s2steve

I have a 944 S2. I thought I wanted a 16' open trailer. I put my car on one yesterday and it fit, but with room to spare. In other words it will fit on a 14'. The trailer I put it on was also 83" wide, they are also made 77" wide. With either trailer I need a removable fender to get in and out of the car. The question is should I go for the very smallest possible trailer (14' & 77" wide) or have a little extra room and go for the 16' & 83" wide.

I see the pros/cons as follows:

16' & 83" wide - I could put a larger car on the trailer if I ever needed to, I don't think a Camaro would fit on the smaller one. Easier in and out of the car.

14'&77" wide - 200 lbs. lighter and $200 dollars cheaper. Downside is ramps come out the side instead of the back. Opposite of above

Your thoughts and experience would be very welcome.

Mike Buck

My 944 fits fine on the 14' steel trailer I have. The front 11' of the trailer are flat, with the final 3' a beavertail. A 944 fits perfectly on the flat section.

No longer use the above trailer because I now have access to a Trailex. Aluminum construction makes it easier to maneuver off hitch, but it tows the same. Would sell the steel trailer CHEAP just to get it outta the driveway

Geo

Interesting. I'm curious about your desire for such a small trailer. Is it due to a low towing budget (weight, not dollars)? Is it for some other reason?

The reason I ask is I too am considering making as small a trailer as possible. My reason is a 4300 lb towing budget. I know the Durango actually can tow more, but that's the official factory rating and I'm trying to stay as close to that as possible.

Rear ramp storage would be nice, but if I were fighting a low towing budget I wouldn't lose much sleep about side storage. I'm not sure I'd care for a narrower trailer both for the purpose of loading and ease of getting round the car while it's on the trailer.

Robert Henriksen

I had a similar situation: a 3.0L Ranger with an official 4,000 towing capacity, but experience w. loaner trailers led me to want to stay way under that limit.

I wound up building a flyweight open trailer that might be 800#, plus a 1,500# car, and another few hundred in spares & tools. I have maybe 1" clearance on either side of the car; good thing there's no door to open to get in & out.

I figure when I get tired of the limitations of the open trailer, I'll get serious & buy a bigger truck & an enclosed trailer.

Geo

Hehe. I have Diesel envy.

Robert Henriksen

You & me both!

s2steve

My reason for a smaller trailer was for manuverability and weight. I have a Chevy 2500HD which can tow up to 12,000 lbs. After speaking to a few other people today I think I will be going with the 16'. It doesn't limit me to smaller cars and may have a better resale market.

sleder

Think about resale.... I would consider the larger.

APKhaos

There are a raft of economical steel trailers that will handle your 944S2 without requiring a removable fender to open & close the doors. Having used a Trailex which did rely on a fold-down fender to clear the doors of my 911, I would avoid it at all costs. Of all the 944Cup squad, monst of which use steel trailers, I can't recall one that does not allow the door to clear without articulated fender fuss. [Having said that, someone will sonn post that they have one.]

RedlineMan

The rule for space is...

You'll find ways of filling it! Get the bigger trailer, especially since you have the truck to pull it.

HIJACK -

You can take the advertised tow ratings for most vehicles and cut them by 30-50% right off the bat. What a joke.

I have a friend that towed a 930 on an open Trailex with a big Mazda (Ranger) with the V6. He blew the trans 3 times, cracked both the heads, just destroyed the thing. Course... he was tryin to keep up with the Big Boys!

I've pulled 6500lbs with a K1500 Chevy and that truck would have exploded before long! It was the worst tow vehicle I've ever driven, mostly because of the transmission. The Navigator I used before that was almost as bad.

The only vehicle that has surprised me as a tow vehicle was - ready Geo - the Durango. Granted, it was a Trailex enclosed with a Cup car (say 4500), but I was VERY pleasantly surprised by the truck's manners. The transmission was the best part. Seamless. Good power, fairly stable, quiet. Of course it is too light and short to be a "real" tow truck, but it was quite more than I expected.

The Chevy 2500HD falls into the Cut by 30% Class. I've towed 6500 with it (6.0 V8) and it works very well. Dynamically it is solid as a rock and the trans is excellent, but twice that weight? No way! Not nearly enough power for that... unless we're talking Duramax.

Alan Herod

Datony, I know that American English is not your first language, but what did you just say?

APKhaos

Must have been late, or something......

Translation: There are lots of low cost steel trailers with fenders low enough to open the doors of a 944/951. Many of the 944Cup runners have them, and I can't recall one that requires a drop fender setup. Phew!

mm86911

2004 HEMI Durango has proved to be excellent tow vehicle for me - borrowed steel open trailer (~1800 lbs) and 2600lb car. Got 15 mpg on last long haul.

Chaos

Go with the biggest one you safely tow.

944Fest (aka Dan P)

I tow an 18" steel, 1800 LBS with my 3100 LB 951 on it, and my 94 Toyota Land Cruiser was solid as a tank. Yea, slow up the hills, but really well planted and solid. The truck is rated at 5k and feels ready for more. I probably would have been fine with the 16" but I liked the option of bigger cars and room to throw spare rims on up front. Maneuverability is not a factor. I used to tow with a 360 Durango, ..no real complaints until the ball joints all needed replaced at 50K and then (NOT towing) a leaf spring snapped.. The service guy asked me where it broke. I told him (I love this part) "It broke right thru the 'O' in 'Made in Mexico'" It will be a while before I look at new Dodges again.