Tie down question when Trailering

[XS22J8R]

I bought a used enclosed trailer a few years ago. I only have got to use it a time or two a year so far, and was towing my Challengers. My friends advice was mixed on tying the front down, some said use the K member, others say lower control arms.
I used the control arms last time, got home and found out I’d damaged a brake hose somehow when I fired up the car to back it out of the trailer and my brake pedal went right to the floor. Do oh!!
Lesson learned I guess, what not to do again at least…
I’m planning to take my Magnum to Moparty this time, and already dreading the getting it safely into the trailer aspect. I was just looking at the front end trying to scope out where to tie down.
From underneath the only part readily accessible looks to be the sway bar. I’m told a sway bar isn’t good to tie down to though? Otherwise the only idea I have is to feed my short straps down through the engine compartment around the K member then hook the ratchet tie down straps to them. The passenger side looks like the strap will be close to the lower radiator hose though.
Any advice from someone experienced in towing late B bodies? It’s not brain surgery I know but I’m still something of a newbie at trailering and after my screw up last year I’m eager not to eff up something again!

 

[T2R9]

I use padded axle straps around the lower control arms and insure they are clear of any lines, etc. No problems. I have bolt on tie downs on the rear and cross the straps.

 

[GTX JOHN]

We weld D rings onto to front frame or K member.

Never lost a Brake line yet.

 

[MWbirdLOVER70]

How do they factory transport? Maybe see if you can buy some factory tie down anchors that the factory uses or like in the day of the old muscle cars. If seen them on some survivors and what about drag cars that get towed back after a pass? They gotta have anchor points to tow back and that might have a way to anchor

 

[dadsbee]

34 years of lashing cars down with nothing but a strap around each tire with ZERO issues and for many years on my open deck 34' it was just that, a 10,000lb 2" ratchet strap centre of the tread. I use tire "bridles" now and for long hauls I add 2 panic stop straps to the rear axle.

 

[Darter6]

How do they factory transport?

Ever notice the holes in the subframe front and rear? Chains and hooks in those holes. Chain binders.
P.S. NICE Satellite !!!!!!

 

[Aron Gleason]

Otherwise referred as transport holes, or like Rios transport uses a strap over each tire then the hooks attach on the trailer.

Ever notice the holes in the subframe front and rear? Chains and hooks in those holes. Chain binders.
P.S. NICE Satellite !!!!

 

[dadsbee]

I'll add... if you're hauling a race car some guys like to make the car and trailer one so they're not cycling their shocks. A street car, I like the suspension of the car to be able to do it's thing. First time I didn't the plates went together in the battery from hammering down the road.

 

[gtx6970]

I have the padded axle straps loop thru the K frame in front. Pulled tight with chains and a chain binder

Rear I have the brackets that bolt on the axle U bolts / shock plate.
Ratchet straps on rear are crossed .
Fronts are not

 

[moparedtn]

I'll add... if you're hauling a race car some guys like to make the car and trailer one so they're not cycling their shocks. A street car, I like the suspension of the car to be able to do it's thing. First time I didn't the plates went together in the battery from hammering down the road.

Totally agree. On a street car, I secure the unsprung weight so that the cars' chassis isn't in any sort of bind.

 

[XS22J8R]

Tire straps look great but I don’t have the grated tracks in my trailer floor to facilitate using them. There isn’t a lot of breathing room between the side of the trailer and a loaded Challenger to work with to try to install the tire type straps even if I had the grated track. The Magnum has a little more girth than a Challenger too!
I have 2 foldable eyelets in the front of the trailer and 2 toward the back to attach the hooks on my ratchet straps to.
Be packing up Wednesday so no time to make a project out of modifications to the car or trailer to tie down now. I just need safe spots to tie it down as it exists now.
The car got delivered to me in a 24’ enclosed so I know it’s doable! The specs for Magnums show them to be 1" wider than a Challenger, and that spec undoubtedly doesn't include the factory fender flares. I am not looking forward to threading the needle getting the car in and out. The previous owner of the trailer installed a winch in it, but I bought the trailer from his estate, therefore he wasn't around to give me any lessons on how it works. It's a 3500 lb winch which I've been told is marginal for the job, so I had in mind maybe getting a 5000lb winch, which of course I never got around to.

 

[gtx6970]

I'll add.
I installed folding tire stops / wedges bolted to the trailer floor that my front tires are up against.

That way the park pawl or the rear straps are not the only thing holding it from trying to move forward during stops

 

[moparedtn]

Tire straps look great but I don’t have the grated tracks in my trailer floor to facilitate using them. There isn’t a lot of breathing room between the side of the trailer and a loaded Challenger to work with to try to install the tire type straps even if I had the grated track. The Magnum has a little more girth than a Challenger too!
I have 2 foldable eyelets in the front of the trailer and 2 toward the back to attach the hooks on my ratchet straps to.
Be packing up Wednesday so no time to make a project out of modifications to the car or trailer to tie down now. I just need safe spots to tie it down as it exists now.
The car got delivered to me in a 24’ enclosed so I know it’s doable!

Axle in the rear, LCA's in front then - making sure not to pinch off any brake lines and such.
Unsprung weight....

 

[XS22J8R]

I'll add.
I installed folding tire stops / wedges bolted to the trailer floor that my front tires are up against.

That way the park pawl or the rear straps are not the only thing holding it from trying to move forward during stops

The previous owner bought or made up several raised metal stops for the front tires, which at least provide a forward stop, and raise the front of the car an inch or two which helps out a little, not much but a little, in crawling under the front to try to hook up the straps.
My Challengers have factory tie down shipping brackets on the rear frame rails. I recall reading in the past, do not use those to tie down your car in a trailer! Supposedly there are cases where they have ripped off of the frame when hitting bumps.
Which begs the question, whey didn't that happen when the cars were new, or is it because they used them to tie the cars down on railcars and semi trailers, and there isn't much suspension travel in those situations like you encounter with a car trailer?

 

[gtx6970]

I can relate getting under the front of the car.

My trailer is only 20ft inside. So getting my old ars down to tie it down. ....isn't as easy as days past.

If I planned to trailer it more I might consider making up some brackets and bolt them on the front end to make it a little easier / quicker to tie it down.

I really like the lower shock plate brackets on the rear.
And not having to deal with the axle straps back there makes it nice

 

[MCODECUDA]

I use two flat hook ratchet straps hooked to the lip of the K-frame. I had to shorten end of the hook so that it hooks flat on the edge of the K-frame.

 

[XS22J8R]

I was at a local cruise with the car last night and spent some time while there with the car out of my garage, crawling under the front of it and peering down under the hood. I couldn’t even spot the control arms which had me panicking some.
People kept coming up to me asking what was wrong with my car.
Anywho, I just crawled under it again with a trouble light, and the control arm looks good, brake hoses are about 8” above them so I’d really have to eff up to damage them!
So I think I’m good as far as tie down. I’ll get back to panicking about trying to get that fatass car in and out of the trailer without scraping it, the forecast which now threatens rain Friday, and worrying if the trailer brakes still work as I haven’t used the trailer since last years Moparty.
I got out to the storage place an hour from me over the weekend and took the covers off the tires, they’re fine, plugged in and did a light check, they’re fine. Was greeted by a mouse inside it very curious look on its face probably wondering what I was doing in his trailer. Mouse crap on the floor to crawl in while tying down. Fun stuff.

 

[33 IMP]

Towing my racy cars is fairly easy, on my open trailer. Probably quite a bit tougher with poor access in a closed trailer.
62: straps in the k-member in front, axle straps and ratchet straps in the rear.
Cortina: I welded angle iron with good sized holes in them to the frame rails on the front, ratchet straps to the wheelie bar mounts (I didn't use the wheelie bars, it would only pull the wheels a foot) in the rear.
The ones that are difficult for me are my camaros and my Opel. They are difficult to find places to hook straps to, and too low to open drivers door.
Not planning to carry the camaro's much, but I'm gonna fix that problem with my Opel. Probably similar to what I did to the Tina.

 

[Bird 426]

I grab the rear axle housing with an X pattern. E strip on the front, over the tires, that way the cars suspension can do it's thing. Dadsbee has it right.

 

[GTX JOHN]

Transporter us "J" hooks into holes in the frame.

I would not use them excet for very occasional use =
Not ever weeks use.

I would worry about oblong or tearing the frame holes.