need to get my car 75 miles to a restorer of choice and wifey isn't too keen on spending a few hours following on the highway and taking me home.

and i don't have an uber-tower.

I have a 4.0 L 6cyl SUV with a 5000lb tow capacity, which is enough for the 442 and dolly...and the setup does meet all UHaul reqs for tow vehicle weight, towed car weight, etc.

Anything wrong with me towing the car on a tow dolly for 75 mi ? Mostly flat but some rolling hills on the interstate.

 

Is this a rear wheel drive SUV? If it says you can tow 5000 LBS, and it is flat ground, you will not have a problem, the car is under 4000 LBS. Not sure what your SUV is, but check your manual, may not want to tow in OD.

 

2006 4Runner 6cyl...choice of 2WD, and 4Hi and 4Lo...Uhaul says RWD car towed con dolly an't be more than 3900 lbs and also must be at least 750 lbs lighter than towing car.

There is one slight highway incline for about 3 miles and then a slight downward slope for maybe 4 miles....then on side roads another 3 mi incline with a 35 mph speel limit

I wish I had opted for the V8 4Runner with 7300lb capac. I could have used a real trailer in that case.

 

If the ground is wet from rain,Use Extreme Caution.

I came within inches of wrecking my truck and car when the tow dolly jack knifed on wet pavement while easing my way thru a turn.Once the truck rear wheels lost traction,the weight of the car on the dolly just pushed the whole rig into a jack knife.

I almost had to use a shovel to clean out my pants afterward.

 

Trade the wife for a V8 tow vehicle.

 

Some people can burn out clutches and transmissions because they over work them. I towed a Blazer 80 miles with a 3.0 Chevy Lumina van. I accelerated very slowly and did my best not to overwork the Chevy. I stopped at 40 miles and let it cool down. I don't think I needed to but I did. However it was flat country and once I reached highway speed there wasn't too much of a pull on the van. But it was stupid and I'll never do it again!!! What kind of an incline? What state are you in? My friend pulls a big Lund 18ft boat with a Saturn Vue all the time. If it is rated to pull it go for it.

 

Wife would prefer that I drive a Civic, so even having a V6 is gravy for me. She's not thrilled about having old cars around, hence the "NO" when I asked her to follow and bring me home.

I'm in NJ off of Rt 78, which is mostly flat...but would be going into eastern PA and there are hills there on the highway and on the local roads. Nothing very steep but long incline.

Neighbor has massive GMC that can tow anything but I'm reluctant to ask him for that favor because he's been very grumpy since his motorcycle business isn't doing well.

 

I know people joking say stuff like this all the time go but it sounds like you need a new wife that is willing to support you in your interests. If you are not close enough that she is willing to help you for a few hours and you for her vise versa then what does that say about your relationship. Ive been down that road with my first wife. I kept changing myself to make her happy and she never wanted to support my interests it all finally came to a head one day and I got out. I lost everything I owned pretty much and it took 3 years to get on my feet but looking at the life I have now and the woman I am married to it was such the right choice to make.

 

Piece of cake. I towed my 66 442 on a tow dolly from Sacramento to Los Angeles using my 1970 Supreme as the tow vehicle. Yes, I had a Class III hitch on the Supreme. I even got upwards of 16 MPG in the process. Just be sure to pull the driveshaft. If you can get tow lights, that would be a good thing.

 

Why not just have it taken on a rollback/flatbed tow truck?
You're spending the money on a resto and you're going to take the chance like that to save a lousy couple of hundred bucks??
It would only be half a day labor at a resto shop...if you're lucky.

The piece of mind of having an insured and bonded pro do it is priceless and if anything did happen if you towed it would your insurance cover it?
I worked at U-Haul and hooked up a lot of towbars and I wouldn't risk it with that tow vehicle, not enough engine, size or weight IMO.

 

Gear..speaking only for me, my wife puts up with a lot from me and I'm thankful she's willing to do more than her fair share of dealing with our four young kids, the oldest of whom is 5.

Very soon I will have to focus more (and $ spend more) on my kids' interests rather than on my own (right now they don't have any), but I think my wife has the right idea. I've been the selfish one. Next year it'll be Little League and/or soccer on weekends instead of car shows and football games.

So, not sure of your past but relationships should be more important than cars. I've noted you're a thoughtful and intelligent guy, so I suspect it wasn't your love of cars that was the issue.

Joe - what do you mean, 'pull the driveshaft' ?

Blue...SUV weighs over 5000 lbs....and I'm only bringing the car out for a paint shop to match a new hood to the car and do some minor touch ups...

 

If you tow a car using a dolly you want to pull the driveshaft out of it.

 

Well, more specifically, if the car has an automatic, you don't want to tow with the drive wheels on the ground and the trans in neutral. Without the engine turning the transmission's oil pump, you'll damage the internal bushings and bearings. The easy way around this is to disconnect the driveshaft from the rear axle and wire tie it to an exhaust pipe temporarily. If you remove it entirely, you need to install an old driveshaft yoke or other plug in the trans, or your name will be "British Petroleum".

Now, if the car has a manual trans, ignore this. You can tow just fine in neutral.

 

Have any old-car buddies who will follow you and bring you back (providing the car is in good driving condition)?
I am sure you prolly thought of this already, but just had to ask.

 

car is a stick....BUT...lots of times I see newer cars getting towed on dollies, and I figure most are auto cars...so they are damaging the cars ?

Lady...have some local buddies in the hobby but I figure 75 miles each way and the time commitment is a lot to ask....wife's brother in law (does that make him MY brother in law?) has an 8 cyl. GMC pickup about 10 years old but I'm not sure the tow rating is more than mine....

 

Have you tried offering him money? It seems that a guy with a business that's not doing well would jump at the chance to make a few bucks.

 

Four kids under 5 - two hours to your wife is like a weekend of time to most. I have four kids as well so I wouldn't expect my wife to spend two hours following me and we all know it would be more like 4 about time all is said and done. I'd spend the few extra bucks and get it flat bedded. My wife probably would do it but I would tow, ask a friend, and think about walking home before I even asked her well maybe I'd ask before walking home but you get the point.

 

Jaunty---have thought about offering him money, but in some ways I think that is demeaning...as in suggesting he needs it...he is a friend.

runs an Indian motorcycle dealership and they aren't selling ... they don't have the cache of Harleys but they cost more.

 

Have you asked the guy doing the restoration? They arrange towing all the time. If you haven't towed a lot I wouldn't recommend doing it yourself. I tow all the time & managed to lose my 68 off the trailer on the way to the restoration shop:

http://www.realoldspower.com/phpBB2/...highlight=lost

And I'm embarressed to say that the shop doing the work offered to pick up the car for free & they are 60 miles from my house but I insisted on bringing it myself

 

They are also front wheel drive, so the drive wheels are already off the ground and not turning while being towed....

 

Yeah, kinda maybe sorta. But what are you saying? That you'd offer him the money to do the tow only if he DIDN'T need it?

It's nice that you're thinking of his feelings. But, on the other hand, you need a tow, and he could use the money. Seems like a match made in heaven.

 

You could offer it to pay for the gas or if he doesn't want the money, offer to take him and his wife (your sister-in-law?) along with your wife out for a steak dinner. You're happy, he's happy, sister -in-law's happy and your wife's happy to go out with family. Believe me, "if mama ain't happy, aint nobody happy."

Or you could rent a big pick up to do the pullin', or ask U-haul if they have anything that will carry the car enclosed.

 

I looked into some of this when I needed my '73 Custom Cruiser transported by truck. U-haul didn't have an enclosed truck large enough for the wagon. I don't know that they rent any trucks that can carry a car inside where they actually would let you do that.

They had a truck heavy enough to tow it, but they didn't have a trailer big enough to put it on. The car was too wide for their largest car trailer. The 442 is probably small enough that this isn't an issue.

 

Your situation is a lot different than mine.

The way the original post read it was like she was just saying no in protest to you and your hobbies. Lots of small kids around is a different story.

I highly suggest you find someone with a trailer and the right size truck to tow. The problem with a tow dolly and small tow rig is not the ability to pull it. Its the lack of ability to stop and manuver in a panic or emergency

 

We towed a 71 442 from Kentucky to Mn. We use ours all the time.

 

get a pro. take wife and kids out for ice cream and follow the tow truck.

 

I would think you should be just fine with a dolley. When I went to get my cutlass home, I used a 6 cyl Ford Exploder and we actually used a full blown trailer. (Just don't ask how I tric-er-conivinced the rental company to rent me the trailer.) There were more hills then we would have preffered on the way back, but the worst that happened was the brakes started to smell a little burnt coming down from one of the hills. Oh and turn off the overdrive just to be safe.

 

What do you tow it WITH, and how much does it weigh relative to what the 442 weighs? That seems to be the key issue here. People advising against towing are talking about potential problems with losing control of the load, fishtailing, etc. I would think the larger the tow vehicle the better.

 

We used a Chevy Silverado. If your car is rated to pull a load like a 442 why not believe them? There is always the possibilty of problems. I'm the type of guy that will take a risk of smoking the tranny to save a couple hundred bucks. Some won't, and I don't think any less of them for holding that opinion. I try to keep costs down to a minimum. If you spend a hundred here and there, soon you spent a thousand. It should be no worse than pulling a big speed boat. Call a local dealer and talk to a mechanic and see what he says. If he says I see them in here all the time with tranny trouble I'd forget it. If you get the green light, go for it.
If you use the dolly. Check the straps after a mile or two and give them another crank on the ratchets and enjoy the ride.

 

I towed mu 71 cutlass convertible home on a tow dolly. I used my GMC Acadia with a 5000lb tow capacity. Truck is AWD with a 3.6l motor - had no problem.
I put the drive wheels on the dolly and would not do this again. The car swayed with every bump and wagged the dog. Had to drive 70 km(40mph) max.
This time unbolt the drive shaft and tie it up with wire or a ratchet strap.

Good Luck

 

Get a AAA Plus membership, you can get 100 mile tows (flatbed) x 4 to destination of your choice, I have used mine several times to transport vehicles, and have never been questioned or turned down no matter what condition or who's vehicle it was.

 

With all due respect, we've already spent more time talking about this than it takes to do it. Just get the tow dolly, tow the car, be careful about speed limits, and you're done.