towing well beyond capacity for short distances

Can a 4 cylinder car tow a mini-van perhaps an 1/8th of a mile, partly w/a small incline? W/o detrimental effects to the tranny and/or engine? I know it sounds like a stupid question, but inquiring minds would like to know! : ) TIA

Can you know somehow in real time that what you're doing is BAD? A tranny c an cause an engine to overheat, I've seen it happen years ago when attempti ng to tow a small trailer with dad's '84 Grand Prix (Granted that transmiss ion may have had something wrong with it, but not so that it didn't take me back from Daytona Beach to Long Island, w/o the trailer). I can't remember the exact distances, but it was fairly short, maybe a mile or 2, maybe les s. And what I'm contemplating doing involves a sturdy rope! And in actualit y beyond maybe 4-500 feet it's a negative incline.

Reply to
chriskeegan2014
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I don't know but for 220 meters I'd think about pushing it with a couple of guys and someone inside to steer/brake.

Reply to
AMuzi

Should be no problem unless you plan to do a space launch along the way. Don't use overdrive and take it easy on the gas. I knew a guy who used to tow a 17' ski boat 70 miles each way in 105 degree AZ summers with his 4 cyl Chevy Celebrity with the old 3 speed automatic. A quarter mile tow of a minivan won't even get the car warmed up.

Reply to
Ashton Crusher

On Thursday, December 10, 2015 at 5:54:55 PM UTC-10, snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com w rote:

a small incline? W/o detrimental effects to the tranny and/or engine? I kno w it sounds like a stupid question, but inquiring minds would like to know! :) TIA

can cause an engine to overheat, I've seen it happen years ago when attemp ting to tow a small trailer with dad's '84 Grand Prix (Granted that transmi ssion may have had something wrong with it, but not so that it didn't take me back from Daytona Beach to Long Island, w/o the trailer). I can't rememb er the exact distances, but it was fairly short, maybe a mile or 2, maybe l ess. And what I'm contemplating doing involves a sturdy rope! And in actual ity beyond maybe 4-500 feet it's a negative incline.

No guts, no glory! Just take it nice and easy and you'll be fine.

Reply to
dsi1

You said "with a rope" back in the old days when my dad did that, he would also tie an old used tire to the bumper to act as a cushion for the inevitable bumper bonking when you stop. That is, tire only, no steel wheel.

Nils K. Hammer

Reply to
synthius2002

In the old days that tire would not mess up the hard shiny chrome bumpers. I'd hate to sandwich a tire between two modern cars plastic bumpers or the paper thin metal bumpers on the front of trucks.

Reply to
>>>Ashton Crusher

We pushed my dead 1978 Caddy from Victorville to Pasadena on I-15/210and then out to the wrecker in El Monte with a tire tied to the front of our

1968 Dodge van. Push it up to 75 or so and release, move up at around 35 and give it another push up to 75... It was fun screaming down Cajon Pass at 2:00 am with no lights and brakes only as strong as I could push the pedal. Honest.

Metal was metal in those days!

Reply to
The Real Bev

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