Trailer towing a 355

Anyone have experience towing their 355 on a trailer? I was planning to rent a trailer from UHaul but it keeps coming up as not recommended for this vehicle. It can't be the weight as heavier cars are coming up as OK. Could it be the clearance? Any thoughts on how to tow the car? I have a class III hitch which is Rated a 5,000 lbs, so that shouldn't be the problem either.

 

I would (and have) only used a flatbed to tow the 355. Anything else is a flat out no go IMO.

Is this the kind of trailer you are talking about?

 

Enclosed dual-axle trailer designed for cars - it's a 355 and worth it.

 

Something like this trailer
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Love to go with one of these but can't find one for rent. Just need it for a day.

 

I'd be concerned about rock chips if towed out in the open like that.

Hadn't thought about it until now, but has anyone ever had an insurance claim for a towed car? I wonder if the insurance company would give you a hard time, if say a trailer came loose, or you were rear ended while towing. Just trying to think of the worst case scenario.

 

THAT ^^ is an excellent point - Wow, never thought about it - But have not trailered the car either. Definitely something to ask about!

 

I hear ya - I think the limitations with the UHaul may be clearance and/or width of track. I used one of these to pull our chase car around when in a road band and the ramps are pretty steep - would think this might be clearance issue and if memory serves me the track is pretty narrow.

I understand the cost limitations but would scare the heck out of me to use one for a 355.

You might peruse around the various car shops and even motorcycle shops in the area - someone might have an enclosed trailer and tow it for you for less $$ then the rental of the UHaul and possible issues - Just a suggestion - Good luck!

 

UHaul can be a real pain sometime in what it allows on their trailers. They also are real picky about the tow vehicle as well. They turned me down for both reasons in the past. It also depends on the location doing the rental I found as well. I was able to rent one that is shown above to haul a '66 Pontiac GTO home from several states away and it did perform very well for the old Detroit iron. Check Graig's List for places that rent trailers, there are independents that have listings for both open and closed trailers. Good luck.

 

I've used one for the race car. Clearance is an issue in two ways. First, the door won't open. Common on most trailers. So, the window stays down. Second, the rear wheels are VERY close to the trailer's taillight housings, possibly camaging the wheels. A couple of 2x4s will help there. Loading and unloading requires a driveway cut or a tall jack. But, it can be done!
Uhaul stores my trailer for me, and when I want to use it, I just tip them $75/day!

 

I've towed mine on my own trailer. Given how short a uHaul trailer is, you may want to back the car on for weight distribution purposes. I have a long trailer so pull my car to where the engine is basically over the wheels, and it sits just far enough forward that I can open the doors. Tows very nicely that way. If you have too much weight at the back the trailer will sway all over and not be safe.

Insurance wise, if the uHaul trailer is not rated for the weight of the 355, don't do it as you won't be covered. Also, the insurance you can get from them won't cover you if you tow a different vehicle than you specify on the form and I'm pretty sure they won't give you the trailer if you tell them you're towing a 355 because it's not in their system. Make sure your own insurance covers you. I've used uHauls before and they were fine, but had my own trailer by the time I bought my 355 so haven't tried, and not sure I would.
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If you only need it for a day, call a professional with a low-ramp flatbed, and let him haul the car to/from your destination. Even at 3x the price of the uHaul, it'll be done right and safely.

 

I may just end up driving the 355. I need to take it from LA to Las Vegas for a smog check. My fear is that I get to Vegas and some stupid CEL comes on, negating the entire trip. Everything is clear now so I thought about towing to get it there.

 

The 355 is in there system. It just comes up as not recommended for towing on their trailer. I hadn't thought about the rear engine weight issue. I don't think I would have the clearance to back it up on the trailer.

 

Don't tow your 355 on anything BUT an enclosed trailer.

 

You can see a previous thread on this topic here:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/348-355/344496-has-anyone-tried-transporting-their-f355-uhual-ummmm.html

I towed mine for a 7 hour drive from Long Island, NY to Montreal, Canada with a Uhaul and a pickup and it was pretty smooth. They didn't have the 355 on their site so I put in the 348 instead and was able to book it and it was pretty cheap.

I would definetly do it again if I needed to...no problems at all...

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Did your 355 drive up onto the uhaul trailer with just the regular ramps? I have a 18' aluminum H&H hydraulic tilt deck trailer and to get my Lotus Esprit up onto it I ended up driving the trucks rear tires onto ramps, letting the air out of the tires on the trailer to make the incline gradual enough to not rip the front valence!!

 

Sign up with tripple aaa you get 4 tows a year, 3 tows up to 100 miles each and 1 tow up to 200 miles. Membership cost $135.

 

I think it depends if you are experienced towing stuff and what you have to tow with. The uhaul is a heavy trailer. It it heavier than anything you could buy. The one uhaul pictureed above is a nice one. Never seen one that nice around here. They don't have electric trailer brakes but surge brakes. A rookie tower could damage the car going on and off the ramp making towing just not worth the price right there. A rookie is better off towing 5-6000lbs of heavy trailer and 355 with a diesel 3/4 ton pick-up truck while an experienced tower could get by just fine with a gas Jeep cherokee. If you don't know much about towing or loading cars for towing take the chance and drive to Vegas. If you fear throwing CEL's then you really need to work on your car and prep it better. We got tricks for that!

 

I had this made for my Mondial, similar in size as the 355. It's a tilt trailer so no ramps and pulls perfect. I just pulled it 3000 miles with no damage to my car. Bed lights and the doors clear the fenders, 7000k axles.

6k painted your way.
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All LED, dual trailer brakes, tongue box.
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you have Nevada plates? I'm going to be there wed coming back th. not driving the 355. There a few county's left in Ca that don't require smog. Looking into it for my next project car.

 

Sweet rig.

 

Have a business address and my insurance in NV so I can register it there. Saves on the sales tax. NV charges no tax on private party sales. That's an easy $5k saved with these cars.

 

OK...What are the tricks? Based on recommendations, I plan to bring the car to the Wynn Ferrari dealership for the smog cert. No CEL's at the moment but when I check codes, some come up as "pending" Don't really know what that means. Its an easy 300 mile drive to Vegas and I usually drive that much locally each month. Just fearful that some stupid light comes on 250 miles into the drive and I have to turn around and go home to fix it.