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TR2/3/3A Will flatbed truck scrape bottom of TR3A ?

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J

JonnyRotten

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I need to tow my tr3a.Will a standard flatbed truck scrape the bottom of car on the way up and down being the car is so low to the ground?If so what should I do?
 
Depends on the angle of the ramps. To help, you can place a couple of 2x6's under each rear wheel as you ease the car up the incline. Have someone watch to see when/if the rear drags. Just before it does, put the necessary 2x6's just ahead of the rear wheels. Worked for me.
 
Or do what I did once... let the air out of all the trailer tires and jack the front of the trailer all the way up... then after the car is on it, pump all the tires back up and lower the trailer back onto the tow ball on the truck. Having a 12v electric tire pump in your truck is always handy :smile:
 
Ill ask the burly tow truck guy if heck let me let the air out of his tires and jack up the front of his truck.But seriously,I dont have a trailer.I need to hire a tow truck co. to pick it up.I had my van towed recently on a flatbed and the bumper hit the ground on the way down and its much higher than a tr3a.
 
JonnyRotten said:
I called uhaul, inside to inside of ramps are 35".anyone know the width of tires on a 1960 tr3a..
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My shop manual says 3'9", front and 3'9-1/2", rear. Too wide for that ramp, I think -- and probably overweight, too.

Many years ago I put the TR3 in a truck trailer, up some ramps. The driver and someone else pulled up on the rear wheel wells as it reached the critical point. It lifted the car enough to get it in & back out without too much noise.
 
I had my 3a moved with a flatbed. I had no issues. The tailpipe was close but using a 2x6 piece of wood to elevate the left rear tire did the trick on and off the bed.

Al
 
Most towtruck drivers have roughly 3' lengths of 2x8s or 2x10s just for the purpose of helping with the angle - that should work pretty easily if you need it.

I used a UHaul car hauler to haul my TR4 a couple of years ago, it just fit with a little room to spare - the TR3 is I think 3" narrower so it will be an even tighter fit but I think with some care it will work.
 
As Randy said. If they don't have them I don't know if I would want them touching my car
 
Depends on the tow truck, IMO. The longer the bed extends, the less angle it makes with the ground and the less likely the car is to drag.

The problem is not just how high the car is in the back, but how far the body extends behind the rear axle. Your van sticks out a lot more than the TR3! My Stag was about equally likely to drag bottom in my driveway as the TR (before I lowered the TR), and it had no trouble going onto the flatbed that AAA sent out a few years back.

The 3'9" figures quoted above are the "track", meaning center of tire to center of tire. The actual clearance between the sidewalls is somewhat less. With stock rims & tires, it's probably only 39" sidewall-to-sidewall ... which will still fit fine on that 35" ramp if you are careful to line the car up perfectly. I've even done it with part of the tire hanging out in space, but of course that requires even more care to be sure it's perfectly lined up and stays that way.
 
Had my TR3 on a tow truck more times than I care to remember but I never had any issue with a rollback incline tow truck. Winched right up without any problem. Just be sure they know how to secure cars like these as there are no tow eyes!

On another occasion I rented a U-Haul car trailer and chickened-out when I saw how narrow the tire rails are. The TR3 track BARELY fits the rails. Feathering the clutch while trying to drive up was just too much for me. You are really better off with a completely flat floored trailer.

Check with the guys in the local TR club.......bet someone has a trailer........ or call AAA if you belong.
Gordon
 
Gordon_Dedrick said:
On another occasion I rented a U-Haul car trailer and chickened-out when I saw how narrow the tire rails are. The TR3 track BARELY fits the rails. Feathering the clutch while trying to drive up was just too much for me.
Click to expand...

Or you can use a come along to winch it up if driving it isn't desirable (it is tight).
 
I almost hate to ask - where're you going?
 
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