Towing Question - Do you leave car in gear?

[dwhitt]

Once the car is tied down on my Sloan Kwik Load, do you put it in first gear or fourth gear or just leave it in neutral? Just do not want to hurt my transmission. Also don't want car to move around while towing it. I have heard it is best to cross the tie downs in the rear. Any help is appreciated.

 

[1TONY1]

I cross the rear straps, e-brake up, then in reverse.

 

[Cudaman]

Let me help my freind 1Tony1 make clearer...... load car on trailer, put straps on and cross rear straps..... But leave the Viper in neutral while wrenching straps down, then put e-brake on and put it in 1st gear or reverse.

Cudaman

 

[1TONY1]

I didn't know I had to make a video

Drive car onto trailer, place tranny in nuetral, pull e-brake halfway so that it will not roll, put straps on....crossing rears, ratchet straps down with e-brake still half on, pull e-brake full on, place tranny into reverse.................drive halfway home, piece of crap Dodge/Cummins truck breaks down, unload car, remove slicks and skinnies, install street tires, drive the rest of the 450 miles home in Viper, order a new pos Dodge/Cummins....but...it will be under warranty

 

[9 seconds]

Here's how I load my Kwik Load. Drive on. Set emergency brake. Attach front tie downs. Gently release emergency brake to allow the car to roll back and load the front tie downs. Re-set emergency brake. Attach and ratchet tight rear tie downs (crossed). Pull trailer forward to level car. Release parking brake to equalize tension. Re-set parking brake. Leave transmission in neutral.

 

[Sam Goldfarb]

I winch my GTS in Backwards. I throw a small wedge under the front tire( In case the cable or winch fail!) crawl under the nose, which is easy, as the nose is hanging over the beavertail, and cross the two front straps. I use the factory frame locations with T hooks and then winch the car back tight. Don't ever have to adjust the fronts! I then go to the rear and put two crossed straps using the T hooks into the factory frame holes. Then back off the winch a click or two. I pull the emergency brake and leave the car in neutral. If the cables and E brake fail, it won't matter if the car is in gear! I also found that backing the car in gives me 300 lbs less tongue weight and eases the access under the front. I have two marks about 8" apart , depending what I tow with. I can see 550 lbs, at best, for my motorhome and like about 850+ for the Ram 3500! the only other thing is that I use the electric jack to lift the nose of the trailer and minimize the approach angle, before loading or unloading. This also keeps the car from rolling once it is in the trailer as it is always angled backwards(out). When you unload the angle helps roll it out as you reverse the winch! I can load or unload in under 5 minutes! This is the only way to do it yourself, with no friends or kids I have to improvise! When I lift the trailer with my motorhome, I can actually get all 4 wheels of the trailer off the ground, by placing a block under the rear of the trailer, great for those trailer flats! I placed some duct tape on the ramp door to allow me to line up right as I back the two rear tires onto the ramp and get out, It really makes me look like I know what I am doing, also helps that I have done it about 100 times! Did I mention, my trailer doesn't have a mid side exit door to get out of the car? Many of the trailers that do, don't allow you to open a Viper door, unless you place about 3" spacer under the driver's side tires! I could have loaded and unloaded the car, in less time than it took to write this!
Regards!
Sam Goldfarb
OHIO VCA Secretary