What to look for in a car trailer

I am considering looking for a car trailer, I am wondering what things to look for or to look out for or things that I should not live without.

 

Look for negative comments here.

 

Flatbed? enclosed? what are you towing it with?

 

Trailer just to go get projects or a trailer to haul finished cars to shows?

 

LOL! I'm sure it's for his wife's car...

Steve,
One of the things I've learned to check for over the years is tandem axle mis-alignment. This will cause abnormal tire wear and tire failures. It's tough to measure, but pretty easy to check in another way. With the trailer on a hard, level surface put the tongue jack on a floor jack and try to roll it side to side. If it rolls one way very easy, and it much harder to move in the other; the axles are likely mis-aligned to each other. The tires will go down the road in a constant state of scrub.

Weight, cost, and strength are all trade-offs you will have to consider. Just like buying a car, there are a million things to check for...

 

Assuming an open flatbed-Tilt bed or drop bed, ramps are a pain.
Aluminum is a big plus but can be expensive.
Look for either a storage box or a good place to put one.
New tires, too many brand new trailers are sold with USED car tires.
17 to 19 feet of bed length, a trailer is never too long to haul it but can be too short.
20 foot trailers come under different rules in many states.
Two electric brake axles.
This is what I want in a car trailer after having 6 or 7 over the last 25 years.

Remember that the bitterness of poor quality will remain long after the sweetness of a low price is gone.

 

Nothing that looks homemade.
The axles should be behind center.

 

The aluminum ramps rated at 4500 pounds from HF will not handle a older Monte Carlo. They failed miserably for a buddy. I used 3X12 red oak five feet long for my trailer. Heavy as all get out, they loaded an F6 once with no problem. Like 48 Chubby says above, brakes on both axles, a good controler, and trailer tires. Buy the big tie-downs and good ends. Dont let a nylon strap rub anything. Use chains for the ends.

 

I have a winch on the front of mine when I am loading by myself.

 

A trailer with 6 lug dual 5200lb axles will show 9999lb on the GVWR tag and is a good choice. I like 8 lug dual 7000lb but puts the trailer GVWR over 10,000lbs but will haul about anything you could dream of dragging home. Axles with built in drop make a nice low trailer, torsion axles are lower still. 18 to 20 feet is handy. A 16 foot trailer with 5 lug axles is bare minimum for car stuff.
LED lights and a sealed harness, a break away battery with charger, nice tounge jack, diamond plate floor are worth while options. Good luck!

 

I have owned several.
Wood floors need a lot of maintainence if you keep the trailer.
Ny personal favorites are the Charger Custom seriies.
They use 5 feet ramps hung beneath the rear bed and slide into place easily.
One axle electric brakes work well.
With a Dodge Dakota, I hauled a 59 Caddilac with out any trouble.
The rig also handled three ford F150 4x4 trucks.
Kep in mind pulling easily is a prime mecessitiy, But stopping is the most important aspect.
No matter how much you can load on a trailer of any size, being able to stop it in an emergency situation is an absolute!
For me, a must is trailer bias 6 ply tires.
Consider the value of the vehicle you haul and your life in deciding which trailer to buy.
If you can not afford a well built trailer, consider renting as you need,

 

I don't like the tilt back. I like a dovetail solid steel deck with 5' ramps. Makes it easier to load lower vehicles. Definitely 2 axles. Electric brakes on one or two axles. Have owned both and have not found a difference.
Make sure it has a breakaway set up or add one, they are cheap and easy to install. I added a removable winch to mine. I also added a tool box to carry the tie downs etc.
You want a trailer rated at at least 7k. And don't go by what it says on the tongue jack. A friend bought a trailer that was rated at 2,500lbs, he claimed it was rated for 10k because the tongue jack said 10k on it. Read the sticker rating attached to the trailer.

 

I live on the west coast of Canada and like Pace & Interstate trailers because they have an I beam chassis that won't rust out like others built on a tube chassis. Pace also has an optional 60" tongue which is nice for tight turns and if you have a large camper on your pickup. I like the taller ride height of leaf spring suspension so the trailer won't drag as much on uneven surfaces as the lower ones with torsion suspension. I didn't waste money on options I didn't need and bought a nice 8.5' x 20' Pace Rallye GS enclosed trailer with the 60" tongue for $6000 from Bulldog Trailer Sales in Chehalis, Wa.

 

On thing about deck height- I used to have an old roundy-rounder trailer that was very low, but with a "regular" car, you couldn't open the door to get out- wasn't a problem with the roundy-rounder as you always had to climb out the window anyway. I have a Dragmaster with a diamondplate deck that sits just high enough for most doors to open over the fender, and enough beavertail at the rear to let headers & such clear going on- really nice setup. Worst thing on a lot of car trailers is the ramp setup, I like something like some of the Zieman tractor trailers have that flips up with a pedestal that sits on the ground when loading for support, then has a stay rod on the side to hold it up when traveling

 

In WA state you need brakes on both axles . So if you need to sell your trailer it will cost at least $500-600 to rig up electric brakes to the dual axle single brake ones if the trailer moves from one state to another that has the same laws as here. I bought oe from a guy from the midwest that moved here. It cost him about $600 just to be able to license it here before selling it.

 

A trailer is a tool. What are you using it for? That will greatly impact your decisions.
If this is an open trailer as others have outlined, look for the following:
Many states and the Feds require 2 axle brakes. They can be added, but subtract that from purchase price on a single brake rig.
A good soild frame and suspension with little to no rust. Some prefer torsion axles for ride and lower deck. Others prefer leafs for simplicity, ease of repair and toughness.
Common wheel bolt pattern and trailer tires. No wide 5, split rims, passenger car tires or strange offsets. Check on a spare and how it can be attached.
Decks are wood, steel, open in the center or closed. Wood requires maintenance. It can also have blocks screwed down to hold the load. Open centers are lighter and allow working on a car. Solid allows any track width and other loads.
Flat or dovetail decks. Dovetail is a huge help for loading cars and allows shorter ramps. Flat only if it's built with other choices that get the height lower, like a tilt-back and/or torsion axles.
Tie-down options. Perimeter, D-rings, Hooks. Unless this is for a single car, make sure you have options that will allow different stuff to be tied down.
Ramps should be easily accessed, allow for different track widths, strong, and be able to be stowed securely. They shouldn't be too heavy for you to move. With a flat deck, leaf springs and long ramps, this can be an issue.
Fenders better keep stuff off your load and some are removable to allow access to the car door on the trailer. They should support your weight, because you will step on them at some point.
Lighting better comply and be mounted so it's not left on the road. Common parts that can be easily repaired or replaced is good.
Standard wiring plug.
Safety chains long enough to allow turning but not drag on the ground.
Breakaway as mentioned.
A portable or solid mounted winch makes loading non-runners a lot easier.
A tool box for tiedowns, spare bulbs, wire, duct tape, gloves, tools and any other stuff is nice.
Tongue jack. There are center mounts, side mounts and electric. Most keep a big chunk of wood to provide a wider base and to shorten the amount needed for the jack to lift off the hitch.
2" ball is common on lighter stuff. 2 5/16" is for heavier stuff and most enclosed.
I wouldn't touch anything with a 1 7/8" ball. You better have a class IV hitch too.
Trailers (especially lower end open) seem to hold value very well if maintained. Buy the best, most useful you can afford. You can probably get darn near all your money back out. Also expect to put some money into it for service and tires and develop a lot of new friends.

 

make sure it has a clean title

 

Everyone just about covered your question,---Whatever axle ratings are---Deduct the weight of trailer from axle(s) capacity---Then you can determine what your load rating will be.----Don

 

Brakes are cheap to add to a trailer. You can buy four complete new brake assemblies, with drums, for less than $400 and have all you need if you buy a tandem without brakes. Half that for one axle worth.

Keep in mind, not all states require titles OR tags on a trailer with less than a 10K# GVW rating. Oklahoma is one of those states. Here, tags are actually an owner's option to buy, and cost seven bucks a year, but the owner will not receive a title. Laws amongst the states vary as far as registration and titles go, so check your state's DMV or equivalent and ask. I've never had a problem hauling my open car hauler in the 27 states it's been in, without a tag. I just recently tagged it, because I can now.

 

Stay away from a trailer whose frame is made mostly of angle iron. Usually these are cheap-built specials that flex badly.

Channel-iron or box steel frame is much, much better.

 

Don't buy a trailer that you think will have enough capacity for you to get by. Buy one that you think is overkill both in GVWR and size.
If I were in the market for a car hauler I'd be looking for 18-20' deck. No dovetail (think of the dovetail portion as an expensive part of the ramps that you can't haul anything on). Aluminum ramps that are easy to set up and stow.
10,000 GVWR would be the bare minimum I'd consider. 12,000 would be better. In some states you can register it at a lower rating to save some $ on tag fees. I'd rather have a trailer that's overbuilt than try to get by with something that's not up to the task.
16" 8 lug wheels. Load range E tires. Brakes on both axles. They're required when you get in that range anyway.
D rings for tie downs, winch, tool box for chains, binders, and ratchet straps. (By the way you should check out the laws regarding how something is supposed to be tied down).
I like my trailers to be versatile so I'd want stake pockets so I could add side and end boards in case I wanted to haul other types of cargo.
Break away brakes are required for trailers in the 10K (I think, but double check) GVWR range.

I agree you should stay away from those elcheapo angle iron trailers. They're crap. Stay away from anything with car tires and brakes on one axle.
I don't have a problem with home made as long as it's well built. We built an equipment trailer in '87. It's still got the original wood deck in great shape. It pulls like a dream. I also bought a home made car trailer. I wish I still had it.

Open or closed center, wood or diamond plate deck, deck between the wheels or deck over should all be determined by what you're going to use the trailer for.

I'm not familiar with their car haulers, but if they're anywhere near as good as their dump trailers you can't go wrong with Behnke (B&B) Trailers.

 

Make sure the trailer is inconvenient to use, so you won't be temped to haul your car instead of driving it.

 

Dual axle trailer Front winch ,Lights brakes ,There the things I would deffinately Think Are a plus

 

Here's my $0.02 worth of advice...NEVER buy a used trailer without a test tow.. Hook it to whatever you're gonna tow with and try it at hiway speed . I just bought a used 20' enclosed ,made by a reputable mfr.,and it'll scare you silly at anything above 45 mph...It had 4 brand new trailer tires ,so I chose not to test-tow before I paid..The P/O assured me that he used to tow all over with no problem...Now I'm faced with getting the thing checked out & repaired ,which could be a can of worms..much less the expense involved .

Stan

 

You've got all the info you need from the other posters. I've had a 7' x 18' tandem, double brake with tube rails since I bought it new; the only thing I'd change is get it bigger (8' x 20',) and angle the last 3 feet. One thing I did from the beginning was add plastic 'flex' loom throughout the entire wiring; that eliminated all the usual wire-rub-shorts these things are famous for.

 

if at all possible, spend the extra money and buy new.

I know that isn't possible for lots on here, but when you consider the cost of tires, wiring, lights, brakes, bearing, etc. to repair a used trailer, it can often be just as cost effect to order up a new one to your specifications.

then maintain it religiously.

 

Good one

 

My trailer is a factory built job I bought new in '94. I haven't really had too much trouble, but it uses the 14-1/2" "doughnut" tires and rims that are very similar to mobile home axles. The tires are heavy duty, but you cant hardly find them anymore and they all seem to be made in China. I put on a new set last year for a little over $200, and fully expect them to dry rot and crack before the tread wears out just like the first set did. I would rather have 15" wheel with regular lugs now.

 

my home made duvtail has been towed for 21 years no trouble
wears tires wear evan
some home builds are better
look it over good

 

What ever you buy, park it in the garage or behind the garage with a cover over it, so all you neighbors and friends and friends of friends don't know or see it. You'll have more friends than you can count, "Hey can I borrow your car trailer??????" What they are REALY saying is "My pickup doesn't have trailer wiring, well it does but it doesn't work, and I can't parralel park let alone back up a trailer, but I would like to take yours and haul something I shouldn't, scratch the hell out of it, turn too sharp and dent it, maybe bust a light or two, and bring it back 2 weeks later than I said i would. Oh by the way, do you have any tie downs I can borrow?"