scott40

my bad- he said neutral!

Frank 993 C4S

I dont have a handbrake and I leave my car in gear and it is always strapped tight to where it can't move around. I agree that leaving a car in gear while it moves around cant be a good thing. If I had a handbrake, I'd simply engage that and not put it in gear.

scott40

Well I've heard both. My race shop says tie down and leave in neutral. I suppose the risk with that is your straps break loose and your car is deposited on the highway, but that's the recommendation I got. I've done it both ways, thus far without issue.

69gaugeman

I want to know where to get those straps the flatbed operators use. They cage the top of the wheel and use a ratchet strap to secure the wheel itself.

Sort of like this but the strap is tightened along the outside edge of the tire so it doesn't have to be ratcheted inside the wheel well.

gvtesse

I am looking to tow my car for the first time as well. Are you referring to these tie downs?
http://www.rennline.com/Rennline-Fro...ctinfo/E32.04/

YZ250

Make your best guess at strapping it down, then stop after half an hour and check the strap tension. If it changes, then you need to do some more thinking. After that, check every couple of hours. You should be able to haul a dozen plus hours (at least) with no change in strap tensions. Stops are also a good time to give the tires a good kick test for pressure and the bearings a finger test for over heating.

I strap through the wheels without crossing, with the parking brake on, and out of gear.

Sequence in tightening the straps helps to prevent loosing up on the road. Left front snug, then left rear tight. So the left side is now tight. Right front almost tight, then right rear tight. So now the right side is tight. All straps about the same tension. Good to go.

winders

If you lose tension you have bad straps or you don't have enough wraps on the mandrels. You need two full wraps which is about six full cranks of the handle.

Scott

DC640

off topic: winders = i love your yellow car!!!! what wheels are those?

back to topic=
gvtesse = yes those are the ones i ordered. front pair and rear pairs. Make sure it is for your correct chasis. I think those have 65 degree bend.

32krazy!

im a 14 yr automotive car hauler. i have logged over 2 million miles and never lost a car. so heres what you need to do.

buy 2 of these for the rear of the car as you will back the car on trailer to center the weight. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Car-Hauler-S...e70641&vxp=mtr

use 2 regular tie down straps for the front using the rennline tie down points in a x pattern.
leave the car in neutral and use the handbrake if you have it. if not it doesnt matter.

adjust the rears and slightly tighten both sodes then tighten the front. go back to the rears and finish tightening the straps.

once this is done i never have to tighten my straps again until i unload the car. i actaully have my car on my 18ft trailer and can take few pics sunday if you want. my car never moves the first inch . if done properly i can load my car strap it down and put the chairs away beofre my buddy can air his tires up with a small compressor.

once you have mastered all this ill show you how to wrap the excess strap so it never flaps and looks neat and no tie wraps, tape or rubber bands are needed

something that most inexperienced folks do when using a trailer is they fail to get the proper brake setup. most states require trailer brakes for EACH axle on a trailer and you then need a brake controller in the cab to adjust the brake bias from truck to trailer. cruising 70 down the interstate and having to stop with 5000 lbs pushing from behind you isnt much fun with inferior brakes

Frank 993 C4S

Now I'm curious - please do tell. Thanks!

Do you also have a solution for everybody around you driving like idiots as soon as you have the trailer hooked up to your tow vehicle? The drive to/from track is usually the most dangerous portion of a track weekend. I have witnessed some unbelievable driving recently.

32krazy!

run the excess strap thru the handle and the release handle. loop it back thru the grab handle and tuck it again thru the release handle. make it even at both ends and neat. the handle pressure keeps everything in place.

as for the crazy drivers thats fairly easy. i typically drive my setup at 65 to 70 mph and let everybody else race by and do the stupid stuff. most times i get there within 10 min of the nutjobs

i almost forgot to take pics so i had aleady removed the front straps. you get the idea. criss cross the fronts . the main reason for this is when your driving down the interstate and you hit a big bump on a bridge or overpass tha trailer can bounce hard and the car may move laterally if not sucured tight. crossing the straps helps keep this from happening

frank 993 c4s you can see how i wrap the excess straps in the first pic. its really easy

scott40

^That set up will not work for a Trailex with D rings.

32krazy!

they make a single strap that goes over the tire and hooks to the d rings. one dring to the front and rear of the tire. or a simple criss cross on the front and back of the car will also work using the rennline tow mounts. i have all 4 corners on my car but use these as its easier to use than reaching under a hot engine to attach the straps. the basket setup i shwed is also available in a hook style vs the stake pocket style.

there are many different strap setups that can be used and avoid running straps thru the wheels and risk scuffing the wheels or scratching them.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Car-Hauler-3...54267b&vxp=mtr
http://www.ebay.com/itm/UNIVERSAL-AU...75b46d&vxp=mtr

you can use the j hook on these with the rennline tow mounts
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-RTJ-ROLLBA...68b24d&vxp=mtr

jrgordonsenior

Can't believe I said flywheel teeth and no one called me on that. I've got to stop smoking crack....

jrgordonsenior

How do the side tie downs keep the car from rolling or at least rocking back-n-forth (car backed onto the trailer)?