Technical Towing racecar with old car.

I'm considering turning my Ford 55 2dr HT Fairlane into a tow vehicle for my T coupe and possibly my FED. Has anyone done this? If so What modifications?
55 ford fairlane 302 AOD
1926 T coupe 2325lbs
Any input?
Thanks

 

We used to tow our '55 Vic ( like yours only fast ) with our '58 Merc. Kerry uses a Plymouth wagon to haul his FED with all the fixens.

One thing to remember is that they used to haul big assed travel trailers with those old heaps, it is still the same car only modernized.

 

right on! Even cooler to me is Ford's!!! And, you sure are right mine isn't fast! Haha

 

My old 312 was worked and reworked, originally we drove it to the track and it got to the point that the only things that was streetable on it was the fact that it was licensed and the lights worked.

Our first tow to the track was with a chain, it was only 27 miles ( give or take) then we managed to trade for a tow bar, never trailered ours for lack of funds.

 

I seem to recall Posies towed with an old wagon with modern drivetrain. May have been the 55 Ford "Orange Krisp"?

 

Do you think all old drag racers had 18 wheelers as they do today???? Hell,we towed all of USA pulling dragster on a trailer with a 52 Olds..

 

Just make sure the brakes are as good as the drivetrain.

 

Make sure your trailer is light weight. Single axle race car trailers used to be pretty common back when guys towed with old cars.

I've hauled with my 57 suburban, 1000+ miles away. You gotta watch out for crazy drivers taking pictures of your rig, and not paying attention to where they're driving!

 

It sort of depends on whether you have a trailer or flat tow. In the '60s we towed our AA/FD all over the country behind a '57 Ranchero on a trailer that wouldn't pass a safety check today. If you go with a trailer get one with two axles and electric brakes. Flat towing is extra wear and tear on the towed vehicle.

 

This is racinman's toy and is usually pulled by a Model A sedan. HRP

 

Used my 56 Ford Victoria Thunderbird Special 312 Y-block (later a 351 Cleveland) to flat tow (bar) and trailer cars everywhere. Left coast to Right, Florida to Mid-West and all points between. Never let me down and always looked good. Make sure your brakes are up to the task, and ... enjoy.

 

We flat towed our 56 D/MP to Scottsville for the 1965 AHRA Winter nats with a 64 Ford Fairlane 500
Broke the block in the mountains and rebuilt it in Scottsville.
Regardless the "big boys" used ramp trucks or car haulers the peons used tow bars and tow hubs if you were rich! Not a problem if your 312 has a good cooling system, clutch and brakes!

 

OOPS...the tow distance was roughly 1100 miles on the ground no tow-hubs!

 

How fast did you drive back then, when towing? Just curious.

 

Watching Ryan's post/video last week about land speed record cars it had a video showing Mickey Thompson towing Challenger II with a station wagon. The video stated that Challenger II weighed 7000 pounds. Add the trailer weight and the total had to be close to 8500 pounds. You know that the tow vehicle was probably really loaded with tools and stuff. So, can it be done? Sure! Is it safe? It depends on a lot of different variables... Modern traffic, towing speed, experience, terrain etc. As they say, "your results may be different".

 

It can be done.

 

Hopefully Rick will see this and add the photo of the Model A sedan pulling his race car. HRP

 

Why not? If the car it's self is in good mechanical shape and the brakes and suspension is up to towing the combined weight of the trailer and race car.
Those cars towed camp trailers, Uhauls, and boats all the time back when they were new or only a few years old and no one gave it a second thought.

I would use a class III or IV hitch though and not one of those old bolt to the bumper hitches that they towed a boat and trailer that weighed less than 1K combined back in the day.
I'm thinking about building a light weight tandem axle trailer to haul my roadster (flathead six powered) on behind the 48 when both are done and I want to hit events a few thousand miles away.

 

trailer brakes, a light trailer, load levelers, extra leaves, station wagon springs or air shocks, a good hitch mount, and a good transmission cooler are a must. Your car is similar in many ways to a small pickup. Do you have the weights of your cars. (to present if you are pulled over)Some commercial cops may frown upon your setup. I have seen it happen, so make sure all your safety gear is up to snuff before you hit the road. It really shouldn't be much different than hauling a ski boat. Keep it out of overdrive when towing.

 

In early 90's, I decided to go vintage road racing with my 65 Corvette roadster and towed successfully with a 70 Cadillac Coupe de Ville which had a BBC/Turbo 400 transplant.......pulled 26' Wells Cargo trailer using a torsion bar style hitch, put airshocks on Cad rear and after playing with air pressures, etc, could never get the side sway totally out of the unit as you were constantly "driving into the zig & zag" and was due to sidewall construction of car tires, not as stiff as truck tires........didn't realize how much side sway was going on until I bought my 94 Dodge dually which had a stable platform.......truck ruts on Interstates were a handful.....kept tow speeds in lo 60 range and fuel economy was same as current towing w/gas motor, 6 - 8 mpg........brakes were top notch on both units, but I always was concerned about stopping ability in a panic situation......so it can be done but you will be happier with a heavier duty tow vehicle and likely safer......you'd be amazed at the stress that towing puts on a car.......

 

Didn't TV Tommy Ivo tow his whole set-up with a Cadillac?

 

Here is when I towed my 29 Bonneville roadster to a car show with my 32 pickup.

 

The missus towed me through the Tillimook Burn ( Cascade Mountains and before it was 4 lane) @ 80 mph give or take in a '64 Impala with the merc once on a chain. luckily I didn't have a speedometer working in the Impala. White knuckle ride and a do not do this at home kids thing.

We normally flat towed the Vic between 45 and 55 if we were on the high way and believe it or not when we were in a town we normally chopped 10 MPH off of the posted speed limit. So 15 in a 25 or 25 in a 35. Sounds out of character but we only had one race car and no sponsors.

Something to think about when towing flat or on a trailer is this, if what you are towing out weighs what you are towing with you want to be able to activate the brakes in the vehicle or trailer being towed. flat towing is worse, it will have a tendency to push you in the corners not a good feeling.

 

Whew! I could look at this all day long.

 

Nobody has asked yet, or mentioned it, but if you don't have a trans cooler already you better get one before you tow.

 

Towing is always an adventure. In the 80s we flat towed our nostalgia fiat altered, flathead power, on a flat single axle trailer to Englishtown with Dick's El Camino. On the way home to NH, we stopped in Danbury, CT and on the way into the restaurant, I checked the trailer. The holdowns were completely off the car and, I swear to God, the only thing holding that car on the trailer was the fact it was in low gear with a 5:13 gear set in the quickchange! We ate our lunch in silence imaging what we would have done if that race car had been bouncing down the interstate behind us. You can never have too many d-rings on the trailer and buy good straps, not from the tool man with Asian suppliers at the swap meet!!
When we upgraded from the Fiat to an FED, we towed same type trailer built from an old single axle camp trailer we got from Nickthebandit here on the HAMB. Tow vehicle was a '59 Chevy sedan delivery that was a hearse in LA, coffin rollers and all.
I have seen pics of Reg Bernier and his late brother Eddie towing their AA/C car to Charlestown, RI back in the 50s with a Packard hearse from the 30s. Maybe if he reads this, he'll post the pictures.

 

This is from the H.A.M.B. Drags a few years back.

 

In 1968 I drove across country going to California. I played hop scotch with a towing tandem for a hundreds of miles... A 3 year old 65 mustang on a trailer being towed by a 50 Ford woody The woody appeared to be original with the flat head. Both cars appeared stock It was a strange looking sight but one I'll never forget. I was driving a 421 Pontiac in a 63 Catalina. Super Duty Duty heads Crowler roller 80R roller cam Neither of us belonged on the interstate!

 

One thing to remeber,now days the car in front of you can stop fast,have disk brakes,so for towing with a older car,be sure to also have disk and brakes on trailer as well. Yes, back in the 60's n 70's I towed my racecar all over the SE USA with a drum brake Ford wagon and one axle an no brakes trailer,I would not do it with the same rig today,times changed the cars that are doing crap in front of you now! YOU MUST CHANGE AS WELL brake an tire wise

 

This seemed like a neat idea, but it turned out to be a white-knuckle experience a few times.