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Topic: Towing?  (Read 2394 times)

Offline IntrstlarOvrdrve

  • Joined: Oct 2003
  • Posts: 249

Towing?

« on: December 12, 2006, 11:56:16 AM »
How bad is it to tow an aircooled on a two wheel dolly? I may be pulling a vehicle about 6 hours back home..but all I have is a wheel dolly. Is this going to end up bad?

Offline Ret.Bugtech

Towing?

« Reply #1 on: December 12, 2006, 12:39:56 PM »
All you need is tires to hold air, out of gear , tranny fluid ck'd, lug bolts tight and if it has IRS , ck CV joints bolts . You might need some kind of running/brake light to keep the Law happy :lol: I understand that some states requre a sign on the back to warn people that you have a" car in tow" .   Have fun !

Offline Zen

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Towing?

« Reply #2 on: December 12, 2006, 07:47:39 PM »
I've towed with trailers and tow dollies a few times, but I prefer to "flat tow" if possible.  It's pretty easy with a Beetle or Super Beetle . . . just requires the stuff RetBugtech mentioned (except that you will need 4 decent tires that hold air) and a special tow bar.

I once towed a 68 convertible from Orlando, FL to LaFayette, GA without any issues . . . well, besides the brakes going out on my truck . . . and loosing the drive shaft 3 times . . . and burning 2 cases of HD-40 oil . . . but no issues directly related to towing.  Later I towed the 68 convertible down west of Atlanta and towed back a 63 Beetle I traded it for.  I've also towed a Super Beetle from Murfreesboro, TN to LaFayette and made a few other 1-2 hour trips flat towing Beetles, Super Beetles and a couple of Karmann Ghias.  I couldn't start to count the number of short trips I've made flat towing old VWs.

Regardless of how you end up towing it, double check everything before you start moving . . . then stop and recheck everything after a mile or two . . . then stop and recheck everything at least once an hour or anytime you think something may be going wrong.  I think it was Mark Twain that said "It's better to be safe a hundred times than to be killed once."   8)

Offline Zen

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Towing?

« Reply #3 on: December 12, 2006, 07:53:42 PM »
Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention . . . make sure you have cotter pins in the rear axle nuts.  A friend of mine lost a rear wheel at the bottom of Sand Mountain.  He was just off the mountain and stopped for a red light and the Beetle's right rear wheel, brake drum and all, went rolling through the intersection.  The nut was still under the hub cap, but he said he didn't see any sign of a cotter pin.  If it had happened a minute or two earlier, it would have been BAD!

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