Max Towing Adventure - 4,200 lbs - 285 miles - 16 MPG

[WetsideMav]

Haha well that's embarrassing, surge brakes...of course.

The last thing I towed was 10 years ago when I had a Tacoma. It was a 24 ft enclosed trailer with electric brakes, anti-sway, and I had a brake controller. You could stop that thing on a dime.

On this trip I definitely felt a massive difference between the two towing experiences. The U-Haul trailer felt like it was pushing me around a bit more, or a the very least the surge brakes delayed the braking of the trailer to the point where it felt like the truck was doing most of the work. It didn't inspire much confidence like the electric trailer brakes did.

Probably a good thing. It kept my speeds down and awareness up.

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[WetsideMav]

Was about to say the same. Easy way to see if the master cylinder has fluid is to look for the ball bearing through the sight glass with the trailer level. The ball should be floating in the middle of the sight glass.

I had one where the brakes were adjusted very...aggressively. I was towing the empty auto transporter with my F-250 and braked semi-hard and the trailer brakes locked up.

I'll check for that next time. Thanks!

 

[WetsideMav]

Yes , surge brakes ....
Otherwise you would have cooked your brakes on that 10 mile downhill section ....

-forehead slap- oh boy, I guess it's time for glasses

 

[Phimosis]

Haha well that's embarrassing, surge brakes...of course.

The last thing I towed was 10 years ago when I had a Tacoma. It was a 24 ft enclosed trailer with electric brakes, anti-sway, and I had a brake controller. You could stop that thing on a dime.

On this trip I definitely felt a massive difference between the two towing experiences. The U-Haul trailer felt like it was pushing me around a bit more, or a the very least the surge brakes delayed the braking of the trailer to the point where it felt like the truck was doing most of the work. It didn't inspire much confidence like the electric trailer brakes did.

Probably a good thing. It kept my speeds down and awareness up.

Absolutely. Surge brakes are clearly inferior, but they make it safe (enough) for people to tow with a 4 pin connector. Since I have the 4k tow package and 7 pin connector, the first question I ask is, do you have one with electric brakes?

 

[Cancunbadlands]

Glad to hear it worked out so well ese

 

[CurtisB]

When I was looking at buying a Maverick back in 2022 I knew the day would come and I'd probably have to tow my old Datsun somewhere once or twice.
I figured the 4k towing package "should" be just enough to get the job done.

Today, I towed my car approximately 290 miles (L.A. to Modesto) and part of that was over the Grapevine mountain range, which peaks around 4,100 ft of elevation.

U-Haul Auto Transport Trailer = 2,210 lbs (no trailer brakes, not ideal, but it was what it was)
1969 Datsun 510 = 2,050 lbs (no gas, radiator fluids or oils)
About 4,200 lbs total towing weight.

I'm very happy to report the truck handled it all without issue. I easily maintained 55 - 65 mph. The truck felt very stable. Acceleration was surprisingly confident and I felt no signs of struggle. As you can imagine, without trailer brakes, braking was a bit lacking but I left a massive amount of space in front of me and anticipated all decelerations. I never felt unsafe but I did have to stay mindful. If I had a very extended longer downhill grade I'm not sure how I would have felt. I did have to apply/ feather the brakes a bit more than I would have liked to maintain 55-60 mph on the final downhill, but I don't think I was ever close to overheating them.

I failed to measure the static fender heights without the trailer or with the empty trailer attached, but with the trailer fully loaded, the rear fenders compressed down to 32", and the front fender lifted to 34". The rear shocks seemed to have plenty of travel left and, as far as I can tell, never bottomed out.

The kicker was that I averaged 16 mpg (with 245/65 R17's) for the whole trip, which I thought was pretty great. I got 14 mpg through the Grapevine mountain section, which shattered my exceptions, I thought it'd be closer to 10 mpg in the mountains. I made sure to use 91 octane.

I'm not suggesting anyone else use your truck at the limit like this. I've got two more heavy towing trips I need to do to get the Datsun running under its own power, then I'll stick to hauling lighter loads. The truck only has 35,000 miles on it but I may do an early transmission fluid change at some point for good measure.

I've been very happy with this truck both performance wise and aesthetically. Admittedly, I went a bit nuts and got the fully-loaded version, but I use every single one of its features on a daily basis and I have no regrets. My friends always remark how comfortable the seats are, and how smooth the ride is.

This trip was yet another confirmation that this truck was the right choice.

Front:

Rear:

As you probably know, your 510 is worth a hell of a lot more than your Maverick! I owned a 4 door just like yours. Dropped in an L-18 motor, weber carb, headers, front air damm. Talk about fun to drive!! Wish I still had it now!

 

[Phimosis]

As you probably know, your 510 is worth a hell of a lot more than your Maverick! I owned a 4 door just like yours. Dropped in an L-18 motor, weber carb, headers, front air damm. Talk about fun to drive!! Wish I still had it now!

When I was in highschool in the late 80's, my best friends had a souped up 510 sedan. I never understood the appeal of a 4 cylinder sedan. I did the American thing and got a used 5.0 fox body mustang and cammed it.

 

[notfast]

Haha well that's embarrassing, surge brakes...of course.

The last thing I towed was 10 years ago when I had a Tacoma. It was a 24 ft enclosed trailer with electric brakes, anti-sway, and I had a brake controller. You could stop that thing on a dime.

On this trip I definitely felt a massive difference between the two towing experiences. The U-Haul trailer felt like it was pushing me around a bit more, or a the very least the surge brakes delayed the braking of the trailer to the point where it felt like the truck was doing most of the work. It didn't inspire much confidence like the electric trailer brakes did.

Probably a good thing. It kept my speeds down and awareness up.

Yeah surge brakes largely suck. You sort of have to stab the truck's brakes a bit in order to get the coupler to rock forward and engage the trailer brakes. U-Haul uses them for at least a couple reasons. For one, so that you don't need a trailer brake controller in order to rent a trailer. For two, so that people don't do stupid stuff like use their trailer brake controller to brake only the trailer and smoke the trailer brakes.

I had one auto transporter where the surge brake coupler springs were worn, so I ended up dragging the trailer down a steep hill because the coupler rocked forward on the downhill and engaged the brakes.

 

[WetsideMav]

For those interested in the 510:

My dad bought it new in '69, it was my first car in high school back in the late80's. I beat the day lights out of it (Jumping railroad tracks like an idiot, rallying it, drifting it) and it never failed me once. I figured it deserved to get a refresh, so my dad and I did a father/ son restoration of it back in 1999.

Current trim (it's a sleeper):
Bone stock interior and exterior
2.2L Rebello long-rod race motor (balanced/ blueprinted/ ported and polished, ARP fasteners, etc)
42mm Individual throttle Bodies with injector Dynamics fuel injectors
Motec M150 ECU
Motec PDM30 (power distribution)
High output IGBT coils
Comp header (ceramic coated, with EGTs in each runner)
Coilovers at 4 corners with 2-way adjustable dampers + camber and caster plates
Full spherical steering linkage
Front and rear sway bars
205/60 R13 tires on custom 7" rims so I can keep the hub caps (not shown)
2 1/4" stainless exhaust with Borla muffler
5 speed transmission
Meziere electric water pump
R180 4:11 Cusco RS LSD
Braille Lithium battery

The car is an absolute scalpel in the canyons. I mean, it's a basically a full blown race car, so...yeah.

Future Trim (400 rwhp):
2.2L Rebello long rod motor (8.5:1 compression, forged pistons and rods, 0-ringed block)
Lysholm Twin-Screw supercharger (around 15 psi)
Air-air Intercooler
Meth Injection
Motec Traction Traction Control (will be adding wheel speed sensors)
Wilwood big brake kit
Motec C125 screen
R180 3:90 Cusco RS LSD

 

[WetsideMav]

When I was in highschool in the late 80's, my best friends had a souped up 510 sedan. I never understood the appeal of a 4 cylinder sedan. I did the American thing and got a used 5.0 fox body mustang and cammed it.

The appeal of the 510, if set up properly, is its handling. If you were in your fox body and we both entered some twisty canyons you wouldn't see me again until I decided to stop at an outlook and have a sandwich ;-)

I've owned a '69 Chevelle, '68 Bronco, '09 911. The 510 is much much more fun to drive than all of them.

Here's some 510 racing history to explain some of the appeal:

 

[PCK]

As others said, it has surge brakes.

They can’t legally rent a trailer in California with a GVWR > 1,500 lbs without trailer brakes.

That is the trailer by it self has GVWR > 1,500 lbs vs, trailer and cargo >1,500?

 

[Phimosis]

That is the trailer by it self has GVWR > 1,500 lbs vs, trailer and cargo >1,500?

A trailer by itself is not the gvwr, that is the empty weight.

And deciding if a trailer needs brakes based on its empty weight would not be safe.

This particular trailer is 2,210 lbs empty and 7,500 gvwr.

 

[PCK]

A trailer by itself is not the gvwr, that is the empty weight.

And deciding if a trailer needs brakes based on its empty weight would not be safe.

This particular trailer is 2,210 lbs empty and 7,500 gvwr.

So a Uhaul 5x8 trailer that can carry 3200 lbs of cargo needs to have surge brakes under CA law?

 

[dlhort1955]

When I was looking at buying a Maverick back in 2022 I knew the day would come and I'd probably have to tow my old Datsun somewhere once or twice.
I figured the 4k towing package "should" be just enough to get the job done.

Today, I towed my car approximately 290 miles (L.A. to Modesto) and part of that was over the Grapevine mountain range, which peaks around 4,100 ft of elevation.

U-Haul Auto Transport Trailer = 2,210 lbs (no trailer brakes, not ideal, but it was what it was)
1969 Datsun 510 = 2,050 lbs (no gas, radiator fluids or oils)
About 4,200 lbs total towing weight.

I'm very happy to report the truck handled it all without issue. I easily maintained 55 - 65 mph. The truck felt very stable. Acceleration was surprisingly confident and I felt no signs of struggle. As you can imagine, without trailer brakes, braking was a bit lacking but I left a massive amount of space in front of me and anticipated all decelerations. I never felt unsafe but I did have to stay mindful. If I had a very extended longer downhill grade I'm not sure how I would have felt. I did have to apply/ feather the brakes a bit more than I would have liked to maintain 55-60 mph on the final downhill, but I don't think I was ever close to overheating them.

I failed to measure the static fender heights without the trailer or with the empty trailer attached, but with the trailer fully loaded, the rear fenders compressed down to 32", and the front fender lifted to 34". The rear shocks seemed to have plenty of travel left and, as far as I can tell, never bottomed out.

The kicker was that I averaged 16 mpg (with 245/65 R17's) for the whole trip, which I thought was pretty great. I got 14 mpg through the Grapevine mountain section, which shattered my exceptions, I thought it'd be closer to 10 mpg in the mountains. I made sure to use 91 octane.

I'm not suggesting anyone else use your truck at the limit like this. I've got two more heavy towing trips I need to do to get the Datsun running under its own power, then I'll stick to hauling lighter loads. The truck only has 35,000 miles on it but I may do an early transmission fluid change at some point for good measure.

I've been very happy with this truck both performance wise and aesthetically. Admittedly, I went a bit nuts and got the fully-loaded version, but I use every single one of its features on a daily basis and I have no regrets. My friends always remark how comfortable the seats are, and how smooth the ride is.

This trip was yet another confirmation that this truck was the right choice.

Front:

Rear:

I pulled a fully loaded 8 foot x 12 foot U haul trailer from Indy to Boston for my kid. I also have a 2023 FX4. Hardly noticed the trailer was back there. Your experience was almost exactly the same as mine.

 

[Mavtremor24]

When I was looking at buying a Maverick back in 2022 I knew the day would come and I'd probably have to tow my old Datsun somewhere once or twice.
I figured the 4k towing package "should" be just enough to get the job done.

Today, I towed my car approximately 290 miles (L.A. to Modesto) and part of that was over the Grapevine mountain range, which peaks around 4,100 ft of elevation.

U-Haul Auto Transport Trailer = 2,210 lbs (no trailer brakes, not ideal, but it was what it was)
1969 Datsun 510 = 2,050 lbs (no gas, radiator fluids or oils)
About 4,200 lbs total towing weight.

I'm very happy to report the truck handled it all without issue. I easily maintained 55 - 65 mph. The truck felt very stable. Acceleration was surprisingly confident and I felt no signs of struggle. As you can imagine, without trailer brakes, braking was a bit lacking but I left a massive amount of space in front of me and anticipated all decelerations. I never felt unsafe but I did have to stay mindful. If I had a very extended longer downhill grade I'm not sure how I would have felt. I did have to apply/ feather the brakes a bit more than I would have liked to maintain 55-60 mph on the final downhill, but I don't think I was ever close to overheating them.

I failed to measure the static fender heights without the trailer or with the empty trailer attached, but with the trailer fully loaded, the rear fenders compressed down to 32", and the front fender lifted to 34". The rear shocks seemed to have plenty of travel left and, as far as I can tell, never bottomed out.

The kicker was that I averaged 16 mpg (with 245/65 R17's) for the whole trip, which I thought was pretty great. I got 14 mpg through the Grapevine mountain section, which shattered my exceptions, I thought it'd be closer to 10 mpg in the mountains. I made sure to use 91 octane.

I'm not suggesting anyone else use your truck at the limit like this. I've got two more heavy towing trips I need to do to get the Datsun running under its own power, then I'll stick to hauling lighter loads. The truck only has 35,000 miles on it but I may do an early transmission fluid change at some point for good measure.

I've been very happy with this truck both performance wise and aesthetically. Admittedly, I went a bit nuts and got the fully-loaded version, but I use every single one of its features on a daily basis and I have no regrets. My friends always remark how comfortable the seats are, and how smooth the ride is.

This trip was yet another confirmation that this truck was the right choice.

Front:

Rear:

I say send it..I do with mine

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