Enclosed Trailers

[echrisconnor]

I'm looking to both get my 911 out of the garage, and be able to transport it easily. What is the smallest enclosed trailer you can comfortalby put a 911 in? Also, who are some of the good makes and sources to find one used?

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Chris,

I am making assumptions that you have either towed very few or no trailers before. If I am incorrect or sound insulting, please accept my apologies for I do not mean to insult or belittle.

In general, make sure that the vehicle you are towing with can handle the type of trailer you use. Any trailer (state laws in most states) over 3,000 pounds total weight should have an electric brake sending unit in the towing vehicle that activates the brakes in the trailer as you brake. They are very cheap and very good insurance.

Most general purpose pick-ups and suvs are not equipped to handle a load above 5,000 pounds. This would, generally, mean that you would need a trailer weighing 2,300 pounds or less. Beefing up the springs in the rear (leaf springs) and installing a type III, IV, or V hitch on the back of your vehicle will help immensly. I do not like the load levelling hitches that force the towing vehicle and the trailer to be on the same plane. If you are hauling too much for the rear of the vehicle, you need a lighter load or a bigger vehicle.

Open aluminum trailers are fairly cheap, easy to find, easy to maintain, easy to pull, easy to stop, and last a long time. Metal trailers rust and are heavier. Enclosed trailers can be very, very hard to pull in winds. They are much more difficult to back and make it difficult to see. Enclosed trailers can provide additional covered parking for your vehicle. For what it is worth, I use the flatbed to pull the Porsche and leave my in-laws covered car hauler in the drive-way.

[echrisconnor]

David,

Thanks for the response. You're right, I haven't towed many trailers but have done my homework on tow vehicles and weights. I should be fine in that department. I definitely want enclosed, and understand some of the shortcomings.

What I need to know are the minimum dimensions for a good enclosed trailer. 7x18, 8x20 or whatever people recommend. I would definitely want electric brakes, but don't want to break the bank. I've seen Haulmark, Pace, Featherlite, etc. but don't know anything about them.

Any recommendations?

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Featherlite makes a nice trailer as does Wells Cargo. The "family" Wells Cargo has done good for us, but I hate to pull it as it is bulky. I prefere the flatbed. My father-in-law uses it for Model As. I would think an 8' by 20' is preferable, but they are a bear to haul and get very, very heavy. Take your car and drive into it. You will know immediately. Make sure there are tie downs on the floor and that your vehicle does not block access to the spare tire. I hate taking out a car to change a flat on the trailer!

[john_colasante]

I have a 8x24. I would not want to go smaller than 8x20. I think most enclosed trailers that are 8' wide are 102" outside width (the maximum allowed by law) and 80" between the fenders inside. I cannot imagine going any narrower, there is not much room as it is.

[chrisp]

I had mine in a 22' box and there was tons of room to spare. I could have easily dropped a queen size mattress and camped out.

I suspect an 18' is a better way to go. The car will fit in a 16' but I am not sure if there's enough extra space to move around and get the tie downs all situated. Then there's extra wheels and stuff.

If I own an enclosed again I think I would try to make a 16' work and keep the extras in the truck bed. I switched to an open and I really appreciate the lower drag and lower weight. It tows SO much easier. I realize that this isn't a consideration for you though.

[lshimp18]

I am real fond of Featherlite. They make great trailers, all aluminum or you ca choose their econolite series that is alum/metal. The Featherlite is often times a little bit more, but you get what you pay for. They have a very high resale value compared to other major competitors. I would choose the 8x20, that it's versatile enough to bring along other provisions and in the case of resale is quite desirable.

Give them a call 800-800-1230 ask for Tracey Clement, he is one of the owners.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

I forgot, it is much easier to tow, back, park a gooseneck than a bumper pull. After you have compared, you will know.

[Soterik]

I bought a 16 ft. enclosed last year and am very happy I did.... Got tired of using an open trailer and cleaning my car up after each trip (kept that trailer for utility work).

Have towed several early 911's around with it, and still room for an extra set of tires, easy up, etc.... yes it's a little tight, but it's easier to tow than the 20's and up. NO issues with moving around and doing the tie downs....just load the other crap after doing your tie downs.

I bought an Interstate....$5K with tax and license.

I tow with a 99 Burb, w/ 6.5 turbo diesel......

Eric

[echrisconnor]

Great replies-- thanks.

Eric, were you towing a pre '74 911? My '76 is a little bigger than the long hoods. My car is about 14' long, is a foot on both ends enough?

[chrisp]

Don't forget tongue weight. You'll need to find the sweet spot and 16' may not give you enough leeway to do it. You may need to push the car forward since it's a rear engine. The 16' may not accomodate this.

[ErVikingo]

I have an Aluminum Trailer Company 8x22 custom trailer. Excellent quality, light and easy to tow. My tow vehicle is a 5.3 1500 Chevy Avalanche (keep your comments on that choice please!!!).

Everything fits inside. Pricey but worth it in my mind! I have all sorts of details on it if you need them. FYI, total weight empty is 2750 lbs. I have walk on roof with rails, tire rack for 8 tires, full insulation, ...

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Chris,

Very, very good point that even people who tow often forget (as in me). I find the gooseneck seems to provide it's own sweet spot, but I'm now partial to goosenecks. Did I mention to make sure you are using electric brakes connected to the truck with a seven or more pin connector? If the trailer or the truck have four pin connectors then one, the other, or both do not have electric brakes.

[Soterik]

The Interstate 16 I have is set up perfectly for P cars.....the wheelbase positioning is the same as their 18....car fits right in the middle of the box......and is perfectly balanced (meaning the "right" amount of tongue weight, though I haven't measured it...) If you saw a side profile of the box...you would understand....axles are behind the midpoint of the box.

Yes, it's a pre-74, and I don't know the length of the length of the 74's, but an extra 3 inches on each end shouldn't make much difference in my opinion.

If you are just doing events, de's, autocrossing etc....there's enough room between the trailer and your rig for stuff.....just how much stuff do you take with you?

With the 16 I can negotiate the narrow streets in my neighborhood that have "islands" in the intersections to slow people down.....I doubt a 20 footer could do it. If you want a little larger go 18......

I have friends with bigger trailers....they do the same type of events that I do...and are always telling me "look at all the room".... my answer is "ok, what more are you carrying than me?"
and the answer is "nothing".

Mine is not aluminum frame....it's steel, but the upper is aluminum....weighs 2800 lbs.

I recently picked up a 73S targa project in Napa Ca. I fitted the car, 4 extra wheels in back, and the targa glass in front of the car....plus assorted tool boxes and extra stuff from the car.....no problem.

Eric

[arrivederci]

Seems that the preference here is for electric brakes vs. surge brakes...Trailex pushed surge brakes pretty hard when I bought my open trailer. The sales guy said is was the preferred braking setup unless I did a lot of towing in the mountains.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Surge brakes make it difficult to back-up. There is also a jolt to the horses. Wait, we're talking German sports cars, not German sports horses.

When the surge brakes are hitting often on down hills they will get hot and lose the capacity for slowing the load. This will make it difficult to slow down when the load starts pushing you downhill while you are trying to stop. Don't ask how I know, I always carry spare undies... Electric brakes give you the option of "tapping" the trailer brakes without braking the tow vehicle. It is only my opinion, but I hate surge brakes FWIW.

[Bryantch]

I have a 24x8'6 and wouldnt want anything smaller...extra room for tools, extra tires, etc. Besides, the cost of a 24 footer is only a couple hundred more than an 18 or 20. Paid $5100 out the door for my Haulmark. Pull with a duramax diesel so the extra few hundred pound doesnt matter.

[arrivederci]

David, I completely understand your point about surge brakes possibly dragging on a long downhill. This is exactly the point that the Trailex salesperson was making. I've also heard that if the trailer begins to oscillate (swaying back and forth a little), its helpful to be able to tap the trailer brakes to stabilize it. There's no way to do that with surge brakes but with electric brakes, its no sweat.

These days, most surge brakes are "free-backing"...which means that they're engineered to not engage when the wheels are turning backwards.

They are less prone to failure than electric brakes. There's much less to corrode/troubleshoot, and the emergency brakeaway doesn't require a battery. Apparently, the corrosion is a serious issue in wet/coastal areas (due to salt, etc). I suppose that surge brakes need to have their fluid replaced every once in a while, and possibly their lines bled (since they are hydraulically acutated).

[MJHanna]

You can put a 911 in a 14-foot trailer but you would have to be a contortionist to do it. Sometimes if you look at minimal requirements you can make it work but are sorry later. Maybe the car will fit but if you change cars, will the new car fit? Will anybody else’s car fit, when you try to sell the trailer? If you have a wide body 911 you will want a 102” wide trailer. In my 20 ft with a wide body car and a front diffuser on the car it’s tight. I have room for a rack in front of the car for storage period. If I did it over I would go with a longer trailer. But when I bought it I though I was going to pull with a ½ ton which would have been at the max capacity of the truck. Bought an older diesel to pull with and quite worrying about ratings. I LIKE the equalizer hitch with an enclosed trailer especially one with antisway, it makes pulling the enclosed much easier.

[daloff]

Absolutely nothing less than a 20'. The best value for the money are the Classic Dominators etc. The quality is ten times better than a Haulmark or a Pace and only slightly higher in price. You would have to go to a Gold Rush to do any better