| Author |
Message |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 244
Reg: 07-2009
|
Hey guys last nite i learnt the hard way of towing a Soarer behind a car. My genious mate decided hed tow my Soarer behind his car everything was going well i had the key turned on with the engine turned off. Steering was heavy but i could handle it. got up to 60kms per hour then i went to tap the brakes and realised they wouldnt work i pressed the brake pedal as hard as i could and nothing happened  unfortunatly the car slamed into the back of my mates car. :'( luckly appart from a few bruises and some wiplash we are both ok. Because my cars so low it went under the back of his Kia Rio and damaged the top of my front bar and bonnet. So i send a warning to all people who intend on towning a Soarer illegally . DONT DO IT!! Pay for a tilt tray!!! haha |
Aaron Casey
Goo Roo
nsw
'94 jzz30 gttl, 2 mini's one supercharged 
Posts: 1730
Reg: 08-2005
|
oh crap thats no good i always check braking before i flat tow them if not use the handbrake but dont go very fast.
Was there alot of damage or few scrapes and dints?
Hope it doesnt cost too much to fix. |
Peter Nitschke
Junk Filterer
South Australia
UZZ30 UZZ31
Posts: 11242
Reg: 11-2004
|
The brakes do work, just not very well without the power assistance.
TRC brakes will work normally as long as the ignition is on. |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 245
Reg: 07-2009
|
when i first took off they were working but after about 5 mins of towing i went to check them again and they didnt work at all ! I pressed as hard as i could and nothing happened . the key was turned to on but the engine was turned off. My handbrake wasnt working very well and i only had a split second to respond. And the damage is fixable just gotta get a new front bar and bonnet. And straighten the headlights cos the front bar moved them. front bar is split and not lookin the best and the bonnet is bent and dented. Ill be fixing it all myself so hopefully it doesnt cos to much to fix. I mite finally get the Vertex ridge kit ive always wanted haha. First car accidents are always the scariest. |
Damian Ware
Goo Roo
Victoria
UZZ32
Posts: 1298
Reg: 10-2005
|
Michael Brown wrote on Monday, January 18, 2010 - 09:47 am:So i send a warning to all people who intend on towning a Soarer illegally . DONT DO IT!! Pay for a tilt tray!!! haha
It is legal to tow a car behind another via a rope chain ect.
And the brakes will still work without power assist it just requires a lot of effort to push the pedal. |
Austen Menze
TryHard
WA
GT-TL
Posts: 344
Reg: 07-2009
|
Damn I hope it doesn't cost you too much, do you have pics?
I'm amazed the Kia has enough balls to tow a Soarer! |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 246
Reg: 07-2009
|
really ? i thought it was illegal. And it wasnt working enough to stop the car . And no pics yet it happened last nite in the dark so didnt get a good look at the car. Im gonna organise a tilt tray this week. Not to keen on leaving it on the side of the road. And yea i was so suprised it had the balls to pull it. everything was going so smoothly till that happened. And for the force of the collision the kia wasnt actually to damaged. cos it hit down low. Because of the Soarer shape the front acted like a scoop and lifted his car up a bit. |
Damian Ware
Goo Roo
Victoria
UZZ32
Posts: 1299
Reg: 10-2005
|
Rough figure without power assist most modern brake systems require 76kg to develop maximum braking force.
Yes you can tow a car but there is a certain distance the cars must be apart. |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 247
Reg: 07-2009
|
ah fair enough. well i only weigh like 60 kgs haha. and im hoping I havent damaged the radiator or airbag compressor |
Tim Ross
Goo Roo
Qld
1J + GT3582R (6+1>8)
Posts: 1553
Reg: 09-2007
|
In QLD it is illegal.
Add to that, towing a 1600kg plus vehicle with a hatchback that has a towing capacity of 1100kg is dumb at best, no matter how good his intentions were.
Count yourselves lucky it wasnt any worse. |
James Harris
Goo Roo
QLD
GT Starlet
Posts: 3377
Reg: 07-2005
|
Handbrake |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 248
Reg: 07-2009
|
haha yea well i said to him before we started moving that if anything happens then its not my problem. I thought it would of blown his car up : / and i doubt the little kia has a towning capacity of 1100kgs lol probably less |
Tim Ross
Goo Roo
Qld
1J + GT3582R (6+1>8)
Posts: 1554
Reg: 09-2007
|
Hayman Reece towing systems to suit a Kia Rio are rated to 1100kg, which would be the vehicles maximum as legally they cannot rate a tow system high than what the vehicles capabilities are |
Aaron Casey
Goo Roo
nsw
'94 jzz30 gttl, 2 mini's one supercharged
Posts: 1731
Reg: 08-2005
|
id actually take your mates rear bar off id say its crumpled the reinforcement bar and then the rear bar has just popped back out.
about a month ago i saw a kingswood towing a vb commodore and it was that close was like it was attached to the towbar. they were doing 100 down the highway.. never heard of them crashing but jesus that would have been dangerous if they had to stop quick |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 249
Reg: 07-2009
|
oh fair enough Tim haha thats pretty good for such a small car ••. And yea his crash bar is quite bent we had a look when we reattached his rear bar. but you can hardly tell its been hit by a car lol appart from my number plate indentation in the bak of his car haha |
Aiden Cheese
TryHard
QLD
Soarer jzz30
Posts: 303
Reg: 09-2009
|
James Harris wrote on Monday, January 18, 2010 - 11:48 am:Handbrake
Damian Ware wrote on Monday, January 18, 2010 - 10:27 am:
And the brakes will still work without power assist it just requires a lot of effort to push the pedal.
QFT |
Peter Nitschke
Junk Filterer
South Australia
UZZ30 UZZ31
Posts: 11245
Reg: 11-2004
|
Michael Brown wrote on Monday, January 18, 2010 - 10:21 am:when i first took off they were working but after about 5 mins of towing i went to check them again and they didnt work at all !
That is normal, as the vacuum booster still worked for a few applications, then lost power as the vacuum wasn't being replenished. |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 253
Reg: 07-2009
|
ohh ok then. I get why now. |
Mark Tierney
TryHard
NSW
Soarer GTT, Celsior, Duc
Posts: 382
Reg: 09-2005
|
In NSW it can only be done with a solid bar between the cars. Tow rope or chain is illegal. |
Aiden Cheese
TryHard
QLD
Soarer jzz30
Posts: 305
Reg: 09-2009
|
Peter Nitschke wrote on Monday, January 18, 2010 - 03:09 pm:That is normal, as the vacuum booster still worked for a few applications, then lost power as the vacuum wasn't being replenished.
Still should have been able to just pump his foot a couple of times and then held it down right?
Much like you would if you were bleeding the brakes. |
Peter Burrett
DieHard
ACT
'97 2.5 VVTi ST, '04 IS200, '94 3 ltr Soarer
Posts: 660
Reg: 07-2005
|
Pumping the pedal may work if there's a bit of air in the system, or if there's no power assist fitted, but as Pen says, if there is power assist and the servo has no vacuum, then you are down to leg power only; pumping won't help. Standing with all your might on the pedal may, and as was mentioned earlier, don't forget the handbrake.... but I think it takes about 500m to stop a Soarer from 60kmh with just the handbrake (why do the Americans call it an emergency brake?? By the time you stop, you are part of the emergency) |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 256
Reg: 07-2009
|
yea the handbrake is pretty much useless that was one of the things i tried but had very little response |
Miles Baker
Goo Roo
Vic
66 Mustang GT Convertible, 55 Chevy Bel Air, 69 Firebird 455, 69 Nova SS Clone, 65 Mustang Fastback, 67 Mustang Convertible, 67 Camaro RS/SS
Posts: 2097
Reg: 08-2005
|
You should probably look at fixing your handbrake then. It should give half decent response. |
Ben Lipman
Goo Roo
NT
Soarer TT manual, plus TT track car
Posts: 1892
Reg: 04-2006
|
It is called an emergency brake because it will still work if your braking system has failed.
My handbrake works very well. It will stop the car dead from lower speeds (20-30kph), but I have to admit I've never tried from 60kph. Biggest issue for me is not locking the rears up (obviously).
And I hope this thread is not a revelation to too many members- slack towing a car is problematic with the rear car idling (so all assisted systems work), let alone with no power steer and minimal braking performance. In an emergency it can be done with longer ropes and very low speeds, but, well I guess you learnt a lesson you won't forget in a hurry. |
Peter Nitschke
Junk Filterer
South Australia
UZZ30 UZZ31
Posts: 11246
Reg: 11-2004
|
Pumping shouldn't be necessary, just a lot of force.
In the beginning, they used drum brakes, but they had limitations such as not cooling very quickly.
Then disk brakes came along, cooled really well, but less braking force due to a lot less friction area being available.
So power assist was added to aid the leg muscles.
It's a bit like having a big buddy with his own pedal that presses when you do - power ASSIST.
Without the power assist, eg engine not running on a vacuum assist system, your big buddy is no longer pressing. The brakes still work, but you have to push really hard and make all the pressure yourself.
Similar with power steering, it is actually power assisted steering and works in the same way in that it helps you to turn the steering wheel, but the steering will still work without it, just not easily. |
Damian Ware
Goo Roo
Victoria
UZZ32
Posts: 1302
Reg: 10-2005
|
Peter Nitschke wrote on Monday, January 18, 2010 - 07:33 pm:Pumping shouldn't be necessary, just a lot of force.
In the beginning, they used drum brakes, but they had limitations such as not cooling very quickly.
Then disk brakes came along, cooled really well, but less braking force due to a lot less friction area being available.
So power assist was added to aid the leg muscles.
Thats it exactly.
Your legs should be able to push 76kg of force or at least enough to stop the car. Sit in a chair and use scales and push against the brick wall this will give you some idea of the force required. |
Matthew Sharpe
Goo Roo
North Island
JZZ31
Posts: 5103
Reg: 10-2005
|
Of course, towing an automatic like that any distance at speed will root the transmission pretty quick. |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 259
Reg: 07-2009
|
even in N ? |
Dave Rose
Goo Roo
wa
uzz31 v8
Posts: 1123
Reg: 03-2007
|
Yes, need to pick up rear wheels or remove prop |
Matthew Sharpe
Goo Roo
North Island
JZZ31
Posts: 5109
Reg: 10-2005
|
No fluid pressure and circulation means there is not enough lubrication or cooling going on. Usually only takes a few KM and the damage is done. |
Lew Radbourn
Goo Roo
Queensland / Goodna
jzs147 93 TT / uzz30 93'/
Posts: 3077
Reg: 07-2005
|
Michael;
Some one has to say it mate...
You clown.hahahhahaha
Never tow an automatic with out removing the drive shaft.
Never expect a car to stop properly with out its brake assistance unless the car has none from the factory.which would make it a pretty old car
well mate at least you learnt even be it the hard way and no one was injured |
Callum Finch
Goo Roo
WA
Soarer TT & Corolla
Posts: 4633
Reg: 09-2005
|
RAC memberships are pretty cheap >.> |
James Harris
Goo Roo
QLD
GT Starlet
Posts: 3392
Reg: 07-2005
|
more importantly --> WHERE ARE THE PICS ??
I wanna see the carnage ! |
Michael Brown
TryHard
Queensland
V8 UZZ31 Limited, Ralliart Magna, Holden Camira
Posts: 263
Reg: 07-2009
|
haha yeh i feel like a clown . Ah well i wont be doing it like that again. Id rather pay for a tilt tray haha. |
Dan McColl
Goo Roo
Victoria (The Nazi State)
Active V8 and the Beast.
Posts: 2329
Reg: 07-2005
|
Just to top it off, I know a few towies in qld who will do local tows for $50. Half the price of a used bonnet. |
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