I found a YT channel about a guy who posts funny videos of cars getting towed from his business private lot. One thing I was curious about is how towing of a FWD car from the rear works. The trucks will come, and lift the rear of the car and tow it out a bit. The front wheels do end up turning somewhat. But once the car is out of the parking space, the truck will drop the car and turn around to lift the front so the rear wills will be the ones turning (freely?)
I’m curious how the front tires wouldn’t break the transmission or whatever part of the car when “moved” like this.
Thanks!
In: Engineering
There are lots of variables here such as if it is an automatic or manual gearbox and if it was put into neutral, park or in gear when it was parked and if the e-break was on. If the gearbox was in neutral then the output shaft would freely rotate. This does not damage the gearbox as the output shaft is designed to rotate and is not connected to anything. The issue is that if the car is being towed for longer distances like this there is no way to lubricate the gears and bearings in the gearbox as the oil distribution system is usually connected to the input shaft. But for shorter distances like across a parking lot there is no damage. If the e-break is enabled it may keep the wheels from spinning which just causes them to be dragged across the pavement. This can create flat spots in the tyres but again due to the short distance there will not be much damage. And a lot of e-breaks is not able to keep the wheels fully locked up either and the e-break will slip a bit. This sounds like what you are describing. If the car was in gear then the wheels are connected to the engine. So as the wheels rotate the engine will also rotate. It does take quite some force to rotate an engine around as the compression in the pistons create a lot of resistance. This will usually case the wheels to lock up but it is possible that the engine does indeed rotate a bit. But again it is done for a short distance at low speed so there is little chance of damage. The throttle is shut and the ignition is off so there is nothing bad that can happen. Even if the engine turns backwards there will not be much damage if any. If the car is put in park then that would lock up the wheels completely which would cause them to be dragged across the pavement. A lot of gearboxes does have a hidden button or leaver which would put it in neutral or even a special tow mode. This can often be accessed from the bottom of the car so if you see a tow truck driver go quickly under the car with a screwdriver he is likely putting the car in neutral.
So as this was at slow speed and a short distance there is very little damage done. However there is a reason why the tow truck driver only pulled the car out from the rear and then switched to towing from the front. Towing a front drive car from the rear can cause serious damage over longer distances. But for short distances like getting the car out of a parking spot there is little chance of damage. Most tow trucks does have dollies and jacks which can be used in cases like this if there is fear of damage. However it is not always needed or there may not be enough room to use the dollies. It does take a bit of time to assemble the dollies under the car.
Don’t they normally just put those little dollies under the front wheels to get it out?
If an automatic transmission car is in park, and can and often does totally smash the orbital gears.
Gtoger? #drumbeats They are only dragging the car a short distance, and very slowly. It’s unlikely to damage the car. If it does then the tow company has insurance.
They do not care if they damage the vehicle, it is all about the money they collect for towing/impounding the vehicle.
Tow drivers may sometimes drag a car out of a space so they can get around and hook it up properly.
It’s typically not going to damage anything if it’s a short distance.
I’m assuming your watching gtoger. A few times they have. They cant pull from the back for the specific reason your starting. Sometimes they have to get a dolley sometime they just give up and move on.
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