How to tow FD with Tow Dolly
 

Okay before anyone flame me...:) I searched and read many threads on how to do this but I don't see a consistent or definite answer to this.

So here are the conditions.

I need to tow from the Bay Area (San Francisco) to Los Angeles area. It's about a 400 mile tow. My plan is rent a tow dolly from UHaul and tow a 93 FD manual transmission back.

Here are some of the methods.

1. Front tires on the tow dolly, since it's manual no need to disconnect drive shaft.

2. Front tires on the tow dolly, remove drive shaft due to some concern about lubrication of the pumpkin.

3. Rear wheels on the tow dolly, lock steering wheel with seat beat so wheel will point straight.

4. Rear wheels on the tow dolly, don't lock the steering wheel (I would think this could cause the vehicle in tow swinging around)

5. Rear wheels on the tow dolly, lock with steering lock. I think this would cause the vehicle in tow to be towed at the angle which is concern as well.)

Other question I have is that with either end on the tow dolly, would the other end touch the ground? Or any components of the car to drag on the ground?

Thanks,

Why do you want to use a tow dolly instead of a car transport trailer, which UHAUL also offers (or did relatively recently)?

Rent the trailer they have its not much difference in price. I used one in July to pick up an FD in KC 6 hours from me and it ran me $55 for the 24 hour period. Not worth risking the tow dolly. IMO

This, i picked my car up with one of those.
The trailer is costs very little extra.
But if you set on using a dolly, drop the drive shaft.

Don't be cheap tow the car properly on a trailer.

My tow vehicle can not tow more than 3500 lbs, therefore, I can not rent the car trailer. That leaves me with the tow dolly option.

Why do I need to drop the drive shaft? Car is manual so it shouldn't be a problem rolling the rear wheels.

Why not just drive the FD there?

We figure we can make a family weekend trip out of it and visit relatives...:)

Ive only towed FDs with a dolly about 100 times. If it is a manual(which you stated it was), just strap down front wheels(with the steering wheel locked) and put the trans in nuetral.

People are hilarious, if it is a manual you will have no issues. I prefer towing with the dolly as it is much more stable at higher speeds if loaded properly.

So front wheels on the dolly, lock front wheel and put car in neutral...:)

I usually tow with the rear wheels on the dolly and lock the steering with a club.

Make sure the front wheels are strapped down well, but before doing so make sure the steering wheel is locked(remove key and turn wheels slightly in one direction). After driving the first 4-5 miles stop to retighten straps as they will shift some. After that you should be good to go.

tow dolly
 

You will probably need to put the rear wheels on the dolly. The front air dam will not clear the frame on most of the dollys that U-Haul uses, so you either have to damage it when loading the car or park on a steep hill or find some other way to change the angle of the car going up the ramps. With the front wheels on the ground you need to lock the steering wheel with bungee cords or if you are lucky, U-Haul will have the web strap that goes around the steering wheel and locks under the seat frame to keep the wheels pointed in a straight line. Otherwise the car will go down the road crooked- either on the shoulder of the road or in the oncoming traffic lane. Also- it is almost impossible to back the tow vehicle and tow dolly without jacknifing the entire rig, so plan carefully when pulling into gas stations or other areas with limited space.

Just a question- you mentioned that your tow vehicle is not rated for more than 3500 lbs towing weight. Your challenge with a light tow vehicle will not be pulling. It will be stopping. No brakes on the tow dolly, so your car/truck has to do all the work.

My tow vehicle is a brand new Honda Pilot FWD not 4WD. It weights 4319 lbs but it's only rated for 3500 lb towing. With the front wheels on the ground, FD being front engine, I assume most of the weight will be at the front wheels ie loaded on the ground. I just have to be careful about breaking / stopping.

I've done it this way plenty of times wth no problems with fc's and fd's.

How much does the trailer weight? If your towing capacity is 3500 you should be fine with the trailer.

what are you towing with that a dolly is more stable. my mind is blown from this statement

that said i have a 2002 f250 and a 3000lb steel trailer. i have towed numerous 1000 mile trips averaging 75mph with no trailer sway. i can't even feel the trailer/car behind it

UHaul trailer are 2200 lbs, I figure FD is about 2800 lbs. Total of 5000 lbs.

Planning on getting some 2x6 so car can be raised as it reverse its way on to the dolly.

Damn, good to know. Now I know what type of hitch to get for the Titan when I move back to the west coast.

You can always get one of this and just put the car inside. I have done that before ;)

http://www.uhaul.com/Reservations/Eq....aspx?model=GH

Dodge Diesel trucks, Numerous Tahoes, Pickups whatever. All more than capable of towing with a trailer. Most of the towing was with my 98 tahoe, probably have 40,000 miles of towing fds over the years using both trailers and a tow dolly. I consistently tow between 75-85mph with a dolly and have zero fear of locking down the brakes and not worry about the dolly swaying back and forth and jack knifing. I tow regularly for my work with a 2009 Big Horn Dodge 4 door diesel with around a 5-6000 lb load. Not much of a better tow rig out there for a street truck and when you stand on the brakes at 80 mph the trailer will still tend to sway a little.

This guy is using a vehicle at its limit to tow, I promise he will be much safer towing with the dolly. I could care less to argue, Ive towed these cars from as far as Denver CO to Knoxville TN and every where else in between on a dolly for the last 7 years without issue.

I towed many FDs from San Fran area to Eugene Or (~500 miles) on a dolly. The advantage to towing with a dolly is that it is a small unloaded trailer and loading the car is easier than with a trailer. The downside is the car has to have decent rear tires and you CAN'T back up with a car on the dolly.

This past weekend I towed an FD from Modesto to Eugene (548 miles) on a dolly. I highly recommend towing with the front wheels strapped rather than the rears. The stock toe settings with the front wheels on the ground will make the car slightly unstable and you will have to depend on the the steering wheel lock and/or straps to keep the front wheels (on the ground) pointed straight. I did tow an automatic FD this way and it sucked. Keep the trans in neutral and the key in the ignition so the column won't lock. You will have no problems.

+1 tow with rear wheels on ground, towed my fd from sac to susanville.

as others said just strap it in tight. my dad always does a little overkill, he insisted on tightening it down until straps where on rims thought hed blow a tire out