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How does your Tow Vehicle Stack up in the Real World

I was observing television the other night when a Ford mercantile came on. They had two challengers vehicles hooked to an 11,000 pound trailer and the guy says something along the lines of, it would take two trucks to tow an 11,000 pound trailer unless you have a Ford F-150 with a to the full or entire extent boxed frame. Now, because of what I do for a living this mercantile promotion without delay got my attention.

My basi thought was that a to the full or entire extent boxed frame might be a nice feature, but I found it difficult to believe that this was the reason the truck could tow more weight than any other half-ton truck on the planet. The last time I checked, reasons for strong tow ratings were due to constituents like the engine, transmission, and rear axle proportionality to name a few. This piqued my curiosity and I decisive the next morning I would forgo my every day work plan and investigate this claim, that a half-ton Ford F-150 could in fact tow 11,000 pounds safely.

The original order of business was to check a lot of published towing guides to assert Ford’s claim. I started with the 2007 Ford Fleet Towing Guide. When I went to the division on half-ton trucks I came across that the most eminent published tow rating listed for a half-ton F-150 was 10,500 pounds. Upon further examination I found that there was only one F-150 truck, out of 56 configurations available, with this 10,500 pound rating. It was a regular cab 4X2, with a 144.5 inch wheelbase and a 4.10 axle ratio. But wait there was a footnote, it read that this truck also required a heavy responsibility payload package, and in parenthesis it said (late availability). I don’t know when this towing guide was published, or whether this heavy obligation payload package was available at the time of this writing.

Let’s look at where we’re at so far. Out of 56 configurations amid Ford F-150 half-ton regular cab, supercab and supercrew trucks, two wheel drive, four wheel drive, short bed and long bed models with 3.55, 3.73 or 4.10 axle ratios there was only one F-150 half-ton truck ranked to tow 10,500 pounds. The last time I checked a regular cab, two-wheel drive long wheel base truck was not the favored choice among the masses in the truck buying category.

But wait, there was another problem; the TV ad said Ford had a half-ton F-150 that could tow 11,000 pounds, not 10,500. Before wasting a lot of time, for no reason, I decisive to check a couple of other 2007 towing guides I had lying around to see if one of them could clear up a lot of of this confusion. The 2007 RV Business Towing Guide listed 49, F-150 trucks in respective configurations, of which the most eminent tow rating was 9,900 pounds. Again it was a regular cab, two-wheel drive with an 8 foot bed and a 5.4 liter V-8 engine. There were two footnotes which called for an automatic transmission and a 4.10:1 axle ratio. The 2007 Trailer Life Annual Towing Guide listed the same 49, F-150 configurations with the same model rated to tow 9,900 pounds. Now I was exhaustively confused. Can an F-150 tow 9,900, 10,500 or 11,000 pounds? I decisive I better contact somebody at Ford with regards to the TV mercantile and find out what’s going on. Who was right, the television ad or one of the published towing guides?

I searched and searched for any of the Ford representatives contact data who might quickly clear this matter up, but soon came upon it was a challenge to get to the top. The nearest thing I could come to was a Ford Public Relations phone number I stumbled all over on the Internet. I spoke with a young lady when it comes to my dilemma; she said she wasn’t permitted to give me her name. I explained the problem amid the television ad and the published towing guides and she told me that tow ratings are based on how the truck was equipped. I attempted to explain that I exhaustively understood this, but that this didn’t answer my question. Her final response was for me to contact a local Ford dealer and they would be competent to answer all of my questions. Now I have been at this RV towing thing for rather numerous time, but for the gain of the doubt and to comply with the guidance I was given, I contacted a local Ford dealership. I’m glad I didn’t have to remunerate for the phone call because what I already suspected turned out to be right. I talked to the sales section and the service section and not anyone could tell me what the most eminent tow rating for a 2007 F150 was, based on any configuration.

I let things rest for a few days, so I could get caught up on a lot of work I was falling behind on. Low and behold I saw the same mercantile on TV again. Now rather than just being curious I was starting to be concerned regarding the huge audience looking at this same mercantile advertisement. The next morning I did numerous exploration on the Internet. I soon came upon this mercantile was percentage of the Ford Challenge advert campaign. They even have a internetlocation for it. Take the challenge. See why Ford is the better choice. I’m sure you have in all probability seen some of the other Ford challenge commercials involving the Ford Fusion and the Ford Expedition. Basically, the Ford Challenge advert highlights a great deal of of the vehicles features and capablenesses as equated to it is competition. The F-150 boasts best-in-class payload and towing.

In an try to be fair, and not make judgment, I tried for a second time to contact somebody at Ford who might clear this matter up. This time I had to settle for sending an email to a client service section under the listing of sales and advertising. Ten days later I received a response from the Ford Motor Company Customer Relationship Center regarding the greatest or most complete or best possible trailer weight of a 2007 Ford F-150. It read, “In an crusade to support you, we have researched on your inquiry. As per our resources, the greatest or most complete or best possible trailer weight in pounds for a decently equipped F-150 without cargo is 10,500 pounds.” There was no mention of the advertised 11,000 pound rating in the e-mail response.

Now I thought I genuinely need to contact an individual at Ford for an explanation. As a third undertake I went to media.ford.com. This is where all of the media types may access data not readily available to the ordinary public. I registered, listed my credentials and was granted access. After researching the media internet site I called the point of contact for a press release referencing the F-150 11,000 pound rating, but never heard back. Next I contacted Ford’s Manager for North American Marketing and Sales Communications by e-mail. I didn’t get a response for over a week, so I called and left a voice mail message. I still haven’t heard anything at the time of this writing. Personally I would think someone at Ford would want to clear this matter up.

After numerous further and added exploration it was my opinion, and my sentiment only, that when Ford got wind of the 2007 Toyota Tundra’s supplying of a 5.7 Liter V-8 with 381 horsepower and 401 lb-ft of torque, they felt threatened a bit. Early on, this year, Toyota stated this half-ton truck would have tow ratings of 10,000+ pounds. An Edmunds.com 2007 Toyota Tundra review stated that a decently equipped 4X2 regular cab Tundra may tow up to 10,800 pounds. This would have been the most eminent tow ratings in it is class for 2007. According to Autodata, Ford saw it is F-Series sales slip 14 percent in the introductory quarter of 2007. Was the Ford assert of 11,000 pounds a result of not being outdone? Not losing sales to it is competition? After all, Ford trucks have been the king of the hill for rather a great deal of time.

I found it interesting that in 2004, 2005 and 2006 the most eminent tow rating for an F-150 was 9,900 pounds. In August of 2006 Ford declared the 2007 F-150 was capable of towing 10,500, and in January 2007 it was increased to 11,000 pounds. The only divergence amid these trucks, to warrant this increase, is a totally boxed frame??

Vehicles go through stringent testing to determine tow ratings. There are galore constituents involved like engine size, transmission, wheelbase, axle ratio, brakes, cooling systems, tow packages and much more. The problem that I see with tow ratings is that even though there are some elements involved and there is stringent testing involved, there is no set general to measure these things against, at least not that I’m conscious of.

Let’s take a look at a lot of actual specifications amidst the Ford F-150 and the Toyota Tundra and then we’ll do the math. The Ford F-150 in question has a 5.4L V-8 engine with 300 horsepower @ 5,000 RPM and 365 lb-ft @ 3,750 RPM. The Toyota Tundra has a 5.7 L V-8 engine with 381 horsepower @ 5,600 RPM and 401 lb-ft @ 3,600 RPM. Both have a 4.10:1 rear axle ratio. Ford advertises a tow rating of 11,000 pounds and Toyota advertises a tow rating of 10,800. The F-150 has a Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) of 15,800 pounds and the Tundra has a GCWR of 16,000 pounds. It’s interesting that the Toyota has the higher horsepower, torque and GCWR, but a lower tow rating!

Let’s look at a simple formula employed to determine vehicle tow ratings. The GCWR is the greatest or most complete or best possible permissible weight of the entirely loaded vehicle and the to a complete degree loaded trailer combined. So if we take the GCWR minus the vehicle curb weight (the actual weight of the truck, less passengers and cargo) we know how much weight the truck may tow. In our example we will use the vehicle curb weight listed by the vehicle manufacturer.

The Toyota Tundra has a GCWR of 16,000 minus the curb weight of 5,200 = 10,800 pounds, which is the advertised tow rating of the Tundra in our example.

The Ford F-150 has a new GCWR of 15,800 minus the curb weight of 5,125 = 10,675 pounds, which is 325 pounds less than the advertised 11,000 pound tow rating. Things don’t add up here! And I don’t grasp how the truck’s GCWR increased from 15,300 to 15,800 pounds with little or no alter to the truck. Even with the higher GCWR this truck can’t tow 11,000 pounds, at least not mathematically.

This simple formula works for any towing application. I noted that I tried to contact Ford on five discerned occasions, to explain this divergence in the calculations. The only response I received at the time of this release was from the Ford Motor Company Customer Relationship Center, regarding the greatest or most complete or best possible trailer weight of a 2007 Ford F-150. It read, “In an crusade to aid you, we have researched on your inquiry. As per our resources, the greatest or most complete or best possible trailer weight in pounds for a decently equipped F-150 without cargo is 10,500 pounds. Without another response from Ford I have to assume that this basic formula, which works in all other scenarios, is rectify in this scenario.

Perhaps an even larger problem is, the buyer doesn’t in truth comprehend vehicle tow ratings and not anyone on the vehicle devising side of the house is genuinely attempting to educate buyers on this topic. I mean really, publicity an 11,000 pound tow rating to the masses when in reality only one version of the F-150, out of 56 available, may tow close to the advertised weight. And sadly in the real world of towing it can’t even do that. Let me explain.

When a manufacturer determines a tow rating it is commonly based on an empty vehicle, without galore options, and the weight of the driver. Most weights used for the driver are listed at 150 pounds. I think the last time I weighed 150 pounds was sometime in junior high school. Here’s how this tow thing in truth works. You want to buy an F-150 to tow a Recreation Vehicle. For starters you want a supercab so there is room for the family. And of course you wouldn’t be caught dead without four wheel drive, and it has to be a short wheelbase model. Next on the list, you want something that has decent fuel economy because you will be using it to drive to work when you’re not towing the trailer. So you compromise and go with a 4.6 Liter V-8 with a 3.55:1 axle ratio. Out of those 56 configurations of F-150 trucks you now have one to choose from. That’s right, one model meets your criteria and the tow rating of your new F-150 is 6,000 pounds, not 11,000.

This takes us back to the empty truck with a driver who weighs 150 pounds. Let’s look at the real world again. You have a wife and two children whose combined weight is 330 pounds, being conservative. The further and added choices you want on your truck like the bed liner, brush guard and side steps added 150 pounds, again being conservative. Now, do you plan to put anything in the back of the truck when you go camping? Well it’s a good place for the bikes and lawn chairs, and don’t forget when it comes to your tool box. Since we have been conservative to this point we’ll just add another 130 pounds for cargo. And the divergence among your actual weight and the 150 pound driver is, let’s say 40 pounds which in my case is still on the conservative side. Now let’s do the math. A 6,000 pound tow rating minus 650 pounds of added weight equals a 5,350 pound tow rating. You see, everything you add on, or load in to the truck takes that same amount away from the vehicles tow rating.

Oh and don’t forget the tongue weight of the trailer you’re towing. Additional weight like tongue weight and other weight added to the vehicle can not exceed any vehicle weight ratings like the Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) and the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR). While were on the subject of weights, I brought up another weight rating earlier that isn’t talked regarding very often, the Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR). In the real world the GCWR is very necessary when you are talking in regards to towing because it is the greatest or most complete or best possible permissible weight of the totally loaded tow vehicle and the completely loaded trailer combined. If you go to a set of scales and weigh the wholly loaded truck and the completely loaded trailer it can not exceed the GCWR of the tow vehicle. We may go one step further and say that no matter of the advertised tow rating if you subtract the curb weight of the vehicle (plus any added weight) from the tow vehicle’s GCWR it will give you the amount of weight the vehicle may actually tow. In our last example the GCWR for the truck in our example was 11,500. The curb weight was with regards to 5,360 plus our added weight of 650 pounds. But don’t forget to subtract the 150 pound driver. So our truck may tow 5,340 pounds before it outperforms the GCWR. The GCWR takes all elements into consideration, different from the vehicle tow rating. Head to the scales to find out how things stack up in the real world of towing.

It doesn’t stop here; there are numerous other things to consider. For example the hitch receiver on the back of the tow vehicle has a weight rating too. The truck might be competent to tow 5,340 pounds, but if the receiver is ranked for 5,000 pounds that’s the most you may tow. You see everything in the towing scheme is based on the weakest link in the system.

As you may see there is a lot more involved with tow ratings than a television mercantile advert a wholly boxed frame. I could write an entire book on the topic. Well, in truth I did. Much more info is available in my book, The RV Book, and DVD titled Trailer Towing, Weights, Hitchwork & Backing, available at http://www.rveducation101.com

All I genuinely recognise is the last trailer I owned weighed in at when it comes to 7,300 pounds when it was loaded to go camping. My ¾ ton truck at the time had a tow rating of 8,800 pounds and I was under the GCWR. Towing the trailer was not always a pleasurable experience. I get nervous when I listen regarding a ½ ton truck capable of towing 11,000 pounds, don’t you?

Here is my Ford Challenge to Ford. Let me review this one ½ ton F-150 that may tow 11,000 pounds. I’ll hook it up to an 11,000 pound trailer, take a test drive and write a review. If I’m faulty with regards to my doubts that it may tow an 11,000 pound trailer safely and effortlessly I’ll be the primary to confess it. I’ll keep checking my e-mail, but won’t get my hopes up.

I’ll leave you with a few thoughts to ponder:

1) Don’t let mercantile advert plant a seed that all F-150 trucks may tow 11,000 pounds, when in fact only one model is ranked for 10,500, at least that’s what the Ford towing guide says. And then do the math and see what that one truck may tow in the real world.

2) Are truck manufacturers crossing a fine line with advertised tow ratings? I have been involved in a few legal cases, as an expert witness, where people were paralyzed and killed. The mutual factor in these cases involved improperly matched tow vehicles and trailers. Don’t depend on automobile dealerships and RV dealerships to always give you 100% precise information. Do your homework before purchasing a tow vehicle and trailer.

3) Are RV makers building trailers too heavy for today’s trucks? Is this the reason for increased tow ratings? If a trailer has a GVWR that is higher than the tow rating of your vehicle it is a mismatch. If you load the trailer to it is GVWR you will exceed your tow vehicle rating.

4) At this rate what will take place with tow ratings by 2010?

UPDATE: 1 JUNE 2007

After a lot of attempts to contact Ford representatives and after writing this article I was ultimately contacted by the Ford Public Relations Group, Ford Truck Commercial Manager. I believe that was his title. He claimed that the Gross Combined Weight Rating for the half-ton truck in question was raised from 15,800 pounds to 16,400 pounds, as of 31 May 2007. It was in the first place 15,300 pounds, then 15,800 and now 16,400. I questioned what changed on the vehicle to account for the latest increase in the GCWR and was told the shackle and bumper affixations were bettered and something in regards to the distinctive tires the truck had. He also informed me that the truck passed the same stringent truck durability testing cycle that all Fords trucks are put through to determine it is capabilities. On more than one occasion he brought up that Ford was not just controlling the numbers. One problem I still see is that there is no standardized testing for vehicles to determine tow capacities, so fundamentally it is left to the manufacturer to determine ratings. I still have my doubts regarding any half-ton truck being competent to safely tow 11,000 pounds, but for the record Ford in the long run came forward and said their truck may do it. I’ll let you, the consumer, be the judge.

Readers comments:

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Happy Camping

Mark Polk

Copyright 2007 by Mark J. Polk owner rveducation101.com

Is There An Online Site That Tells You Various Gross Vehicle Weights

NO ONE WOULD TELL – DVD Movie

Is There An Online Site That Tells You Various Gross Vehicle Weights Photo

Is There An Online Site That Tells You Various Gross Vehicle Weights Photo

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Most helpful client reviews

101 of 105 people found the following review helpful.
A message that never gets old
By K. Hinton
Candace Cameron and Fred Savage shake off the goody-goody images related with the roles that brought them teen stardom on Full House and The Wonder Years. Cameron plays Stacy Collins, a normal high school girl full of insecurities who happens to land the class hunk. Savage is Bobby Tennyson, high school wrestler and all-around standard guy. When these two get together, Stacy in the end knows what it feels like to be a percentage of the in-crowd and is so thankful she’s more than willing to look past Bobby’s a heap of faults.

Their kinship starts off normal sufficient with Bobby wooing Stacy with flowers and love poems, but he gets growingly more possessive and jealous. Stacy initially thinks it’s cute that Bobby is so protective until it gets to the point where he becomes overbearing and irrational. Even when he starts hitting her, she defends him to her friends telling them that you stick by the persons you love. “Everything’s fine” becomes her mantra even altho those nearest to her may merely see that it’s not the case.

This kinship closely mirrors the one in which Stacy’s mother is involved. Her mother is too absorbed in her own dating circumstance to understand and know what’s going on with Stacy. Stacy assumes the maternal role, in fact, berating her mother for permitting her boyfriend to treat her badly even though she’s more than willing to overlook Bobby’s abusive nature. In fact, when her mother confronts her regarding the abuse, Stacy says “That’s your story, not mine.” That Stacy’s mother backs off at this point is a disgrace and this film strives to point out that in any circumstance no one ought to let abuse slide.

This film came out in the early 1990′s and was one of those Sunday Night movies aimed at letting teenagers know the ills that will befall them if they’re not careful. It’s stuck with me all these years because the message is delivered without a scolding undertone, but rather as a reminder of what may go horribly defective if you let things spiral out of hand. Sally Jessy Raphael has a guest role as the judge in Bobby’s trial and she reminds those present who witnessed Stacy’s abuse that we have a obligation to the persons who we care about. It’s a ridiculous and dangerous exercise to merely shake off abuse with the adage “Love Hurts.” It shouldn’t.

37 of 39 persons found the following review helpful.
“If I can’t have her, no one’s gonna….”
By MollyRK
Is this genuinely the type of rationale that a heap of humans use in the face of evil? It’s unimaginable without a doubt, but it’s also a painstaking reality that, unfortunately, has not yet vanished from society. I stumbled throughout this movie by accident when it aired not so long ago on Lifetime, and I was propelled to watch as soon as I saw that usual “Full House” alum Candace Cameron was in the starring role.

Anyone who was a “child of the 80′s” will without any delay recognize Candace Cameron and Fred Savage from “Full House” and “The Wonder Years.” Placing them together in one movie proved very effective (although a good deal of of you will in all probability be hard pressed to buy teen sweetheart Fred Savage as a coldblooded villain), and few may deny that this is a story that deserves to stay out there.

Based on a true story (which ought to come as a surprise to no one, haha), “No One Would Tell” follows a 5-month romance among two high school students. Sweet, insecure Stacy Collins is thrilled when Bobby Tennison, the school’s handsome and smooth-talking star wrestler, takes an interest in her. Everything is a whirlwind from there, and he grabs her from the very beginning. With long-stemmed roses, imagination gifts, winks and smiles up and down the hallway, it appears to be a fairytale relationship, but it doesn’t take long at all for Bobby’s controlling conduct to surface, and he starts smacking her around. His influence over those mere five months drives Stacy further and further from her other friendships and academics, transforming her into a weak victim, but when those who are nearest to her can’t find it in them to do anything, it flares into a worst-case scanario where Stacy may no longer be helped. From there, it becomes a gritty, heart-wrenching battle for all the persons in Stacy’s life to give her the only thing they have left to offer: an honorable tongue and a brave step forward.

Lifetime TV is famous for airing movies that include a heavy sprinkling of eerie melodrama, but setting that detached for a bit, what makes this story so effective is how it applies to our world. As frightening as this plot is (beware a semi-graphic scene toward the end), it is perhaps even more saddening. The reputation of Stacy Collins is a classic portrait of a teenage girl who had lots of friends, a vibrant personality, and a peculiar presence that made her ordinary amidst a great deal of in high school. She had her own set of problems, but in frequent she was happy and had humans who cared for her. But she was very quick to tap into the youthful excitement of having a super-cute and usual boyfriend, and when push came to shove she was not strong sufficient to stand up versus his terrifying abuse. It is a horrendous story because there are real girls–young girls–who experience the precise same thing each day. It likewise happens to be such a sad story because this was a girl who loved this guy and was so excessively affected emotionally regarding being with him, but in the end she could do not one thing to please him, not through any fault of her own but through his own insanity that not anyone was capable to save her from.

Some girls survive these things, and others do not. Watching this movie genuinely reminded me a lot of the recent Laci Peterson case. The deception, the lies, the mysterious disappearance…it’s scary stuff. It may seem melodramatic, but it genuinely is not when you think regarding how much this veritably does subsist in real life. Lifetime movies are all too widely known and esteemed for being overacted and drastic, which makes me timid away from most films on this channel, but this is one subject where it is necessary for the characters to be overdone, because this is just what happens when people–often naive teenage kids–step into a dangerous kinship and let it become too severe too quickly. Movies like this are indispensable to make, and perchance those who watch them may take a lesson on not just doing everything possible to refrain from the unthinkable that possessed Fred Savage’s character, but likewise remembering the critical importance of breaking the silence when such situations come up with friends, family, and even just mere acquaintances. It’s a movie that opens up innumerable windows for discussion, because there are without doubt or question so a great deal of ways that the ending to this peculiar story could have been prevented. Stacy, her friends, classmates and family all made conclusions that subconsciously contributed to the end result, and it’s indispensable to talk in regards to how we may take a stand when we see this in real life. The very worst may happen, and sadly it is not at all overdone in this film; it is the precise precipitation that any girl may experience if they are not mindful.

Cameron and Savage do a breathtakingly effective occupation in their roles. As I said before, Savage’s well-known run on the lighthearted coming-of-age series “The Wonder Years” makes it hard to see him as a bad guy, but you may tell he worked hard with this and was capable to establish a sense of on-screen evil with those cold eyes and that in-your-face violence. At the end of the movie, I was convinced–and unless you’re a hard-core “Wonder Years” fan who has seen each episode with regards to twenty times, you’ll probably be convinced, too. Cameron likewise delivers rather nicely as the naive, battered teenager who has a hard time letting go and an even harder time protecting herself from the worst when it counts most. Her sweet and innocent reputation carries over from her role as DJ Tanner on “Full House,” but with this movie she shows that she is competent to take the emotion and drama to a new level. I also have to give props to Heather McComb, who played Stacy’s best friend Nicky. That right there is an actress who knows how to sob from her gut in front of the camera! I was genuinely impressed with her work. The entire cast does well with the plot and invest sufficient in these characters to convey the message–which just happens to be a actually essential one. Too melodramatic, you say? Not in the slightest–there are hundreds of adolescent girls in the world who are going through this right now. The last few lines of the movie say it best: “You have a obligation to the persons you care about. If you see them hurting or you see them in trouble, you step in and you TELL someone, so that this does not occur again.”

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful.
Abuse Is Not To Be Taken Lightly
By Noirdame
That’s the message here; and this is what may occur if action is not taken. Candace Cameron and Fred Savage leave their days as child stars behind in this 1996 NBC television movie, based on a unfeigned story. Stacy Collins (Cameron) is a junior in high school who is timid and uncertain, but when she begins dating handsome senior and star of the school wrestling team, Bobby Tennison (Savage), she feels loved and protected. But behind his charming exterior, Bobby’s sweet conduct (leaving her flowers in her locker, giving her gifts, etc.), is a controlling, possessive nature which Stacy tries to dismiss. But he closely monitors her each move and feels threatened if she spends time away from him. Physical violence is commonly introduced. Their friends suspect that things are not as rosy as they seem, but only Stacy’s best pal Nicky (Heather McComb) tries to persuade her to end the relationship. Trapped in the sensations of isolation and blaming herself for his inexcusable actions, Stacy lives in fear. Bobby’s cousin informs Nicky that he had likewise mistreated his former girlfriend (who transposed to to get away from him), and after yet another public fight (during a great school dance, where the nifty 50s is the theme), Stacy, encouraged by Nicky, tells Bobby that it’s over. A genuinely unnerving moment in the hallway after she breaks it off, when he tells her he will never give her up. Through the wired glass of the classroom door his face is like cold, evil granite, his look with fixed eyes like the black coals of hell. Bobby, beneath the guise of wanting to stay friends, asks her to come over to his house to give him a haircut. Inevitably, another spat occurs, and, rather of taking her home, he takes her out to a nearby lake where they had their primary date. Only Bobby returns to the truck, to the horror of his friend Vince (Eric Balfour), and with blood on his hands. “If I can’t have her, no one’s gonna,” Bobby chillingly states. Stacy is missing; her frantic mother Laura (Michelle Phillips), and friends search for clues, along with the local police; Stacy’s ex-boyfriend is queerly calm. Vince, riddled with guilt, makes an anonymous call to the cops, telling them to go look out by the lake. He is at long last brought in for questioning, while Nicky informs Laura of Bobby’s abusive tendencies. Vince tells what he knows, and then the investigation moves to Bobby, who ultimately cracks under the pressure. When Stacy refused to go back to him, he had slit her throat and dumped her body in the lake. Sally Jessy Raphael makes a special aspect as the judge who hands down the life sentence to a stone cold Bobby. She then admonishes all others involved for not speaking up – this is what may take place if you don’t.

Those who do not forget Savage as the wholesome Kevin Arnold on “The Wonder Years” will be amazed at how effective he is – romantic and beautiful one minute, angry and obsessive the next. The way Bobby treats his mother, his abusive father’s past, and his anger in the wrestling ring are subtle hints of things to come (as is the moment when Stacy takes a shower at Nicky’s house – it’s pretty apparent that she is being watched). Cameron, who has always excelled at playing kind, naive, tame characters, does a great job, as always. Heather McComb is the best friend each girl ought to have, while Michelle Phillips gives just the right amount of remainder as the caring but distracted mother who is too busy with work and her own lowlife boyfriend (whom Stacy despises), to realize the dangerous circumstance her daughter is in.

Hopefully, stories like this will raise more consciousness – too numerous people have looked the other way.

The DVD: This version is more or less dissimilar than the one that aired on television. Two Belinda Carlisle songs have been substituted with more current music. The only extras are trailers for direct to video films.

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