T1 VW towbar question
Question:
Are there any precautions you would recommend based on your experiences? I would like to know if the front wheels of the car being towed should be "locked" straight or left "unlocked". I have heard both recommendations so far, and would like to... as they say on Regis' show... "
Answer:
-Ask yourself, do trailers have unlocked wheels? With a gazillion trailers
being towed around, my guess is that someone would have put unlocked wheels
on them if they worked better that way.
If a trailer whips back and forth while being towed, it is because the axles
are out of alignment. One wheel slightly ahead of the other. I would
imagine the same thing could happen to a towed car. Any bump in the road
could cause the tires to turn to one side. Suddenly your car would be going
one direction and the towed car would be headed in another direction.
Just my 2 cents worth. I should be willing to listen to arguments for
unlocked wheels though.
-Precaution: When you slap the bar on the bottom torsion tube, double and
triple check your clips to be sure they hold the pins in.
Also, after you put the hitch over the ball on your tow vehicle, get a clip
or pin or something into the hole on the hitch lever. This will help keep it
from popping up and you seeing your beetle pass you. Finally, attach one end
of a medium duty chain to the ears on your tow vehicle's hitch assembly.
Then attach the other end around the bottom torsion bar. Be sure there is
some slack, but not so much that it drags. This is your emergency chain. If
something failed catastrophically, for insurance purposes, you want the two
vehicles to stay hooked together, even if it means smacking the beetle into
the back of your tow vehicle. (It would be worse to see it take off across a
median into on coming traffic....)
I'm from Seattle...where are you towing to and from
The flatbed is fine if you have money to burn. The tow bar is better
(cheaper) if you are careful.
Unlock steering. Don't back up. Triple braking distance. Take it carefully.
You'll get there fine!
-I have towed Type 1s locally and across the country. Here's my routine:
1. Unlock the ignition. This means you must turn the key on. If you are
only towing it for a short distance -- home to paint shop -- just turn the
key on and tow it. If you are towing it for more than half an hour,
disconnect the battery because, with the key turned on to unlock the
steering, the battery will be drained through the coil.
2. You must have safety chains. Takes two chains, each approx six feet
long. Connect one chain from the left side of the hitch to the right bumper
bracket.Connect another chain from the right side of the hitch to the left
bumper bracket. I use chain repair links that have screw-type openings to
connect the ends of the chain to the hitch and the bumper brackets. The
purpose of these chains, and the purpose of crossing them, is to provide a
secure hold in case the tow bar lets go.
3. You will need some sort of lights on the towed vehicle. Easy way to do
it is to go to U-Haul and purchase a set of tow lights. The set is two tail
lights with mag mounts on each one and a cable that runs from the lights to
your towing vehicle wiring. On the other hand, if you are towing only a
short distance from home to paint shop, turn on the ignition to unlock the
steering wheel, turn on the four way flashers, and tow it.
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