims!
 
77GreenMachine said:
Here is the inside. Amazingly the seats are not real torn up. Just a few spots. I drop it off with my detail guy Wednesday evening. He is going to pull the seats out and clean it up. I will post some finished pics when I get it back.

First of all I need to address one thing, it seems to have low oil pressure. I need to check with a mechanical gauge first, but if it is low I will drop the oil pan to check the O-ring on the oil pickup tube. Apparently it’s super common on the LS engines to cause low oil pressure.

View attachment 263922 View attachment 263924 View attachment 263925 View attachment 263926 View attachment 263928 View attachment 263929
Click to expand...

my old Chevy work van suffered from oil pressure issues like this, never did fix it before i moved on to new van.

refrain from just hosing out the floor and under the seats, the control module for the air bags is under drivers seat and NOT water proof. i worked on a few that had to have the modules replaced due to corrosion and water intrusion . Not cheap if you want to keep air bag function.
 
I never like to just hose them out since any opening allows water to be trapped and be in the insulation under it and cause rust. My detail guy will do it right I’m sure.

@Croatan_Kid it has 20psi at idle and barley seems to go up with throttle. I should have tags tomorrow/Tuesday so I will drive it again and see if it goes up. It seems like when I test drove it, it had closer to 40. The valves chatter at start up then go away in a little bit.

@ord.sgt.26NC i like paid for! I can do little things like you mentioned along the way. Even putting another engine in this thing would keep me pretty cheap into the truck. I figure instead of a monthly payment, I can have a monthly wheeling trip.
 
Last edited:
Way to go! My 2 cents about camping is a vote for a cap (camper shell as they say down here). They are water and wind proof and make trips much easier. I used a cot with my F250 and I'd get it all set up before a trip. Just unload your rig and wheel. That simple. After the weekend is over, just pack your stuff back up and that's it.
 
The rattle at start up is probably piston slap, but as long as it goes away, you're good. I'd definitely do what you were saying and check it with a gauge. You might even try a simple oil change...you never know. Obviously it can't be but so many things!
 
77GreenMachine said:
First of all I need to address one thing, it seems to have low oil pressure. I need to check with a mechanical gauge first, but if it is low I will drop the oil pan to check the O-ring on the oil pickup tube. Apparently it’s super common on the LS engines to cause low oil pressure.
Click to expand...

Check the actual oil as mentioned and change it out for cheap insurance, but it very well could be the sender in the back of the valley or the screen before the sender is clogged. This can cause slow gauge response and low reading. Much easier than checking pump oring and also very common issues.
 
I’m going to start with those simple things first. Oil change for sure. I will check the sending unit first though. Dropping the pan is pretty simple since it is 2wd, so I’ll probably do that when I change the oil. If the sending unit doesn’t change anything.

I did read that the oil pressure I’m seeing is pretty common and most people aren’t too concerned with it. I’m still gonna check it out since it’s not too much trouble. I enjoy tinkering with it.

I’m thinking a camper shell is the way to go. I can carry my totes with spare parts and such on the trailer and just have a sleeping arrangement ready to roll in the back.
 
Another push for the shell. I throw a full size mattress from my pull out in the back of the excursion and go. Its spectacular and simple. If the barn doors could open from the inside it would seal the deal lol. Staying dry and not having to set up a tent is worth it.
 
Geez weighted tags are expensive. Perhaps I should have just tried to squeak by and hope I didn’t get caught. I got it tagged and ready to go today, $343 later. But I have a 12k tag so I should be good.

I replaced the battery today since it needed one.
Noticed the message display actually said “Low oil pressure” today. I’m going to change the oil first and see how that does.
 
You say they're expensive until you get one of those fancy overweight driving awards. (Not to be confused with driving while fat :D ) I got one several years ago that was over 600 bucks. Yours was expensive because you had to pay property tax, registration, HUT, and probably the title fee all at the same time.

There are pricing groups in the weight amounts. The cutoff near where you're at would be 13k. 12k is 160 bucks and 13k is 173 bucks, remember that for next time...might as well go for 13. 14k jumps up to 252 bucks.

Edit: That truck probably weighs a touch over 6000 lbs anyway, so you'll probably use every bit of your tagged weight once it's loaded with people, gear, a camper shell, spare parts, tools, a trailer, and a rig.
 
Last edited:
Tag fees just for FYI
 

Attachments

  • Tag Fees.pdf
    378.2 KB · Views: 330
Yeah $160 was the tag fee. It sucks but oh well, I’d rather be legal specially going thru VA and other states. I’d say most of the time they aren’t looking for that but if I were to get stopped for something else I’m sure they’d look at it. It’s done now and I’m good for a year.
 
I would think the cost of the trailer would be what keeps you from buying the trailer....


Also, if I'm not terribly mistaken, you can go up your tag weight at any time and pay the difference.
 
Drove the truck to my detail guy today. Oil pressure came up to about normal when driving. I will change the oil this weekend. Can’t wait to post the pics after cleaning the inside. I took a video too but can’t upload it. I’ll put it on Facebook though, mostly just to help my detail guy out.
BE145F4E-0222-46F8-9DE3-F2B594788E15.jpeg
 
Normal would be 25-30 psi at hot idle and 55-60 psi driving. If you were idling and going 56 mph, then that's perfect :D

Can't wait to see the interior...he definitely had his work cut out for him!
 
Croatan_Kid said:
Normal would be 25-30 psi at hot idle and 55-60 psi driving. If you were idling and going 56 mph, then that's perfect :D

Can't wait to see the interior...he definitely had his work cut out for him!
Click to expand...

Great now I am a little worried about it.

Yes the detail guy has some work to do. His wife helps him, and said when I dropped it off she’s been dreading it all week. She said the rubber floors are actually more of a pain than carpet.
 
Back
Top