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Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
#739195
07/21/06 03:53 PM
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 320
OP
Mudrunner
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So I'm moving to Kansas City MO to start school, and I need to tow my Rodeo behind our U-haul. Distance is about 1100 miles from Utah. I don't want to pay for a flat trailer, so I want to do it with a tow dolly.
Option 1 is to unlock the front hubs and tow it with rear axle on the dolly. I'm not sure if I have the correct equipment to lock the steering wheel in place. Seems like this could be hazardous over long distances.
Option 2 is to put the front axle on the dolly. I have a 5speed, do I still need to disconnect the driveshaft? A friend told me to disconnect it and fill the diff with extra fluid so the forward diff bearing will still be lubricated with the angle induced by the towing.
I have never done this before, so any advice from those with experience here would be great. Thanks in advance.
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" />
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: BobDole]
#739196
07/21/06 05:17 PM
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 2,285
Body Damage is Cool
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Most recommend disconnecting the driveshaft at the rear diff, then hanging it up. That way the slip yoke (if you have one) stays intact keeping the t-case oil inside.
CHRIS 98 Amigo, 92 Pup
need a pickup 1st gen fuel level sender
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: CPOM]
#739197
07/21/06 05:52 PM
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Joined: May 2001
Posts: 1,628
Body Damage is Cool
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Finally getting to the big move. Having moved literally 19 times now I would suggest going with the actual car hauler trailer. Those dollies are a pain in the butt to back up when you need to due to having to pivot points.
If you need help moving you might want to post it up on the club site. I'm sure they'll be a few that coul dhelp. I'm deadlined though with the two surgeries that I had last week or I'd help as well.
1995 Honda Passport; Some people wait a life time for their ship to sail in, while others simple grab the oars and begin paddling Yours truely http://www.zutah.com
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: CPOM]
#739198
07/21/06 05:53 PM
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Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,074
Body Damage is Cool
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I've heard it is not recommended to tow a vehicle on the dolly backwards. Did a little research and finally found a reasonable explanation on an RV forum: If you try and tow your vehicle backwards then every time you make a turn it places forces on your steering components that the car was not designed to take for long. Add in the weight bias and then throw in a few pot holes at 65mph in reverse and you will see that it's an accident waiting to happen. If your steering let's go then the vehicle will try and spin around, taking your tow vehicle/motorhome with it. At speed that will flip your rig instantly.
The reason is that the caster built into the steering, to make it return to center going forward, wants to turn the wheels to full lock when the vehicle is moving backwards. How much confidence do you have that your anti-theft steering lock will hold the front wheels straight?
In an emergency then you can do it for a short distance assuming you apply a secondary restraint to the steering wheel (but if the steering components let go then thats not going to help) and drive slowly.
You may have seen recovery vehicles towing that way - they are taking a major risk in doing so and normally they only do so for a few miles - not several thousand that you may subject your rig and toad to. So based on that, I would not recommend towing backwards. Besides it only takes a few minutes to disconnect the driveshaft from the rear diff. Don't know about extra fluid, might be unneccessary.
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: CPOM]
#739199
07/21/06 05:54 PM
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,277
Roll Me Over
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with the distance you're going, you really need to do it right. put the front wheels up on the dolly and disconnect the rear shaft at the axle end. depending on what type of dolly, you may or may not lock the steering column.
-Rob
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: RobG]
#739200
07/21/06 07:30 PM
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 320
OP
Mudrunner
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Thanks for the explanations.. Ill disconnect the driveshaft and tow it forwards. Mine doesn't have a slip yoke, but I think ill just hang it up securely for convenience. Yea, backing up with a tow dolly is near impossible, but for 150 extra bucks for the flat trailer, I think I can deal with it. I think if I tried to add oil while it was tipped back, what's in it would just flow out. So nobody thinks I'll do any damage to that bearing? I think it will be ok.... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/baby.gif" alt="" />
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: BobDole]
#739201
07/21/06 08:23 PM
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,277
Roll Me Over
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So nobody thinks I'll do any damage to that bearing? I think it will be ok.... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/baby.gif" alt="" /> heck no, tow dollies aren't very high off the ground and spread over the length of your wheelbase, fluid level won't change dramatically. If it did cause a problem, your diff was way too low to begin with. -Rob
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: RobG]
#739202
07/21/06 10:16 PM
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Joined: Aug 1999
Posts: 9,030
4x4Wire.com Managing Editor Emeritus
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If you have some assistance, I really recommend just driving the vehicle separately. Yes, it will cost gas and wear and tear, but when you deduct the trailer rental, it should be a closer comparison.
Randii
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: randii]
#739203
07/22/06 12:10 AM
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 320
OP
Mudrunner
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I calculated gas to be about 165 dollars (1100 miles/18mpg*$2.85/gal), and the dolly rental is only 130ish with the UHAUL, so even If I had a spare driver to drive it, it would still cost more. I don't think it will cost much extra gas in the UHAUL truck to tow it.
Interesting thing: I flat towed a RAV4 200 miles through the mountains (after Zuzu 9, timing belt went kaput) and got 17mpg instead of 18. 17! The Rodeo made me proud that day.
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" />
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Re: Moving to Kansas: and Questions about towing the rodeo behind me.
[Re: BobDole]
#739204
07/22/06 12:40 AM
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Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 73
Getting the Wheeling Fever
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Good luck in Kansas! Although, you probably won't find the same off-road terrain there as in Utah. BTW, with a username of "BobDole", you'll fit in just fine! US Senator Bob Dole is from Russell, KS. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" />
1993 Trooper "Purple People Eater"
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