Car Trailers??

Tahoe933 · April 29, 2002

I'm looking into a trailer to haul my Camaro to events. I haven't decided if I want open or enclosed yet, that will depend on how much cash i can scrape up.

What are you using to haul cars?

What do you like / dislike about it?

Recommendations?

Thanks. Mike

General Lee 01 · April 29, 2002

My Grandfather pulls a 16' BeaverTail around, but he uses it to haul misc. junk more than to haul cars. We have towed cars on it 4 or 5 times though.

It has a Wooden "Floor" (As opposed to metal- which I would prefer) Any input on Wood vs. Metal to enlighten me would be appreciated.

2. The ramps are the type with the rungs on it, It makes for a bumpy Loading\Unloading process. I wouldn't drive a valuable low stanced car on them. Plus, the ramps don't slide out the back, they pull out the sides and rest on the back, which is good because because you can have them narrowfor things such as lawn tractors, but bad because if you hit the ramps wrong they'll want to fall off the back.

carguru · April 29, 2002

I used to own a 24' Featherlite enclosed trailer. It was a very good trailer. Pretty easy to tow, very balanced, protected your cargo from the elements. Only gripes were that it was costly to buy, and pretty sensitive to wind gusts. Featherlite and Wells Cargo makes very good quality enclosed trailers. If I were to buy another one, I would get one of these brands.

carguru · April 29, 2002

It has a Wooden "Floor" (As opposed to metal- which I would prefer) Any input on Wood vs. Metal to enlighten me would be appreciated.

I would think the metal floors would have more secure tiedowns and handle higher loads. All of the wooden floor ones have holes to attach tiedowns to the frame. I've always been a little wary of the wooden floor trailers. I was always worried that I would overstress the wood and punch through....especially when hauling heavyweights such as the old Packards and Roadmasters. The one I had before I bought the Featherlite was a homebuilt unit with 1/2 inch aluminum floor. In fact a friend of mine is still using it to haul tractors on. He bought that one because he had a wooden floor one and a tractor cracked the wood.

CMNTMXR81 · April 29, 2002

I have a double axle 18' Mac Lander wood deck flatbed. It's a 16' flat, 2' dovetail with tuck away ramps, electric brakes, etc, etc.

Cost me $2,500 new back in 2000. I chose the wood deck over metal because it's easier to replace the wood when it deteriorates and looks a #### of a lot better than a rusting metal deck.

MarkD · April 29, 2002

Are you near Denver? I have a friend that sells trailers there. I am certain he would steer you right and give you a good deal if you are interested.

Tahoe933 · April 29, 2002

Thanks for the replies. MarkD I'm in Erie, PA; a ways away from Denver, but thanks.

I looked at a used metal deck the other day, @2 - 3' angle on the back. I liked that as my car is lowered. I could get that for <$2000. The best price on an enclosed so far is $5800, quite a difference. Mike

antig24 · April 29, 2002

My dad hauls a dragster in his 24ft pace enclosed.

Jpshostr · April 29, 2002

With your towing vehicle I'd look at an open trailer, about 16'-18' long tandem axle trailer for your car. I don't know if I'd feel totally secure pulling an enclosed in high crosswinds with a Tahoe, I'd like a little more heft to hopefully keep everything from swaying as much. Featherlite makes good trailers, but boy does a guy pay for them. I'm not too familer with car trailers, so I can't really give you many other manufacturers to give a look at. Whether of not you go with a dovetail or not on your trailer, make sure you get ramps that will not slide around when loading and will not become slick (ie. diamond thread). Personally, those ramps that General speaks of are the safest for loading, who cares how rough the ride going up is, I hope you aren't going fast enough that you feel it.

Too bad you don't have a truck as your towing vehicle, then you could get the cat's meow and get a GN enclosed for the best towing characteristics and maximum space.

Tahoe933 · April 30, 2002

I am somewhat concerned with how the Tahoe will handle a trailer. I am leaning toward an open rig to keep my costs down, but man those enclosed things sure are nice. But I need more go fast parts for the Z. Lots more looking to do, thanks for the help. Mike

CMNTMXR81 · April 30, 2002

I pulled that MacLander trailer with my '97 Tahoe all the time with nary a problem. Granted I had the Vortec 5700, but still, the chassis had no problem cruising along with a fully loaded trailer (Camaro, Chevelle, or my 66 Pontiac) at 80mph.

The only thing I had to be more mindful of (than I do with the HD) was, was how I far I loaded the vehicle up on the trailer. Too far forward and it put too much weight on the tongue and caused the front end to be too light at those highway speeds.

carguru · April 30, 2002

The placement of the vehicle on the trailer is very important to how it handles. Too much weight too far forward (tongue weight) will affect the truck handling like CMT said. Too far back and your trailer would tend to wag the truck. The featherlite I had was a good trailer. I bought it originally for my resto shop I had a few years ago. If you have the load right, the featherlite does fairly well in windy conditions. Of course you don't want to be doing 80 mph in these conditions either. With this being said, this is one of the reasons I don't have a trailer anymore. My former business partner decided to haul a client's '68 Camaro one day. He made 3 crucial mistakes. He decided to pick the car up on an extremely bad day (thunderstorms rolling through the area--high wind gusts). He put the car in too far back in the trailer (very light tongue load). And he was in a hurry to get back to the shop (80-85 mph). That combination ended up totalling the trailer, the client's car, and his pickup ('96 Dodge Ram CTD). ???

The only concerns I have about open rigs are the fact that rocks and stuff that gets kicked up by the tow vehicle's tires will be hit the trailered vehicle. Of course there are the stone shields you can put on too.

RedDog · April 30, 2002

http://www.hhtrailer.com/indexmain.html

This trailer would be perfect for you. Looks very nice and best of all, no ramps.

I am considering getting rid of my 34' flatbed tandem duals, gooseneck trailer for one like that trailer.

RedDog

01z71 · April 30, 2002

I have a 16ft. Double Axle Utility Trailer. I have towed a couple of cars and trucks on it. It has the wooden floor which given a choice I would prefer the metal floor. The ramps I have do give a bumpy ride when loading / unloading but I have had no problems using this setup.