OK, I have to go pick up a Fiero from Miami this weekend with my buddys Dodge Truck. I remember towing my Integra with my 300ZX before but a buddy had set up either a rope or a chain connection, cant remember, my buddy was in the integra pressing the brakes behind me at lights and stops.

What do you guys suggest? Any help would be appreciated, tow truck out of the question.

I've also been "pushed" by a pickup all the way home in a different Integra, wow, and it was REALLY REALLY far and at about 4-5am on a saturday night. But that seems too ghetto, the towing with a chain seems much better, except for the brake thing.

[This message has been edited by FieroFury33 (edited 03-03-2010).]

Rent a tow dolly... Remove front bumper from Fiero, reverse onto said dolly, lock steering wheel in place, drive home.

if you get a low enough dolly you don't really have to worry about removing the bumper, i've never ripped a bumper off on any of the fieros i've towed with a dolly... but as the previous poster said, reverse onto the dolly... lock it down, and drive away

a strong rope. and someone inside the fiero pushing the brake pedal :P
i did it once... very sketchy. i did it at 5am.

Went a tow dolley and tow it by its back wheels and brace the steering wheel. DO NOT FLAT TOW IT. I dont know the laws down in FL but up here flat towing a car is a good way to get your licence suspended and a vey high fine.

quote Originally posted by pontiackid86: Went a tow dolley and tow it by its back wheels and brace the steering wheel. DO NOT FLAT TOW IT. I dont know the laws down in FL but up here flat towing a car is a good way to get your licence suspended and a vey high fine.

Damn, I thought PA was supposed to be crime ridden? Theres so much goiing on in Miami and even in my city that the last thing the cops care about is an illegal tow. Plus the fine is less than speeding.

Strong rope will have to do then like poster above said. I think it was a rope that towed the Integra. My friends truck is a V6 manual

The Fiero also has a dead battery so I will bring mine along so the car can have a horn at least in case my friend brakes too soon.

[This message has been edited by FieroFury33 (edited 03-03-2010).]

Really shouldn't flat tow with a rope.

Dolly towing is no problem unless you use a really low tow vehicle, then sometimes the ramps can get close to GFX. No need to remove nose tho.

[This message has been edited by KurtAKX (edited 03-03-2010).]

luckily you arent doing the towing with an Explorer lol, uHaul wont rent a dolly if you drive an Explorer, no matter what youre towing. get a dolly, works great and way easy (unless vehicle to be towed is a 92 ranger with a shot tranny in a tight spot.... had to thow on the parking brake, line up the dolly, and slam in the gas while in reverse in the Isuzi Trooper we borrowed to slide the dolly under the front wheels lol :P)

UHaul. You can rent a car mover for the same price as a tow dolly, around 50.00. As long as it is being pulled with a truck rated at 1/2 ton or bigger you will be fine, and alot safer than the chain or a tow dolly. If you must pull it, and it runs, go slow and make sure it is running, otherwise the more you press the brakes, the harder it is going to be to push them without the power assist. Also, if it is an auto, pulling it a very long distance at all you run a risk of damaging the tranny since there is no fluid being pumped around the the clutches in the tranny, even though it is in neutral. It would also be a good idea to remove the front facia, as there isn't really any good tow points under the car, unless you hook it up to an a arm, and that applies undue stress to that side of the suspension.

One of the best ways to tow plus you and your friend get to ride up front

[This message has been edited by BMTFIERO (edited 03-03-2010).]

quote Originally posted by KurtAKX: Really shouldn't flat tow with a rope. Dolly towing is no problem unless you use a really low tow vehicle, then sometimes the ramps can get close to GFX. No need to remove nose tho.

Those are some great pictures!! I love seeing a clean 6000!!

If it has an auto trans then you have to tow by the back wheels. I towed my GT 5-speed a few weeks ago by the front wheels with the car in neutral. There is no problem having the drive wheels on the ground when you have a manual transmission. Just my $.02.

I always use a flat bed. Either a flat bed trailer or truck. I would never use a non ridged support. There are reason for laws against chains and ropes. I use to complain about "the safety police" laws, but have changed my mind. I have seen chains and ropes brake sending cars free. I have seen the lead car get smashed by the chained car not stopping and the crazy one was standing on the sidewalk and having a ball brake. If it wasn't for the safety back up chains, I would have been taken out by a big boat on a trailer. What ever you do, do it right.

quote Originally posted by BMTFIERO: One of the best ways to tow plus you and your friend get to ride up front

for some stupid reason here those things are not allowed

quote Originally posted by faaaaq: luckily you arent doing the towing with an Explorer lol, uHaul wont rent a dolly if you drive an Explorer, no matter what youre towing.

You must've went to the wrong place. When I was driving my Fiero home after buying it, the main belt broke, so I had to get towed the rest of the way. My mom and dad picked me up using a Uhaul dolly that was attached to...an Explorer.

I will go with everyone else and say that a Uhaul dolly is a good idea. It was $35 to rent one, and it's easy and safe. And the front fascia didn't hit anywhere even in the hills and potholes of West Virginia.

I dont really know how to tow a fiero with a truck...

But i do know how to tow a truck with a fiero... The owner of said truck was too embarrassed to let me take pictures..

Long story short, i flat towed a 4000 car 50 miles with my fiero one day... was quite fun.

quote Originally posted by FieroFury33: Damn, I thought PA was supposed to be crime ridden? Theres so much goiing on in Miami and even in my city that the last thing the cops care about is an illegal tow. Plus the fine is less than speeding. Strong rope will have to do then like poster above said. I think it was a rope that towed the Integra. My friends truck is a V6 manual The Fiero also has a dead battery so I will bring mine along so the car can have a horn at least in case my friend brakes too soon.

Man, you're really asking for trouble doing a flat tow, but if you have to do it... I suppose. I would take some back roads though... and go really slow. Are you going to be towing it from Miami to Hollywood? That's a 30 minute drive, with a lot of traffic and snow birds...

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Todd,
2008 Jeep Patriot Limited 4x2
2002 Ford Explorer Sport 2dr 4x2
2002 Ford Crown Victoria LX
1987 Pontiac Fiero SE / V6
1973 Volkswagen Type-2 Transporter

i wouldnt flat tow it that far. when i did it. it was a 5 min drive and i took back roads. and my friend did most of the braking to keep the rope tight. anyways.
thats a long drive to tow the car like that.
i towed the car my dads old mini van. (shhhh. he doesnt know. so keep it down :P)

I also recommend a tow dolly. However, if you use one, you should re-check your tie downs after a mile or two, then again after 20 miles or so. The straps WILL loosen.

82-TA, yeah I planned on taking backroads.

if you are going to do it that way. i suggest you do it at night time. or very very early morning 3am early. hardly any cars. its dark so they may not see the rope. and make sure the rope is long enough so it doesnt look like your tail gating the car that is towing you.
have the lights turned on so it looks like your not being towed. and keep the rope tight. dont want slack and then the car speed up and rip something off his or your car.

^Yeah I've done it before but I was the tower. I plan on bringing my fiero battery to give the car life on the trip. It will probably be a 25 minute ride since we will be going slow.

I hope the Fiero is a manual. Flat Towing an auto may/will ruin the transmission.

I have been flat towed in my Fiero about 250 miles total unfortunately. If you have somebody in the truck that know what they are doing its cake. One time I had my gf in my blazer towing me in my Fiero, wow that was scary. I thought both my vehicles were going to get wrecked in the same crash!

Id ONLY use a chain or tow strap in an emergency to move a car a few miles at most. I had my own dolly. If your cars a stick, put the front wheels on it, if its an auto rears MUST be on it to keep from burning up the trans. I towed my stick Ferrari kit and GT40 kits all over the US on my dolly with no problems at all with fronts up. If you can put the fronts on the dolly, you dont have to worry about it swinging around, or hood or deck lid blowing open and tearing it off the car. Always recheck your straps within a few miles at first then every hour or so along the way.

quote Originally posted by pontiackid86: Went a tow dolley and tow it by its back wheels and brace the steering wheel. DO NOT FLAT TOW IT. I dont know the laws down in FL but up here flat towing a car is a good way to get your licence suspended and a vey high fine.

I have flat towed a Fiero many times without a problem - granted the Fiero was on a flat bed trailer.

In regards to towing a Fiero with a truck, there may or may not be something of relevance in the following thread...

How does a tow bar connect to a Fiero?

quote Originally posted by joshh44: ...and keep the rope tight. dont want slack and then the car speed up and rip something off his or your car.

If you haven't seen this video, ya gotta watch it!

[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-06-2010).]

Also the problem with flat towing a non running fiero is the brakes on a fiero need to have a vachume running to it. You will get 1 pump of the brakes than they will go stiff as a rock and will not stop. Trust me spend the extra money and get a tow dolley. Flat towing is just an accident waiting to happen.

Towing with a rope or chain at highway speeds is very dangerous. Remember, the Fiero brakes are power brakes and don't work well unless the engine is running. Towing on local streets and roads might be safer because of the lower speed limits.

I don't know if the law has changed or not, but here at one time, you had to have at least a 10 foot chain. It had to be run through a steel pipe. The purpose was to stop the towed vehicle from running underneath the towing vehicle. If the pipe was about 2-3 feet shorter than the chain, that might work for you.

If you want to load onto a tow dolly with the front wheels up, place a 2 x 4, 2 x 6 or even a brick underneath the end of each ramp. That will usually elevate the nose of the GT's enough to prevent scraping. A 2 foot length of 2x6 works best. Be sure to carry them with you for offloading.

Here's some old school. Didn't see anybody post about it but use a chain and run it threw a pipe 2.5"-3", make the end connection tight so the pipe won't slide much. Less chance of rear ending. Be careful.

Sorry someone did post about the pipe.

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85 GT 3.4
14.9 @ 90 1.9 60' Old TH125/3.06
Unknown New 4T60/3.42

[This message has been edited by Lilchief (edited 03-05-2010).]

I drove 1200 miles to Port St Lucie, Florida and towed this one home. I didn't remove the front fascia. It suffered no damage for the trip.

[This message has been edited by josef644 (edited 03-05-2010).]

Why would flat towing an automatic damage the tranny? Even in Neutral?

quote Originally posted by FieroFury33: Why would flat towing an automatic damage the tranny? Even in Neutral?

An automatic transmission uses a pump to circulate fluid through the transmission. The pump turns with the engine not the wheels. If the drive wheels are rolling on the ground and the engine is not running, the clutch packs inside the transmission aren't being lubricated which will burn them out in a short distance.

Most manual transmissions use a splash lubrication system. The rotation of the parts in the oil moves the oil through the entire transmission eliminating the need for a pump.

Yep, even emergency towing of an automatic should be limited to less than 20 miles or so, and under 35mph. Over that and youll end up having to buy a new trans.

quote Originally posted by nutherproject68: An automatic transmission uses a pump to circulate fluid through the transmission. The pump turns with the engine not the wheels. If the drive wheels are rolling on the ground and the engine is not running, the clutch packs inside the transmission aren't being lubricated which will burn them out in a short distance. Most manual transmissions use a splash lubrication system. The rotation of the parts in the oil moves the oil through the entire transmission eliminating the need for a pump.

But a manual in neutral does not have the countershaft engaged (thus rotating) to the output shaft so even a manual can not be towed for a long distance with it's drive wheels on the ground.

Dude. It's only like $50 to rent a tow dolly.

Why would you even think about risking personal injury, damage to either one or both vehicle, injury to bystanders, damage to the transmission, and hefty fines/court. ALL for just 50 bucks..?

quote Originally posted by pontiackid86: Also the problem with flat towing a non running fiero is the brakes on a fiero need to have a vachume running to it. You will get 1 pump of the brakes than they will go stiff as a rock and will not stop..

I was waiting for someone to mention this... it's very Ghetto and dangerous to do this unless it's 3 am and you have no other alternative.

Your brakes will still work without vacuum. You just lose the power assist portion. They will be much harder. I have pulled many cars with a tow rope like this. No, not the recommended way but for a short distance, no highway, both people on headsets on the phone, rear person doing ALL the braking, yes it works.

quote Originally posted by phonedawgz: But a manual in neutral does not have the countershaft engaged (thus rotating) to the output shaft so even a manual can not be towed for a long distance with it's drive wheels on the ground.

It dont make any diff with a stick. Ive put tens of thousands of miles on mine and others stick shift cars on my dolly with rears on the ground without ever a problem. Ive used it to tow Ferraris, Lambos and Corvettes. I dont know much about trannys (I just swap out bad ones), but I think shafts and gears are spinning in one even in neutral, just no gears are meshed. You might have a failure if you towed it like that for 200,000 miles though

quote Originally posted by CoryFiero: Dude. It's only like $50 to rent a tow dolly. Why would you even think about risking personal injury, damage to either one or both vehicle, injury to bystanders, damage to the transmission, and hefty fines/court. ALL for just 50 bucks..?

I was waiting for this one. Well said
Joe Crawford