Some questions for you guys who have enclosed trailers??

[Andy M]

I picked up my trailer yesterday. It is a '99 Pace Shadow 24' with 5000 pound axles. The guy I bought it from had a Formula 4 open wheel race car and decided it was becoming too expensive and sold the car, and then sold the trailer to me. As you can see in the pictures below it has been very well maintained and looks great behind my new truck!!

I have some questions for you guys who have enclosed trailers like this to transport your car?...

1) How far do you position the car inside the trailer? It has a dovetail at the rear and the manual says to make sure to have 60% of the weight being transported (includes car, tools, tires, rims, etc..) in the front of the trailer. They show a picture of the marker being exactly midway between the two axles.

2) Do you put the car in neutral while being transported, and do you use the parking brake?

3) What type of tie down straps do you use? and where exactly is the best place on the R to strap down to? ie: the suspension arms??

4) If I end up getting a winch, what rating (3500 pound, 4500 pound??? etc...) should I get? and does it need some sort of plate bolted from under the trailer? and where the heck do you connect the cable to pull the car up inside the trailer??

Thanks in advance!!

and now, here are the pics... Man, I put the R inside the trailer and drove a few miles away from my home today to see how the trailer would pull with the car inside.... BOY, does this truck pull like a freight train!!!:-D There was very little difference pulling the trailer empty vs. with the car inside! I am sure glad I got the Powerstroke!!! :thumbsup:

 

[Cobra-R]

Originally posted by Andy M
I picked up my trailer yesterday. It is a '99 Pace Shadow 24' with 5000 pound axles. The guy I bought it from had a Formula 4 open wheel race car and decided it was becoming too expensive and sold the car, and then sold the trailer to me. As you can see in the pictures below it has been very well maintained and looks great behind my new truck!!

I have some questions for you guys who have enclosed trailers like this to transport your car?...

1) How far do you position the car inside the trailer? It has a dovetail at the rear and the manual says to make sure to have 60% of the weight being transported (includes car, tools, tires, rims, etc..) in the front of the trailer. They show a picture of the marker being exactly midway between the two axles.

2) Do you put the car in neutral while being transported, and do you use the parking brake?

3) What type of tie down straps do you use? and where exactly is the best place on the R to strap down to? ie: the suspension arms??

4) If I end up getting a winch, what rating (3500 pound, 4500 pound??? etc...) should I get? and does it need some sort of plate bolted from under the trailer? and where the heck do you connect the cable to pull the car up inside the trailer??

Thanks in advance!!

Andy, I will give what I do and have found to work.

1, I also have a 24' trailer and I drive the R in untill the rear tires are on the flat(ahead of the beaver tail) by about a foot.
Just so you know, I have a work bench, cabnets, vise, LP tanks, ect up in the front of the trailer, so you may want to pull the car ahead further if you have less up there. I would just say to play with it, and see what feels the best to you.

2, Put the car in neutral and lock the parking brake. Do not haul the car in gear!!

3, I use two axle straps in the rear and connect a 5000 lb ratchet strap to each rear corner. I place the axle straps thru the lower control arms.
I also run one strap across the front around the sway bar and to each corner in front of the car.
Get in the habit of checking your straps each time you stop for fuel, they will loosen up the first few times they are checked.

4, I would guess that a 3500 lb winch would be fine, all you would be doing is pulling the car in.
I would deffinately anchor the winch thru the frame cross braces from below.

 

[svtguy]

Re: Re: Some questions for you guys who have enclosed trailers??

Originally posted by Cobra-R

1, I also have a 24' trailer and I drive the R in untill the rear tires are on the flat(ahead of the beaver tail) by about a foot.
Just so you know, I have a work bench, cabnets, vise, LP tanks, ect up in the front of the trailer, so you may want to pull the car ahead further if you have less up there. I would just say to play with it, and see what feels the best to you.

Yep, what Brian said. DO NOT center the car with the inside fenders of the trailer. It looks best that way and also leaves alot of front room, but, there isn't enough weigth on the truck hitch and it will cause excessive trailer sway at highway speed.

I strap the car at each corner thru the control arms.

I put a 3500lb winch in my trailer and put a 12inch by 12inch plate underneath the floor and bolted thru it. I've used the winch a few times, works just fine, but now I just use the "Dukes of Hazard" entry method. Alot faster.

Paul

 

[Andy M]

Re: Re: Re: Some questions for you guys who have enclosed trailers??

Originally posted by svtguy


I've used the winch a few times, works just fine, but now I just use the "Dukes of Hazard" entry method. Alot faster.

Paul

LOL!!! That is exactly what I did yesterday! I may save a few hundred bucks and try this out for a while. I suppose the winch would be nice in case the car were injured and could not be driven up in inside the trailer?? I hope that never happens though??

Thanks guys!

 

[Andy M]

one more thing guys??

when you pull the R up inside the trailer, where exactly are you positioning the rear tires?? directly over the the center of the rear axles? or just slightly behind them?? Yesterday, I put it where the rear tires of the R were about 1 foot or so behind the center of the rear axles and it seemed to pull ok. Of course, I did not get on a freeway and move at highway speeds???

Thanks again!

 

[Dean95CobraR]

Re: Re: Some questions for you guys who have enclosed trailers??

Originally posted by Cobra-R
1, I also have a 24' trailer and I drive the R in untill the rear tires are on the flat(ahead of the beaver tail) by about a foot

Brian is putting his rear tires a foot ahead of the point the beavertail and the flat come together. Last night was the first time that I loaded the R on my trailer and mine ended up in about the same place.

 

[SL 1993 R]

Most trailers have a recommended tongue weight of 500-750 lbs. That means the front of the trailer will have 500-750 lbs more weight on it than the back. If you just want to get it close, try loading the car with it slightly to the rear, with a friend watching the tag axles, slowly pull the car forward. You will be able to see the weight shift on the trailers suspension. You can also watch the receiver for when the car comes to center. From there I will pull the car forward another foot or so. This gets me close to my 500 lb recommendation.

If you wanted to do it perfect, get the manufactures specs on the trailer and see exactly what they recommend for the tongue weight. Load the car slightly forward and place a scale(s) under the receiver. (the scale or something might need to be elevated to the trailers ride height.) Slowly move the car backwards until you reach the desired lbs. Once you have the car in position, use something for lining up with in the future. I have different colored paint marks lined up on the tires centerline for carrying different cars.

As previously mentioned, recheck the straps. They will become loose.....

 

[NJ2000R]

Andy: Arent you glad you got the Powerstroke??? way better than those cheby's :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


PS: more weight on the front is better than less....I had a snowmobile trailer pop off of the ball once, because the trailer had too much weight on the rear....not a pleasant experience! :uh oh:

 

[Ripper]

Why don't you keep the car in gear??????

 

[1Fast R]

Do as my husband did with his trailer. When he opens his car door, it opens into a side door of the trailer. He had the trailer custom made so he does not have to do the "Dukes of Hazard" thing! He has a step ladder to get up and down.

Also had to have ramps built up about 10 1/2 " so that the bottom of the R door would not hit the inside fender wells of the trailer.

As far as the winch goes, his floor was 3/4" thick plywood and he bolted his winch to a 3/4" plate of steel and had it welded to the tongue of the trailer. His trailer is a V-nose and his winch is right up in the V. He also has a roller to guide his cable onto the winch so that it does not pull down the undercarriage of the car. It works out slick!

Also his ramps have about a 10" stop so that the R can't run off the ramps. The ramps are about 10"s high to clear the fender wells inside the trailer so that the door will swing open without hitting the side of the trailer. And the ramps are wide and he cannot run off of them either without running into the wall of the trailer. Real easy.... a blind man could load his car!

Has anyone had a mural painted on the side of their trailer yet? We are thinking of getting a picture of a 00 R on the side! Wouldn't that look awesome on a white trailer guys?!!!

Bill has hauled his R short distances so far and did not know to leave the car out of gear and in neutral. Why?

Vicki

 

[Andy M]

I am sure the reason you don't want the car IN gear while being transported.... is because you run the risk of having the car move back and forth possibly scarring up the teeth on the gears inside the tranny?? The movement back and forth (front to back) is enough to potentially cause some problems.

Also, Vicki,

A mural would look cool, but I plan to keep mine as stealth as possible, so that when I take a long trip (say maybe to Road America??) ... I don't draw too much attention for "would-be" thieves???

 

[1Fast R]

Thanks andy for the information. That would make sense about taking the car out of gear while taking it for a ride in the trailer.

Thanks for the heads up on the mural. We will probably have something to do with our 3 stangs painted on the side somehow. Someone in our Club here is talking about doing something for us.......

Vicki