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Old 06-18-2019, 10:31 AM   #1
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Tow or carry Harley & Car

Our question is for those that have a heavy bike and tow a car or truck. We have a 2018 Roadglide and a Ford Explorer & F250. We are going to buy a used DPDS. What are the issues with putting both the car and bike in a enclosed trailer or flat towing the car or truck and putting the bike on a lift. Has anyone tried it both ways and have some ideas pro or con.

Thanks for the advise.
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Old 06-18-2019, 12:11 PM   #2
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Lots of choices out there that will depend on the towing capacity of the rig you buy. They range from 5000 - 15000 lbs capacity, and tongue weight from 500-1500 lbs. I see mainly lifts or the bike in the back of the truck. Lots of trailers, but most are enclosed, so I don’t know what they are hauling.

We have a Can Am Spyder, so we either flat tow our Jeep, or take the CanAm on our air ride trailer, but never both.
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Old 06-18-2019, 12:20 PM   #3
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If the DP is a single rear axle, a lift on the rear for a heavy bike is not recommended and can easily overload the axle. Some have done it, but it's still not recommended. There are calculations on the Hydralift web site that will show you how quickly you can overload the axle. There are tow dollies that have a platform for the bike as well as car towing. Your best bet is to get something like the Rampage bike lift and install it in the bed of the pickup.
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Old 06-18-2019, 07:49 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Theroughlife View Post
Our question is for those that have a heavy bike and tow a car or truck. We have a 2018 Roadglide and a Ford Explorer & F250. We are going to buy a used DPDS. What are the issues with putting both the car and bike in a enclosed trailer or flat towing the car or truck and putting the bike on a lift. Has anyone tried it both ways and have some ideas pro or con.

Thanks for the advise.
Theroughlife,
Well Sir, we've done it in multiple ways. Our coach is an '04 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the CAT C-7 330HP and Allison MH3000 6-spd trans. I installed a Hydralift on that coach and knew from the git-go, I'd be overloading the axle. But, through a bit of experience, I knew it was going to work. Long story. Anyway, we did that way, for over 2 years and over 8,000 miles. We carried our '08 Honda GL 1800 Goldwing on the back and, towed either our '04 Jeep Rubicon or, our '11 Honda CRV EX-L.

Due to the fact that the diesels have ride height sensors, that coach rode at the same exact height WITH the bike and lift on the back as it did without any of that on there. And, towing either of those two toads was a great blessing. The coach had no handling, or steering or loading issues whatsoever. That Wing tips the scales at or very near, 900 lbs. The coach, as stated, handled the overloading just fine. The deciding factor was the tires. I was also overloaded on the tires.

So, after 2.5 years and about 8,500 miles, we changed our "M.O." as the cops say. We sold the Hydralift (absolutely HATED to see it go!) and picked up our present truck, an '11 GMC Sierra 1500 4x4 Extended Cab. I also picked up a Rampage lift/carrier for the back. The truck has a payload of 1,500 lbs. The bike, as stated, hovers close to 900 lbs. and the Rampage, right close to 275 lbs or so.

I set that Rampage up so it could be both installed and removed in about 5 minutes. I built a cart for it so, when it's not in the truck, it's on its cart, which is about 1" higher than the bed of the truck. When it comes time to load that Rampage, the tail gate comes off and, the Rampage is loaded in, without even anyone helping me, due that cart. The Rampage is bolted down and the electrical is hooked up in as stated, about 5 minutes

The Rampage system is a darn good system. It loads the bike in the back of that truck, just like a Roll-back wrecker. Once the bike is in the back of the truck, a couple more tie-downs are added and, we're off. The truck handles that kind of weight with ease. There are plenty of times when, we pull into a campsite/RV park and, we're only gonna be there for the day/night so, we don't off load the bike but, we disconnect and, go find a place to eat dinner etc. with the bike in the back of the truck. No issues at all doing this.

When I first retired in '09, we purchased a nice, 7' wide by 16' long United Enclosed trailer. We loaded our then, '02 Honda GL 1800 in it and, we did about a 2 month trip. Well, as much as we like to ride, having ONLY a bike for transportation is not the greatest game plan. We don't like inclement weather. Fortunately, the weather cooperated for almost the entire trip. But, we still didn't like only having the bike.

So, we changed coaches to what we have now and, did the Hydralift thing. Waaaaaaaaay better. But, we're happy with our truck and Wing now too. It's a choice thing. Good luck.
Scott
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Old 06-19-2019, 06:10 AM   #5
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We faced this situation also and with a Road Glide Ultra, but I have a gas coach with a 5K towing limit. We wound up buying a Deck over Dolly trailer to tow the RG and a small Ford Fiesta. So far we've towed it about 3K miles and it really does a nice job, but it's not something you want to load and unload a lot. So far we tend to go to one location and stay for a week or so. If I didn't have the 5K limit, I think I would flat tow a pickup and put the MC in the bed w/lift. This would be much easier to hook/ unhook, back, etc. For now we're happy and the Deck over Dolly. It's a conversation piece when it's all loaded up.
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Old 06-19-2019, 12:09 PM   #6
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Thanks for all the responses.
Scott, really appreciate the pics of the hydralift and rampage setups. Might be a bit of an over kill, but I think I might go with the F250 Crewcab long box behind the DP with the rampage in the bed.
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Old 06-19-2019, 02:13 PM   #7
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Thanks for all the responses.
Scott, really appreciate the pics of the hydralift and rampage setups. Might be a bit of an over kill, but I think I might go with the F250 Crewcab long box behind the DP with the rampage in the bed.
You are quite welcome Sir. As stated by myself and others, each way of hauling a large type motorcycle AND, being able to tow any form of vehicle, has its benefits and pitfalls. We've done almost all of the ways to do it. The pickup and the Rampage is not the best but, unless one has a cruise ship full of money, it's a good choice. As stated in my other post, I built a cart for that Rampage. The cart stores the Rampage when it's not in use.

The height of the cart, where the Rampage actually sits, is about 1" higher than the pickup bed, when both are level. Now, when it comes time to load it, if the wife's hanging around, I remove the tailgate since it's useless anyways while the Rampage is in and being used. Then, I roll that Rampage up to the back of the bed and, due to it being 1" higher than the bed, I can push that cart all the way 'till it touches the bumper of the truck.

At that point, all I do is lift the back end of the Rampage and, the front end is in the bed of the truck and, the cart is now free to be rolled away. She does that. Then, due to the fact that the Rampage has plastic blocks attached to the bottom of it, you can simply glide it the rest of the way into the bed, with relative ease. I line up all the bolt holes and, insert all the correct bolts. Tighten them down and, plug in the electric winch and, DONE. That whole operation takes about 5-6 minutes, depending on how energetic we both are.

If you go this route, do not hesitate to PM me about loading both the Rampage and the bike ONTO the Rampage. There's some important tips to learn here that will make all of the operation go much easier. Good luck.
Scott
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Old 06-19-2019, 03:21 PM   #8
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Tow or carry Harley & Car

So are we saying that single axle rigs can’t/shouldn’t do a lift and a road? I am thinking of getting an 2019 Aria 3901 with 360hp and Allison 3000 trans withh a 10,000 tow rating and was hoping to put a lift on the back
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Old 06-19-2019, 05:34 PM   #9
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I went with the HydroLift for my Street Glide and I tow my Jeep Rubicon behind my Class A with a tag. The best of both worlds.
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Old 06-19-2019, 06:17 PM   #10
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Old 06-19-2019, 07:01 PM   #11
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So are we saying that single axle rigs can’t/shouldn’t do a lift and a road? I am thinking of getting an 2019 Aria 3901 with 360hp and Allison 3000 trans withh a 10,000 tow rating and was hoping to put a lift on the back
Vrob53,
If you look at the pics I posted earlier in this thread, you'll see that our rig, is a 36', SINGLE rear axle diesel coach. And as stated, I did the install of a Hydralift on it. Now, it's a long story but, I knew that installing that Hydralift and carrying our '08 Honda GL 1800 Goldwing on the back, was going to overload that rear axle. But, without going into detail, suffice to say that, I also knew that the suspension and frame of that coach, would handle the overload. I won't go into all the defending of my decision on this against the weight police simply because, IT WORKED.

We had absolutely ZERO issues with any part of that suspension, frame, mounting points, mounting system, and or, ZERO issues with handling, steering, or general coach ride, with the bike on the back of it. IT WORKED!

The front end of our 36' diesel coach, came up a whopping 1/16th of an inch with the bike on there. The back was at the same EXACT ride height with the bike and without it. I designed the system for loading and off loading that 900 lb. Wing so that, the coach air bags had to be emptied. It worked slick like that.

Now, OF COURSE having a tag would be better. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to determine that. Tags have better weight carrying capability. But, we DON'T HAVE A TAG so, I made it work. If one is unsure of the coaches capabilities in this kind of situation, and it's a single rear axle, then the answer is simple, don't do it. I have seen and spoke with many, many single rear axle coaches in campgrounds all over the U.S. with Hydralifts on them and, no one's had any catastrophic accidents.
Scott
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Old 06-19-2019, 07:31 PM   #12
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Thanks sir
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Old 06-24-2019, 10:58 PM   #13
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I’ve done it both ways and prefer the lift with a shorter wheelbase toad over the pickup. Now my pickup is a 4 door, 4x4, with the 8’ bed. We winter in Key West and there were two or three places I could park. Much easier with the smaller toad.

My bike is about a hundred lbs lighter than yours but does fine on my 42’ single rear axle. Have carried the bike on the lift for roughly 30k miles with no issue.
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Old 06-25-2019, 06:38 AM   #14
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I use a hydralift on my 40 ft bus without a tag, and have weighed my rig with bike, without bike, with bike and toad, and with varying amounts of fuel and propane.
I would be hesitant of putting your HD on my lift. The heaviest bike I've carried is a Road King at 820 lbs. This put my rear tires about 150 lbs per tire down from maximum load, and my axle is also well under capacity, but... there's a multiplier effect based on wheelbase and overhang distance of the bike/lift. A heavier load will eat up a lot more of the available capacity, especially the tires. When I have a bike on the rack I run my rear tire pressures at their max, 110 psi, and consider my tpms to be extremely important. I carry spare sensor batteries and if one dies while traveling, I change it as soon as I can.
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