The mission: make our way to Henderson, Nevada and liberate this ’78 FJ40 from prison
Early Saturday morning my co-pilot and I departed home base in southern New Mexico, headed for Tucson. We knew we could make it to north Phoenix by mid-afternoon, but did we have what it took to go further? Only one way to find out – compile a list of 3 motels each for Wickenburg, Kingman, then, and this was being optimistic, Henderson.
My Henderson operative and I maintained silent contact through cryptic texts exchanged as we passed through each checkpoint. Weather was a non-factor – clear skies, 100+ degree temps, and by the time we had reached Wickenburg we began to feel it was possible to reach Henderson that night. Four days had been allotted to complete the mission, so reaching our destination in one day would be HUGE. On we drove, and once we had safely navigated the wild, late Saturday afternoon Kingman traffic, we knew we’d make it with daylight to spare. I slept with a smile on my face that night.
Sunday morning our operative phoned and instructed us to meet him at the detention facility at 10. His directions were flawless, and we made it with 5 minutes to spare. He had allotted 60 minutes for our mission – no time to waste, so a hands on inspection was performed, and then the moment of truth was finally at hand – the test drive
Now those of you who have read MY WIFE SAVED ME $10K! will recall that we have a standing agreement – I can buy whatever I want, AS LONG AS I DO A HANDS ON INSPECTION AND TEST DRIVE. None of this sight unseen, photographs only hope for the best bull****. We strapped ourselves in (well, I did, she didn’t have a seatbelt on the passenger side) and eased out for the deal maker/breaker. I liked how it drove. We switched for her to return. By the time we’d made our way back the consensus was: INSPECTION – PASS, TEST DRIVE – PASS. The deal was made, hands were shaken, money traded hands and it was still light out (11:30am), so the decision was made for an immediate turnaround and head home.
Now for the technical side. I’ve read MANY Mud threads on the pleasures and pitfalls of tow bars, tow dollies and trailers, and it had become my considered opinion that everybody’s right and everybody’s wrong because everybody’s different, right? Therefore decision number one was: my ’08 FJ Cruiser could tow an FJ40, certainly better than my ’08 Tacoma with a tow package.
Decision number two required a brief consultation with my Henderson operative. We agreed that putting both the transmission and transfer case in neutral, unlocking the front hubs, setting tow lights on the fenders and hooking up THE MIGHTY TOW BAR was worth a try. If it didn’t work out, there was always a U-Haul around the corner that would rent a tow dolly to me for my BMW Z3.
Now this may put the argument to rest or just fan the flames, but I feel it my duty to testify what my own experience was. First, the FJ automatic tranny had no problem pulling the 40, and I only had to get the feel for my brakes to be able to stop safely when needed. We made a shakedown cruise to Harbor Freight where I got the tow lights ($9.99, what a deal) and it was there we encountered our first ‘situation.’ HF was having a parking lot clearance sale, and maneuver space was limited. As I turned right to exit I had to cut tighter than I would have liked and, sure enough, the 40’s front wheels went the opposite way. Damn, you can tell immediately when it happens, and I had to jump out and grab the steering wheel to correct.
Well, okay, teachable moment – no biggy. We got on the 93 south and it wasn’t long before I was trucking along at 50-65. When traffic lightened I even put it on cruise control.
By 1pm we’d made it to Kingman and stopped for gas and lunch
Feeling good – this is totally doable! Unfortunately, the exit from the Chevron parking lot to the main drag was a short but steep grade. I didn’t think I turned too tight, but before I could get into the yellow turn lane the 40 locked again. Oncoming traffic was in two lanes, and all I remember is jumping out, opening 40’s door, turning the steering wheel, jumping back into the FJ and easing back into traffic towards I-40 and freedom. It was then my co-pilot told me what I missed, that being a teen driver joy riding with her two passenger chicks coming up too fast at me, hitting her brakes at the last minute, swerving to miss me, then moving on. WHEW. I have no memory of that – total focus on getting that steering wheel straightened and moving forward!
Undaunted, we got on I-40 east to 93 south, returned to the towing groove and the only problem we encountered after that was getting used to the wild turbulence some of the tractor rigs made as they passed us. Man, some of those grades were fairly steep and LONG. By the time we reached Wickenburg around 6pm we’d had enough for one day. Great progress!
Early Saturday morning my co-pilot and I departed home base in southern New Mexico, headed for Tucson. We knew we could make it to north Phoenix by mid-afternoon, but did we have what it took to go further? Only one way to find out – compile a list of 3 motels each for Wickenburg, Kingman, then, and this was being optimistic, Henderson.
My Henderson operative and I maintained silent contact through cryptic texts exchanged as we passed through each checkpoint. Weather was a non-factor – clear skies, 100+ degree temps, and by the time we had reached Wickenburg we began to feel it was possible to reach Henderson that night. Four days had been allotted to complete the mission, so reaching our destination in one day would be HUGE. On we drove, and once we had safely navigated the wild, late Saturday afternoon Kingman traffic, we knew we’d make it with daylight to spare. I slept with a smile on my face that night.
Sunday morning our operative phoned and instructed us to meet him at the detention facility at 10. His directions were flawless, and we made it with 5 minutes to spare. He had allotted 60 minutes for our mission – no time to waste, so a hands on inspection was performed, and then the moment of truth was finally at hand – the test drive
Now those of you who have read MY WIFE SAVED ME $10K! will recall that we have a standing agreement – I can buy whatever I want, AS LONG AS I DO A HANDS ON INSPECTION AND TEST DRIVE. None of this sight unseen, photographs only hope for the best bull****. We strapped ourselves in (well, I did, she didn’t have a seatbelt on the passenger side) and eased out for the deal maker/breaker. I liked how it drove. We switched for her to return. By the time we’d made our way back the consensus was: INSPECTION – PASS, TEST DRIVE – PASS. The deal was made, hands were shaken, money traded hands and it was still light out (11:30am), so the decision was made for an immediate turnaround and head home.
Now for the technical side. I’ve read MANY Mud threads on the pleasures and pitfalls of tow bars, tow dollies and trailers, and it had become my considered opinion that everybody’s right and everybody’s wrong because everybody’s different, right? Therefore decision number one was: my ’08 FJ Cruiser could tow an FJ40, certainly better than my ’08 Tacoma with a tow package.
Decision number two required a brief consultation with my Henderson operative. We agreed that putting both the transmission and transfer case in neutral, unlocking the front hubs, setting tow lights on the fenders and hooking up THE MIGHTY TOW BAR was worth a try. If it didn’t work out, there was always a U-Haul around the corner that would rent a tow dolly to me for my BMW Z3.
Now this may put the argument to rest or just fan the flames, but I feel it my duty to testify what my own experience was. First, the FJ automatic tranny had no problem pulling the 40, and I only had to get the feel for my brakes to be able to stop safely when needed. We made a shakedown cruise to Harbor Freight where I got the tow lights ($9.99, what a deal) and it was there we encountered our first ‘situation.’ HF was having a parking lot clearance sale, and maneuver space was limited. As I turned right to exit I had to cut tighter than I would have liked and, sure enough, the 40’s front wheels went the opposite way. Damn, you can tell immediately when it happens, and I had to jump out and grab the steering wheel to correct.
Well, okay, teachable moment – no biggy. We got on the 93 south and it wasn’t long before I was trucking along at 50-65. When traffic lightened I even put it on cruise control.
By 1pm we’d made it to Kingman and stopped for gas and lunch
Feeling good – this is totally doable! Unfortunately, the exit from the Chevron parking lot to the main drag was a short but steep grade. I didn’t think I turned too tight, but before I could get into the yellow turn lane the 40 locked again. Oncoming traffic was in two lanes, and all I remember is jumping out, opening 40’s door, turning the steering wheel, jumping back into the FJ and easing back into traffic towards I-40 and freedom. It was then my co-pilot told me what I missed, that being a teen driver joy riding with her two passenger chicks coming up too fast at me, hitting her brakes at the last minute, swerving to miss me, then moving on. WHEW. I have no memory of that – total focus on getting that steering wheel straightened and moving forward!
Undaunted, we got on I-40 east to 93 south, returned to the towing groove and the only problem we encountered after that was getting used to the wild turbulence some of the tractor rigs made as they passed us. Man, some of those grades were fairly steep and LONG. By the time we reached Wickenburg around 6pm we’d had enough for one day. Great progress!
