Limited towed front wheels down? How bad is this going to be?

[03Limited]

Through no fault of my own (long story), my 03 Limited was towed last night. I will probably be able to get it back yet this week, but if it's damaged, I just might lose it.

When I visited it at the impound lot today, I saw that they had looped the seat belt through the steering wheel, as I've seen them do when towing a vehicle backwards and front wheels down. Uh oh. I asked the lot manager if they used a dolly or at least drug it up on a flatbed, but he hemmed and hawed and wouldn't give me a straight answer.

I'm preparing myself for the worst here... I believe the center differential on a V8 limited is a torsen, and I certainly know it can't be disconnected like a traditional 4x4, correct? Any idea what I might be looking at here? Worst case scenario, I'm thinking blown center diff/tranny parts and ruined BFG A/Ts.

My first priority is getting my truck back, but I'm preparing to raise hell. Thanks.

 

[DC runner]

Ugg. Yea. As far as I know, it is bad to tow a 4wd vehicle with the front down.

You might get lucky, and the tow company used dollys. Most have them and there are enough 4wd to warrant them knowing how to deal with it.

I would certainly consider them liable for it.

And honestly, every time I had to call a tow company they asked if I was a 4wd. Yes, they always send a huge flatbed type and pulled the entire vehicle up.

SO, if you are lucky, same situation and the company just had a flatbed do it.

 

[03Limited]

Yeah, I'm mentally preparing myself to start her up, put her in gear and be greeted by either nothing or some horrible noises. If you call a tow truck and they're working for you, I would certainly expect them to be careful, but repo companies seem to prefer whatever method lets them get out of there fastest. Right now I'm pretty steamed at Wells Fargo (and to a lesser extent my wife, but only because I have to live with her :crybaby: ), and I'm prepared to add the towing company to the list... But that's a whole 'nother thread.

With all the drivetrain variations in the 4Runner, a full-time AWD version just might throw them. The yard manager was actually a decent guy, so I'm hoping they handled it right and if not will man up about it.

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Is your truck a V8 that always has 4wd on?

 

[zstampe]

C'mon, if it was towed to an impound lot you had to be somewhat at fault, right? What happened? We want the story!

Also good luck with the truck, I hope it works out. They probably used dollies or else the front tires would've locked up and skidded the whole way.

 

[66Mhz]

C'mon, if it was towed to an impound lot you had to be somewhat at fault, right? What happened? We want the story!

Also good luck with the truck, I hope it works out. They probably used dollies or else the front tires would've locked up and skidded the whole way.

Wife didn't make car payments, car got repo'd.

 

[aha2988]

If they put the vehicle in neutral odds of damage to the transfer case are slim. if they wern't able to get in the vehicle typicaly the tow truck guys will remove the drive shafts to help in moving the vehicle. At worst I've seen them cut the emergency brake cables, which there not liable for because it's what they had to do to get the vehicle back. If the banks at fault and there wasn't a legit reason for the repo then you can get the bank to cover any damages as it would be there property during the repo. But its one of those don't hate the player hate the game situations. The repo company is just doing what they're paid to do by there customers. The bank is your enemy on this one. It would be best to keep the repo guys in your favor as they do have the privilege to let anything happen to your vehicle its not there property its the banks right now.

 

[aha2988]

If the payments wern't made then the bank has full privilege to repo the vehicle. They dont have to send you a notice or anything. You or your wife signed a contract stating you would pay so much every month for so many months. If you fail to up hold that contract you loose your vehicle. Now if you were giving the payments to your wife and she knowingly neglected to make the payments then you have a more personal situation going on that doesnt really deal with 4runners in which i can be no help..

 

[BlackWorksInc]

I'm a little more worried about the transmission than the transfercase, the owner's & FSM that those All-time 4WD need to be flatbedded. I know a lot of cars have issues with the transmission fluid pump not being spun when the engine is off and it causes problems when towing even in neutral. Unfortunately I do not remember if our 4Runner's transmissions are designed this way.

 

[aha2988]

I'm a little more worried about the transmission than the transfercase, the owner's & FSM that those All-time 4WD need to be flatbedded. I know a lot of cars have issues with the transmission fluid pump not being spun when the engine is off and it causes problems when towing even in neutral. Unfortunately I do not remember if our 4Runner's transmissions are designed this way.

The transmission still pumps when in neutral. as long as its spinning its pumping I use the tranny to pump fluid for me when i do a tranny flush an fill just pull the return line from the cooler and let it pump out the old and suck in the new while the vehicles running in park or neutral... however if the driveshafts were removed it wouldn't do any damage to the tcase or tranny

 

[BlackWorksInc]

The transmission still pumps when in neutral. as long as its spinning its pumping I use the tranny to pump fluid for me when i do a tranny flush an fill just pull the return line from the cooler and let it pump out the old and suck in the new while the vehicles running in park or neutral... however if the driveshafts were removed it wouldn't do any damage to the tcase or tranny

I agree, if the driveshafts were removed it shouldn't be an issue. But the key there isn't that the vehicle is in neutral, its that the towing company isn't gonna tow it with the engine on and I am not sure if our transmissions pump fluid without the engine running, that make sense? I'm just worried that even in nuetral it'll still be spinning some bearings that may not have fluid on them.

 

[DC runner]

Wife didn't make payments???? Usually they don't start looking for like 3 months.

You didn't get calls or pay attention? Seems fishy.

 

[OHP]

Solution: File for divorce, give her the 4Runner in the settlement. Both problems solved. :jk:

 

[03Limited]

Is your truck a V8 that always has 4wd on?

Yeah, it is, that's why I'm worried.

C'mon, if it was towed to an impound lot you had to be somewhat at fault, right? What happened? We want the story!

Also good luck with the truck, I hope it works out. They probably used dollies or else the front tires would've locked up and skidded the whole way.

Ok, here's the story. We moved about a year ago. For the first couple months, Wells Fargo Dealer Services had a lot of trouble getting our bill to us correctly, despite my wife filing it with them just how they asked. After that, everything was smooth until about May when, apparently, they stopped sending us a bill. From what I've gathered, this is actually common for them. My wife runs the books for our business too, and her story is that with all the stuff coming in and out, without getting a bill, making the payment just slipped her mind. I can't complain too much, she usually does a bangup job with the books.

Now also consider that besides never sending a bill, WF never sent a reminder of any kind, never called, never sent an e-mail. However, in the course of dealing with this, I did add another phone number to the account, and I DID get an e-mail notification from them about that. :ybrick: It's almost like they wanted an excuse to take it back. When we got home, we both assumed it was stolen, and it took a while before we were able to track down exactly what happened.

So yeah, we didn't pay the bill so it was a legit repo. But they could have saved everybody a lot of time and aggravation with a functional billing system or even a simple call or e-mail.

Until this, we've never missed a payment or even been late on ANYTHING in over 10 years together... And my credit score WAS over 800. :dammit: We're just going to pay off the note and tell them to stick it.

Solution: File for divorce, give her the 4Runner in the settlement. Both problems solved. :jk:

BELIEVE ME, it's crossed my mind. She's in constant meltdown mode over this while I'm trying to keep a level head when dealing with her and WF as I try to clean up this fustercluck. We were supposed to go out of town this weekend too. I've never been a "gun guy" but suddenly going to the range and blowing the crap out of something sounds REALLY good.

 

[03Limited]

The bank is your enemy on this one. It would be best to keep the repo guys in your favor as they do have the privilege to let anything happen to your vehicle its not there property its the banks right now.

Indeed. I've tried to be very civil and friendly all around to this point. Repo guy seems like a standup dude, he's even agreed to waive one of their fees because I'm trying to get this handled quickly and professionally. Letting the dogs off the leash before you're back in control of the situation will just make things worse.

 

[aha2988]

well that's alot more info we yota folk can advise on...

you need to if not already speak with wells Fargo management explain to them what the situation is and have them tell you why the bills stoped coming in.. if they stoped notifying you of payments due email or post mail they are at extreme fault here Thats like an apartment building having your car towed because they didnt give you the parking sticker...

your kind of at fault in the since you knew a bill was due regardless if they sent you notification or not. it's not like you get a reminder to brush your teeth at night you know to do it or there's consequences..

bad situation all together. the bank should be understanding of the Mishap however your going to have to threaten having another bank pay off the loan an moving away from there ridiculousness (IMO I would anyway wellsfargo blows I switched from them months ago an have loved my new bank). in order for them to actually wake up to the situation ..

go shoot some **** you deserve it just not people lol. best of luck to you it's really in your hands to handle it the best political way possible!

 

[DC runner]

You get monthy bills?

I don't. Not on my car nor my mortgage. I thought it was assumed that on loans of that size, that have a set monthly payment, that bills were not required? I pay both directly through my online bank access. I don't do autopay, hate giving them the control, but I can easily transfer money into the loans and can see due dates..which don't change, of course.

Perhaps you should set something up like that to prevent future issues.

The only thing my bank does is every year mail me loan stubs. If I were to pay by mail, I have one for every month of that year. It makes by mail processing faster on their end since the stubs include all the relevant info. I get 12 months worth every anniversy of my loans.

Never use them... but that is all the notification I get from my bank on either of my loans.

So. Don't get too mad at the bank. Looks like it common practice to not notify on a monthly basis.

 

[teampwr2]

Sorry to Hear of your troubles.. It suks and I hope you get it squared away quickly.. Its Happens ..you know your wife did not miss pmt on purpose , it was a mistake ..she needs the wheels as much as you ..Get your car back and go easy on the wife and Life will return to as normal as it is !1 Good Luck.
And Good Luck with you Bus. as well.

 

[krupnation]

Dang dude, totally sucks. Next time use direct transfer from your bank account. Comes out automatically so you never have to worry about it. Hope you get your rig back in working order.

 

[xxaarraa]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. Seems odd you need a bill to know you owe money each month. Besides, does anyone do paper billing anymore? Just setup a direct debit and be done with it.