Should this sub-forum be moved?

[mjlaupp]

Since most of the questions about tow vehicles are generated by new and/or prospective owners I propose that this sub-forum be moved to either the "Prospective Owner Forum" or to the "General Discussion" area. Most of the new threads are started in the "Prospective Owner" forum and are then moved to the "Technical Information Forum" where they are invisible to the casual browser. My preference is to place this with the "Prospective Owner Forum".
Mike

[mcgyver210]

I still feel that talking about Tow Vehicles is really Technical by nature & helps even seasoned TMO's.

[Bill]

If a Trial Member asks a Tow Vehicle question in the Prospective Owner forum, I try to leave the discussion in place for at least a week before moving it to the Towing Rigs section. When it is moved, I leave a pointer that the Trial Member can follow. And as with everything else, the Trial Member has 30 days to peruse the Towing Rigs forum and determine if there is value in its content.

If the question comes from someone whose Trial Membership has already expired, I usually leave the discussion in place longer, so as not to cut him out. But eventually it is moved to the proper forum, so that it can be found later, by someone else with the same question.

Most newcomers ask simply "Can I tow a TM with an xxxx tow vehicle", and they are looking for a simple yes/no answer. Whether Trial Member or Registered Guest, they get that now, in the initial responses to the question. But much of the in-depth discussion related to towing is not as simple as yes/no. The Towing Rigs forum also discusses the why (and why not) of weight distributing hitches, sway control, brake controllers, transmission temperature and its effects, the importance of where you plan to tow as part of the decision, the importance of wheelbase, factory tow packages vs aftermarket tow packages vs no tow package at all, and many other topics that are not amenable to simple yes/no answers. These discussions are technical in nature, often quite technical, and are part of the value for which the Sponsors pay the Sponsorship fee.

You could make the same argument for any of the technical forums, and suggest that they all be moved into General Discussion. But then no one would pay the bills, and there would be no TMO forum.

Bill

[mcgyver210]

More than Fair Bill & really it isn't that big of a deal to pay $12.00 for more detailed access.

I understand Mike's point, but then also totally agree with how and why Bill handles it now.
To continue any further conversations about TV, it motivates the trial member to join. If you leave it out there for free, then where's the incentive to become a member.
I'd leave it just as it is... as long as Bill doesn't mind the manual work involved.