Hey guys,

I had to have my truck towed home (long story), and decided to have it flatbedded. The truck is an '86 4Runner, auto. The tow truck driver was telling me to put it in neutral as he brought it up the ramp. Halfway up, he was having some issues, and told me to throw it in park, and get out. Normally, I would set the handbrake, but, he didn't tell me to, so I figured he had more experience, and knew what he was doing!

Anyways, the front two wheels were on the flatbed, and he needed to adjust the vehicle on the truck, so he decided to winch in the truck a bit (about a foot or so), to align it. I saw the wheels turn about a half turn or so, and the vehicle just get dragged a little. There was a bit of slush under the vehicle, which obviously made it easier to drag.

I didn't say anything to the driver, and you guys have a bit more experience here -- should I be worried at all, and could anything bad have happened? Would this have simply been the equivalent of, say, parking it on a severe incline and not setting the brake?

I know they're tough questions without seeing the truck, but, I towed it home to fix something -- not to make more work!

Thanks,
khany2002

 

I wouldn't worry much. The 'P' pawl can handle a lot of abuse. It will 'pop' out and let the gears spin if the stress on it is too much.

 

why wouldnt you say anything to the tow truck driver? if you feel he is doing something wrong ask him about it. after all, its YOUR vehicle he is moving.

 

if my 98 can roll backwards in drive, than your truck should deff. be fine

 

most autos can roll backwards in drive (less the german types)...

and, i would always speak up...you have no idea what tow truck drivers care about, they may hate cars, and love to ruin them.

after all, your truck was not moving, and maybe they like wrecking things all the more. ive had to specifically request flat beds before, and remind tow truckers that my cars are "rear wheel drive" when i know they knew they were...

and to top it off, my friend had a completely rebuilt bmw drivetrain (tranny/ train/ LSD diff too) and a driver wrecked it all in 5 miles.

not to get you paranoid, (most people are professionals) but always ask questions and confirm that they know what they're doing, and you know whats expected..

hope that helps

 

That's simply a function of the stall speed of the torque converter and the rpm's that the engine is turning, in drive, when it rolls backwards.



Fred

 

Thanks a lot for the reassurance guys!

I don't really have any experience with transmissions, and had no idea if it would indeed pop out of park if the strain on it were too great -- good to know!


I didn't have the energy to even bother arguing with the guy; I'd been waiting for the tow truck for about 4 hours, two of which were in about -30 degree weather. I had to bike about 5 miles to the dealership and wait there for the tow truck, as my parents needed their car and I couldn't get a ride. Once it was done, I felt there was no point arguing over the fact; if something was damaged, getting into a debate over it wouldn't fix it!

To reinforce that, the guy I was dealing with seemed to be the type of guy who would just drop everything and leave my truck where it was if I gave him too many hassles!

Thanks again!

 

Why didn't you ride in the tow truck?

 

The tow truck drivers around here are still recovering from a few days ago when we got dumped with about 20 cm of snow, then, the temperature dropped to about -40 for a few days, just to add some spice and keep things interesting, so it was hard for them to even get my truck home, let alone picking me up, then going to pick up my truck!

I had to bike to the dealership to get to my truck, and where the tow truck would meet me; of course, bringing the truck back home, I rode in the tow truck.

Thankfully, I was planning on putting the 4Runner into storage this fall so it wouldn't have to be subjected to all the salt we get here in Ottawa, and I had bought studded winter bicycle tires and all the appropriate gear for winter bike riding, since I don't need to go too far most days.

 

nice winter bike tires never knew they had those!! im gonna put my hilux away next year.. this was its first winter after 3 years in the country andi cant put it though it next winter.. it pains me

 

Do it.. Don't let the salt get the best of it!

 

Im in the local fire dept and after a accident when the vehicles are loaded alot of times they are in park or the towdriver is too lazy to put them in neutral if they look totaled and I must say I have never reall seen a p pawl break. I was at one where the tow driver was tring to break it on purpose. Atleast untill we called him out on it and made him look like an as@. It wasnt totaled and he was in a hurry and lazy. So I must say they go through alot of abuse.