Has anyone towed a Ford rear wheel drive vehicle such as a Crown Vic? I found out that I need to disconnect the drive shaft by disconnecting the rear Ujoint, but I'm not sure how complicated this might be. For example will the drive shaft come out of the trans if not held forward? I need to tow this Crown vic 2x each year and don't want to buy a car dolly if it's a serious operation to disconnect/connect the Ujoint. Any advice appreciated. thanks.

 

Why not just rent a flatbed car hauler?

 

I am not a Crown Vic expert, but most cars have a slip joint connection to the transmission from the drive line. IN most cases, if you take off the u-joints, you will have to remove it or tie it up good.


Are you disconnecting because you are concerned about the miles you will add?

 

Should be easy to do, but I've never done it.

Newmandl, It is required in order to tow with the drive wheels down and the front wheels on the dolly for automatic transmissions.

 

For a rear wheel drive automatic trans, you need to drop the drive shaft at the rear ujoint. Should be pretty straigt forward. Do not pull shaft out of the transmission, but then tie the rear of the shaft up securely so that it does not drag. If you do not do this and tow very far, you will destroy the trans and seals.

P S I always put the cups back on the joint and tie a rag around it so that the needle bearings inside the cups do not dislocate.

 

A fried of mine tows his Lincoln Town car behind his Diesel Coach. He had a drive shaft disconnect installed. He has a little red handle on the trans hump in the car. When he tows it he just pulls the handle and all is good. BTW he tows flat... 4 on the ground with a tow bar. He had to put a brake controller in the car due to the weight behind the coach. It works great.

 

thanks for the replies guys. I need to do this twice per year probably for the next 5 years or so. If it were just a few times I would rent a flat bed, or even if I had storage for the flatbed I would buy one, but I don't. I checked into the Ujoint diconnects, but they are expensive. I'll crawl under the crown vic some day when it's not so cold and take a close look. I'm guessing as others have said that it's just a matter of removing the clamps on the front of the rear Ujoint, then maybe using chain and a quick link securing the rear of the driveshaft up and so that it can't move backwards which could pull out of the trans.

 

Why not just back the car onto the dolly? Seems the easiest to me.

If the hitch isn't long enough a welding shop can extend it for fairly cheap I'd assume. Sure would beat trying to disconnect a driveshaft under a car that's low to the ground. Is there something i'm missing here? Guy at work pulls his 4WD Ranger backward on a dolly all over during the Summer.

 

The steering lock is not designed for towing vehicle backwards. Although I've never done it, it should take 10 minutes to drop the driveshaft w/ a jack.

 

What year is the 'vic?

I just looked at the info on an '04 Vic, and it shows it as being a 1-piece driveshaft assembly. The slip joint is in the tail of the transmission, so you *could* just pop it right out of the back of the trans, although I wouldn't recommend it as that would leave the tail of the trans exposed. I suppose you could cover it with a cap of some sort, but there's still the potential for leakage, especially with the car being nose-high.

I pulled up the '04 Towing Guide for the Crown Vic/Grand Marquis/Town Car/Marauder. It says you can leave the rear wheels on the ground up to 35 mph for a max of 50 miles. However, it also shows that when towed from the front, max speed and distance are unlimited. Of course in either case, you want to be sure to turn off the load leveling suspension if so-equipped.

With regards to the steering, it says in the towing manual,
That raises two more possibilities: Tow it backwards and use a properly designed steering wheel lock to hold the wheel in place, or tow it with both the front and rear wheels on dollies. I have no idea how much either of those options would cost compared to a driveshaft disconnect, but they mey be worth a couple of phone calls. I'd start with some local towing companies and ask their managers/owners what brand of equipment they use, and what distributor they get it from. It can't hurt to ask.

-Joe

 

this crown vic is year 2000, or 2001, I forgot, it's my mothers car.
I think that pulling the driveshaft out of the trans opens the trans up to dirt and to oil leak.
I'm going to crawl under it someday this winter and check out the Ujoint. I have a floor jack, so getting this done quickly with some first time preparation I think is possible. Thanks for the advice guys.