Flatbed Towing

[costanZo]

I'm not sure if any of you have read my post under the RT/10 and GTS Discussions Forum: My car won't start..... but it looks like my only option now is to get the car towed. Does anyone know of a good towing company that deals with Vipers or exotics in general so that they will have the right equipment to tow my car safely? I live in Wilmington, MA which is exit 41 right off 93. So I'm about 15minutes or so from Boston.

Also, I was told it will need to be towed to a Dealership so that it can be scanned with the Drb3 unit. The only two Dodge dealerships that come to mind, are Clarks over in Methuen off 93 and Herb Chambers over in peabody. Does anyone know if either of these dealerships are good places to take my car or are there better places?

Thanks,
Anthony

 

[big-n-italian]

my car fits without scraping on a flatbed, only if two assist boards for the front tires are placed between the flatbed and the pavement. (about 12" minimum on both). there are alot of low profile cars on the road today and they should be prepared, but be sure to INSIST.

 

[orsini112]

Ant, Just make sure they know what they are towing. Call AAA and be very clear, they usually send someone with experience on lower cars. I have used them with no issues before. Let me know how it goes.

 

[costanZo]

Ant, Just make sure they know what they are towing. Call AAA and be very clear, they usually send someone with experience on lower cars. I have used them with no issues before. Let me know how it goes.

Alright, thanks man. I will give AAA a call and make sure they KNOW it's a viper and demand that I want someone who has towed lower cars before.

 

[NukedGTS]

Alright, thanks man. I will give AAA a call and make sure they KNOW it's a viper and demand that I want someone who has towed lower cars before.

Not sure where you are towing it to but any chance getting it up to Heitz in Belmont, NH? It's a few extra miles but at least the guy you are bringing it to will know what he is doing. He's one of the better Viper techs in our area.

 

[costanZo]

Not sure where you are towing it to but any chance getting it up to Heitz in Belmont, NH? It's a few extra miles but at least the guy you are bringing it to will know what he is doing. He's one of the better Viper techs in our area.

Hey Mike,

That's exactly what I'm doing lol. Heitz is 75miles away from me. I had him put on my cats and exhaust system, so I'm having my friend Martin come over Friday morning so I can use his aaa membership to have my car towed. He has the "plus" membership which gets me 100 miles for free. Since I just have the standard membership I only get 3 miles for free with each additional mile costing $4. So yea, makes more sense to save about $300 and have Martin be present so I can use his aaa card haha.

 

[XTREMDRM]

My 2 cents.......use a flat bed vehicle.
recovery Solutions has towed my cars many times.
Very professional.
603-425-6860 ....AAA
I just request them for service when I call in.
Hope that helps.

 

[costanZo]

My 2 cents.......use a flat bed vehicle.
recovery Solutions has towed my cars many times.
Very professional.
603-425-6860 ....AAA
I just request them for service when I call in.
Hope that helps.

Glenn, I'm not sure I understand.. So does this mean I can have Recovery Solutions tow me through AAA? I'm having my friend Martin use his AAA membership so I can get the actual tow for free.

 

[YELLOH]

I just wanted to let you know about AAA. I need a tow to a dealership with another vehicle of mine. Go to AAA and get a Gold card. Maybe $75.00 a year, but they will tow your car up to 100 miles or 150 mile not quite sure. After you pay the membership you have to wait for the waiting period, which might be 72hrs. So wait for the period to be over before you have it towed. Rick

 

[XTREMDRM]

I believe that is a YES. They are a certified AAA service.
I have called Recovery to check on their availablity and then called AAA to schedule the pick-up and requested only them for AAA. They are professional and usually pretty quick.

 

[costanZo]

So my car was towed successfully this morning leaving my apartment around 8:15. The guy Mark was very professional and did a great job. It was actually a bonus considering his appreciation for Vipers, let alone the fact he told me he had several model cars he built of Vipers at home. So I completely lucked out on the driver they sent me. He also told me he has towed several Corvettes before, but I was his first Viper; however, before he worked for AAA he went with another driver to tow a Silver Viper in Revere, MA. I'm assuming that person could be on here whoever owns a Silver Viper in Revere?

Steve Heitz just called me about 10 minutes ago and told me the car was delivered perfectly. He also told me the driver Mark was very professional and the car was flawless. No scratches on the car and the wheels were untouched as well. So it's a job well done by Mark from AAA.

Anyways, I took his number down and told him I will be requesting him next time if I ever need my car towed again. If you are local and live in the Merrimack Valley area or pretty much anywhere in the northern part of MA and the bordering towns of NH, then definitely request this guy if you need your car towed. My AAA location is referred to Southern New England by the way.

So as a reference for the rest of you who are in the area, his number is 857-249-9715 and his name is Mark.

I have attached some pictures below.

 

[costanZo]

So my car was towed successfully this morning leaving my apartment around 8:15. The guy Mark was very professional and did a great job. It was actually a bonus considering his appreciation for Vipers, let alone the fact he told me he had several model cars he built of Vipers at home. So I completely lucked out on the driver they sent me. He also told me he has towed several Corvettes before, but I was his first Viper; however, before he worked for AAA he went with another driver to tow a Silver Viper in Revere, MA. I'm assuming that person could be on here whoever owns a Silver Viper in Revere?

Steve Heitz just called me about 10 minutes ago and told me the car was delivered perfectly. He also told me the driver Mark was very professional and the car was flawless. No scratches on the car and the wheels were untouched as well. So it's a job well done by Mark from AAA.

Anyways, I took his number down and told him I will be requesting him next time if I ever need my car towed again. If you are local and live in the Merrimack Valley area or pretty much anywhere in the northern part of MA and the bordering towns of NH, then definitely request this guy if you need your car towed. My AAA location is referred to Southern New England by the way.

So as a reference for the rest of you who are in the area, his number is 857-249-9715 and his name is Mark.

I have attached some pictures below.

I also wanted to thank my friend Martin for making this possible by allowing me to use his AAA membership, considering I'm waiting for my new upgraded membership card in the mail.

Goofy picture attached below...haha

 

[costanZo]

I just wanted to let you know about AAA. I need a tow to a dealership with another vehicle of mine. Go to AAA and get a Gold card. Maybe $75.00 a year, but they will tow your car up to 100 miles or 150 mile not quite sure. After you pay the membership you have to wait for the waiting period, which might be 72hrs. So wait for the period to be over before you have it towed. Rick

Rick, thank you for the info. I actually upgraded my membership yesterday. I'm not sure if it's a black card or a gold card, but it cost me about $30 more from my standard $50 or so for the basic plan and I will have up to 100miles of towing for free under the new plan.

They told me I would have to wait for my new card in the mail to be able to have my car towed for free today, so I had Martin come over and I used his membership since he already had the plan that allowed me to get my car towed up to 100 miles for free.

 

[costanZo]

I believe that is a YES. They are a certified AAA service.
I have called Recovery to check on their availablity and then called AAA to schedule the pick-up and requested only them for AAA. They are professional and usually pretty quick.

Glenn, thanks again for that info. I called Recovery Solutions yesterday, but they told me they only serviced Northern New England and since I'm considered Southern New England I had to have a driver from AAA instead, but he was a really good guy and very professional so everything went better then I expected.

 

[NukedGTS]

My 2 cents.......use a flat bed vehicle.
recovery Solutions has towed my cars many times.
Very professional.
603-425-6860 ....AAA
I just request them for service when I call in.
Hope that helps.

Sorry to hear that!

 

[XTREMDRM]

Glad to hear that the process is smooth so far as to getting that snake back on the road.
Look forward to seeing you soon.

 

[YELLOH]

Hi Tony
Let us know when you are back on the road. Hopefully Steve Heitz gets the Viper fixed. Hope to see you soon. Rick

 

[TopGear]

Tony. Have you had the car on the trickle charger. 96 are battery suckers. Hope it's a quick fix.

 

[FLX109]

I'm not sure if any of you have read my post under the RT/10 and GTS Discussions Forum: My car won't start..... but it looks like my only option now is to get the car towed. Does anyone know of a good towing company that deals with Vipers or exotics in general so that they will have the right equipment to tow my car safely? I live in Wilmington, MA which is exit 41 right off 93. So I'm about 15minutes or so from Boston.

Also, I was told it will need to be towed to a Dealership so that it can be scanned with the Drb3 unit. The only two Dodge dealerships that come to mind, are Clarks over in Methuen off 93 and Herb Chambers over in peabody. Does anyone know if either of these dealerships are good places to take my car or are there better places?

Thanks,
Anthony

Hey Anthony,
As stated from topgear was your Viper sitting for a long period of time without a battery tender or trickle charger as 96's are well known for there battery to wear down fast and the car won't start and you may not even be able to get in it, lots of funky things happen with this year. you actually have to plug it in when you get home if it will be sitting a week or so.
just thought I'd give you a heads up also of a easy fix it could possibly be.

FLX109

 

[costanZo]

Glad to hear that the process is smooth so far as to getting that snake back on the road.
Look forward to seeing you soon.

Hi Tony
Let us know when you are back on the road. Hopefully Steve Heitz gets the Viper fixed. Hope to see you soon. Rick

Thanks guys,

Heitz called me on monday telling me it was the PCM, it needed to be replaced and would cost me about $800 unfortunately. However, he called me today and said the car is up and running and all set to go. So I will be driving up with my father tomorrow after work to get it. It will be nice to finally drive it again and actually "hear" my car turn on and run haha. It was also good timing for the holiday weekend since I'll be getting it detailed this Saturday with Martin.

 

[costanZo]

Tony. Have you had the car on the trickle charger. 96 are battery suckers. Hope it's a quick fix.

Hey Anthony,
As stated from topgear was your Viper sitting for a long period of time without a battery tender or trickle charger as 96's are well known for there battery to wear down fast and the car won't start and you may not even be able to get in it, lots of funky things happen with this year. you actually have to plug it in when you get home if it will be sitting a week or so.
just thought I'd give you a heads up also of a easy fix it could possibly be.

FLX109

Hey guys, i always keep it on the tender if it's going to be sitting for 2 or more days in the garage without being used. I actually used it back on May 7th I bellieve which was a Friday. I let it sit all day on Saturday without being on the tender and then when I went to start it on Mother's Day(Sunday) to go back to Haverhlil to see my mom, the car was dead. It only sat without a tender for ONE day.... So I have no idea, why the car lost a charge so fast. I am going to have the battery checked on it though once I get my car back to make sure it's in fact a "good battery".