Flatbed Tow or U-Haul Car Trailer

Compare pricing.....the U-Haul against a competent, trusted towing company.

 

The U-Haul trailer is very good, with a lot of thoughtful bells and whistles in all the right places.  They usually are relatively easy to load/unload and pull straight at normal cruising speeds.

 

But.....

 

The overall rental cost can be quite steep and if you're not experienced at loading/unloading and hauling something on a trailer it can become daunting, and you don't want to ding your baby, right?  I've hauled my speedster well over 15,000 miles on my own trailer with never a mishap but if this is your first time you'll surely want to take your time, make sure it's loaded properly and will be problem free on the trip.

 

OTOH, a competent towing outfit is doing this sort of thing all the time and it should be no big deal for them at all.

 

So then it comes down to the price differential and what makes sense for you.

For less than $100 you can buy your own tow bar and have backup should you ever need it again. Flat towing a Speedster is effortless - just remember take out of gear and don't back up. Not quite sure what Beck uses for front I-Beam - if std VW then a $70 bug one works.

 

 

When I rented a U-Haul car trailer last year to pick up my speedster in NJ (from Boston) I quickly learned about load vs. no load. Unlike yours, my speedster wasn't together. I've pulled a lot of trailers but this one had the double axle with nylon (?) tires. Going down empty (behind an F-150 crew) it was bouncing to beat the band. I thought it was going to tear the hitch off. But I said screw it I'm going. Once the load was on in NJ it was fine. Just a point...

On a Beck, the towbar needs to be narrowed and clearance needs to be made for the frame/bumper brackets. It can be done with a little bit of fabrication. Contact Carey Hines I'm sure he knows what to do. 75 miles is nothing for flat tow, I routinely either tow or drive to Carlisle, 230 miles each way, and Lenny adds 90 miles each way to that with his Spyder.

 

I'm pretty sure there is a customer with a Beck that goes from New England to Florida, dragging it twice a year......

If you are a AAA member your annual fees should include ~4 tows per years at no cost, if each tow is under 100miles.   They have very nice flatbeds with very experienced guys.   Seems like once a year one of  my cars gets a ride to the shop.

 

...no need to spend any extra $$ if you are already paying your AAA annual fee.

 

 

Thanks all.  Very helpful.  Anything specific I need to request from Tow company prior to arrival other than letting them know I need a flatbed and it is a low clearance, rear engine vehicle?

 

Thanks again.

Nope.

 

You've got it covered.

 

Maybe have a couple of planks kicking around to run it up on before loading it to get the rear end up so it won't scrape the exhaust on the ground during loading, but the tow driver will know if that's needed or not (Not always).

 

Of course, until you get that tow bar installed 

Thanks all.  Had it towed via flatbed with AAA. Driver did a great job and car arrived in good shape.

 

Thanks for the feedback.

 

Justin

Grady,

Excuse me if I didn't read correctly, but I didn't see your location.  Many members, myself included, would pickup you up with our personal trailer.  Granted it costs a few beers or a nice bottle of scotch if its a serious distance, but our community is ready to help.

-=theron

Members have even crossed borders to look at a potential car for another member...

Note to self, buy scotch for when Theron tows my Speedster.  -Steve from San Jose.

AAA membership............

       
       

Yup. It's true...

And for that, I am thankful.

Ted