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Technical Towing racecar with old car.

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by tcoupekyle, Feb 18, 2015.

  1. slammed
    Joined: Jun 10, 2004
    Posts: 8,150

    slammed
    Member

    Trailer brakes. Transmission cooler. Transmission shift kit upgrade, fresh fluids. Semi-metallic brake pads. Emergency brake 100% perfect function. Sway bar(s). Coil over shocks on the rear. Start off in low when ever coming from a dead stop. Have that hand on the shifter when traffic gets clustered. Check transmission color durning long haul stops. A massive radiator upgrade may be in order, if steep grades, slow traffic. Also air flow issue becomes enhanced as well due to increased loads. Trailer spare(s) & checking the load rating of the car tires doing the pulling.
     
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  2. JOECOOL
    Joined: Jan 13, 2004
    Posts: 2,771

    JOECOOL
    Member

    My brother used to say ,always make sure the race car engine and the tow car engine match. That way when you need a water pump, distributor or rocker arm for either one you always have a spare.
     
  3. LOL you are absolutely correct. When I first started pitting with Netz he had a '57 Chebby that he ran D Stock. I was sleepy so I climbed up in the car when we were leaving the track and took a snooze for 80 miles. When we pulled in the drive I woke up, Donny's wife met us with sandwiches and beers and she looked down and said, "The trailer looks funny." The gopher in the crew walked over and kicked the tongue and the tongue separated from the hitch. Guess the weld must have cracked? Mrs. Netz walked back into the house and came back with a bottle of Bourbon held it out and said, "here benno you probably need this." Good times.
     
  4. Thanks for the input!
    The race car and the tow car engines do match, both sbf.
    I have a good radiator and Trans cooler. I am definitely going to go to front disk brakes. And lift the car back up. I'll have to do springs in the rear too. I've been pondering this setup for a while from seeing old pictures. My trips with the trailer and car will typically be only 15 to 50 miles one way, and really no speeds over 50mph. I typically drive the coupe to the track but as it gets less streetable, I'd like to not have to worry as much about it breaking at the track and how to get home. It happened once already, at least if I towed it with the Fairlane I wouldn't be intentionally "trying" to break it all night.
    Thanks for the input sounds like this is totally doable. And you guys got some amazing stories and some great setups.
     

    Attached Files:

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  5. The exact mileage is 30 miles to Royal Purple and 17 to HMP so not too far.
    Sealy, and pine valley are both roughly 90 miles I'd be inclined to borrow a truck for that.
     
  6. Countn'Carbs
    Joined: Nov 8, 2006
    Posts: 975

    Countn'Carbs
    Member
    from CO

    Hamb Drags....this is such a kickass rig and then the coupe becomes the push vehicle. So damn cool.

    Model A & Digger .jpg
     
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  7. Tickety Boo
    Joined: Feb 2, 2015
    Posts: 1,610

    Tickety Boo
    Member
    from Wisconsin

    Had good results when I installed dual shocks, (kit for off road trucks ) on the rear axle. This helped with trailer tongue weight trying to bounce the back end over bumps. Also put a heavy sway bar on front that helped with sway. Try this if its squirrely.

    Norb
     
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  8. I dig that so perfect!!!
     
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  9. squirrel
    Joined: Sep 23, 2004
    Posts: 55,942

    squirrel
    Member

    Even my suburban needs some help with the rear springs when towing (it's lowered in back).....the weight distributing hitch is great for lighter duty tow vehicles.
     
    AHotRod likes this.
  10. Air shocks !!!!! or helper bags.
     
  11. Jalopy Joker
    Joined: Sep 3, 2006
    Posts: 31,179

    Jalopy Joker
    Member

    yep, give a go - as you stated, and others, brakes, cooling, HD tow hitch, etc. but, your car already sits pretty low, might have to rethink that for hauling a trailer. one OT ('67 Fairlane Ranchero/390) project that I am working on is set up for towing with oversize front/rear sway bars; HD overload bolt on rear leaf springs; overload shocks; HD custom trailer hitch welded to frame - don't forget good add on rearview mirrors - check your insurance policy about towing - have fun - post pics DSCN1237.JPG DSCN1238.JPG
     
  12. Hey Joker,
    Those helper springs on the shocks look like a setup I used on an OT car in the '70s for hauling stuff and basic back road cruising. They worked well for me at the time. I didn't know they were still available.
     
  13. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,861

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    You can probably find a set of Air lift bags or a kit that can be adapted to the car that would let you handle the load when you have the trailer on but not compromise static ride height or ride when you were unloaded http://www.airliftcompany.com/ I am thinking about using one on the 48 to tow with or just for when I load it up with our gear to hit the road and want to maintain my static ride height.
     
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  14. Air/Lift makes what they call Helper bags that can be used on just about one of anything. They work well and can be totally deflated without harming them when not in use. I have used them before on trucks that sat low but still needed to be used once in a while.
     
  15. squirrel
    Joined: Sep 23, 2004
    Posts: 55,942

    squirrel
    Member

    I got some coil over helper spring shocks for my Suburban, pretty reasonable, they help
     
  16. lucy.jpg This is the first thing I thought of when I read the thread's title
     
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  17. That kind of motored through my mind as well. "You got some splainin to do Lucy!!!"
     
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  18. Ive flat towed all over for more than 40 years. The two vehicle needs to be bigger & heaver than what is being towed. Now having stated that those cars pulled campers and horse trailers and everything imaginable back in the day. My dad moved from Indiana to Arkansas with a 6 cyl auto 59 ford pulling heavily loaded trailers. It had 355 rear gears. Once near Momence Ill a rear wheel bearing went out on the trailer and the axle wore in to and the tire came off and passed us up. A cop stopped and told dad where there was a junk yard that would have a axle . We went and bought a axle with a good bearing for $3. Now ill admit hauling on my gooseneck trailer with my 71 3/4 ton chev big block is a safer easier approach. However flat towing Or pulling a light tanden axle trailer behind my 1/2 ton 66 GMC 250 six granny 4speed is slower but it cost much less in fuel.
     
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  19. one of those factory tow dollys would take the weight off the tow vehicle. I see them dragging a vehicle behind motor homes .
     
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  20. Kerrynzl
    Joined: Jun 20, 2010
    Posts: 2,906

    Kerrynzl
    Member

    One modification I would recommend is a "Maxbrake" or equivalent as a brake controller.
    These measure line pressure so they are a true proportional [to brake pedal effort]
     
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  21. I have pulled with a tow dolly plenty. We pulled the ravens roadster behind my '65 C-10 on a dolly about 200 miles to a cruise before he could legally license it. I was going anyway so it was nothing. A dolly is a good tradeoff between flat towing and trailering I suppose.
     
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  22. 4wd1936
    Joined: Mar 16, 2009
    Posts: 1,288

    4wd1936
    Member
    from NY

    I've been towing with this one since 1973. Finally put the disc brakes on the front last year. Lots of memories here and I'm sure some of you will remember seeing us in CT. in the 70-80s. Like the song says, still crazy after all these years. Semper Fi.
     
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  23. Larry T
    Joined: Nov 24, 2004
    Posts: 7,875

    Larry T
    Member

    I've run Air Lift bags on the last 3 pickups I've had. They help a lot towing.

    And just for grins. flat towing.jpg
     
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  24. This thread got the wife and I to discussing and we decided to see if we can find one of those factory tow dollys. I would also use a light bar attached to the rear of the vehicle being towed. I have a light bar I use on my trailers and when flat towing already. it saves having to keep the lights working on over a half dozen trailers.
     
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  25. Scraptor
    Joined: Feb 19, 2015
    Posts: 2

    Scraptor
    Member

    I would go for the bags over air shocks or coilovers, the shock mounts were only designed for the load of a shock absorber.
    With bags you should have an onboard air supply, a cheap 12v compressor would work, an AC inverter and small shop compressor would be better,and a converted AC pump would give you enough volume to run air tools.
     
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  26. Cool thread, informative and entertaining.
    Been on plenty of towing trips with only issue when flat towing a car over the Alps, we stopped for a leak, and tow vehicle wouldn't start. I jumped in car being towed, and used it to push start tow vehicle. This was hooked up with just an A frame.
    I'm sure there's a few horror stories out there,
    All in all, most towing trips go OK with use of common sence, and the upgrades mentioned here will get the old Ford combo to the track easily with the low mileage mentioned.
     
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  27. 56sedandelivery
    Joined: Nov 21, 2006
    Posts: 6,695

    56sedandelivery
    Member Emeritus

    My first Bracket car was a 56 Chevrolet, model 150, Business Coupe with a BBC, Powerglide, Camaro 12 bolt. It was flat towed wherever it went. Usually, my 74 Nova was the tow vehicle, but it was also towed with a car I bought for my younger sister, a 1963 Chevy II, model 300, Station Wagon with a 194 six and 3 speed manual trans. BUT, traffic was not nearly as big of a concern back then; now it's a mess out there, especially on the freeways. I still have my two tow bars and two sets of towing hubs. However, I bought a very nice car trailer a few months back, and as soon as I finish the rebuild on it, the tow bars and hubs will be up for sale here on the HAMB. Although I never had any issues flat towing, it's just easier to drive on/off a trailer, and not having to unbolt everything, swap out tires and hubs, and do it again after a race; getting too old for that. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
     
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  28. Very cool stuff!!
     
  29. Scraptor
    Joined: Feb 19, 2015
    Posts: 2

    Scraptor
    Member

    Back in the '80s we got caught in a blizzard with a triumph gt6 on a towbar behind the family station wagon.
    We couldn't pull the long grade from the Tantramar marsh between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, so Mom drove the wagon, and Dad pushed with the Triumph, and we had a 4x4, well,a 4x8.
    When we hit the Wentworth valley, Dad unhooked the towbar and drove the rest of the way out of the storm.
     
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  30. LOL a few years back I sold an old Galaxie to a guy from south east Texas. I told him he could bus or fly in and drive it home, but he came up with a later '70s SUV and a tow dolly. They didn't b get very far before the SUV broke down, they drove the Galaxie into town and had a hitch put on it and pulled the SUV home with it.

    Old wolf,
    I used to keep a tow dolly that I got from Uhaul at an auction just in case I needed to go get something. it worked really well for me for years. I knew another guy that had one of those and some wheel dollies like they use on a tow truck and you could not even imagine the things he hauled with the combo.
     
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