I have a 4x4 2001 std tranny. I want to tow a '85 Olds Cutlass ciera ~3500lb? from San Jose CA to Tulsa OK. I'll be taking the southern route, not the Sierras and Rockys. Am I crazy to try this with a dolly that doesn't have brakes? I know the engine and hitch can take it, but can my brakes take twice the weight down the hills. BTW, I know how to compression brake, and with a Manual, it helps quite a lot. Has anyone done this for a long trip?

With something that heavy I would not tow that such a long distance without auxulary brakes on the trailer especially down hills. No way.

Your looking for trouble

Ditto what they said and depending on what states you go through it may not even be legal. You own the dolly or renting? I'd say go with a trailer or dolly with brakes.

I'm looking to buy one, and of course they cost a lot more with brakes. Thanks for the responses guys. I guess I'll just rent one from U-haul for $250.00, or buy one with surge brakes for $1,500.00 used. I don't want my truck brakes to be

Bob,

I don't think U-Haul's tow dollies have surge brakes.

If you're looking for a used one, there's one here .

Have you considered that it might be safer and/or cheaper to simply drive both cars to OK? Alternatively, if you don't want to drive it, you could have the car shipped. It would cost more than renting a dolly, but certainly less than buying, then storing it for this (possibly) one-time use! Plus, you save the wear and tear on your X!

Bob, if you aren't too attached to the car (it seems like an old one) I would say sell it here and buy a new one when you get to OK. The cost of moving it there (even if it's just gas $$$ to drive it there) might not cover the value of it.

Just my .02

Yeah, I'm with Huey on that one. Unless the car has strong sentimental value to you, it seems sorta odd (to me at least) to buy a $1500 tow dolly to transport a car worth as much (or less)!

Might be better to sell the car, save $$ by not having to transport it, and then go buy something else more fitting to your new transportation requirements in OK.

I just towed my (new to me) boat 40 miles yesterday. It is every bit of 3500 lbs on the trailer. No brakes (seller told me the trailer had them, liar). The truck took forever to get to 60 and was not even reasonable for stopping distances. I will not be towing it again with my 5-speed Frontier if I can help it. I can't believe that Nissan says the 4-bangers have the same towing capacity for the 5-speed.

WHAT??? I towed one of those '80s volvo wagons over the pacheco pass and it hardly slowed the X down. Anyways, the no brakes thing would be bad though.

I know it's a lot of cash for a tow dolly just to tow an old car to OK, but I always wanted a dolly just incase a car broke down so I wouldn't have to go rent one, then get the car, then return it, blah blah. I'm usually my own mechanic. As for the car, that dolly is worth more, lots more. And the car, though it's old, it has the 3.8L V6, a rebuilt tranny, and a new cat-back. It's got enough horsies to pull the X. (that might just kill it though). :rolleyes:

Well the real problem is that the manual tranny X can only tow a max of 3500 lbs. It seems like a lot, but when you put a car on a dolly and tow it up a small hill, you will know it. I have the 6 cyl with the auto which is rated for 5000 lbs and I would not tow that much with my X. I have towed a Jeep Scrambler on a full trailer with brakes before. I towed it from Tenn. to Kentucky with about 8 miles per gallon and no acceleration. My Dads Titan can tow that combo without even knowing its back there. Best bet is to rent a bigger truck. Remember the X is many things, but a tow truck it is not.

I towed a VW Jetta on a doll with no brakes from Ohio to Denver about 2.5 years ago. Acceleration was terrible and, of course, it took longer than normal to stop. I didn't feel that it was unsafe though. No damage to the brakes. I have 70,000 on my original pads. I think it's time for a change though.

Oh, and I only got 8 mpg coming up through Kansas.

Wow, now that's the kind of story I was looiing for. You're bold GoBuX. Is your truck a manual? There weren't really any major downhills were there?

I towed an MG Midget 150 miles. I rented a trailer from U-haul. It wasn't a tow dolly, but a trailer. It had brakes. I highly recommend it. It only cost me $59 for the day.

My '01 XE Auto did a fine job towing the 3500 lbs or so. However, there were only a few hills. Most of the trip was flat interstate. Through the mountains you'd definitely want the brakes, and if you're near the 5000 lb limit, you're going to be crawling up hills.

Yep... it's a manual. I guess you could say there were no major downhills. I mean, there were plenty of hills, but after living in Denver for the past 2.5 years and driving in the mountains almost every weekend, your perception of a hill kind of changes.

And, I tried to miss all of the rush hours in between. Caught St. Louis at rush hour and it was an absolute bitch!

I towed my Geo Storm on a dolly. THat's about 3K towed plus I had about 500 lbs of gear and parts in the truck. Total weight for everything was probably 8500 lbs or so. Lots of ups and downs and I didn't have too much trouble. With the 32's on she was definatly grunting on the steep hills and the brakes had to be pushed harder, but I didn't feel it was unsafe. If you do it, just be sure you slow down and gear down if you're going down long downgrades. Engine braking is your friend when towing! I even do it when not towing if the hill is steep and long enough.