How to haul or move a parts car????

[Saint & Son]

Hey Guys,

I just bought a pretty intact parts car on Ebay. The thing has been sitting in a barn for the past 20 yrs. My question is this: The car is 'bout 80 miles away from me...any suggestions as to how to pick it up and get it to my house??? I suppose a tow bar is an option, and/or having a car transport company pick it up and deliver it...never done either of these...any hints, suggestions, or clues? Oh, and by the way, if by chance I beat any of you guys out on the bidding...sorry.

Saint

[JoeK]

Hey Saint,

Here in California, it's illegal to tow a car with any of it's wheels on the ground unless it has current tags. I'm guessing your parts car has outdated tags, and you may not want to register it. ff that's the case, you'll need to hire an auto transport company, or you may want to look into renting a car trailer, it will probably be cheaper, even if you have to rent a truck also. Down here, towing costs about $50 plus $5 per mile. Remember that you want a car trailer, not a car dolly, like they rent at U-Haul. You'll probably have to go to a more industrial rental place.

Good Luck,

[Minh]

Yes it is illegal to tow a car without current tags making contact to the street in California... I took the chance anyways since the car was erased out of the DMV database (it will be if it is not registered in the last 10 years). If caught the big problem would be to pay for all back registration with all the penalties and all late fees.

However, I must gotten away with it since the car loooked like would not run and old. The CHP is pretty cool with car with restoration folks... I have heard the've pulled people over just talk ask questions about the car. I towed mine from Crescent Mills, CA to Elk Grove (9 hours) on the highways with a car dolly.

U-Haul has car dollies for rent, but I went around that by just borrowing a freind's for a day.

[TR]

You can get a one day pass from the DMV, just have to wait in line...

[Minh]

You can get a one day pass from the DMV, just have to wait in line...

Oh yeah I forgot about that that moving permit. It can actaully be more than a day if you can justify it... for example, hauling it from San Diego to Eureka or SMOG-repair-reSMOG-Register

[JoeK]

To get a day pass, you may have to pay all associated fees? DMV can be pretty hinky, they seem to have different rules, depending on who you talk to and how nice or understanding they are.

As far as gettin' away with it, yeah, I towed my trailer from Santa Fe, NM to Berkeley, Ca with 5 years outdated plates and no problems. But I tend to think it's good to know the laws before I break them.

[Ratster]

I saw that car...you will need to get all 4 wheels off the ground and tow it. Make sure the trailer you rent has a good winch, since the wheels could be seized on that parts car. Might be a whole lot less hassle to hire a tow truck and get them to drag it home.

I was going to bid on it until wifey got a look at it

No sense of imagination...or humour!

good luck

[Saint & Son]

...I can just see you taking that thing onto the BC ferry!! Tha'd get some stares, no? Thanks for the advice!

[Ldino21]

Saint & Son

Go down to AAA and purchase the AAA Plus Membership which covers you for towing up to 125 miles. Then call a tow company to pick up the vehicle. Then once you are done , you still have about 3 tows left this year, for towing the car to either the body shop, or other places you will need it for this year.

Lou Smaldino
66-1600
67-2000
65-1500

[datsun65]

FYI...For the Bay area folks...the AAA Plus membership only covers 100 miles...

In Socal....You can even buy a membership that is good for 200 miles!

[Saint & Son]

Thank you all for the great advise...I knew I came to the right place.

Saint

[Minh]

For AAA here in California this is the deal if the car is not registered it won't towe it unless it is on a flat bed. AAA rules not the towe company's.

Just tell them all your tires are flat.

PS: I got the standard that is only good for 1st 25 miles 4 times a year..

[Duncan]

I just bought a car in Tucson, AZ which is 500 miles from my house. I rented a U-Haul truck and car trailer for $150 which was a 1-way rental. The trip was around 500 miles, and they allowed 600 miles of use, and three days to get the truck back. I thought that was an excellent deal.

[Minh]

Did I say 25? sorry. I meant 5 miles.

[spl310]

I recently picked up a car that was a couple of hundred miles from me. I rented the 6x12 U-Haul flat bed trailer. Since I was returning it to the same location, it is a "local" haul. If you remove the front and rear bumpers, the back up lights and the rear muffler, you may be able to get the rear gate shut on the trailer. I did not do that (front bumper was off, but not the back stuff) so I just brought along a couple of snap links and used them to shorten the chain to hold the gate up. I borrowed some wooden ramps from a neighbor (2x12's if I recall correctly) and a tie strap. I tie strapped the car forward (did not matter if I was denting the front fenders - they were toast) and put the ramps in beside the car. It worked great. Best of all, the rental was $29.95 versus $49.95 for the car hauler. The car haulers are SOOO heavy and cumbersome that I avoid them at all costs. Plus, the flat bed has a full floor, so you can stuff goodies under and around the car (sides) and not worry about them falling out. The trailer is rated for a 4400lb payload, so the Roadster fit with NO problems. Towed fine too.....