Date: Fri, 13 Sep 2002 10:59:20 -0400
Reply-To: Matthew Libby <MLibby1@CFL.RR.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Matthew Libby <MLibby1@CFL.RR.COM>
Subject: Re: long-distance towing
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Most vehicle manufacturers do accomodate this with t-hook holes in the frame
rails, you cant secure to a tie rod, trailing arm, half axle, or cv shaft.
they will bend and break.
----- Original Message -----
From: "G. Matthew Bulley" <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, September 13, 2002 10:31 AM
Subject: Re: long-distance towing
> NC law forbids flat-bed tow trucks from securing the vehicle by any
> "sprung" portion of the body. All cable/chain anchorages MUST be
> un-sprung, (or darned close to it) which means A-arms, trailing arms,
> tie rods, half-axles, etc. are fair game.
>
> The thinking (of the NCDOT) is that the body of the car must be free to
> bounce up and down as the flatbed rumbles over railroad tracks and speed
> bumps at 70 mph. It is possible that if a tow truck driver latched onto
> a typical body anchorage while the vehicle was static, once the load
> became dynamic (3,000 lb van bouncing DOWN, then UP over a railroad
> track) that the typical body anchorage could break under the inertial
> load of 20-50k lbs. It makes sense.
>
> It would be nice if vehicle manufactures accommodated this with
> un-sprung anchorage points.
>
>
> Developing business and guiding change since 1996,
>
> G. Matthew Bulley
> Bulley-Hewlett
> Marketing & Communications
> Business: www.bulley-hewlett.com
> AIM = IExplain4u
> Phone: +1.919.658.1278
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf
> Of SStones
> Sent: Friday, September 13, 2002 8:24 AM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: long-distance towing
>
> At 05:34 PM 9/12/02 -0500, you wrote:
> >I saw a really beautiful baby blue Jaguar XKE convertible absolutely
> ruined by
> >two idiots.....one that did the towing, and the other that permitted
> it. That
> >XKE flexed sufficiently to cause the doors not to close properly.
>
> I'm not denying that many "Professional Tow Truck Drivers" are
> incompetent,
> but what the heck did they do to it to permanently warp the frame? All
> modern tow trucks lift cars by the wheels, be they front or back, a lot
> like the stresses put on a car by having it sitting on the ground. What
> did
> these guys do to it?
> Poor car.
>
>
>
> >I turned down an authorized AAA tow and sent back and got a flatbed.
> Only
> >way to
> >go. Why should I tow, when all the real towing competitors have the
> flat-bed
> >service?
> >
> >Go for full service!!
>
> That's still going to be supporting the car/van by the wheels on the
> back
> of the truck... I'm not trying to be argumentative (Heck, it took me
> three
> tries just to spell it) but a flat-bed operator could screw it up just
> as
> good by hooking on to the wrong thing. I've seen a car lowered off of a
> flat bed into a dealership service lot with the cable hooked over a
> tie-rod.
> So long as it's a 2 wheel drive van it oughtta be okay towed by any tow
> truck, so long as the owner is there to make sure the operator isn't
> doing
> anything idiotic.
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