using a car dolley

sams66 · Sep 6, 2004

Guys, I have sold the 65 to a guy from atlanta and told him I would take the car down to him 1/2 way about dayton area where we plan to meet. Have any of you ever used a car dolley? will they work with a mustang? U-haul website says that you have to disconnect drive shaft if you plan to use on rear wheel car. advice appreciated. do I have to use a car trailer?

Thanks

Sam

PoliceInterceptor · Sep 6, 2004

I'd use a trailer. The dollies are a huge PITA and don't tow that well.

LMan · Sep 6, 2004

yes, you must take out the driveshaft if you use a dolly. Remove the rear u-joint and pull it out. Get ready for some trans fliud to escape from the tailshaft as well, and cap it off before you travel.

Ozsum2 · Sep 6, 2004

LMan said:
yes, you must take out the driveshaft if you use a dolly. Remove the rear u-joint and pull it out. Get ready for some trans fliud to escape from the tailshaft as well, and cap it off before you travel.

How do you know he has an automatic? It is a waste of time if the tranny is manual.

65 A Code · Sep 6, 2004

When I picked my 65 up I used a dolly. Was a big pain in the butt. You do have to remove the driveshaft and drain fluid. Guy I got it from said he followed the trail of tranny fluid for 10 miles ( guess I did not drain it all out). after the 130 mile trip the blasted thing was still leaking fluid.

I would go for the trailer. I did'nt bc I did not think my Tacoma could handle a full trailer. Will get a bigger truck before I tow it again.

67coupestang · Sep 6, 2004

I used a dolly to bring mine up from waverly, towed great behind my 4.0 liter explorer, no problems, removed the rear d-shaft, capped the tranny and away i went. 2 years later i get a tandem axle from u-haul and haul it again to albert lea with my v-8 expo, towed like a pooch, wanted to sway at anything above 55 mph, hated it... If you dont mind the driveshaft, and you have a "lesser truck" get a dolly especially if the car wont run. but The tandem is only like 10 bucks more and a little more protection for the car.

Platonic Solid · Sep 7, 2004

When using a dolly on an automatic, can't you just put it in Neutral?
Why are you supposed to pull the driveshaft?

69Horse · Sep 7, 2004

Pull the driveshaft, it'll be a little less rotating mass that you'll have to pull. One more thing, most of the Dolly's that you'll rent have a center pivot point that allows the dolly to turn sharper, if it does, use some bungee cords or equivilent to tie down your steering wheel. All newer cars have a column lock which keeps the wheels from turning with the ignition off, older vehicles don't. I towed my 69 bronco "once" with a dolly and didn't tie down the wheel. going forward wasn't bad, the the first time you try to back up. You can get into a real mess.

WORTH · Sep 7, 2004

If you are towing with a light vehical you are much better off with a dolly. The only drawback of the dolly is you can't back up, so plan your moves accordingly.

If you have a spare spline, you can put it in the tranny and tape it in with duct tape, that will keep it from leaking, If it's a standard you can leave the shaft in.

Ozsum2 · Sep 7, 2004

WORTH said:
If you are towing with a light vehical you are much better off with a dolly. The only drawback of the dolly is you can't back up, so plan your moves accordingly.

If you have a spare spline, you can put it in the tranny and tape it in with duct tape, that will keep it from leaking, If it's a standard you can leave the shaft in.

All these guys are saying pull the shaft. Where did it say it was an auto? Get some info people.

69Horse · Sep 7, 2004

Doesn't matter whether it's an auto or manual. Most manuals require the xmsn to be in gear to properly lube the output bearing. So by leaving it in neutral you take the chance of overheating the output bearing and then you'll be leaking oil. For distances up to about 30 miles it's not a big issue, but anything more pull the shaft. It takes all of about 15 minutes.

sams66 · Sep 7, 2004

guys thanks, it is a manual, 4sp. from these posts, i think i will be renting the trailer. dont have time to mess with drive shaft etc.

thanks

Sam

Ozsum2 · Sep 7, 2004

sams66 said:
guys thanks, it is a manual, 4sp. from these posts, i think i will be renting the trailer. dont have time to mess with drive shaft etc.

thanks

Sam

Then you will have NO problem towing it around the block or to the moon. Uhaul tells you to remove the DS just as a disclaimer. Don't believe old wive's tail from old wives. It isn't nessecary.

WORTH · Sep 7, 2004

Ozsum2 said:
Then you will have NO problem towing it around the block or to the moon. Uhaul tells you to remove the DS just as a disclaimer. Don't believe old wive's tail from old wives. It isn't nessecary.

OZ is right,(I hate when that happens ), make sure you have an big enough vehical if your gonna use a trailer.

jmagilto · Sep 7, 2004

Adding the Tech

There is a lot of information and some mis-information in this thread. Let me see if I can help.

AUTOMATIC.
With an automatic transmission, when the engine is running the torque converter spins and causes the transmission fluid (read OIL) to circulate to all the moving parts of the transmission (bands and clutches).

When towing, the spinning of the rear wheels will spin the clutches between the steels within the drums of the automatic transmission without the benefit of having the oil being circulated by the torque converter. This is a quick way to destroy the automatic transmission.

Removal of the driveshaft is essential. - Also - when removing the DS, you can subsequently remove the slip yoke from the front of the DS and secure it on the end of the output shaft of the transmission (wire ties). This will stop the transfluid from leaking out as you tow.

MANUAL.
A manual transmission consists of an output shaft, an input shaft and a cluster shaft. These shafts are holding the gears and sliders and are sitting in a bath of gear oil. As the transmission is turned, the oil is splashed throughout the casing and the moving parts are kept lubricated.

In a towing scenario (Neutral Please), the output shaft will be turning, but the cluster shaft and the input shaft will be stationary. The turing of the output shaft will keep the moving parts of the transmission lubricated by splashing around their oil bath just fine. There is no need to disconnect the driveshaft.

Having said all that, I much perfer using a car trailer rather then a tow dolly. Better control, Increased stability, and a small bit of insulation against damage should some jackass run into the rig while you are transporting your vehicle.

Ozsum2 · Sep 7, 2004

jmagilto said:
There is a lot of information and some mis-information in this thread. Let me see if I can help.

AUTOMATIC.
With an automatic transmission, when the engine is running the torque converter spins and causes the transmission fluid (read OIL) to circulate to all the moving parts of the transmission (bands and clutches).

When towing, the spinning of the rear wheels will spin the clutches between the steels within the drums of the automatic transmission without the benefit of having the oil being circulated by the torque converter. This is a quick way to destroy the automatic transmission.

Removal of the driveshaft is essential. - Also - when removing the DS, you can subsequently remove the slip yoke from the front of the DS and secure it on the end of the output shaft of the transmission (wire ties). This will stop the transfluid from leaking out as you tow.

MANUAL.
A manual transmission consists of an output shaft, an input shaft and a cluster shaft. These shafts are holding the gears and sliders and are sitting in a bath of gear oil. As the transmission is turned, the oil is splashed throughout the casing and the moving parts are kept lubricated.

In a towing scenario (Neutral Please), the output shaft will be turning, but the cluster shaft and the input shaft will be stationary. The turing of the output shaft will keep the moving parts of the transmission lubricated by splashing around their oil bath just fine. There is no need to disconnect the driveshaft.

Having said all that, I much perfer using a car trailer rather then a tow dolly. Better control, Increased stability, and a small bit of insulation against damage should some jackass run into the rig while you are transporting your vehicle.

Thanks for the support. I really don't know where some get their info.

LMan · Sep 7, 2004

well, Ozsum, it was a reasonable guess, based on the info provided, which was lacking, as usual. I personally would pull the d/s anyway, since its all of about a 5 minute job.....loading it on a trailer would take 5 times as long. Just peace of mind, thats all. Ive seen one manual-trans car vomit its d/s while towing in neutral to a dragstrip, but Im sure that was due to some other cause. But, being anal, 5 mins of my time is worth eliminating the possibility that they were related, somehow.

But, carry on.......

using a car dolley

sams66

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67coupestang

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WORTH

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