Thinking of towing from Atlanat to Michigan

[Ghostrider]

Going back and forth on this - cost is about the same for Uship quotes vs doing it myself when you count hotels and Uhaul car carrier. The cargo is a 1962 MGA which is about 2000 lbs. The route is probably thru Knoxville to Indy and then Michigan. Any thoughts skirting the edge of the Appalachians? I know on the 3rd gen you put the transmission in 3rd for tows like this - does the 5th gen need to be geared down? Any thoughts on the quality of Uhaul carriers - I am only using the one that holds the entire car - not a dolly. The MGA needs work - I am pretty sure there are no brakes or parking brake so any thoughts on making sure it stays on the hauler.

 

[salong53]

The 4runner is plenty capable of hauling that. I regularly tow 2 tons for 40 mile round trips in Knoxville. If you're experienced at towing, you'll have no problem.

 

[spartacus]

your 5th will easily tow it with the weight of the car. U haul trailers are normally on the heavy side. I manually shift when I am driving in the mountains towing a travel trailer that weighs about 3000 lbs. If it is going to cost the same using uship then might not be a bad idea to skip the hassle and minimize wear and tear on the 4runner and use uship.

 

[Ghostrider]

going back and forth on uship. The only drawback is they will not guarantee a pick up date - they give a window and I live in Huntsville and the car is in Atlanta so their 5 day window could be a mess.

 

[3wbdriver]

Check your manual under "towing". I believe you'll be fine but it recommends towing in 4th gear and staying at 65 or below on speed.

As for keeping the car on the trailer, 4 ratchet straps of suitable strength run to the suspension corners is the norm for vehicle tie downs. Do not simple depend on the brakes!

 

[BobsTrail]

The cargo is a 1962 MGA

Let's see a photo of the MGA, maybe next to the 4Runner since this is a 4Runner group. I drove a few MGBs a long time ago and think they are fun cars.

 

[ADT_192]

Like others have said you should have no problems towing a car, I have towed I believe the 5x8 and 5x10 UHaul trailers from ID to FL and also the other way around, and it works just fine. As soon as you are up/downhill you want to switch to manual mode, but that should not be an issue.

 

[Jetboy]

Just a suggestion - Uhaul trailers suck. They can be hard to load and are very heavy plus they use surge brakes. I'd see if you can find a rental that's more like a normal car hauler. Or just buy a car trailer. My brother did that earlier this year. Moving from Texas to Utah. Uhaul was $750 to rent. He just bought a nice newer used car trailer for $1750, moved, then sold it when he got to Utah for a little bit more than he paid for it. Ended up making money on the deal. But even if he had sold it for $1500 - it was a nicer trailer and still a lot cheaper than a Uhaul rental for a one way trip. The key to making this work out for you financially is to buy from a used seller and never transfer title to your name - that way you won't end up paying sales tax or title/registration on it. If you have to pay both of those, it's probably a wash.

Do get a trailer brake controller if you use a trailer with electric brakes. That's a must have. They're not very expensive for a cheap one and they're plug and play with the right wiring adapter.

Good luck!

 

[jhguth]

i worked at uhaul briefly in college at a major hub and repair center. the auto trailers were good quality and were in good shape (at least the ones that came through there were) but i think the auto trailer is like 2500 lbs empty (probably 600-800 more than a basic trailer) so you'll be towing at near capacity with just surge breaks.

what was the quote for the vehicle trailer? i think you should look into buying a trailer then selling it later, that way you can get electric brakes and it won't be so heavy

 

[4central]

Going back and forth on this - cost is about the same for Uship quotes vs doing it myself when you count hotels and Uhaul car carrier. The cargo is a 1962 MGA which is about 2000 lbs. The route is probably thru Knoxville to Indy and then Michigan. Any thoughts skirting the edge of the Appalachians? I know on the 3rd gen you put the transmission in 3rd for tows like this - does the 5th gen need to be geared down? Any thoughts on the quality of Uhaul carriers - I am only using the one that holds the entire car - not a dolly. The MGA needs work - I am pretty sure there are no brakes or parking brake so any thoughts on making sure it stays on the hauler.

I towed a Uhaul car dolly with a loaded car from Atlanta to Indiana. When I followed more westerly route than Knoxville route, followed Nashville route. While crossing Appalachians I took side routes instead of I75. The reason is semis don't allow a good pace where I feel my truck is safe, and where trans would be happy with the speed. Biggest portion is climbing up and down to Chattanooga, and climbing up again after the city. Some of the side roads can have higher grades than highways, but I can slow down without fearing a semi would push me. I m not saying 4runner cannot climb Appalachians with high way speeds, I care my truck's longevity, and side roads have beautiful scenery. After mountains are over, and you come to hills, highways are ok again.

 

[Jetboy]

i worked at uhaul briefly in college at a major hub and repair center. the auto trailers were good quality and were in good shape (at least the ones that came through there were) but i think the auto trailer is like 2500 lbs empty (probably 600-800 more than a basic trailer) so you'll be towing at near capacity with just surge breaks.

what was the quote for the vehicle trailer? i think you should look into buying a trailer then selling it later, that way you can get electric brakes and it won't be so heavy

I think that's fair to say that the ones I've rented were not low quality. Just that they're built like an equipment trailer more so than a car hauler. So they weigh about 1,000 lbs more than a typical 16' tandem axle car trailer. I'm sure they get abused by customers so they have to be that way. Surge brakes suck no matter what.

 

[Ghostrider]

I towed a Uhaul car dolly with a loaded car from Atlanta to Indiana. When I followed more westerly route than Knoxville route, followed Nashville route. While crossing Appalachians I took side routes instead of I75. The reason is semis don't allow a good pace where I feel my truck is safe, and where trans would be happy with the speed. Biggest portion is climbing up and down to Chattanooga, and climbing up again after the city. Some of the side roads can have higher grades than highways, but I can slow down without fearing a semi would push me. I m not saying 4runner cannot climb Appalachians with high way speeds, I care my truck's longevity, and side roads have beautiful scenery. After mountains are over, and you come to hills, highways are ok again.

That was why I chose going to Knoxville vs Chatanooga. Right now I am probably going back to Uship. I did not know the trailer was more than the car and went and looked at one today. It is huge - designed to haul a 4Runner than be pulled by one.

The cost of Uship was about the same when you factor hotels etc... The main issue was no firm pick up date and living four hours from the MGA