Towing question....

[Guest]

Again, I have plans to attend the VTR convention in Dallas and have a towing question. In the past, I have used a U-Haul auto transpost, which is designed for carrying a car. It has front chocks to roll the front wheels against and a sling to lock down the front tires, with chains for the rear. I used to just roll the car on, lock down and go. Now, because my car has been lowered and has custom, lowriding exhausts, I can no longer fit on the U-Haul. My friend to the rescue. I have access to a really decent tilt trailer that has (or will have) all the necessary lock downs but no chocks. I am rigging a set of loose chocks for the wheels but not affixed to the trailer. The question I have is should the car be locked in gear (1st?) with the emergency brake on or leave it free wheeling? This may sound trivial but somehow I feel that leaving it in neutral might be a better idea, putting less stress on the drive train. There will be no way the car will come off the trailer (save an accident!) and will be chained and strapped down rather tightly. So, what do ya'll think?


Bill

 

[donbmw]

Everytime I put my TR3 on the trailer I do not have it in gear or set the brake. It is tied down on all four corners and I check each tie down everytime I stop.

Don

 

[jerrybny]

I would at least put the parking brake on. when I brought my TR6 home from PA to NY a few years ago Ryder suggested that at a minumum that the parking brake be set. They said it would help keep the car in place when taking off and stopping. It would aid the tiedowns. Good Luck Bill

 

[tomshobby]

I don't think I would leave it in gear because it might cause stress like you already are thinking. I would probably use the handbrake and set it after the car is tied down.

 

[Bugeye58]

Bill, I'm with Don on this one. I trailer my race cars all over, and they don't have handbrakes. I just cinch 'em down tight, and check the tiedowns at every stop. Haven't lost one yet! Another trick I learned was that after you get it tied down good, add another 10 psi to the tire pressures. It will help keep everything stable. Just don't forget to bleed them back down after you unload! I saw a guy hit the track in a Formula V, with 50 psi in his tires. Needless to say, it was a squirrel.
Jeff

 

[aeronca65t]

Hmmmm?
Like Jeff, my racer has no handbrake.
I always cinch-down four corners with tie downs first and THEN put the car in gear after pushing in the clutch. There should be no stress on the drivetrain this way (if the car doesn't move), but if a tie breaks, you have bit of a fail safe.
At any rate, I'm not sure why this would cause stress on the drivetain anyway...I'd guess there is far more load on things under normal, hard acceleration.

 

[swift6]

Like others, cinch them down on all four corners with high quality tie down straps. This is no place to try and save a few bucks. To help keep the car from lurching against the straps, set the handbrake or place in gear as mentioned after cinching down the straps. The ultimate back up is a safety CHAIN attached to somewhere forward of the car. It's always a good idea to check your straps at every stop. I've always refrained from using non-permanent wheel chocks on a trailer. If the car does shift and they come loose then you have a possible projectile. Very unfriendly to other motorists.

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