thinking of a toad

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

In my experience with flat towing a toad backing was nearly impossible except for a very short distance.

Yeah. Caster/Camber that makes your toad track well going forward would cause the toad's steering to trip itself to one side going backwards and it wouldn't self-center again until you returned to forward motion.

For those of us with towable automatic transmissions, it's worse; the transmission would pump itself dry through the dipstick tube in short order if you're lucky, or through a blown seal if you weren't lucky.

[DaveFL]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

In my experience with flat towing a toad backing was nearly impossible except for a very short distance.


- - Mike
2013 AS Interstate on 2012 MB Sprinter

Short as in 1 to 2 ft

Is it possible to have a person hold on to the steering wheel of the toad to prevent the jackknife for any greater distance than the 1 or 2 ft?

[Protagonist]

The one time I needed to back up while pulling a toad, when my GPS sent me down a dead-end street by mistake, I uncoupled, turned each vehicle around separately, and then re-coupled. It was a minor pain, but better than risking damage.

[streamquest]

In the case of the Demco incident that I witnessed, I don't think the guy made it a foot before crunching the dolly's fenders into the side of his toad. Even with a normal trailer it's always a hassle trying to back up a short trailer with a long wheelbase vehicle. I would suggest that reversing the Demco is like trying to back up a tandem trailer rig; basically impossible. De-coupling is the only safe way to get through it, and that experience must surely teach you the lesson of knowing exactly what you're driving into before you drive into it.

[Vycan]

plz explain the transmission out the dipstick.... backed up my Saturn sw2 100ft with no issue.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Vycan

plz explain the transmission out the dipstick.... backed up my Saturn sw2 100ft with no issue.

Explaining the inner workings of an automatic transmission would fill a hydraulics textbook, and I will spare everybody the agony of reading it. Suffice to say, an automatic transmission is a hydraulic pump, and even when the transmission is in neutral, fluid is still cycling through it as long as the engine is turning. If the engine isn't turning but the wheels are, the transmission fluid is being pumped backwards through the transmission, which raises the possibility (not certainty, just possibility) that it will pump itself dry. I don't know how long it would take to empty the transmission and I'm certainly not going to experiment with my toad.

If your owner's manual tells you to shift into neutral from drive and not from reverse, then chances are good that you've got a transmission that will try to pump itself dry if you back up while towing it. If your owner's manual doesn't say that, and all you have to do is put it in neutral, there shouldn't be a particular problem.

[Vycan]

Thanks for sharing.

[Alechemist]

What type of brakes would you use when towing on a dolly? Would a proportional floor-mounted brake box be effective with only the rear wheels on the ground?

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Alechemist

What type of brakes would you use when towing on a dolly? Would a proportional floor-mounted brake box be effective with only the rear wheels on the ground?

When dolly-towing, you use the dolly's brakes and lights, not toad brakes and lights.

[Kota]

The pump on modern automatic transmissions is driven by the torque converter which is coupled to directly to the engine. While towing you will not get any fluid flow through the bearings which can lead to failure.

(Important to know on the Allison. Always pull the drive shaft if you have to tow it.)

Consult your owners manual about towing.

I don't know of any automatics that will pump fluid when the engine isn't running except for the power glides of the 50s. They had a rear pump driven by the output shaft. You could actually push start them if you got the speed up enough to enough to produce the pressure to engage the clutches.

Some, especially front wheel drive, run the bearings and gears submerged and can be flat towed.

[Kota]

I looked a long time for a decent Samurai. They have a following and have gotten pricy.

[SteveH]

Anyone here use a Remco drive line disconnect unit on a towed vehicle? If so, what's your opinion of them, please.

[DaveFL]

Originally Posted by SteveH

Anyone here use a Remco drive line disconnect unit on a towed vehicle? If so, what's your opinion of them, please.

Works, easier pulling out of gear than getting it back in, wife hates sound of grinding gear. I don't like it but the way you line it up is by having the spinning transmission stop at the right place so that it will push in. I don't think I would consider it if it had to put up with slush on the road, here I can spray with wd40 once a year and it is clean.

[paiceman]

We towed a Jeep Wrangler automatic four down behind a 38' SOB MoHo. Transmission in Jeep was in Park when being towed, transfer case was in neutral. Used a Dremco connection and Brake Buddy as Jeep weighed 4,000#. Whole set up worked well.