Had to call a tow truck on July 4th as our family car quit on me. I had it towed to my house. I was able to fix it but it got me thinking how mice it would have been to have something where I could have gotten the car myself.

I have been thinking about making a car dolly and wondered what you thought of these plans:

http://www.trailersauce.com/trailer-...st-components/

"stryped" wrote in message
...
Had to call a tow truck on July 4th as our family car quit on me. I
had it towed to my house. I was able to fix it but it got me
thinking how mice it would have been to have something where I could
have gotten the car myself.

I have been thinking about making a car dolly and wondered what you
thought of these plans:

http://www.trailersauce.com/trailer-...st-components/


Some AWD vehicles like mine can't be towed very far without damaging
the drive train and require a flatbed.

-jsw

"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in news:mnjike$6qj$1
@dont-email.me:

Some AWD vehicles like mine can't be towed very far without damaging
the drive train and require a flatbed.

Jim, some RV-related companies sell VERY expensive "drive train
disconnects" you can add to vehicles like that to make them towable.

Lloyd

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote in message
. 4.170...
"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in
news:mnjike$6qj$1
@dont-email.me:

Some AWD vehicles like mine can't be towed very far without
damaging
the drive train and require a flatbed.

Jim, some RV-related companies sell VERY expensive "drive train
disconnects" you can add to vehicles like that to make them towable.

Lloyd

The procedure for towing it on four wheels behind a motor home
requires running the engine and cycling through the gears every 300
miles to spin the transmission oil pump. It assumes the engine can
run, there is a safe and legal place to pull over and stop, and the
driver will do it.

I have business cards from the local towing companies in both
vehicles, just in case. They all use flatbeds exclusively. Rates start
around $70, which doesn't justify more than normal maintenance
precautions and always carrying my $7-per-month non-smart cell phone.

Speaking of which, I just acquired a NOS MetroPCS LG Optimus for $5.
It's unusable as a phone, but I got it to play with Android and local
networking. What's a good development system?

-jsw

On 7/8/2015 1:13 PM, Jim Wilkins wrote:
... and always carrying my $7-per-month non-smart cell phone.
...

I can that you're someone of the frugal bent. So, let me recommend
PagePlus Cellular. I have their $10/4 mo plan ($30/year) & I never use
the 100 minutes I get. It is a Verizon reseller, so the coverage is
excellent.

Can't help with the LG Optimus.

Bob

"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in news:mnjljr$ii1
:

The procedure for towing it on four wheels behind a motor home
requires running the engine and cycling through the gears every 300
miles to spin the transmission oil pump. It assumes the engine can
run, there is a safe and legal place to pull over and stop, and the
driver will do it.

Nooo... You completely missed the point. These attachments entirely
disconnect the wheels from the drive train. Especially on AWD vehicles,
they're quite expensive (often multiples of them on one vehicle), but
they make virtually _any_ vehicle "dead towable". And they're pretty
easy to use for someone not afraid to lie on their back for a few
minutes.

sigh
LLoyd

To me the plans are WAY more complicated than needed. What's with the
"pivot" & "tilt" parts? It pivots and tilts? It doesn't need to do that.

Now, about the question that you didn't ask: "Should I build a car
dolly?". No, unless you need a tow more often than once every 5 years.
I run old cars and I've needed a tow twice in 30 years.

Bob

"Jim Wilkins" wrote in message
...
"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote in message
. 4.170...
"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in
news:mnjike$6qj$1
@dont-email.me:

Some AWD vehicles like mine can't be towed very far without damaging
the drive train and require a flatbed.

Jim, some RV-related companies sell VERY expensive "drive train
disconnects" you can add to vehicles like that to make them towable.

Lloyd

The procedure for towing it on four wheels behind a motor home requires
running the engine and cycling through the gears every 300 miles to spin
the transmission oil pump. It assumes the engine can run, there is a safe
and legal place to pull over and stop, and the driver will do it.

I have business cards from the local towing companies in both vehicles,
just in case. They all use flatbeds exclusively. Rates start around $70,
which doesn't justify more than normal maintenance precautions and always
carrying my $7-per-month non-smart cell phone.

Speaking of which, I just acquired a NOS MetroPCS LG Optimus for $5. It's
unusable as a phone, but I got it to play with Android and local
networking. What's a good development system?

Or you can drop the drive lines so only the differentials are spinning. For
short runs I've seen tow truck drivers tie off the steering wheel and tow a
rear wheel drive automatic with the rear wheels in the air. For a front
wheel drive its just dead easy to lift the front and go.

I've got a flatbed trailer and a set of ramps for hauling cars when the need
arises. It also doubles for hauling my scissor lift to job sights, and
buying a heavy piece of equipment and hauling it home. It will handle my
big 4wd pickup just barely, but my tractor is a little heavy for it. It
will do in a pinch for slow local hauls though. The 4K Hurco mill came home
on that trailer. For that matter the Charter Oak TKCNC mill got hauled from
the depot to my house on that trailer too.

stryped wrote:
Had to call a tow truck on July 4th as our family car quit on me. I
had it towed to my house. I was able to fix it but it got me thinking
how mice it would have been to have something where I could have
gotten the car myself.

I have been thinking about making a car dolly and wondered what you
thought of these plans:

http://www.trailersauce.com/trailer-...st-components/



Why not buy a rollback and use it for the business? They come in real
handy for moving equipment. Need to move a fork truck to a place without
a dock, want to move a lathe or mill, They are great for that.

In either case though, you need a way to get the equipment to you.

AAA is a good deal some times.

--
Steve W.

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote in message
. 4.170...
"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in
news:mnjljr$ii1
:

The procedure for towing it on four wheels behind a motor home
requires running the engine and cycling through the gears every 300
miles to spin the transmission oil pump. It assumes the engine can
run, there is a safe and legal place to pull over and stop, and the
driver will do it.

Nooo... You completely missed the point. These attachments entirely
disconnect the wheels from the drive train. Especially on AWD
vehicles,
they're quite expensive (often multiples of them on one vehicle),
but
they make virtually _any_ vehicle "dead towable". And they're
pretty
easy to use for someone not afraid to lie on their back for a few
minutes.

sigh
LLoyd

I don't need an expensive drive line disconnect if all the local
companies use flatbeds and it can be towed up to 300 miles behind a
friend's pickup.

My point was to suggest that Stryped determine what he really needs.

"Bob Engelhardt" wrote in message
...
On 7/8/2015 1:13 PM, Jim Wilkins wrote:
... and always carrying my $7-per-month non-smart cell phone.
...

I can that you're someone of the frugal bent. So, let me recommend
PagePlus Cellular. I have their $10/4 mo plan ($30/year) & I never
use the 100 minutes I get. It is a Verizon reseller, so the
coverage is excellent.

Can't help with the LG Optimus.

Bob

Thanks!
https://www.pagepluscellular.com/plans/10-standard-pin/

-jsw

"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in news:mnk4eh$m26$1
@dont-email.me:

My point was to suggest that Stryped determine what he really needs.

What Stryped needs is to get a grip. For as often as he'd tow, he could
hire a wrecker company to do it!

Lloyd

On Wednesday, July 8, 2015 at 10:10:08 AM UTC-4, stryped wrote:
Had to call a tow truck on July 4th as our family car quit on me. I had it towed to my house. I was able to fix it but it got me thinking how mice it would have been to have something where I could have gotten the car myself.

I have been thinking about making a car dolly and wondered what you thought of these plans:

http://www.trailersauce.com/trailer-...st-components/

I'm sure that in the long run, its cheaper to lease a car than buy one.

On Wed, 8 Jul 2015 13:13:29 -0400, "Jim Wilkins"
wrote:

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote in message
.4.170...
"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in
news:mnjike$6qj$1
@dont-email.me:

Some AWD vehicles like mine can't be towed very far without
damaging
the drive train and require a flatbed.

Jim, some RV-related companies sell VERY expensive "drive train
disconnects" you can add to vehicles like that to make them towable.

Lloyd

The procedure for towing it on four wheels behind a motor home
requires running the engine and cycling through the gears every 300
miles to spin the transmission oil pump. It assumes the engine can
run, there is a safe and legal place to pull over and stop, and the
driver will do it.

I have business cards from the local towing companies in both
vehicles, just in case. They all use flatbeds exclusively. Rates start
around $70, which doesn't justify more than normal maintenance
precautions and always carrying my $7-per-month non-smart cell phone.

I tried that a few years back - paid the $40.00 /year (five free calls
per year) fee out of accumulated surplus. Used their services three
times the first year for friends cars, four times the second year;
third year I got a hard time every time I called, one call, I spent
three hours with my cell in one ear talking to the cellular provider
and friends house phone in the other talking to some gal from the deep
south working for IIRC "Assurion" passing messages back and forth
before I finally got a tow truck to show up.
Fourth year I athorized the deduction but was never able to verify
coverage so have since dropped the option - they provide great coverag
as long as you don't need it.

Speaking of which, I just acquired a NOS MetroPCS LG Optimus for $5.
It's unusable as a phone, but I got it to play with Android and local
networking. What's a good development system?

-jsw

---

Gerry :-)}
London,Canada

On Wed, 08 Jul 2015 13:13:16 -0500, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:

"Jim Wilkins" fired this volley in news:mnjljr$ii1
:

The procedure for towing it on four wheels behind a motor home
requires running the engine and cycling through the gears every 300
miles to spin the transmission oil pump. It assumes the engine can
run, there is a safe and legal place to pull over and stop, and the
driver will do it.

Nooo... You completely missed the point. These attachments entirely
disconnect the wheels from the drive train. Especially on AWD vehicles,
they're quite expensive (often multiples of them on one vehicle), but
they make virtually _any_ vehicle "dead towable". And they're pretty
easy to use for someone not afraid to lie on their back for a few
minutes.

sigh
LLoyd
But you are going to install them just to make it possible to tow
your vehicle yourself if and when it breaks down????? Penny wize and
pound foolish.

On Wed, 08 Jul 2015 14:18:14 -0400, Bob Engelhardt
wrote:

To me the plans are WAY more complicated than needed. What's with the
"pivot" & "tilt" parts? It pivots and tilts? It doesn't need to do that.

Now, about the question that you didn't ask: "Should I build a car
dolly?". No, unless you need a tow more often than once every 5 years.
I run old cars and I've needed a tow twice in 30 years.

Bob
You DO need the pivot. Try towing what basically ammounts to a four
wheel trailer with all 4 wheels fixed straight ahead.

fired this volley in
:

But you are going to install them just to make it possible to tow
your vehicle yourself if and when it breaks down????? Penny wize and
pound foolish.


I didn't suggest installing them. I informed him of their availability,
because -obviously- he was unaware of them. He even refuted their
effectiveness after the first volley, because he has no idea what they
are!
(well, he may now, since I explained it).

No... one should not buy $3000 worth of 'accessories' just to tow a car
when it breaks down. One should either join AAA, or just call a towing
company. Both (either) are far less expensive than the RV-towing toys.

Lloyd

stryped wrote in
:

Had to call a tow truck on July 4th as our family car quit on
me. I had it towed to my house. I was able to fix it but it got
me thinking how mice it would have been to have something where
I could have gotten the car myself.

I have been thinking about making a car dolly ...

A membership in AAA would be a lot less expensive, and much more convenient. For
example, what if your car quits on you when you're a hundred miles away from home *and*
from your dolly and tow vehicle? AAA is only a phone call away.