Trailer required - cry for help ;)

[swindler]

Hey,

Maybe a fellow enthusiast can help me out

Anyone with a trailer, and something to pull it, near London or West Midlands??

To lug a special piece of Leyland scrap back from the Black Country. Not loads of money in it but lets say petrol a few notes and a "ahem" mini adventure?

Thanks in advance

Mark

[MGJohn]

swindler said:

Hey,

Maybe a fellow enthusiast can help me out

Anyone with a trailer, and something to pull it, near London or West Midlands??

To lug a special piece of Leyland scrap back from the Black Country. Not loads of money in it but lets say petrol a few notes and a "ahem" mini adventure?

Thanks in advance

Mark

Hire an A-Frame and tow it ~ no need for another driver. My son recovered a 200vi using an a-Frame recently. Then I discovered that he wanted me to drive the car as his licence does not include 'trailers'. Using the A-Frame means the towed vehicle effectively becomes a trailer ~ no driver in it. It steers itself with the a-frame .... magic. Here's the set-up:~

[V8s ONLY]

Where can you hire this from and how does it attach to the towed car ?

[MGJohn]

V8s ONLY said:

Where can you hire this from and how does it attach to the towed car ?

It attaches to any firm cross member, wishbone or similar suitable location at the front of the towed car. It effectively means the towed car becomes a self-steering trailer. Neutral gear, handbrake off and ignition Key in steering to allow steering wheel to move. Magic...

If you've ever seen those Big Caravan Vans (Waybiggeo ? sp.) towing a small Fiat, Metro, 205 behind it using and A-frame, owners bolt permanent eyehooks to the front of the small car if they tow it frequently. Fit the A-frame to it in seconds.

I suspect any decent tool hire outfit can provide one. I got mine five years ago off ebay for about £220. Has paid for itself many times over when recovering a broken down car or one I've bought and cannot get another driver to help get it home. It's a Solomatic ~ still available now and a bit cheaper:~

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/One-Man-Solomatic-Towing-A-F...

I bought it "on the quick" when some kind soul stole my braked twin axle trailer and I needed to collect a car urgently. Here's how it works :~





Do take your time relearning how to drive when using the A-Frame. Allow lots of additional space for braking and try to brake or lose speed only when steering wheel straight ahead. Get your speed down in advance to negotiate less than gentle curves or bends on a neutral throttle, not trailing as that risks a jack-knife scenario ~ the dread of all artic drivers when then trailer momentum tries to steer the towing vehicle..

It is far safer than simple towing with a driver driving the towed car. However, it's like driving an articulated vehicle so smooth driving and extra allowances for the antics of other road users is advisable. Rather surprisingly, when towing at sensible smooth speeds, my cars return better mpg figures than when driving them about normally. Would you believe low 30s mpg with a 2 litre turbo petrol. I did not at first but that mpg figure has been confirmed several times since so no flukey one off. Just goes to show what smooth driving, not to be confused to slow driving, can economically achieve.

[Kermit power]

Bear in mind as well that I'm pretty sure these things are illegal to use for anything other than emergency recovery in the UK.

[MGJohn]

Kermit power said:

Bear in mind as well that I'm pretty sure these things are illegal to use for anything other than emergency recovery in the UK.

That's puzzling ~ define "emergency"...
..