Date:         Thu, 21 Sep 1995 12:39:40 -0400 (EDT)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Lawrence Stivers <lstivers@freenet.columbus.oh.us>
Subject:      Re: Towing a Syncro

On Tue, 19 Sep 1995 SyncroHead@aol.com wrote:

> 
> Hi all (especially Syncro owners. Derek Drew, Tim Smith - are you out there?)
> 
> I know the owners manual says that the only way to tow a Vanagon Syncro is on
> a flat-bed truck or trailer so that none of the wheels is on the ground.
>  It's especially important that neither pair of wheels is on the ground while
> the other pair is not. 
> How about towing a Syncro with ALL the wheels on the ground?  It seems to me
> that this would be o different to the drivetrain than coasting with the
> clutch in or the transmission in neutral.  Can anyone think of a reason that
> this would be a problem?
> 
> Thanks in advance for your help.
> Jim Davis
> 87 Syncro (uh,  in need of towing)
> 88 Wolfsburg

>From what I remember from the manual of my old Mazda 323 GTX:(It was all
wheel drive)  The problem with towing the AWD vechicles is that all is OK
until you take a turn, then the front wheels are turning at a different
speed from the rear wheels and everything gets torn up.
The Mazda people VERY MUCH RECOMMENDED against this practice as it would
trash an expensive drivetrain.  

larry
'85 Westy
(I wish I kept the 323 GTX...)