to tow or not to tow

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er-mine
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to tow or not to tow

Post by er-mine »

....how to tow a powerslide tranny'd corvair

wow...research/info is all over the board

do/dont use a tow bar or flat tow, or a a tow dolly

tow in neutral facing forwards, no it should be facing backwards ...no dont it will wobble

short distance, low speeds only... but start the engine and shift it a bit before tow, and repeat every hundred miles

no, use a car hauler...but u haul dont like you to place corvairs on haulers. WTH?

geesh....its like asking where to invest my hunderds of thousands of pennies (all thats left frum deevorce) and getting 50 suggestions

many have shared their conflicting experiences...its no prob, just do this er that. i went fassst...watch out, you'll kill yur tranny

I have a 100 mile distance to tow...and want to get it done for a hundred bucks ...or less

I can tow w a full size SUV....Sooo, whuts the bess way?
Last edited by er-mine on Thu Jul 21, 2016 8:30 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by b74eqcm »

When I need to move a Corvair more than a few miles, I rent a trailer from U-Haul. If you rent for a single day, it's only about $60 where I am. I just tell U-Haul I'm loading a 63 Nova, and all is well. Load front end first - I don't know where all the rumors about unequal loading and swaying trailers came from, but it's never happened to me. Not with a U-Haul.

I've never liked using a tow dolly, especially for a car I just bought and don't know well. You're assuming that the tires, wheel bearings, u-joints, differential and all the other rotating stuff is fine. I hate to assume. I had a friend buy an early model with a bad rear wheel bearing (that was not found during buying/inspection process) that came apart when getting towed on a dolly at 65 mph. Turned his new project into something ready for the crusher. Didn't do his tow vehicle any favors either.

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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by bbodie52 »

b47eqcm (Jim Thomas) wrote:I don't know where all the rumors about unequal loading and swaying trailers came from, but it's never happened to me. Not with a U-Haul.
A U-Haul trailer makes some pretty big demands on the towing vehicle. A large, heavy duty towing vehicle will certainly help to stabilize everything.

I've seen a number of Corvair-related trailer recommendations that encourage backing the car onto the trailer, to place the weight of the powertrain closer to the front. Trailers that are incorrectly loaded with too little weight at the front can sometimes begin to "fishtail" at speed, possibly even causing an accident. I discovered this once when towing a 4-wheel U-Haul enclosed trailer filled with household goods that was incorrectly loaded with too many heavy objects that were loaded at the rear of the trailer. The trailer began to "fishtail" and swing from side to side at about 50 mph after the tires contacted a road seam — which put the trailer into an oscillating side to side swing that was very difficult to control. I had to pull over and redistribute the cargo, after which the trailer handled fine.

The Corvair is light in the front and much heavier in the rear. If your car-hauler trailer is of normal length (with the center of the Corvair resting over the trailer wheels) backing the Corvair onto the trailer will place the load so that it is properly balanced for towing stability and will handle correctly. Some car-haulers are extra-long, where the car can be positioned with much of it forward of the trailer wheels to shift the center forward of the trailer axles. Such a trailer would probably be OK for the Corvair to be driven forward onto the trailer. Finally, watch your highway speed while towing.

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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by b74eqcm »

Brad is right about tow vehicles - I tow with a GMC 3/4 ton truck. The design of the U-Haul trailers is such that there is plenty of tongue weight when hauling a Corvair. If you have some other, shorter-bed car hauler, I wouldn't recommend it. If your tow vehicle is not big enough, back loading a Corvair will make things worse, by placing too much weight on the hitch, making the front end of the tow vehicle too light and seriously affecting handling.

Backing on a Corvair should never be done with a convertible - unless your towing with the top down. Otherwise you'll probably blow out your rear window.

I stand behind my original post - a U-Haul trailer with a forward driven on Corvair is not unsafe on the highway. I have towed at speeds up to 68 mph with no sway problems with multiple different Corvairs.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by azdave »

er-mine wrote:I can tow w a full size SUV....Sooo, whuts the bess way?
In my experience it's a trailer. Any time you dolly or flat tow a vehicle with wheels on the ground (2 or 4) it has to be currently registered, insured and if applicable, pass local safety requirements. Besides that, with old cars, you run the risk of popping weather-checked tires, brakes that won't release fully or wheel bearing locking up at a bad time. With a trailer you need not worry about any of that. Is this a good time of the year to be stuck on the side of the highway dealing with any of that?

If you rent a trailer from U-Haul they always want to match the tow vehicle to the trailer and car being towed so you don't kill someone trying to tow a Sherman tank with a Kia. I always tell them I'm towing a 1965 VW beetle and they leave me alone.

I might be towing a junk vehicle from Show Low to Gilbert on Saturday. Which direction you headed?
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by er-mine »

Great thanks guys ! ...even more input and variables covered here

Plated licensed and insured vehicle didn't even occur to me even with this research.

I think my path will be a U-Haul trailer with a little FIB about the vehicle and a Corvair loaded engine END first...and keep the speed down

It'll take half the day but it'll be under $100 and feel the safest based on all the data

Thank you for the pictures and input and help in laying this insane subject to rest
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by cnicol »

Sounds like you have a good plan! BTW, the "rumors" about sway are TRUE! I've towed hundreds of times and sometimes you only have to adjust the car forward a foot or two to fix it. Last week I loaded my '60 into my high-capacity enclosed trailer behind my crew-cab 3/4T diesel pickup. I was thinking I didn't have to worry about sway because the car is relatively light and rather incomplete. I loaded it with no space between the rear bumper and trailer's rear ramp door. (normally I load with 3 to 4 feet behind the car). Boy was that a mistake! Once I hit 50 MPH the truck and trailer would sway like crazy. The Corvair engine's weight is enough and in the wrong place for it to throw 13,000 pounds of truck, trailer, and car! I moved the car forward and it became 100% stable.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by azdave »

cnicol wrote:The Corvair engine's weight is enough and in the wrong place for it to throw 13,000 pounds of truck, trailer, and car! I moved the car forward and it became 100% stable.
I've twice witnessed a poorly loaded trailer playing "crack the whip" with the tow vehicle. In one case, the trailer tore itself from the vehicle and crossed the center line before lodging into a tree. Luckily, it missed oncoming traffic. In the other case, a short trailer was whipping so badly it crushed both rear corners of the tow vehicle and was airborne several times as it whipped violently back and forth but never disconnected. I'm sure the driver was thrown around too but he somehow managed to slow down and pull over.

Here's two videos for you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MC-7_7tYrxE



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uUQAjxXV6g

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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by 64powerglide »

Just get a few bags of play sand from Menards, Lowes ect. & fill the trunk. If you think you need more weight just lay a few bags on the front of the trailer. That's 50 lbs. a bag & they are $2.00 at Menards. Tell U-Haul you're hauling a 76 Lincoln Continental, the one I had weighed 5,200 then you'll have a big enough trailer.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by azdave »

64powerglide wrote:Tell U-Haul you're hauling a 76 Lincoln Continental, the one I had weighed 5,200 then you'll have a big enough trailer.
It's not about getting a large trailer. They only rent one size of car trailer. It's about the total weight of the trailer and car on it not exceeding the factory listed towing capacity of his SUV.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by 64powerglide »

If he has a full size SUV he shouldn't have a problem, just put some bags of sand in the front & haul away!!!!!!!!! I would say use a wrecker service that has a truck, I had a Bobcat hauled 50 miles for $100.00. If you cannot afford that you have the wrong hobby. :my02: My son hauls a Bobcat every week so if I have to haul a Corvair i'll just use his trailer, that's a bigger trailer but my motorhome weighs 9,000lbs. ::-):
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by b74eqcm »

azdave wrote:
64powerglide wrote:Tell U-Haul you're hauling a 76 Lincoln Continental, the one I had weighed 5,200 then you'll have a big enough trailer.
It's not about getting a large trailer. They only rent one size of car trailer. It's about the total weight of the trailer and car on it not exceeding the factory listed towing capacity of his SUV.
Wrong. U Haul has two different length car trailers with different GVWs. The larger one is obviously better.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by b74eqcm »

azdave wrote:
cnicol wrote:The Corvair engine's weight is enough and in the wrong place for it to throw 13,000 pounds of truck, trailer, and car! I moved the car forward and it became 100% stable.
I've twice witnessed a poorly loaded trailer playing "crack the whip" with the tow vehicle. In one case, the trailer tore itself from the vehicle and crossed the center line before lodging into a tree. Luckily, it missed oncoming traffic. In the other case, a short trailer was whipping so badly it crushed both rear corners of the tow vehicle and was airborne several times as it whipped violently back and forth but never disconnected. I'm sure the driver was thrown around too but he somehow managed to slow down and pull over.

Here's two videos for you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MC-7_7tYrxE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uUQAjxXV6g
I'm not sure how the videos help anything. If you don't know how to load a trailer and drive it, don't. The car in the first video was front engine. And it still swayed and crashed. The second crash, from what I could see, looked empty. Yup, must be too much weight on the back.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by azdave »

b74eqcm wrote: Wrong. U Haul has two different length car trailers with different GVWs. The larger one is obviously better.
Okay. I've only ever seen one size around here but anyway, if you are looking to get your rental set-up approved, telling them you are hauling a massively heavy vehicle won't help your cause unless you have a high towing capacity rig to match their safety calculations.

The videos are to instill respect and show what happens when sway gets out of hand. Just because it's loaded right doesn't mean you can't get bit by other factors. In the second video the car had a load of long lumber on the trailer. Loaded properly? Who knows but it quickly got out of hand.
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Re: to tow or not to tow

Post by er-mine »

more good stuff to consider guys...thanks all for input!

the sandbag idea is interesting as it promotes normal loading.

tossing bags in front to even the load....and them pouring the unused sand in my ex's tank is greatly apperaling

loads are based on the tow vehicles capacity... mine is rated at 5000 lbs so i get uhauls reluctance to let folks get carried away

and i too only see one size rig offered.... at least around here. uhaul prolly had too many issues/claims with the larger trailer and its ability to overwhelm a tow vehicle

those whip sway rollover vid's are scary indeed... i have seen a light trailer w house hold items go thru those motions, scatter its load and flip and rip... what a mess

most folks get on the brakes trying to get out of trouble which often make it worse... and scary enuff, a lil acceleration helps straighten things out.... but thats the last thing most folks feel like doing

i am comfy now with uhaul car hauler, my rig and back or even front load w sand as needed. i dont want to increase the weight... but maybe a couple hundred pounds may not be to big an issue and offset rear engine weight
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