Best way to tie a 911 to a trailer

[JeremyD]

Ok - borrowed a trailer for this weekends DE in Sebring.

Figured with my buddy going we could pack more crap in my truck and drive and come back in AC comfort...

What's the best way to tie my car down to the trailer?

[JeremyD]

bump

[Par911]

Not 911 specific, but some general towing info here:
http://www.ffcobra.com/FAQ/trailer.html
http://www.advanceautoparts.com/english/youcan/html/ccr/ccr20040301hh.html

[JeremyD]

Thanks Pari =

I am more concerned with how people tie the car down to the trailer. Thru the fuchs wheels? over the axels? Front tie down hooks are pretty simple, but what about the rear?

[Dantilla]

I put the straps through the wheels.
That way, there is no change in tension as the suspension works.

If you use the hooks mounted on the body, you must make sure the straps are tight enough to compress the suspension or the straps may go slack over bumps.

[Par911]

Jeremy, I have seen my friends use the through the fuchs technique and secure it to the trailing arm.

This looks like a good solution to tie down the rear, I have seen these pieces on a bunch of race prepped 911's that are trailered to the track.
http://p-car.com/products/tiedown/
http://www.theautobahn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13626

[Joe Bob]

I use D rings made of flat steel for the rears....they slip under the rear shocks bolts. The front I use the stock center tie down thats under the tank. With light support straps to the A arms.

Performance Products sells a ring that screws into the wheel stud(s)....replace after pulling the car off the trailer. %^B

I don't like going thru the wheel as I have seen frayed tie downs after a 200 mile trip.

[JeremyD]

Thanks Guys - Has anybody seen the lug wheel tie downs -

[Par911]

Originally posted by Jeremy964
Thanks Guys - Has anybody seen the lug wheel tie downs -

Here they are (our host may also be able to get them):

http://www.************************/ProductPage.aspx?pid=109798&name=Tri-Pod+Lug+Nut+Tie+Downs&type=20

[Spud]

I use these two items on my track car:

front

rear

Makes it a pleasure to strap her to the trailer

I'd caution you about straping to the front A-arms (could alter alignment/bend something) and also going through the wheels (will scratch them).

However $150-200 for these parts might be a bit steep for a car that only sees an ocasional ride on a trailer.

[Joe Bob]

The ones "I" were talking about were single lug nuts with a ring on the end....those seem to be quite pricey and overkill.

[JeremyD]

Where are the single ones - I have seen those somewhere. Doesn't look like Pelican carries them

[89911]

The easiest way is through the fuchs with tire straps and then criss cross them with ratchet tie downs. ( Since this is one of your first times trailering, just make sure you take the car off the trailer before unhitching, don't ask my how I know!)

[Joe Bob]

This is what I copied/made......

[Andras Nagy]

Funny, but I saw a GT3R that had just been delivered from Germany, and it had one lug-nut-eye bolt, not three like the Performance Products one.

Do you think the factory knows something that others don't?

[Early_S_Man]

I think fabbing your own tiedown hooks as MikeZ did to use on chassis is probably the best way to go ... the lug nut jigs are probably OK for use on a big car-carrier trailer, but would allow too much suspension movement for my comfort on a tandem-axle single-car trailer!

Cinched down tight to front & rear bumper mounts with 2" ratchet ties is how I want the body secured. No free body movement at all while on the trailer!

[arrivederci]

Through the wheels. My Trailex came with reinforced loops that work really well going through the wheels. Place the reinforcement sleeve over the part of the loop that is likely to abrade.

The only problem I have is packing up at the end of a track day. You need to give the brakes some time to cool down before you strap the car onto the trailer. Otherwise, a hot brake could damage the straps going through the wheels. Also, be sure to keep the straps off the heat exchangers until they've cooled a bit.

Another question. To criss-cross or not? Logic dictates that non-crossed straps will be stable from front to rear. Criss-crossed straps should keep the car from shifting to the sides.

[Grady Clay]

I use four of these Kinedyne 1200# straps on each wheel (total
of 16) and two 3500# straps between the chassis and the trailer
cross beams to compress the suspension. The trailer has about
30 forged steel rings welded to the frame. This is for an 1800# car.

The trailer wheels are 4 ˝ x 15 steel wheels with 3/8” steel rod
bent and welded to the wheels – five per wheel. The tires are
185-78x15 with tubes to give lots of clearance when loading and
tieing down. The tires are at 60 PSI for easy rolling in the paddock.

The car has a spool in place of a differential. The first thing after
an event is over is to un-do an inboard CV and let the axle hang
from a strap. This allows for easy rolling and lets us get the
trailer tires on. It will drive just fine with only one tire attached
to the transmission.

IMAGE ChrisPhotos03g.jpg



Here is what I wrote for Pelican rs911t a few years ago.

xxxxxxxxx QUOTE xxxxxxxxxx
Tie-down system: Envision the trailer on its side bounding down
the side or median of the freeway. You want everything to stay
in place so you can call a tow truck to right it and load everything
into another truck or trailer with no damage to the “T”.

Car tie down; There are two theories; tie the chassis down and
compress the suspension and tires or tie the tires and wheels
down and let the car float on it’s suspension. I recommend
both. Either way, the trailer is basically the same. You want
eight to twelve very substantial recessed D-ring pan fittings that
are bolted through the steel frame of the trailer, preferably at
the intersection of the side rail and a cross member. You need
to have twelve high quality (Kinedyne) 2” ratchet straps (3500#+).
Have a pair of E-track mounted chocks for the
wench to pull the front tires against, this way the “T” is in exactly
the same place every time and you don’t have to re-adjust the
tie-downs.

Equipment tie-down: Bungee cords are great for keeping things
from rattling but the only things you should tie-down with them
is your driver’s suit. Heavy things (tool box, roller cabinets, N2
cylinder, generator, air compressor, coolers, tires, tables, etc.)
need tie-downs appropriate for their weight. Imagine a toolbox
thru the windshield! The easiest to use system is E-track. This
is the standard for the cargo industry, there are lots of suppliers,
and the price is as low as it can be (isn’t competition wonderful.)
The heaviest things use the 2” straps (3500#) like the car tie-
downs. Others can use the lighter weight (835#) 1” ratchet
straps. I recommend two continuous lengths of E-track down
the trailer floor, just inboard of the tires and just outboard of the
floor-boxes. These should be bolted thru the trailer frame at
every opportunity. On the sides, there should be a strip at
about 8-10” off the floor fore and aft of the wheel boxes. There
also should be continuous strips at about 36” and 50” above the
floor. Same for the front wall. Very heavy things, like nitrogen
cylinders, should have a retaining structure bolted thru the floor
and frame in addition to multiple restraints to the wall E-track.
E-track is available in both steel and aluminum and, if properly
installed, will dramatically increase the structural strength of the
trailer (not to mention its value and usefulness). Have the E-track
welded to form a continuous strip (it comes in 10’ lengths.)

With something called “shoring bars” that fit the side E-track, you
can build platforms above the car and above the hood for
lightweight things.
How to think about tie-downs is if you have an item that weighs
100# and you have a 20G crash, that is a 2,000# working load.
Translate that to a 2500# car and it is 50,000#. Another issue
is that you don’t want the entire load at a single point; the
straps, trailer or car are not that strong. Also, you don’t know
the direction of the load. Hence, have multiple attachments in
several directions.
There is no small amount of cost in all the cargo control but it’s
worth it.
xxxxxxxxxxx END QUOTE xxxxxxxxxxx

Best,
Grady

[911Rob]

[JeremyD]

Can I just borrow your rig Robert? And thanks Grady!