Tow Dolly or Trailer?, can't decide..... Options

[Bruce Allert]

I wanna go to the 2005 WCC but can't trust drivin' Punkin all the way so it's either tow or trailer. Need input for which y'all think is best. I know the tow dolly is cheaper and the trailer is heavier but that's about it.

gimme yer best/worse thoughts (IMG:style_emoticons/default/type.gif)

.....b (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beer.gif)

[Randal]

The only thing wrong with a trailer is you need a place to store it.

RIGHT, that’s the first problem you have to deal with!

My choices:

1. A big aluminum enclosed trailer that is light as possible and aerodynamic.

2. An aluminum open trailer that is light as possible.

3. A dropped axle open steel trailer

4. A tow dolly.

5. Tow bar.


I haven’t listed your normal (heavy) enclosed (air dam) trailer as they, in my opinion, take the fun out of the trip. It isn’t fun going up hills at 45mph and watching the gas gage drain when you sneak up to 65mph out in the flats. Also the wear and tear on the tow vehicle has got to be substantially more as compared to something tons lighter. But alas this is where many of us end up, as the heavy units are initially cheaper.

Of course once you’ve figured out the parking issue an enclosed trailer saves hours of work each time you go to an event. We always have car preparation, but losing loading all the “stuff” is huge; maybe even enough to offset the PITA issues noted above.

BTW I think tow dollies are great for towing. “ICE” (our Ridgeback) and I pulled the Ford Taurus, (don’t laugh it was a great car) from California to Virginia in 3.5 days and you hardly noticed that the car was behind. The only time you did noticed was on hills where the weight slowed down my old diesel. We averaged 18MPG on that trip.

Oh, don’t forget the CB on long trips – kind of like our BBS as you can ask (just about) anything you want and get answers immediately.

Also if you’re going to spend the money to buy an aluminum enclosed trailer, or any big trailer for that matter, make sure it has an aerodynamic feature on the front; otherwise your just pulling an air dam around.