OK so I have decided to start trailering my car to events in the next few months. I'm thinking just a cheap open trailer. Any ideas on where to find a cheap car hauler?

craigslist

IIRC I found mine on Recycler.com Cheap is a relative term, but this one was $1800 for a 16' steel Carson dual-axle with electric brakes, nice ramps and a storage box. It was < a year old and only used 5 times. The seller got seriously hooked on Spec Miata and quickly went to an enclosed rig. It has served me well thus far.

BTW - opinions vary but I would advise avoiding your cheapest option which would be a single-axle tilt-bed. If you will be hauling any kind of distances you will want the added stability and (blowout/flat) safety margin of the twin axle; plus electric brakes and a breakaway kit are major pluses as well. On the nice-to-have list are also a spare wheel+tire and a winch...I haven't gotten around to those yet.

I got mine for $50.
Put about $1000 into it as you see it.
Utility/car trailer.

Will carry 5000#'s, so the 914 is nothing.

KT

Grant....you have a PM.

Welded it up myself

Monday, I'm adding the removable sidegates.
It's also a debris hauler for the business.
Or I can slide in two loaded pallets.

KT

16 feet seems a bit long for our cars. Do they make a trailer that is shorter? And which it better, wood bed or steel diamond plate? I have been thinking of buying one also. thanks, Eddy

Right; our cars do not need a 16' bed, but a slightly larger trailer leaves more room for a tool box and/or tire rack up front, plus gives you more stability (more weight & wheelbase) and of course gives you the option to also haul larger cars.

I guess the steel vs. wood vs. 'rails only' (bedless) options are personal preference.

Here's a pic of mine after I first brought it home. Hasn't changed a whole lot since but will need a paint job soon.

BTW - more $0.02 advice - don't skimp on tie-downs. Get the quality ratchet types with robust (3" IIRC?) straps. An extra safety strap or two (i.e. 5-6 total) certainly doesn't hurt either. You certainly don't want your teener taking an unmanned excursion into traffic lanes on the freeway.

Here is my $500 trailer got it from a guy at work in a divorce sale. Its a 16 footer.

I have a 12' single axel and have never had a problem with it in 15+yrs.

Handles better (easier) than any dual axle I've seen, plus you don't need a full size truck to haul it.

QUOTE (trekkor @ Jul 8 2005, 07:55 PM)

Will carry 5000#'s, so the 914 is nothing. KT

And:

"I have a 12' single axel and have never had a problem with it in 15+yrs"

I think it depends on your tow vehicle. I also think people sometimes get more than they need. My own idea is that a 3,000 lbs capacity trailer to tow a 914 is plenty. Double axle trailers and such are nice but they often weigh a lot more than single axle, and the weight of the trailer puts as much strain on the tow vehicle as the live load.

So it's a trade off. We'd all like to have a huge Suburban or V-10 pickup truck to tow. If you don't, you need to trade off the peace of mind of a big trailer against the peace of mind of a light package.

I would still make sure the trailer has brakes of one kind or another, though.

Michel Richard

I wanted to go to WCC-05 but having a 6 cyl Toyota truck with a towing capacity of 3500 Lbs made it tough to find a trailer light enough for my truck. Seems most tandem steel trailers are about 2000 Lbs. I have thought of Aluminum trailers but when I talked to a guy at U-haul he told me my truck was just too light to tow the 914 1100 miles each way. With WCC-06 in Portland, I get a few years to figure things out. Eddy

Here's a picture of mine, It's an 82 trailex. EXTREMELY Long, but what the heck, it only weighs about 900 lbs. $2650 off of ebay. pulls like a dream. No wiggle at 80mph. I have painted the wheels wurth silver now...

Greg DeBord

[QUOTE]Here's a picture of mine, It's an 82 trailex. EXTREMELY Long, but what the heck, it only weighs about 900 lbs. $2650 off of ebay. pulls like a dream. No wiggle at 80mph. I have painted the wheels wurth silver now...

Greg DeBord


Greg....your truck is a bit newer than mine. What is the towing capacity? Have you used it to tow cross country? Eddy

Here's the tow rig ( Before trailer )

I'm a tile contractor, so I'm hauling /carrying monster loads all the time. truck wieghs in at 6700#'s empty.

F-350 turbo diesel will pull 15,000#'s

Kinda makes the 914 look like a toy.

KT