The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline car tow dolly and rear axle question

Does anyone know if a 57 Chevy 3100 truck can be towed with a tow dolly for a very long distance? Will the rear axle be ok? thanks

if you can't trailer it, distance towing is best done with the driveshaft removed and brake shoes adjusted very loose or removed - and if it's been sitting for a long time in poor conditions, don't be surprised if a wheel bearing smokes or seizes

Bill

It's not the rear axle you need to be concerned with, it doesn't care whats makint it turn as long as it has lube in it. The transmissio is where the problem lies. Manual transmission gets its lube by the countershaft splash while rotating. When dingy towing (or coasting w/ engine off in neutral)the output shaft is the output shaft is spinning w/o lube. Pull the driveshaft.

I'd suggest putting fresh lube in the rear axle- - - -not just checking the level. If there's water in it, it will be on the bottom, and the axle will appear to be overfilled with lube. Pull the driveshaft and loosen the brakes, as suggested above.
Jerry

The manual with my tow dolly states that you should put the drive wheels on the dolly, which in the case of a rear wheel vehicle means you'll pull it backwards. You have to tie the steering wheel down. I haven't done it yet but that's what the manual says.

You'll also need to be wary of the condition of the tires on the vehicle being towed. If they're old and dry rotted, they may not hold up.
If you can, getting a trailer to haul it would be the preferred method over using a dolly.

Towing with the steer axle on the ground can be exciting, especially if there's any looseness in the tie rods, king pins, etc. I've done it, but only for short distances and low speeds if there's any slack at all.
Jerry

After draining and refilling the rear end I dropped the drive line and loaded up all my tools into the bed (lets just say it was full and leave it at that) loaded it onto a dolly from the U-place and drove from Fresno, Ca to Astoria, Or with no problems. I couldn't get a trailer because they said my G20 van wasn't big enough to handle it. (But a dolly was OK?)
I did check the front tie downs regularly as they tended to worked loose every hundred miles or so. The tires barely fit (as in they were hanging over the edges) but we cruised 65 to 70 up I5 all the way(900 miles).

I did make sure the tires and everything else were running nice and cool the first few miles and again when I was tightening the front tie downs but it was easy peasy and the guys I picked up hitch hiking couldn't believe we were actually towing it as effortless as it was. I don't think I'd try it backwards like the manual says. Nor would I try it on iffy tires (you don't want to ask me why)

Your experience may vary

That seems odd to me, as when I went to rent a trailer to bring mine home from Marietta GA to Danville IL, we asked about a dolly to see if it would save any money. The U-Haul rep we talked to said that they were only recomended for use with FWD cars, and actually advised not to use one for a truck. The cost difference, the trailer was $10 less. The tow vehicle was an '88 K2500.