Uhaul Style Auto Transport?
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i towed a friends Evo on a Uhaul open trailer and the front fascia of the evo scraped the front part of the trailer when the front tires were put into the locked position. I would just expect to either scrape your front end or maybe find a different style of trailer. Here are some pics of the tow, sorry i dont have close ups on the front end.Open trailers are fine.....the steeper the ramp up the more challenging it is. With enough wood blocks you can make it up most any ramp....your clutch won't necessarily enjoy the multi-step process but sometimes you can find a hill to use in loading the car, have the front of the trailer down the hill and the back end of the ramps at the crest, softens the ascent angle. If the U-haul ones are too short, there are folks out there who'll let you borrow or rent their open trailer for a week when they're not using it.
dirtysocks
Enthusiast
DO NOT USE ONE FROM UHAUL!!!!!!!!!!!! I speak from experience, You will damage your side sills Guaranteed. Alot of the "Uhaul" style trailers aren't wide enough for our cars.
Good point. Sorry, I thought the issue would be the ramps. Whatever you end up with, definitely measure the space between the wheel boxes to make sure you have at least an inch on each side of the sills.
3 years ago I hauled my GTS 1500 miles on a Uhaul trailer. It worked perfectly. In two weeks I am going to do it again. You must get the largest trailer from Uhaul. These are relatively new. they are galvanized steel, not orange. The large Uhaul trailer provided me with about 3" of clearance on each side of the car. I did have to back my car onto the trailer because the front of the trailer had a lip that was too high for the front bumper of my car to clear. No problem hauling the car this way... remember our cars have 50/50 weight distribution. The trailer towed fine with the car backed on. I estimated that there was about 300 lbs of tongue weight with it set up like this. Be sure to strap the car down really well. The large Uhaul trailer has straps that go over the front tires (will be the back tires when you back the car on). In addition, I strapped the frame down using two straps on the front of the car's frame and two on the rear of the cars frame. I checked the straps every time I stopped.
You need several sets of eyes helping you when you load the trailer because there isn't much clearance on either side. I also used some long 2"x12" boards to extend the effective lenght of the ramps. The ramps on the Uhaul trailer are too short to be used by themselves... you will hit the bottom of the side sill if you dont do something to extend the length of the ramp. Lifting the nose of the trailer helps, too.
You need several sets of eyes helping you when you load the trailer because there isn't much clearance on either side. I also used some long 2"x12" boards to extend the effective lenght of the ramps. The ramps on the Uhaul trailer are too short to be used by themselves... you will hit the bottom of the side sill if you dont do something to extend the length of the ramp. Lifting the nose of the trailer helps, too.
ROCKET62
Has Left the Room!
U-Haul has 2 different types of trailers. I cant seem to recall how you tell the two apart - but one of them is wide enough for a viper.
Yes, there must be 2 types. I rented one that said on uhauls web site it would work for my GTS. Myself and 2 other experienced Viper owners were able to get it on trailer with plenty of wood for ramps. But it was to low to be properly seated on trailer. The trailer I used looked similar to the one in the post above. But we could not make it work.
96GTS
Enthusiast
I took mine from Little Rock to Vegas on one and now my windshield looks like it was sandblasted (I believe a new one is $936.00...which is more than it would have cost to have it hauled there in an enclosed trailer..HINT HINT!), and the front bumper cover took a good bit of rock chips too. The crappy straps that go over the front tires kept slipping off, and pulling it through traffic played hell on my nerves. I'll never do it again unless I buy an enclosed trailer first; it's just not worth trying to save a few bucks. IF you DO go with the U-Haul, cover the windshield, mirrors and bumper cover with painters tape and bring a few extra rolls. Also, check the straps every 50-100 miles unless you want a lawsuit because your car bounced off the trailer and someone ran into it. Bring your own tie-down straps, and remember that there's no such thing as too many.
Call one of the guys on here that do it for a living and save yourself a lot of money and stress. I did it when I went from Vegas to Abilene, and I can't put a price on the piece of mind I had NOT having a car behind me. It was insured, and it arrived exactly as when it got on the trailer; I can't recommend this enough!
Call one of the guys on here that do it for a living and save yourself a lot of money and stress. I did it when I went from Vegas to Abilene, and I can't put a price on the piece of mind I had NOT having a car behind me. It was insured, and it arrived exactly as when it got on the trailer; I can't recommend this enough!
KNG SNKE
Enthusiast
I have done this multiple times.
There are 2 uhaul styles, they should ask you what you are towing and they know the right trailer to get for you.
Use 8x10 boards double stacked to get the angle to get your vehicle on the trailer easy.
In front of the trailer there are 2 metal guards held down by 2 bolts, remove these guards before loading your car on it. Your fascia WILL hit these guards if you pull up all the way, if you remove them it will clear. I didn't remove them in this photo and I had to have a piece of wood under the front wheels.
Use the tire straps attached to the trailer but also climb under the trailer and attach your own tow straps. Extra insurance is worth it.
There are 2 uhaul styles, they should ask you what you are towing and they know the right trailer to get for you.
Use 8x10 boards double stacked to get the angle to get your vehicle on the trailer easy.
In front of the trailer there are 2 metal guards held down by 2 bolts, remove these guards before loading your car on it. Your fascia WILL hit these guards if you pull up all the way, if you remove them it will clear. I didn't remove them in this photo and I had to have a piece of wood under the front wheels.
Use the tire straps attached to the trailer but also climb under the trailer and attach your own tow straps. Extra insurance is worth it.
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dave6666
Enthusiast
I'll let you borrow my logging chain and Jeep if you bring it back full.
You're welcome
You're welcome
I tried it and had a very hard time getting it on and off. I did minor damage to the car. As was already stated, you will get sand-blasted. I ended up buying an extremely low car hauler with extended ramps. I still had to add a stone shield to the front.
I am going to experiment with the loading this week before we head out next week. Would the sand blast issue lessen if I back onto the trailer? Seems like I would just swap out the area that gets blasted but I thought I would ask if anybody has tried this? Has anybody tried wrapping the car with something? I know the car will be on the hauler for two four to five day stretches. I am thinking about plastic wrapping the windshield/cockpit area and maybe just the nose. Thoughts?
When i hauled my viper on a uhaul trailer, I backed it on the to trailer. I didn't have get any sandblasting. Not sure why some do and some don't. I hauled in August. In the spring, there may be more sand on the road. Also, i was towing with a 30' uhaul truck. The rear tires of the truck were way forward of the trailer. Truck also had mudflaps.
I'd worry that plastic wrap might flap in the wind (I've thought about doing it though). I think I will do as someone suggested and use 2" blue painter's tape on the nose and windshield this time.
By the way, I may pass you on the road if you are driving from MT to FL next week. I will be towing my viper back to ID from OK.
I'd worry that plastic wrap might flap in the wind (I've thought about doing it though). I think I will do as someone suggested and use 2" blue painter's tape on the nose and windshield this time.
By the way, I may pass you on the road if you are driving from MT to FL next week. I will be towing my viper back to ID from OK.
AZTVR
Enthusiast
I have seen a guy at the track wrap his Corvette with 3 layers of clear shelf liner vinyl from Home Depot / Walmart. It stays on at Willow Springs Raceway speeds. A cheap protection system. He does it every time and his paint looks perfect. It wouldn't look so weird on a car on a trailer !
It might also be good idea to have mud flaps on your tow vehicle.
I tried to get my car on the uhaul trailer yesterday-- no luck. my car is just too low. I used 4 2x10 boards 8ft loog to extend the ramps, and I hacked the tongue up on the trailer, had the trailer angled on my driveway apron.... no luck. Im driving the car to the road course track tonight. I got all my tools and jack, jack stands etc etc in there. I have AAA if I break but not sure what they have as far as exotic transport equipment. fingers crossed for my first time out with the twin turbos on the car.
KNG SNKE
Enthusiast
My car is not as low as yours so I have not had issues. It did help for me to drive my truck up ramps backwards and park it.
One thing I had to do lee was put a second piece of wood on top of the first piece right next to the metal ramp. I sent you photos of how to do that. You HAVE to do that just to get a stock height viper on the uhual.
One thing I had to do lee was put a second piece of wood on top of the first piece right next to the metal ramp. I sent you photos of how to do that. You HAVE to do that just to get a stock height viper on the uhual.
drlee50. With the pics you posted I am assuming you were trying to load from that position. With the driveway slanted that way you actually made your approach angle worse by being in the driveway. Did you try loading with the Viper coming of the garage and the trailer backed up the hill? I am going to attempt this over the weekend. I have some good ideas and I think I can make it work. Driving it is not an option for 3500+ miles.
yes, i tried both ways-- i have pics of it the other way too. it was actually worse. I needed extra wood on top of the trailer under the tires, but then, I wouldnt be able to get them back out! I ended up driving to the track. Actually for 3 tool boxes, a big floor jack, pair of jack stands, 5 gal of ****, helmet etc etc in the hatch! She was loaded full . I was surprised how much I got in there. Im looking for a custom aluminum trailer now though.
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