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flat towing

av8rds

MAhole!
Joined
Dec 26, 2005
Messages
3,637
Loc.
2300 mi East of Moab
lots of threads on 'can I do it' but not many with more info...that is

what tow setup were you using?
what bumpers/bumper setup were you using?

what did you or did you not like about the way you were doing it?

thanks
 
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br0nc0xrapt0r

Loves pickles
Joined
Sep 28, 2007
Messages
5,437
Great question since I want to tow mine all the way to the rubicon one day!

I know taking off the rear driveshaft is a must but has anyone ever flat towed with a spool in the rear?
 

Scoop

Contributor
Have Bronco, Will Travel
Joined
Feb 1, 2006
Messages
10,580
Loc.
Cuchara, CO
I have a home-made tow bar which attaches to the stock bumper through the bumperette bolt holes using 1/2 inch grade 8 bolts. (You have to drill the square holes just a bit.) I have towed 1000's of miles with it.

Also I have pulled stockers with both open rears and LS and my trail rig with a spool. All with no problems. I could not tell the difference between open, LS or the spool.
 

luderchris

Bronco Guru
Joined
Oct 26, 2008
Messages
1,140
Loc.
SouthEast PA
Have been flat towing for about a year, a 1000 or so miles. Mine has a rear spool -- no probs. I do unhook the rear driveshaft. I have a Blue Ox tow bar that I got used of off Craigs list and I bought the universal vehicle mount from Blue Ox. I do not have supplemental brakes, but plan to get the ReadyBrake soon.

http://www.readybrake.com/brake-systems.html
 

gddyap

Bronco Guru
Joined
Mar 8, 2005
Messages
1,334
Loc.
Mtn View, CA
lots of threads on 'can I do it' but not many with more info...that is

what tow setup were you using?
what bumpers/bumper setup were you using?

what did you or did you not like about the way you were doing it?

thanks

I got my tow bar from the local u-haul. It came with bumper brackets but I built my own bumper so I put some mounts on it for the tow bar. I have 37s so I change the tires to a set of small street tires to tow with in addition to disconnecting the rear driveshaft. Kind of a pain. I also use magnetic mount rear lights. Someday I want to set it up so I can use the taillights of the Bronco. The last couple times I went far enough to need to tow I just rented a u-haul auto transport (trailer). But when I do that I have to borrow my dad's F250 instead of using my own 1/2-ton truck.
 

blubuckaroo

Grease Monkey
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
11,795
Loc.
Ridgefield WA
Our Bronco has spent lots of time flat towed behind a motorhome and it tows really nice:
*Most Bronco bumpers are too high to use them to tow from. A drop bracket is needed to keep the bronco end of the towbar low.
*If you tie into the existing driving lights and signals, you will also have the side clearance lights and front parking lights going. It is real comforting when towing at night to see those parking lights behind you.
*If you completly remove the rear driveline, you can use the car for short trips in front wheel drive.
 

rekoj71

Sr. Member
Joined
Apr 18, 2009
Messages
361
I flat tow with a tow bar I got from Walmart (rated 5k lbs). Comes with brackets that have to be bolted to a bumper and I have a flat plate bumper so just drilled and bolted them on. I tow enough that I rigged a plug to hook into the rear harness that then connects to my tow vehicle (a 2003 V8 Explorer) for the lights. I disconnect the rear driveshaft if I'm going more than just around town. My Bronco is lifted so for the issue with the bumper being high I use a drop down reciever flipped upside down so it's actually a raised up reciever for the tow vehicle. I know that drop recievers are probably designed to go down but I feel that with no toung weight on the ball that it's still plenty strong. I don't disconect the stearing or tie anything to the stearing wheel either, the wheels will caster just fine as long as the stearing system and geometry are correct.

When I'm on the interstate it tows great and I feal comfortable all the way up to 75ish MPH, but I don't go much faster than that even when I'm not towing. Sometimes when turning sharp the front wheels will scrub a bit but not enough to bug me. I can back up straight pretty good as long as I go slow and watch the wheels to make sure they don't caster sideways. If I do need to back it up and turn it sharp I have always had someone else available to stear the wheels to keep them rolling in the right direction.

For me, flat towing is easy enough with my only complaint is disconecting the rear drive shaft and you will hear diferent opinions on here but I tend to lean toward the better safe than sorry.
 

garberz

Bronco Influencer
Joined
Jun 24, 2007
Messages
6,856
Loc.
Conejo Valley, Ca.
I flat tow mine behind my motorhome. I use a Blue Ox Adventa II tow bar. It stays on the motorhome and doesn't use a ball and hitch coupler. It has it's own pivot built into the tow bar. Doesn't need to be straight or level to hook up or disconnect, just close enough. That's the best part of these types of tow bars. My bumper attachments are 27" off the ground, I made a 18" riser for my hitch. It's quick to hook up and disconnect. I remove the rear shaft completely, so I can drive in FWD without having to install the rear.
 
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