Towing the Viper to VOI 8 Some questions

[Sleeper]

I recently purchased a turbo diesel Ram pickup, and am considering towing the Viper to Dallas in September. I would like to ask your input on these questions:

1) Would you be comfortable with your car on a rental trailer?

2) If I purchase, should I go open or enclosed?

3) What trailers seem to work best for the Viper?

4) How much should I expect to pay for a good trailer?

Thanks in advance for any responses.
Thomas DeCosta

 

[Janni]

1. Yes, if he rental company was reputable. A NC trailer dealer rents Featherlite trailers and I'd be 100% comfortable that they were safe and in good repair. UHaul or the like - probably not.
2. I'd go enclosed - I suspect you are doing so for weather, wear and tear, cargo capacity. An open trailer doesn't solve all of those. But if you are only towing to save miles and don't need to carry extra stuff, don't ever plan on doing track events, etc. An open trailer is cheaper and easier to store.
3.&4. The Sloan Quick Load is the "king" of the open trailer for easy of loading. Resale is good on them, too - someone is always looking for one - good name brand recognition. New they are about $3500 - someone correct me if I am wrong. Enclosed - Pace, Haulmark for standard construction (i.e. steel and wood) priced about $6000 for a base trailer or Exciss and Featherlight (all aluminum) priced about $9500. Conventional construction is heavier and more susceptible to decay issues, resale not as good. All aluminum last forever, good resale, higher initial cost can be prohibitive. I would personally stick with national name brand, as the used trailer market can be ugly for a trailer with no track record / name recognition.

You definitely have enough truck to tow whatever you want for a one car trailer. Don't forget a good brake controller and hitch, as well as anti-sway if you go enclosed and you'll have a great towing experience.

 

[Y2K10 SRT#39]

1, NO
2. Open
3. SLOAN
4. $3000
What Janni Said!
PBR

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Hey sleeper. Ive spent the last year looking at trailers for the viper and I just took delivery on a pace pursuit 22 ft. Dont rent.as the biggest problem with the viper and loading is the long over hang on the facia and a clearance problem. Nearly all trailers require you to add boards etc. to clear- what a hassle and I see it all the time. I recommend only enclosed as open does not give the protection to the elements, less storage area, and easier for theft and vandalism while parked.Re sale is better too. Bottom line - dont skimp and be careful of dealers that tell you it will fit w/o special ramps or mods. Good luck.

 

[Sleeper]

Thank you Janni, Paul and Mark! Saw nice examples of Pace and Haulmark units here in town, but no Exiss or Featherlite. Wow, didn't know these could be finished with so many useful equipment choices. Also found dealer offering Sloan Kwik-Load for rental, so I have that option. Still trying to decide how much use trailer will get prior to purchase...
Trailering will allow space for more Viper goodies!

BTW, truck is prepped as described (Janni) except for ant-sway. I do appreciate time taken to respond to my questions

 

[Joseph Dell]

If you've never towed a car before, and open is a little bit easier. you lose ALL rear visibility with an enclosed trailer but still have _some_ visibility with an open. Since you are in St. Louis, you should track down Joe Donavan (PBJ on the board). He's a sharp guy who tunes some faaaaaaast vipers in your area. He might be able to help you locate a trailer too.

If you are only going to be trailering once in a while, a good used steel open trailer goes for 1-2k. even new ones (not sloan or texas roll-back... but good and usable for vipers) run 2k-2500 new.

Either way, make sure you add an extra day or two to stop at the V-10 Nationals on Tues and Wed. Even if you aren't going to run, you'll get to see ALL sorts of trailers... and fast vipers, of course.

Good luck!

JD

 

[Sleeper]

I wanted to share some pics of the car trailer I chose. It is a 17.5 ft. Featherlite which performed without problems for my VOI 8 trip. Thanks again for everyone's input.

and one from the hotel's port cochere:

More pics available in my gallery.

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Hey sleeper, I love that trailer. Please reply--- can you drive your car on without any boards being placed and how much clearance do you have below the facia when initially driving on ?? Thanks.

 

[CTViper]

Sleeper!! Right Color you didn't have to paint did you? I was thinking of buying the Yellow Fever Viper truck to haul my 05 VCA Special Edition around. Can it come painted yellow from the factory! Price? Just not sure how much I will use it. Thats the Problem!

 

[Sleeper]

Mark - Glad you like the trailer. I saw them using it on "Two Guys Garage" this morning. Although the trailer is designed to ride low, don't even try to drive your car on this way! The photo shows the the access doors where two 6 foot ramps are stored. After making some quick measurements, I purchased knowing that there was room to store a 2x12 board on top of the ramp. Cut to 40", loading is safe and easy, with about 5/8" clearance. Maybe even okay with Motons...

CTViper - Both are Dodge Bright Silver Metallic. I didn't know if I needed it myself, but with its Cummins turbo diesel (read 600 ft-lbs of torque), this is an awesome truck. My Land Cruiser now sits neglected most of the time. I would do Yellow Fever in a heartbeat if I had your Special Edition!

 

[Frank 03SRT]

How much clearance do you have between the trailer wheels, or for that matter, the side channels of the trailer? From your last picture, it looks close.

I looked at an enclosed Trailex, and the clearance is just over 80". Since the SRT is about 75", I got a little nervous about hitting the rims or sidesills near the back. 2 1/2" doesn't seem like much to play with.

The Sloan Kwikload has 84" clearance, which is what I got, but I'm cheap.

You have a great looking trailer.

 

[Sleeper]

Just did some measuring. I had about 1 3/4" clearance between rear tires and side channels, which are exactly 79" apart. The fenders are set out some, and measure 81 3/4" between them. So yes, it's important to be careful, and someone watching also helps (but not necessary). Fenders come off like the Sloan, this helps, too. I was concerned bumpy roads could move the car around on the trailer, but thankfully it didn't happen.

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Thomas, thanks for info. I am waiting to hear from a dealer near me tomorrow but I have more questions. Did you get the extra width the web site mentioned ? What did you pay roughly ? I have a 5" splitter in front-do you think it will load w/o hitting bottom ? How long did you have to wait once ordered ? Thanks.

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Im also considering buying the ram diesel. Is this truck very noisey from inside with windows up ? Never owned a diesel. Any problems with truck ? My hemi im trading has been lousey. Thanks again.

 

[Jay Herbert]

The current diesels (beginning in 2004) are amazingly quiet. All three of our regions officers have dually's.... hmmm, just realized that, make note, check into officer perks.... But seriously, you can stand right next to them when they are running and carry on a conversation! No way you could do this with older diesels. Interior noise is not much different than a gas truck, diesels have always carried a lot more noise dampening materials between the engine and the cab than standard trucks.

 

[Sleeper]

Yes, mine is the wide version - 102" = 8'6". How much? Dealer claimed list was $5400 ( I was unable to verify this - no price info on website), asking $4800. Noticed he had five of them on the lot. I offered $4000, we settled on $4100.
Now about the Ram CTD. Here is my perspective on interior noise levels. My viper has no mufflers, no secondary cats, and is in the range beyond what most owners would prefer on thier own cars. My ricer (550 hp+) which regularly sets off car alarms, really outdid itself yesterday by triggering a home alarm!! So, no suprise to say the diesel is the quietest in my stable. Seriously, it will be one of the first things you notice on a test drive, and passengers will notice the low interior sound level as well. The current generation motor is the Cummins 600 series, which became available earlier this year. Cummins advertised it as much quieter, and it has been reviewed that way also. It is also the first to have a catalytic converter, this may play a part in sound reduction.
Remember how fast & powerful your hemi felt when you first stepped on it? Now remember I said this when you test drive the diesel.
Learn all you need to know about Dodge diesels at www.turbodieselregister.com. It is an all Dodge website, and the forums are insanely active due to all the truck owners out there. I saw a video last night showing a huge diesel doing a 11.48 sec. quarter mile! Let me know if I can be of further help.

 

[Sleeper]

Oops, just realized left out splitter q. A VOI 8 vendor wanted $1400 for one, not nearly as good looking as one I saw on the CC. I would bet a soda that I could handle a splitter with my 40" helper boards, but if not, longer boards would work. About 40-42" is the max in the trailer hatches - longer planks would need to be stored elsewhere.

 

[Sam Goldfarb]

Guys,
I have a US Cargo Enclosed 18', 8'6" wide with 81.5" between the fenders, that works great! I use a winch to pull the Viper in backwards. I have a power jack on the front of the trailer and put a 6X6 block under it, raise the front up, which forces the rear of the trailer down. When I tow with my motorhome, I use the onboard levelers to raise the front of the trailer, I also found that I can raise it high enough to change any flats on the trailer!! I have about 1" of clearance this way with my 97 GTS and have also loaded other newer Vipers with no problems. No ramps, boards or anything else, just the fold down door with about 18" panel that flips down. When hauling backwards, it is much easier to tie the car down. The front end hangs over the beavertail and gives very easy access. I use the factory frame holes with special T hooks and ratchet straps. I never have to adjust them and for some strange reason when I unload, 99% of the time, the hooks fall out as I let the car roll back to unload. I always cross the straps in the front and rear and have never had the car move at all! I can usually load or unload the car, by myself, in 5 minutes or less! I have found that when I load this way, Backwards, I have the most flexible way of adjusting the tongue weight and have several marks on the floor, depending on which vehicle I am towing with. Many of you would be amazed at the amount of tongue weight you are hauling! If you ever see me at an event, I have a small scale that will measure up to 4000 lbs and I would be happy to assist you in weighing and adjusting yours.

Regards!
Sam Goldfarb
Ohio VCA Secretary

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Thanks everyone for your info. Thomas, could you give me the name and number where you bought it in case the dealer here is much higher or has to order it. Also I would want the upgrade on wheels or is there one from the factory such as aluminum ? And the stone chip guard option. Thanks again.

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

Thanks Jay for the info. I will use the certificate for the truck.

 

[Sleeper]

Sam, thank you for the good info. never thought of loading backwards, but obvious benefit in adjusting tongue weight. This is guess-work without a scale, and I didn't find one. My two difficulties were:
1) Where do I put the car? I ended up leveling the flatbed and the axles...
2) How do I get the brake controller just right?
I like the idea of raising the tongue to optimize load angle, so I asked the dealer if car could be loaded when not attached to truck. No problem, he said! I tried this as soon as I got home, maybe ramp extensions aren't necessary after all. As you are already picturing, I scared the sh**t out of myself when the tongue came off the ground with the Viper half way up the ramps! Perhaps not my best judgement.
Sounds like you have a well thought-out and very functional set up!

 

[Sleeper]

Dealer: Gateway Metal Works, www.gatewaytrailers.com
1-888-671-0888
Didn't look in to wheel options, but manual list lug nut torque numbers for both steel and aluminum wheels, so probably available. They do have optional winch and stone guard.

 

[Jay Herbert]

Learn all you need to know about Dodge diesels at www.turbodieselregister.com. It is an all Dodge website, and the forums are insanely active due to all the truck owners out there. I saw a video last night showing a huge diesel doing a 11.48 sec. quarter mile!

These guys/club and web site are great..... and they like Torque as much as Viper owners! They are as fanatical about their trucks as we are about our snakes.

 

[Sleeper]

[These guys/club and web site are great..... and they like Torque as much as Viper owners! They are as fanatical about their trucks as we are about our snakes.

[/QUOTE]

No doubt!

 

[Sam Goldfarb]

Sleeper,

If you are going to load without the trailer hooked up, make sure to block the tires and put some blocks under the back of the trailer to prevent the front from raising up! The biggest advantage to loading backward is the access under the front and I really like the factory holes and the T hooks instead of axle straps. By raising the front it also helps eject the car as you power out the cable when unloading. As I said, I have it down to 5 minutes or so in or out and can pack up my motorhome, load the car in the trailer and be down the road in under 15 minutes usually!!

The brake controller is trial and error and is different for each vehicle, load and trailer. It can really be fun when you get it right and then forget to back off the electric brakes a little when you haul the trailer empty! Lots of noise and tire smoke!!

The scale I use is made by Sherline Products and sells for around $100, you can also purchase extra guages for different weight ranges, 2000 lb is best for most applications, check the link below:
http://www.sherline.com/scales.htm

Regards!
Sam Goldfarb
Ohio VCA Secretary

 

[Sleeper]

Sam,
You have me thinking again about better ways to place my car on the trailer, viz. loading backwards, unattached. Anchoring to frame is best, as you are saying, with straps crossed F&R. I purchased axle straps, but didn't use them.
Adjusting those brakes can be tricky, if I flat spot the trailer tires, do I need to limit speed to say 90 mph or less?
I did look at the scale you referenced, may purchase. Thanks again,
Thomas DeCosta

 

[LittleFish]

I have a 20ft H&H enclosed v-nose. Open the door with one hand, drive car right in and tie down. I can load and unload the car by myself in less than 10 mins. About the same cost as an open trailer but.......

I never worry about road grime, rock chips or what somebody might do while I'm trying to sleep in the hotel. There is just no way I would get sleep worry about the car in the open in some parking lot on the Interstate.

We trailered up to K.C. two weeks ago in a crazy downpour. The skies opened up about 20 miles south of K.C. and we got to cruise on Kansas Speedway.

Anyway, check out www.hhtrailer.com

Dave

 

[Jay Herbert]

H&H has nice stuff. Bill Pemberton speaks highly of them too.... that says a lot. They have done a number of Viper trailers, so they know the proper locations for the ties downs and such.