There are many reasons why your vehicle may need towing services. Perhaps, you were taking a long road trip, and your car broke down in the middle of the road. Or your fuel gauge surprises you by dropping to empty, and you need an escort service to get to the nearest gas pump. Whatever the reason, you will need the services of an experienced towing company.
It is essential to note that towing a vehicle in the right way is crucial to its safety. People often choose to pull their cars themselves to avoid the cost of towing services. Others hire inexperienced tow truck drivers to get away with the problem cheaply. But, they don’t realize that applying the wrong towing methods can damage their car, costing them much more than what they might have anticipated initially.
Using the wrong towing techniques can lead to several problems resulting in severe damage to your vehicle. Whether you are towing your car yourself or hiring a company, you must remain cautious, and here is why.
Car Bumper Damage
One of the most common types of damage that a vehicle might experience while getting towed is car bumper damage. This kind of damage usually occurs when the hook is improperly positioned to tow your vehicle. Untrained tow truck drivers might even end up bashing your car, resulting in a lot of damage to your cars bumper, depending on the truck’s size.
Auto Body Damage
Cosmetic or body damage is pretty common when a vehicle is being towed wrongly. Inexperienced tow truck drivers often hook up vehicles incorrectly to their trucks, resulting in exterior damage, including scratches, dents, dings, and damage to the vehicle’s wheels and tires.
While these problems might not influence a vehicle’s performance, they are still expensive to repair. Even if you employ a professional towing company, you should always pay close attention to make sure they secure your vehicle to the tow truck correctly. This can help you avoid any auto body or exterior damage to your car.
Manual And Automatic Transmission Damage
Besides exterior damage, improper towing can result in more severe problems such as mechanical and transmission damage. Yes, a “wrong” tow can hurt your transmission.
A vehicle with a manual transmission is easy to tow. But, things get a lot more complicated when the car has an automatic transmission. If you pull a car with an automatic transmission with all wheels on the ground, it could significantly damage the car. Experts recommend towing the vehicle with the back wheels on the ground. This can prevent damage to the transmission.
Furthermore, a manual vehicle with the transmission in “park” instead of in “neutral” can also damage the car. These vehicles should be towed in “neutral” only. Otherwise, the tow can damage your vehicle’s transmission, linkage, and tires.
Improper towing methods could cause severe damage to your vehicle that can end up in costly repairs. Therefore, it’s essential to clearly understand your vehicle’s specifications before attempting to tow it.
What Steps Can You Take To Prevent Damage While Towing A Car?
You can tow a vehicle safely by following the correct guidelines. Before trying to tow a car on your own or even hiring a towing company, be sure to follow these steps:
- Put your transmission in neutral
- Ensure your parking and emergency brakes are off
- Make sure rear wheels are on the ground, and your rear driveshaft is temporarily removed
- Ask the towing company to use a flatbed truck to tow your vehicle
- Only hire an experienced towing company
If you have any further queries about Edmonton’s quick and affordable towing services, kindly visit our website https://www.actiontowingservice.ca/ or call us today at 780-340-0999.
