Spitfire Spitfire - to tow or not to tow.

[Scott_Hower]

Hi all,

As you may know, I recently purchased a 79 Spitfire 1500 via eBay. Huge kudos to member tdskip who drove down from Irvine to San Diego to eyeball the car last Sunday. Tom is a great guy and I can't thank him enough.

I'm in PA and it is being transported crosscountry in an enclosed carrier from CA. I am exploring options for the last leg of the journey.

The shipping terminal in CA is 9 miles away from the seller, so the vehicle will be driven there and dropped off. No issues on that end (hopefully). The receiving terminal on my end is about 60 miles from my home.

The car is in running and driving condition, but the brakes are soft and the electric fan is a bit iffy. Not sure if CA has an annual inspection, but there is no sticker on the windshield. Call me paranoid, but I'm hesitant to drive it that distance without first going through it (belts, hoses, fluids, lube, tuneup, etc).

I could probably bleed the brakes in the field to firm up the pedal, but not positive. It will be titled, registerd and insured for PA by the time it arrives, so I'll be legal to drive it.

My neighbor owns a U-Haul tow dolly and I'm thinking I can pull it with the X5. Will a Spit fit on a tow dolly? The tire pans on the dolly look like they are adjustable side-to-side so it should fit width wise. Any clearance issues on the front airdam when loading? Must I disconnect the driveshaft so I dont roast the gearbox? (The MGB guys debate this one endlessly). Anything else to be concerned about if I tow it?

I can have it delivered to my door on a rollback for an extra $150 but if I can avoid that cost I would prefer to. I'm also concerned about damage getting it on and off (air dam, squished brake lines from the tie down chains, etc).

So, combined-forum-wisdom, if this were your car, what would you do and why?

1. Drive it.
2. Tow it.
3. Have it delivered.

 

[Dennis]

Hey Scott,
Towing it that short of a distance won't hurt it, just make sure E-brakes and the steering wheel lock is off. Yes, the Spit and GT6 will fit on that tow dolly. I've had to use it to retrieve mine a couple of times....
Dennis

 

[Merlin63Tr4]

There is no annual safety or any other kind of vehicle inspection (except for the smog inspection every two years) in California, therefore no stickers.

D.C.R

 

[Twosheds]

I would drive it. No guts, no glory.

 

[Scott_Hower]

There is no annual safety or any other kind of vehicle inspection (except for the smog inspection every two years) in California, therefore no stickers.

D.C.R

Thanks, I did not know that. Annual "safety inspection" is every year in PA. They should rename it "revenue generation" as they always seem to find something to sell you: wiper blades, light bulbs...

 

[Andrew Mace]

What else do or don't you know about the car? You note that it's "running and driving" but brakes are iffy, etc. What do you know about u-joints or wheel bearings or tires? If any one of those items fails while you're flat-towing or dolly-towing it, you're going to pay a lot more than $150 to repair the likely damage caused by the failure.

I'd go for the rollback or, if someone you know has a suitable trailer, bring it home that way.

 

[CinneaghTR]

I'd go with a full trailer or a rollback, preferably one of the "low" rollbacks that are LBC-friendly. It would be worth the additional expense not to have any surprises on that trip home.

 

[TheAssociate]

Well, only a British car owner would ask "how soft?".

I'd say tow it if it's not a huge hassle. It's tempting to drive but realistically you need the obligitory one month "research and development" time to change oil, check brakes etc.

Then again, the teenager in me says fill the master resevoir up, fill the oil and go, man! Just make sure you bring your VISA and your cell phone.

Adam H.
___________________________________________________________
1973 Triumph Spitfire.

 

[Scott_Hower]

What else do or don't you know about the car? You note that it's "running and driving" but brakes are iffy, etc. What do you know about u-joints or wheel bearings or tires? If any one of those items fails while you're flat-towing or dolly-towing it, you're going to pay a lot more than $150 to repair the likely damage caused by the failure.

Good point. In fact, I dont know very much about the maintenance history of the car. It's owned by an artist in CA and was allegedly maintained by his mechanically inclined friend. I have some receipts. I bought this primarily because the body and paint are really sound; I dont mind mechanicals, but I will NOT replace a sill or floorpan anytime soon.

I was told it has a new water pump and tie rod ends (not that either matter for towing). Tires look newish in the photos, but they could be old and dryrotted for all I know. I forgot that a Spirfire has IRS; I'd hate to have one of the axle u-joints let go at 50mph.

I'll probably have it delivered. It's going to cost me a case of Guiness to borrow the dolly anyway. I'll see if I can observe (read: supervise) the rollback loading/tiedown so it doesnt get beat up.

Once it gets in the garage, here's the plan to get it roadworthy. Anything missing?

change coolant, flush rad
change engine and gearbox oil
change diff lube

compression test

new filters (air/oil/fuel)
new plug wires
new cap and rotor
new rad hoses
new fuel hoses
new alt/airpump belt

adjust valves/set timing

inspect shocks/u-joints (replace?)
inspect front/rear suspension
inspect/repack wheel bearings
replace brake hoses/bleed

 

[Andrew Mace]

Rollback sounds like a plan. I wouldn't worry all that much about the tie-down; most US-spec Triumphs from the mid-1960s on have some pretty substantial tie-down anchors. Barring those, there's more than ample areas of suspension and such to which to anchor the hooks without causing damage to adjacent bits.

And your "plan" sounds fine. I'd be tempted to skip the "change diff lube" and simply top it up as needed with a proper GL-4 specification 90wt hypoid gear oil. There's no drain plug, and sucking the old oil out is a bit of a pain!

 

[CinneaghTR]

I did not have a problem getting my GT6 on a rollback the ONE time I had to have it towed. You could always remove the 1500's front spoiler if you were especially worried about that, but it should be okay, too, especially if you get to supervise. You can always be finicky when selecting a towing company, too.

The recommission plan looks good, too.

Good luck!!!

 

[billspit]

I trailered my most recent Spitfire acquisition home on a Uhaul trailer. Only cost about $60 for local daily rental. I didn't offer that the car was 125 miles away. They won't have Spitfire in the system to plug in when you rent it. Put in Midget and it will take it.

 

[Scott_Hower]

I trailered my most recent Spitfire acquisition home on a Uhaul trailer.

Trailer as in all-4-wheels-off-the-ground, or trailer as in dolly?

 

[CaptDon01]

When I purchased my Spitfire several months ago I rented a car trailer instead of the car dolly. I was towing it about 165 miles back home. It was only $10. more for the day, well worth the extra bucks.....

Don

 

[roofman]

A full size trailer from Uhaul is the way to go.
Ryder makes you rent a truck with the trailer.
You need a class 3 hitch on your tow vehicle.

 

[billspit]

It was a four wheel trailer, not a dolly. Cost only a few dollars more than a dolly.

 

[Bob Claffie]

Drive it. You make it sound like it's on it's last legs and if you didn't rescue it , it was off to the crusher. I assume it has been driven rather regularly sometime in the last few years, why look at the absolutely blackest possibilities. In order to drive it home you're going to have to have someone take you to the terminal so you're going to have support. Bring telephones or CB's and stay in touch. You don't have to drive home at 65 mph, take it easy and pay attention, the drive will enable you to figure out what it REALLY needs. Bob

 

[Scott_Hower]

Drive it. You make it sound like it's on it's last legs and if you didn't rescue it , it was off to the crusher. I assume it has been driven rather regularly sometime in the last few years, why look at the absolutely blackest possibilities.

Well, to be fair, I have no idea what mechanical condition this is in. Dunno if it was driven regularly or not. CA has no inspection apparently. For all I know the trust washers are laying in the oil pan. I know for sure that the brakes are iffy (guessing air). It might not be a bad investment to have it hauled the last 60miles for peace of mind.

Keep in mind, I will have already spent $1300 to have it hauled cross country from CA to PA. Whats another $100 for a rollback.

 

[JamesWilson]

Why not ask the seller if he'd driven it regularly recently? And whether he'd be willing to drive it that distance. Its sold and he's got his money, so you'd be likely to get the truth. He'd be far more familiar with it and its capabilities than you can merely speculate about...

If driving is not advisable I'd say trailer it...

 

[Scott_Hower]

Why not ask the seller if he'd driven it regularly recently? And whether he'd be willing to drive it that distance.

Will do. Seems that the seller (the mechanically inclined friend) and the owner (the artist) are two different people.

I will ask the seller if he would feel confident driving it an hour or so.

I am nearly certain I am going to have it delivered; I really want to go through it myself to see whats up. Car is original and unrestored, so 28 years old.