can an A-body tow?

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Princess Valiant

Princess Valiant

A.K.A. Rainy Day Auto
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i have been wondering lately if i can use my dart to tow a car dolly with a car on it.

i have access to a number of farm trucks and a 22' dovetail trailer .....problem with that is all of my dad's farm trucks are F-350 with either 460s or diesels and to take a hundred mile trip to pick up or deliver a car is really painful at the pump .....diesel is not cheap and neither is regular unleaded in the quantity that these trucks take.

i know how to drive with a trailer ....farm life has put me behind the wheel of these massive trucks with a full load of hay or a bunch of cows in the trailer many many times....so that is nothing new to me.

but in a quest to become more mobile for much cheaper i am wondering if my dart or any 8 3/4 equiped A-body can handle a car dolly ....i have seen sweptline trucks with 741 case 8 3/4 so im thinking even a 741 can handle the weight.

im wondering if the B-body wagon would do any better than an A-body ...just bcoz its a much bigger car.

im not sure if car dollys come with electric brakes ....

anyone have any experience towing with an A-body??
 

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Towing isnt so much about the weight but more of the tail waggin the dog! Could it pull it sure! Should it pull it probably not. The wagon would most likely do a better job and has the weight to it.
 
I would make sure the car pulling had good brakes, probably not the best idea with a car that has small front drum brakes. The 70 Dart I had a dealer installed trailer hitch, a very good one too that bolted on between the body and rear bumper, also tied to the frame, so that gal did some towing before I bought it. I have some pics of the hitch before I sold it if you would like me to post them.
 
When I rented a car hauler (two axle) from UHaul, it had a surge brake on it - worked fine, and no need for a brake controller.

As to pulling a car behind an A body...I don't know.

Thinking back to when I was a kid, people hauled 2 horse trailers behind the family wagon - in the mountains with no brakes on the trailer (and crappy drum brakes on the car)...but they also went up hill at about 35 MPH (even a VW hippie microbus could pass them).

Longer wheelbase makes for better towing.
 
Last time I commented to a girl about towing her Subaru behind a 66 Cuda from California to North Carolina I got the nastiest message I ever received here on FABO!! So, I'm out on this one!!!

I'd do it with the wagon though!!!
 
If the brakes are up to the task, I would say yes. I think I still have a hitch for a Dart in the garage.
 
Here's what I used to do when I needed to go get a car: I would go to Enterprise car rental and rent a brand new 1/2 ton Dodge truck for the weekend or a week (it's not that much and you can get unlimited mileage). Do NOT tell them that you plan to tow with it! (of course it's a "no-no" in the contract)

The trucks get great gas milege and they all have trailer hitch wiring from the factory. You can pull a car trailer without brakes on the bumper hitch. The bumper is solid enough and the braking system on the truck will handle it in the short term (long term is not your problem!). A car dolly will be a piece of cake. You will probably have to buy the bumper hitch ball and install it in the hole in the bumper. (Be sure to remove it before you return the truck!)

Once, I even got the truck that the company uses to tow their own stuff, so IT was equipped with a class three hitch and electric brakes!

After I learned how well the 1/2 ton Dodges tow, I bought myself one, but for years I rented one for every swap meet!
 
Now this is funny. I have towed a utility trailer with around 1200lbs on it with my 4cyl ferd escort.
 

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I got a lot of crap because I had tow packages on my dusters and darts. I have one waiting to go on this duster. I have towed boats, jet ski and other cars. heck my 67 valiant towed my 73 charger from eastern WA to here don't get me wrong I never went over 55 lol.
 
I think what everyone is missing is the liability.

First off, TAKE THE DIESEL! Sure fuel is high right now, but the MPG a diesel gets can not be compared to any gas vehicle towing.

Second off, I have seen a lot of different vehicles towing car trailers. That doesn't make it right. Your insurance is void if you or over weight. So if you get into an accident and its your fault, your screwed. If its not your fault, you still might be screwed.

Old cars are flagged by most police, and you can bet if DOT sees a dart towing a car trailer with another car on it, you will get pulled over.

This is yet another example of, " but someone on the Internet said its ok"

Sure it can be done, but Don't do it.


Do not compare a boat or jet ski to a loaded car trailer!

Phil
 
I would add in, what do you think this is doing to your car? Trucks are built different and built for work. Cars are not.
 
I used to flat tow a 73 Challenger with a 70 Duster to and from the race track....
 
My brother was towing a 19' Sportcraft-open bow with a Berretta and he found, what most everyone has said. Most cars have more than enough engine power, but not near enough braking power to deal with a trailer.
 
mrtires24 said:
Do not compare a boat or jet ski to a loaded car trailer!

Phil
Click to expand...

I had a low ride full length trailer that I put the charger on. Guess what when I was putting it on the trailer a state patrol stopped and helped me do it. The charger broke down on highway 2 going over the pass and was on a hill. it took me my friend and a cop to get it on there. He also was nice enough to fallow us over Stevens pass so people wouldn't get pissed we were doing 55.
 
mrtires24 said:
i think what everyone is missing is the liability.

First off, take the diesel! Sure fuel is high right now, but the mpg a diesel gets can not be compared to any gas vehicle towing.

Second off, i have seen a lot of different vehicles towing car trailers. That doesn't make it right. Your insurance is void if you or over weight. So if you get into an accident and its your fault, your screwed. If its not your fault, you still might be screwed.

Old cars are flagged by most police, and you can bet if dot sees a dart towing a car trailer with another car on it, you will get pulled over.

This is yet another example of, " but someone on the internet said its ok"

sure it can be done, but don't do it.


Do not compare a boat or jet ski to a loaded car trailer!

Phil
Click to expand...
x 2!!!
 
mwls73duster360 said:
I had a low ride full length trailer that I put the charger on. Guess what when I was putting it on the trailer a state patrol stopped and helped me do it. The charger broke down on highway 2 going over the pass and was on a hill. it took me my friend and a cop to get it on there. He also was nice enough to fallow us over Stevens pass so people wouldn't get pissed we were doing 55.
Click to expand...

Police state patrol and dot are two different things. Most police do not know actual vehicle transportation laws like dot. Police look for un secure loads, broken lights, bald tires,
Dot look at all that plus vehicle specs, gvw, payload I durable operating perimeters.

Here's a challenge that will end this. ANYONE that thinks there car ( dart ) is properly insured when towing a car trailer and car, please get approval from your ensurance provider. Then post on here that your insurance approved with there phone number and name so we all can be properly insured. And provide what weight you claimed the trailer and car to weigh.

To everyone that is towing with a car, you can lose your house if something happens. It's not worth it. All you are doing on here is proving in writing that you " think" it's ok. You don't know the facts and are turning a blind eye to it.

J4r3d... Wear and tear should be a given to most...

Phil
 
here you go. mine met all requirements and this is from WA state patrol.
Weight Limits

Trailer Hitch Regulations

  • For a Class 1 trailer--less than 1 ton maximum gross weight--you must use a hitch ball at least 1 7/8 inches in diameter rated to withstand 3 tons of longitudinal--lengthwise--tension and 1.5 tons of vertical tension. For a Class 2 trailer--1 to 1.75 tons in weight--your hitch ball should be a minimum of 2 inches in diameter and rated for 5.5 tons of longitudinal tension and 2.5 tons of vertical tension. Class 3 trailers--between 1.75 tons and 2.5 tons--requires a 2-inch minimum ball and a rating to haul 7.5 tons longitudinal tension and 3.5 tons vertical tension.

Safety Chains and Attachment Rules

Rules of Thumb for Towing

  • No matter where your are towing a trailer, whether it is in Washington state or elsewhere, you should keep in mind some rules that will help you avoid trouble down the road. Remember to adjust your driving when you are pulling a trailer. Corner more slowly to ensure that your trailer does not create a traffic hazard. In addition, slow down your driving in general if you wish to avoid damage to your load.

 
Engine performance-wise and from a durability stand point you won't have any issues.

Back when I had the 7-1/4" 2.76 geared rear under my car, and this was like 3-4 years ago I did this, I once had to pull my boss's F-350 Quadcab Dually up a huge hill with my car. It had a seized parking brake, and the hill was maybe like a 6-7% grade. It did fine.

Why? The slant is a torque monster. Great for towing. 200 ft/lbs of torque @ the flyweel at 1200 RPM will make a surprisingly heavy load crawl. Now facing let's say a 4% grade with that truck on a trailer and trying to tackle the hill at 50 MPH? No way, not enough power.

As Rob said, a big issue is gonna be trailer sway.

If I'm not mistaken you live in a flat area, but have you ever took a heavy load on a trailer with no brakes down a big hill with the load being heavier than the tow vehicle? The trailer will push the tow vehicle obviously, and in the tow vehicles resistance to the pushing force, the back end on the vehicle will begin to sway or fishtail. And if you hit the brakes, it gets even worse, not fun.

With a light tow vehicle you key factor is gonna be brake biase.

Ever seen those flat bed tow trailers that U-haul has? They have it setup so that there is a master cylinder mounted on the trailer tongue, the hitch slides on tongue and is attached to the master cylinder pushrod. When you hit the brakes, the sliding part of the tongue/hitch gets forced back torwards the trailer pushing on the master cylinder pushrod and activating to trailer brakes.

Here's the problem. This provide NO controlled brake bias. For the split second it takes the trailer brakes to engage, the tow vehicle is doing all the braking and still yet after the trailer brakes engage the tow vehicle is still doing the majority of the braking. If you have a tow vehicle lighter than your load by a substantial amount, this will be a problem and result in the trailer sway I covered earlier although, granted, not as bad as not having trailer brakes at all.

You're best bet is going to be a trailer with electronic brakes and this will allow you to program your brake controller to handle, let's say 60-70% of the the braking duties. So this way, the trailer will be pulling on the car during braking and will be stopping the car as well as the trailer.

To answer a question, I've never seen a tow dolly with electronic brakes but I don't see why they wouldn't exist. I don't like tow dollies though, they are a PITA compared to a well setup flatbed trailer.
 
ok so I had to call my insurance because it says nothing on my paperwork or the web site. I use hagerty classic car insurance. My rep said as long as its within DOT laws then its covered.
 
mwls73duster360 said:
ok so I had to call my insurance because it says nothing on my paperwork or the web site. I use hagerty classic car insurance. My rep said as long as its within DOT laws then its covered.
Click to expand...

I'm I retested to hear what hagerty has to say. I highly doubt it would be covers by a classic car insurance co.

You can't go by your trailers insurance. If that were the case, and because it doesn't say the cut off limit for the towing vehicle, does that mean you can tow with a Vespa?
 
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