[Fot] Flat towing a Vitesse

Fri May 4 15:58:06 MDT 2018

I started out in 1974, flat towing my TR-4 behind a 6 cylinder Mustang.  After 2 driver's schools (one snowed out and rescheduled the following weekend at St. Louis), my second Regional Race was at Nelson Ledges on a weekend in early May, which has appropriately become known as "The Mother's Day Massacre".  After raining all night, a stream was running across the track, just after the Start/Finish line.  At the start, one of the lead cars went sideways in the stream, and collected most of the field.  I was close to the back, and was able to get my car stopped, but the other TR-4 in the race (behind me) couldn't get stopped and plowed right into me.  It was very much in question whether I would be able to flat tow it home, but I finally hammerred it out enough to make it towable (albeit, not quite in a straight line).  The first thing I did when I got home was to have a trailer built, which I still have, and use, today.
Anyone remember the snowed out driver's school at Mid-America Raceway (near St. Louis) in March of 1974?  If I hadn't had snow tires on the race car, I never would have made it out of there, flat towing behind my girlfriend's Mustang.

Surely, some of you will remember the Mother's Day Massacre?  Fred Baker was in that race with the E-Type.  I think Ken Slagle was also in that race with his TR-8.  Good (and bad) memories.

Best Regards

Jack

    On Friday, May 4, 2018, 5:37:33 PM EDT, <riverside at southslope.net> wrote:  

 I ran one of the early Road America regionals – ‘72 I think.There were two other TR3’s there besides mine and oneof them was flat towed behind a 289 Cobra!   art de armond From: Bill Dentinger via Fot Sent: Friday, May 04, 2018 10:53 AMTo: jwheeler1947 at yahoo.com ; fot at autox.team.net Subject: Re: [Fot] Flat towing a Vitesse And, of course, how one ends up with an email address moniker...CATPUSHER. It all fits. Bill Dentinger

-----Original Message-----
From: Jack Wheeler via Fot <fot at autox.team.net>
To: fot <fot at autox.team.net>
Sent: Fri, May 4, 2018 8:28 am
Subject: [Fot] Flat towing a Vitesse

I really shouldn't speak for Hardy, but I do recall him flat towing his TR-3 race car behind his 1967 E-Type coupe for years, up to about 1987?  I also seem to recall that he disconnected the driveshaft in the TR-3.

Jack
 ----- Forwarded Message -----From: John Styduhar via Fot <fot at autox.team.net>To: Bill Dentinger <billdentin at aol.com>Cc: Friends of Triumph <fot at autox.team.net>; Brad Kahler <bkahler1 at gmail.com>Sent: Thursday, May 3, 2018, 8:42:53 PM EDTSubject: Re: [Fot] Flat towing a Vitesse We should get some input from Hardy Prentice, the grand-daddy of flat towing TR experience.  On Wed, May 2, 2018 at 11:57 PM, Bill Dentinger via Fot <fot at autox.team.net> wrote:

Hell...years ago Chevy made a stovebolt 6 engine that worked like that.  The ‘Splash Oiler’., when little scoops used to come down, fill up with oil, and splash oil the engine.  Should work in a tranny. Old fashioned High Tech.

Vrooom....

Bill Dentinger

Sent from my iPhone

> On May 2, 2018, at 2:22 PM, Jerry Van Vlack via Fot <fot at autox.team.net> wrote:
> 
> If you have an open transmission look inside and turn the output shaft while holding the input shaft stationary. What you'll see is none of the gears turn, only the syncro hubs will turn since they are locked to the main shaft. I doubt that they will cause enough oil to lube the gears and bushings on the main shaft while it's turning. I think you're taking a chance if towing very far or at high speeds.
> 
> I would not take the chance.
> JVV
> 
> -----Original Message----- From: Tony Drews via Fot
> Sent: Wednesday, May 2, 2018 1:04 PM
> To: Brad Kahler ; Friends of Triumph
> Subject: Re: [Fot] Flat towing a Vitesse
> 
> Do any of the gears spin in the trans when in neutral?  I have a vague
> recollection about towing in neutral for long distances causing
> excessive wear on trans output due to no oil circulation, and
> disconnecting the driveshaft was a better option (but a major pain in
> the *ss)...
> 
> Tony Drews
> 
> 
>> On 5/1/2018 8:08 AM, Brad Kahler via Fot wrote:
>> A friend of mine wants to flat tow a Vitesse behind his motorhome.
>> Are there any issues other than placing the transmission in neutral
>> that he needs to worry about?
>> 
>> Thanks!
>> 
>> Brad 
> 
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