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| Does anyone Tow?; Towing with a metro | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 3 2015, 02:02 PM (5,676 Views) | |
| Tubablake | Jan 13 2015, 04:49 PM Post #61 |
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I sort of understand your question but I'll take a crack at it. Your truck: 7,000lbs Max Towing Capacity: 12,000lbs GCVWR: 19,000lbs Geo: 1,600lbs Max Towing Capacity: GCVWR: The Geo is missing 2 things here: Towing Capacity and GCVWR. It has no towing capacity because it wasn't meant for towing. It's also missing the Gross Combine Vehicle Weight Rating because it wasn't meant for towing. The geo was not by any chance meant for towing. So any formula that would work on a truck meant for towing will not work on a Geo because the Geo is not meant for towing. It is too weak and just because people have success stories doesn't mean anything. |
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| Old Man | Jan 13 2015, 05:08 PM Post #62 |
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Your truck does not have spaghetti for a rear toe link, your Metro does. The Metros rear toe link flexes under Normal cornering. Some have said it bent under extreme cornering.-- Towing a trailer, in a curve, meet an emergency braking situation, tow link becomes a pretzel, control is lost.,,,,,,,,,haven't done it myself, but I believe what others have said Edited by Old Man, Jan 13 2015, 05:09 PM.
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| myredvert | Jan 13 2015, 05:41 PM Post #63 |
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myredvert
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That is an excellent example that operational safety experts would use in conjunction with a risk assessment matrix that has been used in evaluating transportation safety for quite some time now... "Remote" probability (less than "occasional", but more than "improbable"), combined with "critical" and occasionally "catastrophic" results produces a threat assessment of medium to serious risk, with the higher of the two being the controlling factor in deciding if active mitigation is warranted. Suitable mitigation can be had by not towing with the vehicle not designed or rated to do so. Excellent example OM.
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| nerys | Jan 13 2015, 08:16 PM Post #64 |
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Grr
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Yep. I broke one. had a nice rust hole in it to. which is where it by chance snapped. 150,000 miles later the other original and the new one are just fine. btw the breakage predates the hitch IIRC. was NOT towing. although "I DID" have around 1200 pounds in the car which is a bit much and did likely contribute to it breaking though the primary contribution was the rust weakening the metal. mind you. I don't drive 65mph. anywhere. I am a 50mph kind of guy. 55 on the turnpike if I am feeling frisky and traffic is heavy. a 400 pound trailer is not unsafe. that simple i my opinion. higher risk? yes sure. unsafe? no. higher risk is NOT equal to "unsafe" |
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| 34me | Jan 15 2016, 08:26 PM Post #65 |
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New Member
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I would tend to agree with Nerys. That said there are many thing to consider. If you live in a desert you don't have rust issues. BUT if you live in a rust belt ? These cars are getting old and safety should ALWAYS be the first concern. My biggest concern is the bolts tearing out. I built my own tow hitch from something like the one pictured. It started out as a bolt on that was kinda Z shaped. Heated the bends to better match the spare tire bucket. Bent a 16"x2"x3/16" flat plate to match the inside curve of STB. Bolted that at both ends with 3/8" and heavy washers on the outside and bolt at center, through both it and hitch bar. Then I placed a 6"x10"x3/16" flat plate in the bottom of STB. Bolted it at all for corners and 2 through it and the hitch bar. Note, all corners were well ground off rounded to prevent the can opener effect. Towed a HF 4x8 trailer from AZ to WA and back. Got lots of comments along the way. Keep in mind - never have more then about 50# tongue weight. Use a bathroom scale if you have to. Keep your loads centered over the trailers axle and keep the weight less then 500# including trailer. WARNING ! A light car and heavy trailer is dangerous. This is in no way to say you should do this. IF YOU DECIDE to do the same, you do so at your own risk. This is simply what I have done but I'm not responsible for your stupidity !!!! |
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| Metromightymouse | Jan 16 2016, 05:45 PM Post #66 |
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Powdercoat Wizard
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Holy one year old thread resurrection Batman. |
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| ssssteve | Jan 22 2016, 11:53 AM Post #67 |
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Elite Member
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I towed a Metro from sc to tx and back at 65 miles per hour without any problems behind my Metro. 1995 3 cylinder 5 speed. |
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| 0die | Feb 23 2016, 12:15 PM Post #68 |
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New Member
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My 95 came with a trailer hitch...but it also came with a tow bracket on the front and pigtails...I suspect it was tower behind an RV and then another trailer behind the Geo |
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| MarkZ28 | Feb 23 2016, 02:49 PM Post #69 |
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My 98 sedan has one, with the wiring connectors tied to it. Never even tried to hook it up to see if the lights work though. The only trailer I have is an old 14 foot boat trailer someone converted. I bet the thing weighs as much as the Metro, plus since the wheels on the trailer are so far back, the tongue weight would be horrible. It was there when I got the cr, left it 0n there. |
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| Thart10 | Apr 2 2016, 05:55 AM Post #70 |
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Only thing I might Tow with my Metro might be a Motorcycle style Cargo trailer, for extra luggage space. But a 4 dr HB has plenty of room for me, because I usually travel alone. |
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