Information needed on I-17 from Phoenix to Flagstaff. I have a 95 Holiday Rambler 35ft. with a 460 Ford engine. Will I have trouble in the mountains going this route with this setup. I will be pulling a Jeep Wrangler. I would appreciate any information you can give me. You can direct E-Mail me at RockenL@aol.com if you so desire.
QUOTE(RockenL @ Jan 17 2009, 05:19 PM) [snapback]14855[/snapback] Information needed on I-17 from Phoenix to Flagstaff. I have a 95 Holiday Rambler 35ft. with a 460 Ford engine. Will I have trouble in the mountains going this route with this setup. I will be pulling a Jeep Wrangler. I would appreciate any information you can give me. You can direct E-Mail me at RockenL@aol.com if you so desire. It is a steep climb but you should not have a problem unless there is snow and ice closer to Flagstaff. How fast you will go depends on how fast you pull up other grades. We have climbed it with a 36 foot diesel pusher towing a Jeep Wrangler and had no trouble keeping our speed up to something decent. We also climbed it pulling a very heavy Teton 5th wheel with a Ford 350 and really slowed down to a crawl but still faster than the Big Rigs. You see all types of RV combinations using that route all year long.
We did this climb last year with our new 5th wheel pulled by a 2005 GMC half-ton. We made it okay...but I would warn you about a somewhat steep and curvy climb between Phoenix and the turn off to Cottonwood. It's not impossible, but watch your RPMs (and shift down when at first necessary). It's four lane over the passes, which is good. Unfortunately, we got caught behind a series of very slow semi-trucks in the right lane and a ton of "I'm-not-letting-anyone-with-an-RV-in-front-of-me" vehicles in the inside lane. We did not over heat, but the engine temps were higher than I like to drive with. We made it okay, but you need to be attentive during the 1st part of this climb. The climb from Cottonwood up to Flagstaff represents more elevation change than before. But the road is such that you climb for awhile, then the road levels out; then you climb again, only to level out again. This part was not a problem for us at all. You'll be okay. Just be attentive to traffic and road conditions. MaineDon
The last time we were on I-17 traveling north we could travel about 50 MPH over the pass. Could do more but was slowed down by 18 wheel truck and could not gain back my speed. Weather was cool so engine heat was no problem at 180 degs or same as flat land driving. You only have one big hill that is a little bit of a pull and then over the top you go. You may wish to travel on Alt 89 or Oak Creek Canyon if you have the time. Exit at 287 on to Hwy 260 to Cottonwood then Alt 89. Very nice drive and you come back to I-17 at exit 337. Views are great to see.
Flagstaff in the winter is alway chancy. We got caught in the snow once and did about 125 miles in 9 hours in our pickup without the coach. Be careful and watch for the weather.
