What did you do to your Mirage today?

[Mark]

Hello all,
. . . . I appreciate all of the concerns, insights, and opinions. I agree that this will be hard on my car. I towed about 2000 pounds yesterday. I wish that I had more power and cooling capacity but the brakes are more than up to the task. My RX-3 weighed 2200 pounds with me in it and a full tank of fuel. I regularly towed 2500 pounds with it! I had a trailer, sandrail, a Honda Odyssey, fuel, spare parts, and tools that I towed with it.
. . . . I drove 75 miles yesterday on all types of roads except dirt. There was a 20 mile stretch of I-90/94, county roads, state roads, and feeder roads. Mark, have you driven Highway 58 between Mauston and LaValle? If so you know what it is like. I will have to be extra careful for acceleration times are very long and braking distances are extended. The proper amount of tongue weight will be critical. Not enough and the back end will want to slide on braking and too much cuts down on directional stability and braking force!
. . . . I have to take two loads down so this will not be a fun trip but I have tasked myself to do this. The arrangements are all made. I leave on Sunday morning. It is going to take me 2 and a half days to get there and 2 or 2 and a half days to get back with one day to unload. That is a 5 to 6 day turn around time. I have to bring the trailer back but that is no big deal because I have two cats here to take down there. So I will be driving about 8K miles in less than 3 weeks. Please keep me in your prayers and I will keep everyone updated!
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

I know highway 58 quite well. I end up on it almost every time I head north from my house. That section has the steepest hills, too!

Have safe travels Rich!

[Mark]

Mark - While I believe you, and think that advice is wise, there are circumstances. My trailer is probably about 800 lbs. The average weight of a standard 2-Passenger, EZGO, 48-volt electric golf car is 924 lbs. Add to that the weight of the add-on rear seat, at least 100 lbs. Plus 5 passengers in the car. Besides my gargantuan size, that's another 500 lbs. 2 boys roughly 300 lbs and 2 scrawny girls.

That's 1,824 towed, plus 500 extra in the car. It did surprisingly well. But, as mentioned before. I didn't tow but about 4 miles like that at a maximum of probably 40 mph. No additional clutch slippage either...

I've towed with smaller vehicles (Colt Wagon, VW Golf, etc...) for years. They get the job done, but the Mirage appears more fragile to me. Having all the passengers in the car (added weight) probably helped the stability of pulling a trailer.

I've seen guy lose heavy loads with full size pickup trucks. A heavy enough load will toss a good size vehicle if one is not careful.

I can see someone using a Mirage in a pinch. Picking up a Motorcycle with a small trailer is somewhat safe.

I once bought patio blocks (late 1990s) & pulled them home with my Colt Wagon. I learned my lesson & calculated the weight of my loads ever since. I over do it on my small trailer for short distances myself at times. I am don't mean to point fingers at others, because I am guilty of doing stupid stuff myself.

[Mechanic]

Mark,
. . . . I picked up the trailer near Ironton off of County G. I went to LaValle and then headed to Reedsburg on 33. It was on 33 pulling that grade near Hartje's Lumber where I saw 215 of coolant temperature. I was doing 60. I stopped at Carquest and replaced a burnt out marker lamp on the trailer. I stopped at Kwiktrip and filled up. I then headed North on County H to the Dells where I got on I=90/94 going West. I dropped one fuel bar as I got on the interstate. Yesterday we had a 20-25 West wind and 70 was as fast as my Mirage would go and that was in fourth gear on a slight down grade. The coolant temperature was 205!
. . . . I dropped a second bar just as I got off the interstate. I got off at Mauston and headed South on 58. By then the outside temperature was at 75. As I went t by the sign on 58 that gives the altitude as 12xx feet at the summit I was running 3rd gear at 60 and the coolant temperature was 210. At the summit I did a full emergency stop and the brakes were fine. I went into LaValle and then turned towards Ironton to take the trailer back. I dropped a third bar as I pulled into LaValle. I drove Jessop Road to County G. Jessop has some 9 and 10% grades on it. I had to use 1st and 2nd to climb these.
. . . . I dropped the trailer off and headed back to Reedsburg. I stopped at the same Kwiktrip and filled up. I used 4.45 gallons in 73.5 miles. That is just over 16 MPG. This is a tougher route than I will be driving on my way to Houston. I appreciate your blessings!
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Mechanic]

Mark,
. . . . The thing about towing is that evasive action is out of the picture. All that you can do is to nail the brakes and be prepared to correct if the rear end gets loose. That is why it is so important to have the correct amount of weight on the tongue. Too much weight and the front tires don't have enough weight on them for braking and steering purposes. Not enough and the rear will slide around on you! If you are a panicky type of person that has a tendency to over react then you have no business towing. Slowing down is the most important thing to do. IMO!
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Fummins]

Damn links don't work

try this one. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1960...9361531337438/

[Mechanic]

Fummins,
. . . . You are correct! It doesn't work! What were you trying to say?
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Fummins]

Just re-found a funny video of some guy pulling two bumper pull trailers!
I believe it's legal in some states but not anywhere in Canada that I know of. You can double pull here but the first trailer has to be a fifth wheel.

[Mechanic]

Fummins,
. . . . You can double pull here. In my travels around the country I will on occasion come across two cars being towed by a third or a pickup that are in various stages of disrepair! It was obvious that these cars had been sold at auction! What is funny is when it is a double pull with a car and the car is being wagged by one of the towed vehicles. Not good!
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Mechanic]

Hello all,
. . . . I have been meaning to ask if anyone has installed LED Headlights and marker lights in their Mirage! Has anyone done this?
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

[Fummins]

Hello all,
. . . . I have been meaning to ask if anyone has installed LED Headlights and marker lights in their Mirage! Has anyone done this?
GOD Bless and Thanks,
rich!

Yes here's a thread about it https://mirageforum.com/forum/showth...ell-in-Mirage)