Pulling car out of snowbank

[Chilly807]

Then there's Dodge, who seems to think leaving tow hooks off the front of some of their 4x4 Ram models saves money. I had mine for about a week when I noticed there weren't any hooks. $125 and a few minutes work later, it has them. What are they thinking??

Sean

 

[aczlan]

For decades, 15 inch wheels allowed enough room for brakes that put you through the windshield if you weren't careful with them, on huge and heavy Cadillac's, and Lincoln's
Sprint cup cars may also have the biggest brakes made on them, and they don't need giant wheels to fit them in there.
So, I don't see the idea of the wheels on cars being bigger, to make room for brakes.
Everything is about mileage.
It's about weight.

It is brakes on many trucks. A larger rotor means that less brake friction is needed to stop the car. Trucks that used to take 15" tires now take 16-17" tires to fit the brakes.
Over 17" on a 1/2 ton to 1 ton truck (or ~16" on a smaller vehicle) is probbaly for either looks or handling (shorter sidewall = less sidewall flex and a "tighter feeling" vehicle).

Aaron Z

 

[bandaidmd]

I've got a buddy who has Prius and he has hitch on it. I've been meaning to ask him, just how much a Prius can tow. Maybe he's just being pro-active in case he gets stuck. I got my car hung up and the tow operator hooked to the tire and pulled the car out.

Wedge

There's no tow rating for motorcycles either but plenty of us tow trailers. I also have a hitch on my 3 cylinder geo.

 

[ray66v]

It is brakes on many trucks. A larger rotor means that less brake friction is needed to stop the car. Trucks that used to take 15" tires now take 16-17" tires to fit the brakes.
Over 17" on a 1/2 ton to 1 ton truck (or ~16" on a smaller vehicle) is probbaly for either looks or handling (shorter sidewall = less sidewall flex and a "tighter feeling" vehicle). Aaron Z

Yes, I have seen the argument. Yes, I understand basic physics. No, I don't buy it.

Trucks are not any bigger than they were before. And, they don't weigh as much as they did before.

No modern, consumer grade truck I know of, and I worked on everything for 35 years, ever had an issue with brakes.

Nothing stopped the manufacturers from putting bigger wheels, and bigger brakes on them back then. In fact, they did put bigger wheels on the on the heavy duty 3/4 ton, and the one tons, on the rest, the manufacturers chose not to.

A full size conversion van, full of gear, with a family inside, was a very heavy vehicle. 15" wheels, and they stopped just fine.

We had a 1983 or so, F100 at work. I used to fill it with 3500lbs of gravel when I was doing my driveway. It stopped just fine too.

Sorry, doing it now to reduce weight, is the only thing that makes sense to me.

 

[batwing]

Tell us please, did you pull the Dodge out by front or rear, and what attachment point did you use on the truck? Reminds me of the time I pulled a 3/4 ton 4X4 pickup out, he was mired in deep snow and the rear was on the downgrade, all I had to do was give him a healthy tug from the front using my diff lock (ice underneath) using the chain he hooked to the front tow hooks.

And while we are on this subject, if you had a preference, which type of recovery aid would you prefer to use, a tow strap or a chain?

I much prefer a tow strap less chance of damage.
Ron

 

[JDgreen227]

I much prefer a tow strap less chance of damage.
Ron

I too prefer tow straps, but would never use one that has metal hooks on the ends to pull anything heavy. Back in 2004 and 2006, two men in the Michigan area were killed after being struck by tow straps that had a metal hook, not quite positive what happened in either case but from what I read a secondary tow strap broke and the strap attached to the vehicle being pulled slingshotted back and struck someone.

 

[bcp]

That brings up a question.

How do you hook a looped strap to a modern car stuck in a snowbank?

Bruce

 

[dave1949]

That brings up a question.

How do you hook a looped strap to a modern car stuck in a snowbank?

Bruce

I'm pretty sure you lower the side windows and loop the strap through the interior. For extra grip, passing the strap through the steering wheel is a good idea.

 

[batwing]

I too prefer tow straps, but would never use one that has metal hooks on the ends to pull anything heavy. Back in 2004 and 2006, two men in the Michigan area were killed after being struck by tow straps that had a metal hook, not quite positive what happened in either case but from what I read a secondary tow strap broke and the strap attached to the vehicle being pulled slingshotted back and struck someone.

I wonder if they had one of those round straps that would stretch a lot, mine is a 20' flat strap with no hooks and does not stretch very much.
Ron

 

[mikehaugen]

I too prefer tow straps, but would never use one that has metal hooks on the ends to pull anything heavy. Back in 2004 and 2006, two men in the Michigan area were killed after being struck by tow straps that had a metal hook, not quite positive what happened in either case but from what I read a secondary tow strap broke and the strap attached to the vehicle being pulled slingshotted back and struck someone.

I sometimes loop the strap through itself, but often that makes it very difficult to un-do... especially while laying on the ground in snow reaching under the car. And that is assuming there is something to loop around. I also carry a (I think 7/8") clevis that I may use sometimes. I know the wll of the clevis is probaly lower than the strap, but in real world I am quite confident the strap would break first.