SIMPLE questions about towing 4-Down

[bamaboy473]

UPDATES:

The Sequoia's and the motor home's receivers are within 1/2" of height off the ground, so dimensions are about the same.

1. In order to get the Blue Ox angle within 4" of the BMW's, this is what I came up with. Looks bogus; too complicated to me. Suggestions?

2. The ReadyBrake came with the coach. I can fish the wire and braking device through the front end of the car and I don't see anything wrong about it being upside down; needed in order to make the height work. Suggestions?

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by sandwip

It looks to me like your ears on the car are the wrong way being horizontal vs vertical. This will stress the connector as the pins cannot swivel in an up/down direction. This will fatigue the tow bar or car mounts and lead to problems and a safety issue.

Good point. I missed that when I looked at the pictures before expanding them. Yep, the need to be redone so they can pivot up and down or the bar end or tabs will soon break off.

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by tfryman

The fluid is not under pressure until you push on the brakes.
The brakes always work regardless if the engine is running or even if the ABS does not work.

Readybrake applies brakes to the towed vehicle just like trailer brakes apply brakes to trailers.

Safety chains are to prevent a runaway trailer or car in case of a hitch failure. You need them for the car just like you need them for a trailer. They should go from the receiver or frame of the towing vehicle to the frame of the towed vehicle.

WA law requires them to cross in an "X" under the hitch also. That's supposed to keep the hitch from digging in and possibly flipping the trailer/towed.

[bamaboy473]

It appears to me that all is well, because the transition connector does the converting from horizontal to vertical. Do we agree, or do I have something to consider again?

[bamaboy473]

Originally Posted by Mr_D

WA law requires them to cross in an "X" under the hitch also. That's supposed to keep the hitch from digging in and possibly flipping the trailer/towed.

My meager research shows that it's a federal law to have safety chains, and they must route under the towing apparatus to prevent dragging pieces.

This is what one will look like, unless a better idea comes along. Don't think about the hooks, it is a fabrication in order to determine the proper length.

[bamaboy473]

If I use a braking system inside the car, do I want that Ready Brake or does it become overkill?

[TripleEEE]

Originally Posted by bamaboy473

Thanks, there is nothing about towing in a BMW manual because nobody makes a baseplate for them. We've made a towing bar and are about to try it out, so steering unlocked and free-turning is the answer, right?

And the probable reason that there is no baseplate made, is that your BMW isn't flat towable.

Store : Remco

Plug your vehicle specifics into the above website to get the answer, otherwise you stand a chance of grenading your transmission.

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by bamaboy473

It appears to me that all is well, because the transition connector does the converting from horizontal to vertical. Do we agree, or do I have something to consider again?

I see what you're saying but I think I would change just to allow them to work as designed. As it is they are putting the vertical wear on a piece designed for horizontal wear and vice versa. Could cause extra wear and early failure.

[bamaboy473]

Originally Posted by TripleEEE

And the probable reason that there is no baseplate made, is that your BMW isn't flat towable.

Store : Remco

Plug your vehicle specifics into the above website to get the answer, otherwise you stand a chance of grenading your transmission.

Attaching a baseplate to the car is possible, but I don't think that BMW supports that kind of mod on their sporty cars.

That said, any manual tranny can be towed 4-down, just as it can be towed on a dolly.

[bamaboy473]

Originally Posted by Mr_D

I see what you're saying but I think I would change just to allow them to work as designed. As it is they are putting the vertical wear on a piece designed for horizontal wear and vice versa. Could cause extra wear and early failure.

We agree. There's one extra piece that adds an extra wear point to the system. Changing the fabricated piece to a vertical item is do-able, but I'm going to make a 1,200 mile trip (mostly interstates) and see what happens.

In a perfect world, we'll like the 4-down system a ton more than trailers or dollies, and then I'll probably get a different toad that has higher passenger seating for the bride's comfort.

The Blue Ox is lubed like crazy, so if something comes apart, it won't the fault of the manufacturer. My welding guy knows his stuff, too, so that leave me as the least common denominator, but the learning curve is rising.

[whalepirot]

Originally Posted by bamaboy473

If ... braking system inside the car?

Two others 'IFs':


If you're in an accident with no toad braking, insurance may decline coverage. Many types of aux brake systems exist; most adjustable, so jake brakes, etc., don't force the toad into slowing the RV.



If you cherish the front of that nice Beemer, decide on some device to keep severe road rash.


Having owned many BMWs, I doubt they address towability, but agree with the 5-spd being okay. REMCO's list is not the end-all, any more than towbar maker's lists are.

[bamaboy473]

Originally Posted by whalepirot

Two others 'IFs':


If you're in an accident with no toad braking, insurance may decline coverage. Many types of aux brake systems exist; most adjustable, so jake brakes, etc., don't force the toad into slowing the RV.



If you cherish the front of that nice Beemer, decide on some device to keep severe road rash.


Having owned many BMWs, I doubt they address towability, but agree with the 5-spd being okay. REMCO's list is not the end-all, any more than towbar maker's lists are.

I'm looking at an auxilliary braking system in-car that operates whenever the coach brakes go ON. How a Jake affects that is something I don't know.

The front of the car and road rash aren't fun to think about. I have a Colgen full front bra, and will see what happens with that. As happens, what that car looks like and what it's worth are pretty different, so as a test mule, it's pretty decent, but nothing I'd want a Porsche to go through.

[AKIQPilot]

From the pictures it appears that many of the movable pieces of the towbar near the connection point on the car are already severely worn or very loose. This will get much worse in a hurry if those points are not tight.

Also you want your safety chains to connect to the frame of the car not to the hitch pin. The hitch pin is one of the likely failure points in a towbar system.

Lastly. Is there a reason you put the ready brake in front of the drop hitch? You could have used a drop with half the drop and turned your ready brake right side up and accomplished the task better. Im not positive but I doubt NSA would approve of that configuration the way you have it set up. The reason is the tow bar pivot point is so far behind the ready brake. This may allow for cable binding and brake actuation going around corners. Or no brake action on corners depending on how you have the cable ran.

[Crasher]

Why not eliminate the drop hitch and just flip the Readybrake over? The 2" rise from the toad to the coach is not a bad thing. This would shorten the total distance and and make a more compact hookup. I also agree that the 2 safety chains need to be to the frame of the BMW and not to the hitch point. Any vehicle inspector would not approve what you are showing. Most states require auxiliary braking for any vehicle over 3,000#.