Towing an FJ40 w TH-350 Automatic? (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Joined
Dec 6, 2016
Threads
6
Messages
50
Location
San Diego, CA
Alright forum experts.

I have a 76 FJ40 land cruiser that I need to deliver 1,000 miles away.

I trailered it on a uhaul trailer 500 miles with my wife's Honda Pilot a few months ago. Mainly because i didn't think it would make it on its own. I was in a bind and just did it. That seemed to put a lot of weight on the hitch/ suspension...and I,m not sure i want to do that again 2x as long.

Land cruiser has "35 tires on it. Chevy small block. Power steering. Th-350 auto tranny.

Options:

1) auto trailer again. Vehicles to pull the landcruiser are either '12 Honda Pilot, or '11 FJ Cruiser.

2) Car dolly. Same vehicles as above.

3) Flat-tow. I just welded tabs to the front bumper and tested driving it around behind the FJ Cruiser ( see pics). I bought the cheap hiltex 20046 tow bar from Amazon. But, i'm not sure i trust it for 1,000 miles through CA to ID at 55mph.

Around the neighborhood it tracked ok. But on one turn, with a dip/incline, the wheels didn't straighten out and i had to stop ( chirp chirp the tires went ) and start the car (power steering) and straighten the wheel. Once i did that, it tracked fine the rest of the way around the neighborhood.

4) ship it via auto transport ($$$).

Do i need to disconnect the rear drive shaft.?
Or just put the transfer case in neutral and the transmission in neutral?

Would love to hear your thoughts/ suggestions. I want to do the road trip...but safety is paramount.

All advice is appreciated.
20170416_122839.jpg
20170416_135836.jpg
 
Last edited:
Flat towing should work just fine did you try tying off the front wheels of the 40 first?
 
If you prevent the steering wheel from moving, the front wheels will stay in line. Typically tying off the steering wheel achieves this.
 
Tying off the steering wheel with a rope so the front wheels don't turn on you you won't be able to turn as sharp. But most of your turns should be wide enough for that not to matter.
 
If you prevent the steering wheel from moving, the front wheels will stay in line. Typically tying off the steering wheel achieves this.

That's what I thought. Any cons/issues/risks from doing that?
I read other places to leave it untied. Not sure why...
 
It's easier with a full cage, tying off to the A - pillars. But whatever you use, make sure it's fairly solid
 
That's what I thought. Any cons/issues/risks from doing that?
I read other places to leave it untied. Not sure why...

I flat towed a FJ55 with a 2003 Tundra 2WD safely made it from NC to Texas. Couldn't really tell you cons. I would say safely made it to California but got into a major accident in Ozona Texas but that was due to rough road a blow out and cross winds. That was well over 1000 miles prior to the accident.
 
I would trust the tow bar you have, I would question how well the tow bar attaching points are to the FJ40- - -make sure you can trust those attaching points. The transfer-case must be in neutral for sure, but check with a tranny shop to determine if the TH350 should be left in neutral or park- - -the reason I question this is because any residual spin on the transfer-case idler gears could cause residual spin on the tranny gears/bands/disc, in which case they would be spinning but not lubricated while spinning????? Frankly, I'm not an auto tranny expert, and this may be no problem at all, just taking a stab at what could possibly go wrong.
 
That's what I thought. Any cons/issues/risks from doing that?
I read other places to leave it untied. Not sure why...

No cons that I can think of except tight turns in a parking lot or something like that. The front tires will scrub in tight turns.

I would consider disconnecting the rear driveshaft at the diff. Cheap insurance against popping into gear at speed.
 
Tcase in neutral, trans in park. An automatic transmission is lubricated by the engine turning a pump. If you leave the transmission in park there will be no movement or rotation in the transmission, thus no need for lubrication. If you are worried about it though, disconnecting the rear driveshaft from the differential is always an option.
 
I would remove the rear driveshaft - too many tales of something getting loose in the xfer case and causing damage. To 'lash down the steering' many people run the seatbelt thru the wheel and latch it, and this allows minor steering wheel movement. I still think 1000 miles is a LONG way to flat-tow anything. I would find a buddy with an F350 and tow it on a trailer.
 
Save yourself the hassle and trailer it.
Put the wear and tear on the trailer.... Then you don't have to worry about driveshafts, TC neutral... etc etc etc...

Your FJ should tow it fine.

As far as tongue weight, shift FJ40 towards rear of trailer... you need to keep at least a few hundred pounds of tounge weight.

Second option: Mudship
Probably the cheapest route.

Not spending any of your valuable time driving 2000 miles round trip.
No trailer rental.
No fuel costs
No wear and tear on FJ.
 
Yes. I was totally clear on hauling the fj40 with the Pilot on the auto trailer. It met their requirements....surprisingly.

View attachment 1442615

I've "towed" with a 2012 Pilot and you've got bigger Cajones than I do. Is the few hundred extra dollars to have it transported worth risking something happening to you or worse someone else? There are alot of things that can be done but shouldn't.
 
Yes. I was totally clear on hauling the fj40 with the Pilot on the auto trailer. It met their requirements....surprisingly.

View attachment 1442615

That does surprise me. My sister had a Ford explorer from the Firestone Wilderness tire era and U-Haul would not let her rent the smallest trailer even with a factory hitch but probably has solely to do with all the accidents and law suits.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom