Limitations of using a Towing Dolly

When it comes to vehicle towing, options are countless. You can choose to use a trailer, a towing dolly, or tow bar. A tow dolly is trailer with two wheels designed to lift the drive wheels of a vehicle off the ground during a tow. While a tow dolly is cheaper to buy or rent, it has its disadvantages which are listed below.

Restrictions on Weight

Limitations of using a Towing DollyOne of the limitations of the tow dolly is that it cannot support much weight as other vehicle trailers can. Most of the two dollies cannot carry cars exceeding 3,445 Ibs. Also, the dolly cannot be used on front wheel drive cars. Therefore, this eliminates many trucks and sporting cars from being towed using a dolly.

Car damages

The tow dolly can cause damages to the vehicles. This is because the dolly only holds up to the drive wheels. Further, if the car being towed is low to the ground or extended in the front, some car components may scratch the ground during the process. Therefore, damaging the undercarriage parts. The damages might also occur while loading the car to a tow dolly.

Maneuvering

One of the advantages that the trailers that tow cars have over the dolly is that they can be backed up if need arises. Majority of the dollies lack this feature. If not impossible, it is difficult to back up a towing dolly. Hence this can be a problem especially if you need to drop the towed car in the right position once you reach your destination.

Hooking up Procedures

The procedures for hooking up a car into a tow dolly is much more complicated than hooking up a car on a tow trailer. Two wheels of the towed car are left on the ground. This means that the drive wheels must be secured firmly to keep the car held on the dolly. Contrary to a towing trailer, the towed car wheels cannot be blocked and the emergency brakes cannot be applied to help keep the car in place when being towed.

Wearing and Tearing

The towed vehicle weight is only supported by two wheels when using a tow dolly. This causes more wear and tear on the tires. Using a tow dolly more often will lead to more tear and wear on the car wheels.

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