Need a Towing Solution!

I'm helping my homegirl move from Michican to VA next month. I'm a little skittish about flying and I just dislike the airline industry in general.

So her idea is for me to fly to MI and we rent a moving truck and tow dolly to bring her stuff and her Ford Escort to VA.

I'd rather drive up there and but I have not found a rentable trailer that would let me tow her car AND carry the stuff she has. The car's reliability is questionable, so driving it down isn't an option.

We need to move;
-A queen size bed and boxspring
-2 large nightstands, 2 small ones
-A TV console thing
-The car
-Bunch of small boxes

The mattress and boxspring would fit in the bed of the Taco, but that'd take up the entire bed. Boxes can go in the Escort. Its the nightstands and TV console thats the problem.

Anyone know of a rentable trailer that will accomodate a car and some furniture? Or any creative ideas on hauling the mattress some other way than in the truck bed? I have the tow package on my Taco but no aftermarket trailer brake controller.

I already looked at UHaul's 6x12' enclosed trailer and utility trailers w/ a ramp, but I think the load rating isn't enough. The 6x12' enclosed is 2,480lbs and the 6x12 utiliy trailer is 2,110lbs. Specs say the car weighs 2,491lbs, plus the boxes and furniture, etc.

Someone please help me get out of flying

 

Just get a tow dolly for the car, haul it with the Tacoma, load the car and truck bed and leave the rest.

 

PS. UHaul rents the dolly.

 

Not my furniture so not for me to decide what goes and what stays, else this would be as easy as just towing the car.

 

if you stand the mattress and box spring up there will still be plenty of room in the bed for the night stands, you still have the back seat of your taco too? Just use plenty of ratchet tie downs and you can fit lots of stuff in the bed, I've driven 100's of miles with stuff tied down higher than the roof.

Me personally I would just fly down and rent a truck

 

Fly! Murphy says if you drive there will be issues. I used to drive semi cross country and have flown a lot! Jamaica, Chicago, Minneapolis all from Vegas. Many different airlines. I would rather fly, especially this time of year! If you get a U-Haul, make them put tire chains in the truck!
GL

 

Rent a dolly (make sure you tell Uhaul you're towing a small VW bug or Mini Cooper or something), load your truck with the big stuff and the rest of the stuff in her car

I've hauled king size beds and box springs in my short bed. Just stand them up and ratchet them down

 

Tie the mattresses on the escort.

 

Hadn't thought of that Not a bad idea! I'll chat with her about it this weekend, see if we can make it happen, and ask again if she'd be willing to leave anything behind. Haha she was reluctant at first to leave a fiber optic Christmas tree at her mom's, so thats what I'm working with

The only other idea we had was for me to ride my motorcycle up there and load that up in the back of the moving truck, which I definitely wouldn't mind as long as its 40`F or better.

 

Rent a small car one way, drive up, then get the Uhaul and drive back. I know it's tough, but you'll have to leave the Tacoma at home.

 

Dude...this is why I like putting more minds to something! I hadn't thought of this, but its a seriously attractive option. It probably wouldn't cost much when I consider the gas savings driving an economy car.

Thank you!

 

Quit being a pussy and FLY! You much safer flying than you would be driving. If you're still scared, just get hammered at the airport before you get on the plane and everything will feel good.

Let uhaul take the wear and tear and leave the tacoma at home safe.

 

Plus, if you're a Top Gear fan, the cars always win the races against public transportation. Granted, you won't be driving a Veyron or anything cool, but at least you're not piling on the miles with your truck and it keeps you on the ground.

 

Go Greyhound and leave the driving to us...

I have used Greyhound twice in the last few years, once to pickup a company car in Eastern NC, the other time was to drop of a new car for my daughter in Texas. Buses ran on time, clean, comfortable and you meet the most interesting people...and it is CHEAP, under a dime a mile.

 

sell everything on Craigslist and go pick here up

 

Screw that! I did 3 9 hour greyhound rides last year, all with in a month. Greyhound sucks! Sooo uncomfortable and assholes lay their seats on your knees. Never even a decent looking gal to keep company with!

Oh! And they take the longest way to get there!

 

Just curious what's wrong with flying? I fly cross country at least 3-4 times a week... literally I fly the plane and I'm sure the aircraft I fly are alot less reliable than something the airlines would maintain.

 

Put the mattress and boxspring on top of the escort.

 

What's the distance? About 800 miles? That's less than 3 tanks of gas in a car, if the car can't go 3 tanks of gas without a tow truck why are you keeping it?? Dump the POS. God invented the boat launch for a reason...

 

If you decide you want to rent a normal car (not for towing) for any leg of travel, let me know - I've got some solid advice how to minimize cost.

Just an FYI: One-ways generally cost quite a bit more for obvious reasons, so look around. I have worked in the rental industry and the company that tends to have the lowest one-way price is National. Be also aware that negotiations are entirely possible with rentals - just depends WHO you talk to and how