jferrarello

Ron,

We tow a '98 3124KS with a '96 Safari AWD conversion van, which weighs about half a ton more than a factory unit with a normal trim package because of all the walnut and extra fiberglass, etc. and is rated at 5000lbs towing capacity. It's has the 4.3L V-6 at 190hp and 260 ft. lbs. of torque and we installed overload air bags on the rear and use a weight distributing hitch. We weighed the van and camper fully loaded (water tank full and toilet charged plus our gear) on the way to our first weekend trip and including our middle aged selves, we tipped the scale right at 10,000lbs. The 3326's dry weight is ~325lbs heavier than the 3124 but a factory Safari or Astro would be lighter, so adjust accordingly.

How does it perform? First off, we live on the south end of the Denver metro area, so virtually all of our trips are into the mountains. The day we brought it home from the dealer in Colo. Springs, I was quite surprised to find that it towed almost as easily as our old Flagstaff pop-up and that I could pull uphill in 3rd gear and maintain my normal towing speed of 60-65mph, but at that point, the 3124 weighed only a few hundred pounds more than the pop-up. This changed a bit once we loaded it however. As far as stability and maneuverability are concerned, the Safari is certainly up for the task. How much this is aided by the addition weight and stability of the heavy duty suspension on the Sherwood Coach conversion, I have no idea. But I never feel any wobble or pull and as of yet, the tail has never wagged the dog. In fact, on our 4th trip in it this summer, we experienced the dreaded trailer tire blowout while traveling about 65mph on the interstate and I honestly had very little trouble maintaining control and getting the rig pulled over. (The resulting $3500 damage is another story :-).

Pulling uphill is where the Safari is exposed as a bit under-powered, but I knew that when we traded up for the TM. At 7000+ ft. altitude on a 5-6% grade, it has to work a bit hard to stay in the 40-50mph range and without a transmission cooler (to be added next week), I have to keep an eye on the temp gauge, although we've only had to stop once to let it cool off before proceeding. But we're okay with that because it just means we join the semi's in the slow lane and it takes us a little longer to hit the campground. Is it the ideal vehicle for a 3326? No, I would suppose not. But if you’re in a situation where you already own a Safari or Astro, I wouldn’t let that stop you from getting the 3326 if that’s what you have your eye on, although I’m sure others on the boards here would disagree with me.

Sorry for the long-winded reply, but hopefully the details give you a relatively good point of reference to make your own decision.

Good luck,
Joe