Car tie down and transmission in PARK or NEUTRAL?

We Cant Wait wrote:
Rather then using car hauler straps over the wheels, use a good commercial quality ratchet strap hooked to the frame of the car and the bed of the trl in an "X" pattern on both the front and rear of the car. This will stop the problem of body bounce which will effect how the trl tows behind the MH.

Unless you put some serious load on those straps, this will result in the car moving up and down from bumps in the road, making the straps go temporarily loose, then tight and back again. Eventually, one or more straps will get loose and you'll have a moving car. This is especially true for vehicles with loads of suspension travel (off-road buggies, trucks, Jeeps, etc) or stiff spring rates (racecars), as there's just no way you're gonna be able to crank down on the straps hard enough to keep it from bouncing a little down the road.

Surest way to make sure it's secure is to strap the wheels down. I usually just run a standard strap through the spokes with a couple of shop rags wrapped around the CLEAN spoke for strap and wheel protection. Make sure to feed it through the gap in the spokes NEAREST to the tie down point or you'll have problems. You can also connect the strap to the suspension on the tire side, or over the axle if it's a solid axle vehicle. Just be wary of damaging components and for your hook slipping off or up the control arm.

Once your straps are on and snug (not tight), put the trans in neutral and dis-engage the parking brake, then get all 4 straps tight before putting it back in park and re-engaging the brake.

For the over-the-tire straps, make sure your tie-down points are in line with the wheels close enough to the tire so the straps don't interfere with body-work. Out of line will pull outward on the suspension and could cause alignment problems.

I always use Transport Tie Down Straps on each wheel when hauling cars. Just last weekend I hauled a Dodge Dakota R/T from FL to OH, it rode perfectly with no adjustments or tightening needed.

My late brother was the Safety Manager for a company that hauled new vehicles to dealers all over the SE. They had hundreds of semis. 15 years ago he fixed me up with the "over the wheel" straps that they used on their high end cars that were usually hauled in large soft sided enclosed trailers. I had been having trouble with under car clearance issues while hauling my Ferrari 308 GT4 using the normal chassis tie down straps. I modified my trailer to accept the hooks on the straps (the semi trailers had aluminum ramps with multiple holes to accept the hooks). The difference between the normal tie down straps and the "over the wheel" straps was like night and day. The car rode comfortably on it's own suspension and never moved a bit. The straps not only hold the car down on the trailer but also the friction between the strap and tire prevent the tire from rotating.

I use straps like these.
http://www.awdirect.com/2-wide-soft-transport-tie-down-strap/auto-transport-straps/

My brother had a custom trailer made to haul his Dodge Dart 340 to car shows. He had it made with the same crank down chains that were on his semis. He could load/unload his car in less than a minute. The reasons that the commercial haulers use the chains is speed and to crank the cars as far as possible down on their suspension in order to get as much vertical clearance as possible for stacking cars in as compact of a package as possible. The "load build" is a real science to get as many cars on the truck as they can with the "unload" sequence optimized for multiple dealer stops.

Quote:
I wasn't sure about the transmission, whether the jostling on the trailer might damage the parking pawl.
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It could ! That is a ligit concern in many cases.

Last of all, pull the tranny out of park to relieve any tension that mite be against the park pawl.
Then back in park, and you good to go.

Moved to Dinghy Towing forum from Towing.

Rather then using car hauler straps over the wheels, use a good commercial quality ratchet strap hooked to the frame of the car and the bed of the trl in an "X" pattern on both the front and rear of the car. This will stop the problem of body bounce which will effect how the trl tows behind the MH.

Yes, tranny in park, e-brake on. Since you're building the trailer, you might look into various ways to keep the car on the trailer. I installed D rings on mine for the tie down straps. There are other methods. I would research what might work best for you. I did not like the over the wheel straps. They seem to loosen more than traditional ratchet straps...just my experience.....Dennis

Thanks for the quick response--I wasn't sure about the transmission, whether the jostling on the trailer might damage the parking pawl. Sounds like your experience says transmission in PARK with emergency brake on is the correct way to go. Thanks again...
RS

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Transmission in PARK.....wheels are not going to be rolling. Parking Brake ON also. Key OFF/steering wheel locked.


Use 'car hauler straps' either over the wheel type or 'X' pattern

X2 Good advice!

Transmission in PARK.....wheels are not going to be rolling. Parking Brake ON also. Key OFF/steering wheel locked.


Use 'car hauler straps' either over the wheel type or 'X' pattern