I need to tow my 4WD tacoma and need help

Interesting - I'd like to see the law. I mean the vehicle's not propelling itself so is mileage required on wheel bearings? What happens if you were to disconnect the rear axle and move it around? The vehicle's moving either way if it's towed on a flatbed. Is it illegal to disconnect it if the vehicle's sitting engine off?

 

if you are flat towing you are still putting wear on the vehicle. bearings, bushings, suspension, tires, etc. maybe some states it's legal, but generally messing with the speedo is usually not allowed.

 

Yeah but you'd have to have specifics written down - can't assume.

 

if you disable the speedo, you'd still need to document the mileage and then note than when it's sold.

seems to be federal law:
https://www.justice.gov/civil/case/federal-odometer-tampering-statutes

 

So the law is pretty clear about targeting intentional roll backs. This is an interesting thing because nothing came up in a search for "tow" and I didn't have time to do more than skim the info. I'd need to see more clarification, which could likely exist somewhere. The thing about what you mentioned makes sense, however wheel bearings etc. are arguably wear items and aren't necessarily replaced in a correlated manner with mileage. Would definitely be interesting to see what an official statement is.

 

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/49/32703

I think it's pretty straightforward...and it's a felony which is why most aren't gonna try it.

 

So the key phrase here is "was driven"

 

He’s got a first gen, which all have some form of manual transfer case right? If you have your transfer case in neutral, nothing in the transmission is moving. I thought that was the entire reason it’s so popular to flat tow Jeeps. My ‘13 has neutral on the t case shifter (t4r case swap), as does my brothers ‘99, as does my tj

 

I disagree.

If a trailer ads so much weight that it now exceeds your towing limits, you probably shouldn't be towing that vehicle anyway. The only disadvantage to a trailer is where to put it when you're not towing.

If you want to minimize wear and tear on all the movey bits, a trailer is the only way to go.

I think the main thing is that there are pieces of an auto trans that are still moving, even if it's in neutral, and without the engine running, you aren't getting proper flow of the fluid which will lead to overheating and/or excess wear and tear on the metal bits.

 

The problem is still lubrication in the transfer case. Shaft needs to be moving to drive the pump to lubricate bearings. If its in neutral that isn't happening but the bearings for the drive shafts can still be moving.

It really depends on the tcase, not just whether it's manual or not.

 

Meanwhile, OP isnt towing anything anymore...

https://youtu.be/pxewzpVPgAE

 

Holy shit lol, I think we just watched someone die

 

looks like it grazed the cab, er *hope* it did

I saw a fill station awning with evidence of that happening, not quite as bad, and one of the lights was still on dangling from a wire - impressive electrical work!

 

we'd need to see the federal definition of "drive/driven" but i'm willing to bet the engine doesn't need to be on or have someone behind the wheel.

 

I see more jeeps (modified jeeps anyway) on trailers than being flat towed. Those 40" Trepadors would be racing slicks by the time you get to Moab, lol.

But yeah, you don't want the T-case in neutral when flat towing. As deadbeef said, you need the shaft moving for lube. Or disconnect the rear driveshaft and then it doesn't matter if the t-case in in 2wd or neutral.

 

Lol it’s literally 4 bolts and a ratchet strap / zip tie - one more to stop the front DS from spinning if you’re ADD and flat towing and absolutely don’t want any spinning past the front DS.

 

Right - it seems like they'd have to be extremely clear because someone who disconnects the driveshaft when on a dolly with the rear wheels driving is doing the same thing as per the outcome on the odometer as unplugging the speed sensor on the transmission. Likewise someone who's disabled and can't reach under to disconnect the drive shaft is now facing a discriminatory practice if a non-disabled individual could circumvent that law by undoing the 4 bolts on the rear drive shaft.

 

Driveshaft disconnects exist for this very reason. No need to crawl under the truck every time.

https://www.remcodsc.com/coupling/

 

haha I was thinking of how someone could make one, realizing the potential market for one based on this thread lol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1681&v=qhQukbD8JV4&feature=emb_logo

Even shows installation for a 2nd gen! That said, if you have an issue with that somewhere you didn't have support and needed to drive the vehicle, you're going to wish only 4 bolts were all you had to deal with.

 

The driveshafts are moving with the t case in neutral, on both ends. Driveshafts Will turn if the tires are on the ground. The t case being in neutral effectively leaves the transmission untouched by the tires spinning.

the diffs are getting lube, the tcase is getting lube, the transmission isn’t moving so why would it need to spin to get lube?