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Sun Jan 06, 2008 9:40 am

I will be going to Texas to get my 73 in feburary I plan on towing it back here with a tow bar it is like 650 to 700 miles. Is there anything I should remove on it or anything I should be aware of. I just don't want to have any problems

Sun Jan 06, 2008 10:38 am

A friend of mine towed a Ghia further than that and some how it slipped into gear. :cry: It wasnt good. I'd be nervous. I would take the axles off or trailer it.

Sun Jan 06, 2008 11:08 am

Hello, Flat towed all kinds of VW's thousands of miles. I would check and repack the front wheel bearings, check the rear axle cotter pins, check for loose lug bolts, check the age of the tires and check for dragging brakes. I am not scared of flat towing. Going to tow a 68 baja behind my motorhome from Chandler, AZ to NW Fl in March. Vince

Sun Jan 06, 2008 12:08 pm

I towed a '73 from Austin to Orlando. I used a tow dolly and loaded it with the engine end of the car on a tow dolly and the front wheels on the pavement. I didn't have the steering wheel tied completely straight and ground the old tires off the front- they were old and hard-but I didn't have to be concerned about the condition of the drive line pieces parts and burning something out

Sun Jan 06, 2008 12:13 pm

I don't want to payy 225 dollars to rent a tow dolly for a one time one way trip since I already have a tow bar on the car. I think if the bearings are good and the transaxle has oil in it I should be ok as long as the tires hold up. Just wanted to get some feed back. With gas over 3 dollars a gallon i really didn't want to pull a trailer down the load and bring back that would eat me alive in gas. And should I tow with the top up or down is another question

Sun Jan 06, 2008 3:56 pm

Mine came from Minnesota to Texas behind an RV, the front bumper fell off and a beauty head light ring, morons at the paint shop used the wront sscrew, bolts, and every other imaginable part. :roll: Otherwise, had no problems! Good luck.

Sun Jan 06, 2008 4:58 pm

There's a good Question. Is this a front beam tow bar you plan on using? I would at least take the axles off to flat tow the car. 15 minutes for insurance. (to take them off) I'm sure we all have towed shit before. A trailer is more safe and you can haul ass. Tow bars are good for short trips in my opinion.

You should have seen the motor that was in that Ghia. It just ain't right. Nobody needs to see that. Inhuman. sacreligeous.

Sun Jan 06, 2008 5:16 pm

[quote="Van-go108"]There's a good Question. Is this a front beam tow bar you plan on using?

Yes it is a front beam tow bar. And If I put it on a trailer then I have 1400 miles of drag instead of 700 but that is the way I will go if everyone thinks thats the way I need to go but rather use the bar

Sun Jan 06, 2008 5:42 pm

I towed my old Baja several times with no problems whatsoever. I even wired it so that the lights would plug into my truck.

Sun Jan 06, 2008 6:49 pm

I just towed mine about 400 miles, Tampa to Jax and back. make sure it's out of gear, maybe take shifter off. leave keys in the ing, to keep the steering from locking. top up windows in if you can, I just did it with top down, no harm.
THOR

Sun Jan 06, 2008 6:49 pm

I just towed mine about 400 miles, Tampa to Jax and back. make sure it's out of gear, maybe take shifter off. leave keys in the ing, to keep the steering from locking. top up windows in if you can, I just did it with top down, no harm.
THOR

Sun Jan 06, 2008 6:50 pm

I just towed mine about 400 miles, Tampa to Jax and back. make sure it's out of gear, maybe take shifter off. leave keys in the ing, to keep the steering from locking. top up windows in if you can, I just did it with top down, no harm.
THOR
Mag tow light, help alot, around $50 worth it

Sun Jan 06, 2008 10:40 pm

I did 1200 miles with a tow bar & hazards on on the thing. Like the others said. Spokane to the C-Springs

1. Steering unlocked
2. Good tirres
3. Good front bearings & all wheels turning freely
4. Ebrake off
5. Not in gear (nutral)
6. No boxes or anything that can hit the stick.

X

Mon Jan 07, 2008 9:07 am

xeno wrote: 1. Steering unlocked

When I tow my Thing, I undo the battery cable along with this step. I have a crappy tow bar and 55mph-60mph+ is beyond my comfort level. She gets a bit squirrly back there behind my Explorer.

Good luck.

BTW. The Ghia senario was: My 66 Ghia vert and my Father-in-law that towed it to San Miguel de Allende for restoration. It was a truly F'd up story. He may have made a big mistake but, I was in the states while he towed it for me. So I can't really say what happened. It was a brand new motor too. :oops: I had to confess. It was a sad day for me. I wanted to remove the axles and I was talked out of it.
I feel better gettin' that off my chest

Tue Jan 08, 2008 9:03 pm

I've towed many a VW with a tow bar with no problems... Check that it's out of gear and the ignition is unlocked...then repeat this process 3 more times! We used to go down to Rocky Point a couple times a year with a manx, and I towed my thing this summer about 1500 miles behind my Astro Van. Didn't even know it was there. You'll be fine :lol:

Wed Jan 09, 2008 10:37 am

Um, there are some things you will want to know about before you leave.

Based on the age of your front-end, your tires, and the state of your ball joints, you may find that at some speeds when using the tow bar that the front-end of the Thing starts to shimmy.
You may go hundreds of miles before it happens, or you may find that it happens at a certain speed.

I know some of the folks here have had this problem as well as me.

When the shimmy starts you WILL notice it - even on a 7KLB. deisel dually!
Generally the first thing that happens with the shimmy is that the tow bar slides to one side and shears off the zerk (zirk) fitting on the front beam.
After that, if you do not stop, the beam will get dinged up and eventually something will break or bend.

It is strongly suggested to use a dolly or a trailer. Since you are picking up a Thing and do not know its state, you do not want to have to drive home at 40MPH to avoid front-end damaging shimmy.

Wed Jan 09, 2008 3:08 pm

Van-go108 wrote: 55mph-60mph+ is beyond my comfort level. She gets a bit squirrly back there behind my Explorer.

That may have been my problem as well. I noticed yesterday I have some slack in my steering mechanism. May have contributed. :-k

Wed Jan 09, 2008 3:47 pm

This is my Thing I have had it for years but when I left texas 2 years ago I parked it in a building down there and my buddy checks in on it and deives it around from time to time about 6 months before I left I put new tires on it and Installed the new motor. However I towed it once before only about 80 miles and never noticed any problems while towing or after towing. But I have never done any front end work on the car ever. Maybe it will be better if I just go to u haul up here and rent a tow dolly local for the weekend :twisted: and that will be cheaper than renting one one way after all how can you really define local right?

Wed Jan 09, 2008 4:41 pm

mrafindley wrote: This is my Thing I have had it for years but when I left texas 2 years ago I parked it in a building down there and my buddy checks in on it

Whoa. You *left* Texas? That's your problem right there.

Is it Yellow, White, or red white and blue? I have met 3 people in the last 18 months that were driving someone elses Thing for various reasons. Always thought that was odd, but maybe one of them was yours.

Texas is a great place to have a rust-free Thing you can drive without a top 10 months out of the year. Drove mine today - its 60. GottaLuvIt.

alg, from Texas.

Wed Jan 09, 2008 4:48 pm

Yeah rub it in mine only has rust on the floor pans and it is white
I used to tease people all the time when I lived there that you had to have a passport to get in...lol I love Texas born and raised there untill my house burnt 2 years ago in may. I miss it alot but things happen right.
and when I was there top only came up when it rained loved it. Now I have to bring it up to the roads of salt. TEXAS THE ONLY STATE WITH EXPRESS LANE ON DEATH ROW