I figured I would give everyone a laugh, loaded a 84 bronco 2 on a flatbed but put the truck on the trailer backwards. lol bad idea the aerodynamics were so horrible it felt like i was pulling a house. won't make that mistake again.
__________________
Iraq vet and back home for good! 95 F250 SC 7.3PSD 4x4
Now out of the Army and located in South Florida.
Going to School to get ASE certified.
Don't feel bad, on another forum that I frequent a guy lost his sunroof pulling the car backwards. For the most part vehicles are designed to be facing forwards at highway speeds. It's sometimes hard to get the trailer tongue loaded correctly with engine weight on the rear too.
LoL yeah it wasn't too bad till i got to like 55-60 mph. The truck pulled it but my mpg's fell off the map.
__________________
Iraq vet and back home for good! 95 F250 SC 7.3PSD 4x4
Now out of the Army and located in South Florida.
Going to School to get ASE certified.
Were you driving into a headwind? I would have guessed that a Bronco has roughly the aerodynamic drag coefficient of a brick whether facing forward, back or sideways.
__________________
-
Douglas Campbell, P.E.
1986 Isuzu P'up, 177,673.8 miles.
- Hella headlights (highly recommended)
- DOT C-2 back end (also recommended)
- R-12 air conditioner converted to R-406a. Saved ozone and money
- 4.1:1 final drive converted to 3.4:1. Quieter, better mileage but it's a good thing I live in the flat Midwest.
- 9/22/2007, age 21: Still running well when reluctantly sent away for reincarnation, due to body & frame rust.
Were you driving into a headwind? I would have guessed that a Bronco has roughly the aerodynamic drag coefficient of a brick whether facing forward, back or sideways.
I would agree but I imagine that when facing forward, the vertical surfaces are staggered (as opposed to a single vertical wall) which would have to alter how the air moves around the brick as it tries to move out of the way.
One of the worse trailers I ever pulled was a 14ft+v-nose fish house with single axle. Took it on a couple 5 hour drives and it was horrible to tow. I don't think the house weighed any more than 3,000 lbs. The trailer was tall and with any wind it seemed to pull all over the place and of course got horrible mileage. The mileage is better pulling 14K lbs with the dump trailer!
__________________
99(4/99)F350 PSD 4X4 crew cab long bed dually lariat isspro triple pod air bags with compressor
99(6/99)F250 PSD 4X4 X-cab short bed xlt 5in str8 piped air bags autometer ultra light triple pod bought 8/15/01 w/40k miles first diesel
00(12/99)Excursion PSD 4X4 limited triple pod
00 BMW 328CI 2dr silver fully loaded
65 Mustang 289 V8 4brl
69 GTO 400 4spd
04 and 09 PJ 15k dump trailer 04 H&H 9K tilt bed 98 Haulmark 7x14 enclosed
I used to own one of thos Bronco IIs. I think the aerodynamics were about the same forward or backwards. They are also more stable on their roof.
__________________
2000 Ford SD; PSD; Crew Cab; SB; Lariet; Air Lift suspension; K&N; Dynomax exhaust; ATS 88mm BB turbo; A-pillar three gage pod with Auto Meter pyro, boost and tranny temp gages; Prodigy brake controller; Rancho 9000 shocks; DP Tuner; 4R100 by Trans-Craft.
I had a bit of a headwind and you have to remember that when the truck is facing forward on the trailer not only is it more "aerodynamic" but also air will hit the grill and go below the truck. I had it backwards so air was hitting the tailgate/brick wall. When I go pick up the truck I will load it right and see the difference.
__________________
Iraq vet and back home for good! 95 F250 SC 7.3PSD 4x4
Now out of the Army and located in South Florida.
Going to School to get ASE certified.
Just as a follow up I recently pulled the truck again but positioned it correctly on the trailer and it made a world of difference. Pulled like there was nothing there.
__________________
Iraq vet and back home for good! 95 F250 SC 7.3PSD 4x4
Now out of the Army and located in South Florida.
Going to School to get ASE certified.
I used to own one of thos Bronco IIs. I think the aerodynamics were about the same forward or backwards. They are also more stable on their roof.
__________________
2009 F450 Pickup Lariat Plus w/Nav, 4X4 Off-Road Pkg, Rhino bed liner, 50 gal Transfer Flow fuel tank, 24k Reese Signature Series 5th-wheel hitch.
2011 MS 36RSSB3
Just to let all of you know...It wasn't the Bronco’s aerodynamics like you’re thinking that caused the problem. I have towed a lot of different things in my life. It was mainly the weight distribution and some different aerodynamics.
Think about it and you'll realize the difference.
Bronco facing rearward = engine weight to rear; in addition, wind pushing back on the towed vehicle (Bronco or any other vehicle) sitting on the trailer, trailer tongue effectively rises up (less weight). Towing vehicle drive wheels becomes less weighted to ground. Worse traction, lousy handling, terrible gas mileage. If it gets excessive, trailer sway comes in to play too.
Bronco facing forward = engine weight up front, wind pushing back on the towed vehicle (Bronco or any other vehicle) sitting on the trailer, trailer tongue weight slightly less but effectively stays weighted. Towing vehicle drive wheels stay weighted to ground. Better traction, better handling, better gas mileage.
It’s like grabbing a hold of the top of a box sliding across the floor. The front of the box lifts. Now apply that to the bronco sitting on the trailer with the wind hitting it. Everything looked good when walking around it while stopped. Basically the wind will shift the CG (Center of Gravity) rearward slightly while traveling.
Semi’s or 5th wheels are not plagued with that problem. Their CG on their trailers does not change because their wheels are all the way back and the front of the trailer is on a plate with another set of wheels under that.
I was pulling a wrecked f250 with an old full size blazer,,, it didn't have wheels on it so jus put it on the trailer with a loader,,,then put a lot of iron in the back of the bed of the wrecked truck. Really overloaded it old ebngine blocks anything i could find to take to metal processing. Well was going down big icy hill round 70 miles an hour and hit ice it started swayin. scairt the holy #$$%@!$!$ out me and took some of my life away..but regained in the other side of road bout halfway in ditch. Will tell you i always check on weight distribution now,,,did it with some big round bales too on gravel road... trailer came all the way aroung and it put me in ditch...always put em on right,,,lessons in life are hard sometimes
__________________
91 f250 4x4,, e rated tires,,cab lights,,,straitpiped to rear,,,,brand spankin new cd player,,,flatbed with gooseneck,,,one hellava bale hauler,,,
International 856 wide front and a super h wide front ,, both have three points for haulin those bales.
63 w200 power wagon 17.5 inch e rated tires,,4 spd, 410's plus a six popper, she's a lil slow but she'll go anywhere yu point her
New to fleet 95 dodge 3500 EXT CAB 4x4 5 spd cummins power, 4 inch exhaust,
also new 88 f350 4x4 non turbo 5pd straitpiped long bed 410's
Last edited by Believer45; 01-15-2010 at 08:36 PM.
Remember to keep tongue weight about 10% of gross trailer weight. You can have it a little more but not much less. The other is make sure your towing vehicle can handle the weight without sagging! Keep the trailer tongue/coupling/ball/hitch all level!!! That is VERY important! I have seen many vehicles towing trailers with the trailer tongue at a raised angle to attach to the ball. They are just asking to loose control! A hard braking and there goes a jack-knife! Trailers that are sagging at the ball are asking for it to start swaying. Dangerous! Trailer tongue/coupling/ball/hitch, Keep 'em level, or just slightly (only very slighty) downward guys and ya'all do fine. And never ever load a trailer with the heavest weight behind the trailer wheels.
I used to own one of thos Bronco IIs. I think the aerodynamics were about the same forward or backwards. They are also more stable on their roof.
__________________
We are Tousley Ford parts depot selling all OEM Ford and Ford Racing parts 10% over dealer cost. We sell heavy truck parts as well!
Please PM me for any price requests
Call us at 1-800-328-9552 ask for Gene or Mike R OR check out our website www.tousleyfordparts.com Be sure to mention this website for the good discount.
I did this once. It was an old rusted out scout that wouldn't start. We winched it up on the trailer backwards and took off. It pulled terribly - but after about ten minutes on the highway the old rusted out truck moved around enough to unlatch the doors!! BOth doors were quite large and took up plenty more than my lane. I kept trying to pull over but road signs were making it very difficult!!
We finally got pulled over and tied both doors together for the remainder of the trip. What a terrible experience.
__________________
2006 GMC K3500 CC DRW 4x4
1994 F-350 DRW PS w/ zf5
1996 Town Car
The AutoGuide.com network consists of the largest network of enthusiast-owned enthusiast-operated automotive communities.
AutoGuide.com provides the latest car reviews, auto show coverage, new car prices, and automotive news. The AutoGuide network operates more than 100 automotive forums where our users consult peers for shopping information and advice, and share opinions as a community.
95 F250 SC 7.3PSD 4x4
Linear Mode
