Towing the Supra

da89soup

World I Am Gay Blue!!!
Dec 2, 2005
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Fargo ND
supradan22 said:
What damage could be done just pulling it in neutral?

With the auto, even in neutral your trans is still turning. Really the only real damage can be to the transmission. Manual cars are another story you are fine with towing them around.
 

born2drv

Banned
Nov 1, 2005
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I believe the problem is that the fluid is not circulating properly and it could overheat/damage the tranny. I personally always request they use a flat bed.... If they lift it from the back, you risk getting your front end all scraped depending how low your lip is and how harsh they take those speedbumps ;)

If there is absolutely no flat bed, DEMAND the driver use dollies under the rear wheels and tow from the front.
 

daledoe

KILL U
Nov 18, 2005
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^^^
If you have a low car it sucks to tow regardless!!!! But a flat bed is the way to go forshour.
 

Joel W.

Just A Jedi
Nov 7, 2005
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A regular tow truck can also tow it in the wheel lift and toss a set of dollies under the other wheels.. Sometimes this is cheaper than a flatbed tow truck.

If the car will idle, you can tow an auto in nuetral with no fears, but yes without fluid pumping through the tranny it can cause damaged after a few miles..
 

Wills7MGTE

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May 12, 2006
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I towed mine once its an auto we got a uhaul trailer and put the car in neutral so we could get it on the trailer, then tied it down those uhaul trailers are way cheaper than tow truck if you have a pickup, had to push it onto the trailer cuz it wouldn't start and we had a tough time being only two of us pushing that fat thing but these 3 girls at the dorms i was at helped us push it, so yea good times.
 

Syris

Need Rust Repair
Aug 24, 2005
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well my car is currently in a rebuild and I wanted to get it home. So I ended up renting a tow dollie and well, now I have it home thankfully from where it was at
 
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tubbie

Yes, powerful Jedi....
Apr 4, 2005
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I've towed many autos 20-50 miles with no damage or problems to the tranny. A friend towed his old celica from Texas to GA and it killed the tranny.

just my .07 cents....
 

Joel W.

Just A Jedi
Nov 7, 2005
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NATAN666 said:
never tow a rwd car from the front. even if you disconnect the driveshaft theres undue wear on the differential.

No offence, but is that a joke? I was a tow truck driver for five years and I have never heard that before. Please explain how it can cause any more wear than actually driving the car??
 

Figit090

Fastest mk3 GT4 1/4 mile!
Jan 7, 2006
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i'm also very interested in the proper towing methods for our cars as i'm looking at a parts car i need to tow about 300 miles. I'll look in the owners manual.........

in the supra owners manual for my 1986.5 it states it can be towed from the front or the rear. BUT there are details.

Towing with rear on ground:
Manual tranny: releaseparking brake put tranny in neutral

Auto tranny: release parking brake tranny in N and it states DO NOT tow faster than 30mph or farther than 50 miles. if it must be towed faster or farther disconnect the drive shaft at the differential to avoid tranny damage.

Towing with front on the ground: reccomends using towing dolly and having the key in the ACC position as the steering lock isn't strong enough to hold the front wheels straight while in tow.

so there you go...straight from the manual in summarized form. Apparently if you have a manual towing from the rear is not a problem. Auto...more work but it can be done.
 

Joel W.

Just A Jedi
Nov 7, 2005
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Figit090 said:
Towing with front on the ground: reccomends using towing dolly and having the key in the ACC position as the steering lock isn't strong enough to hold the front wheels straight while in tow.

This is also true (dolly or no dolly). If you do this, Lock the steering wheel straight, then wrap the seat belt around the steering wheel twice and connect it to the seatbelt lock and remove all the slack. Or you can tie it in a knot or to the drivers door (on most cars) and exit the passenger side.
 

DyslexicSquirrel

Busy Member
Mar 9, 2006
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Joel W. said:
A regular tow truck can also tow it in the wheel lift and toss a set of dollies under the other wheels.. Sometimes this is cheaper than a flatbed tow truck.

If the car will idle, you can tow an auto in nuetral with no fears, but yes without fluid pumping through the tranny it can cause damaged after a few miles..

agreed...
 

Joel W.

Just A Jedi
Nov 7, 2005
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There was a time when they shipped cars and trucks by train across country and they strapped the cars down very tight to the decking. This extra weight and the constant rocking in place without spinning the wheels, ate flat spots into the axil bearings over long distances.

Just a bit of towing trivia.. :)