Getting a 97 long bed, bare bones model that has been sitting in a farm field for the last couple of years. Need to tow it to my place where I can check it out and get it running. Batteries that are charged and installed run down quickly once I turn the key to start. So, towing is the way to go where I can work on it.

Distance is 10 miles with 3 of that on pavement. Tow strap with trans in neutral is what I am planning - UNLESS it can hurt the transmission somehow.

Am I OK going slow for this distance?

 

I'd pull the driveshaft unless it's a manual 4wd, with that you can put the transfer case in neutral.

 

If it's a 2wd, the manual says you can go 50 miles @ a max speed of 35 mph.

If it's a 4wd, you have to disconnect a vacuum line to the front axle and you have the same 50 mile/35 mph limits.

If you disconnect the rear drive shaft, miles is unlimited, and speed is limited to 55 mph.

Good luck!

Mitch

 

x 10,000. I don't know about the Ford Tranny but the old Chrysler trannies had the hydraulic pump connected to the tranny output and you could burn one up in short order if the engine was running and the tranny wasn't in a Forward or Reverse gear. Especially, if the tranny had been sitting for a while and the fluid had drained down. A friend of mine was a professional Chrysler mechanic and was involved in burning up the trannies in about 50 Dodge police cars that had been sitting in storage. They started them up in Neutral and let to run for a while before driving them and it burned up the tranny seals in every single one of them! The lesson that they learned was to immediately put the tranny in Drive as soon as you start the engine in order to get the tranny hydraulic pump working as soon as possible in order to get lubrication to the seals and other items as fast as possible. To me, unless you're dead certain about the pump situation (and other things), it's a lot safer to drop the drive shaft before towing particularly on a vehicle that has been sitting.


I'll also vote AGAINST towing with a tow strap! First, it's illegal in most states but it's also a good way to have it smack into the back of your tow vehicle and damage both of them! A tow strap is for getting vehicles a FEW feet and out of the mud it's NOT for towing on a highway or for more than say 100 feet OR at more than a crawl speed! Towing with a tow strap on a public highway, even at 30 MPH is completely RECKLESS IMO!

 

I'd spend the 50 bucks for a tow dolly rental or get a quote for a tow.

 

I remember some towing done with a chain that was inserted into a long pipe to keep the vehicles separated. That might work if you have a chain and a long piece of pipe.

 

Guys, I am in rural North Dakota. Nearest place to rent a tow dolly is 90 miles away. We tow combines and tractors to start using tow straps. As long as the brakes on the following vehicle work and you don't go fast - it works just fine. I'll go with what Mitch says and take it easy.

I bet too many of you guys live where you can't stand on your porch and shoot a .22 without hitting a house.

 

Heck some of us can't stand on our porch and PEE without hitting another house!

That being said, if you tow with a strap or a chain it will work pretty good with a pipe between the vehicles. But you still need to have a caboose man in the towed truck. You might also want to make sure the brakes will work before you start going too far. We pulled a broken truck home from a trip like that once a long time ago. It was about 250 miles, and boy were we wore out when we got home. White knuckle ride ALL the way!

 

I would disconnect the driveshaft from the differential and hang it up with the slip yoke still in the transmission. This will keep the trans from leaking all over the road. A 12mm 12 point socket will undo the 4 bolts at the diff. If you tow it with the driveshaft connected and the transmission ends up being screwed up you will never know if it was because of the tow or weather it was like that before the tow.

FYI the manual shift transfer case has a Neutral position and you can tow it for miles.

One last thing, how you tow it is up to you.

 

Sadly, you're right about that!

 

Probably most of us live where you get arrested for firing a gun, unless you are shooting an intruder inside your own house.

By the way, don't forget power brakes don't work well with the engine off due to the lack of vacuum.

 

It's not recommended but you can get away with a lot flat towing. I flat towed the Lincoln in my signature for 60-70 miles at 60-70mph just with the trans in neutral to get it home.