I have an 1979 F-250 Highboy that I posted about a non-spinning rotor about a week or so ago. The engine is a 460. But the question I have now is if I have to tow the truck, what are my towing options. Again I got the truck as a gift for Christmas. A gift or my family cleaning out their farm land :-). So what would be the best way to tow it about 6 hrs of normal driving. Would a Uhaul tow dolly be sufficient or would I need the UHaul car carrier?

I plan on renting an Enterprise truck since all I have is a mini-van and a small car, which are not capable of towing the big beast. I need to tow it from California/Oregon Border to Portland area. Is there anything I should worry about while towing it? I mean I use to tow my old FJ40 Land Cruiser with a tow bar all the time in the bay area so towing is towing, but the F-250 is a much bigger animal and I am just sort of wanting to make sure I have all my bases covered.

I plan on going down to pull the valve covers to see if the rockers are moving. If the rockers are moving then it is just a frozen distributor and I just need to pull the distriburtor and put on a reman one and then just drive the truck home. But again worst case scenario I would have to tow it.

So in insight that can be shared from the forum's online halls of wisdom would be appreciated.

Thanks
ed

 

Get a trailor if you can. If the truck has been sitting for a while, you don't know how good your tires and wheel bearings are. You might have a tire fly off on the highway. Just my opinion.

 

I think I will take an extra day off when the company has a brake for MLK day and I will spend 3 days working on it to see if I can get it running. Should not be that difficult to determine what the issue is. If I have them pull the valve covers and see if the rockers are moving then I know what I have to do. Tow it or replace Distributor and tune it up so I can drive it back home.

 

If you decide to get a new distributor, consider our custom curved Duraspark Distributor built with our new Full Length Oil Impregnated Bronze Bushing. The full length bushing improves timing stability and spark scatter. If stock appearance is not an issue, take a look at our one piece D.U.I. Distributor. Whether you choose the Duraspark or the D.U.I., we curve each on a distributor machine based on your engine combination. Please see them at:

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Also, there is now an excellent installation article on the D.U.I. Distributor on the Ford-Trucks.com site at:

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Ignition Lesson of the Month: Hystereses, the difference between the timing as the rpm and vacuum increases to the timing as rpm and vacuum decrease, needs to be kept to a minimum. A precise advance curve accomplishes this.

 

Sorry probably going to go with a cheap 64.00 distributor cause I am not sure how much work I want to put into this truck. The body is pretty banged up, as it was a true farm truck that had chipped paint and surface rust on the body. Also the passenger side is banged up pretty bad. But it would make a good beginner learning truck for my son to learn how to drive and learn basic mechanic work.

 

If you are going to tow it you should pull the drive shaft out. This will prevent damage to the seals and bearings in the transmission.

 

I've been told, though i have not yet confirmed, that a full size truck won't fit on a "Dolly" trailer. I need to call U-Haul and hear what they have to say.

I don't know if your truck has an auto trans or manual, but if auto you will definitely need to disconnect the drive shaft.

I'd prefer to carry it completely on a trailer though, if it were me. For reasons of questionable tires, bearings, etc as stated already.

 

Yes, excelent advice! Trailer it home. I've been down this road several times, bringing home old clunkers--I mean cool 'new' trucks--is always a pain in the rear.

If the truck has been driven recently and it runs fine, then fixing the distributor and driving it home would be the easiest, and cheapest.

But if its been sitting around for who knows how long, then trailer it home! Six hours is a long trip and you don't know the condition of the tires, axles, transmission, cooling system, etc, etc. You'll need at least an 18-foot long trailer, wide enough to fit your truck, and a 3/4 or 1-ton truck to pull it. I'm not sure if these U-Haul carriers are big enough.

If you decide to flat tow it with a dolly, disconnect the driveshaft, and make sure that the tow vehicle is heavier than the towed truck; otherwise you run the risk of it jackknifing or fishtailing. It's happened to me. Good luck.

 

From the U-Haul website:

Dolly Style

The vehicle being towed:

* Must not weigh in excess of 3,450 lbs. if it is front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, and 3,900 lbs. if it is rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive
* Must have a maximum outside-to-outside tire width of 72"
* Must not exceed a body width (at the doors) of 75"
Note: body widths over 72" must use late-model U-Haul Tow Dolly (identifiable by silver galvanized color)
* Low-hanging equipment on the vehicle being towed such as spoilers, air dams, ground effects, etc., may be damaged by contact with the tow dolly during loading and unloading. Make sure there is enough clearance for these items.
* Tow lights (tail/stop/turn) required at rear of vehicle being towed

Flat-bed style:

The vehicle being towed:

* Must not weigh in excess of 5,290 lbs.
* Must have a maximum outside-to-outside tire width of 79.25"
Note: outside tire width over 75" must use late-model U-Haul Auto Transport (identifiable by silver galvanized color).
* Must have a maximum wheelbase (distance from front axle to rear axle, usually posted on the driver's side door jamb) of 133 inches.
* Low-hanging equipment on the vehicle being towed such as spoilers, air dams, ground effects, etc., may be damaged by contact with the Auto Transport during loading and unloading. Make sure there is enough clearance for these items.

 

So since the 1979 F-250 Truck has a GVW of what 6,000 to 6,400 pounds that a tow dolly or auto transport from UHaul is out of the question. The truck is a 4 spd manual transmission and has been driven in the last 6 to 12 months. The tires are brand new but the overall condition of the vehicle is still unknown and my wife says it may have been a gift of debt which she does not want the burden. So the truck may end up staying in Northern California since I do not have a truck that is bigger that can tow it and nor do I have a trailer and nor do I have the money to have it hauled up from down there to here. Oh well life is a box of chocolates right? :-)

 

the gvw is not how much the truck weighs. I would guess if its stock depending on options it will weigh around 5000-5500.

 

I've hauled E-250/350 full size vans on those uhaul trailers with no problems at all and the Vans are just slightly wider than the truck. What tends to hurt are after market wheels with wider tires, if you have the little dough nut tires that your truck came with you should be fine. I hope you get it because there aren't many of these old boys left. Maybe you can hijack a buddy or a relative you haven't spent time with in a long time with a heavy duty truck or van to help you drag it home for a fuel, dinner, and conversation.