04 4x4 towed by a tow truck...not a flat bed.. could that affect 4x4 transfer case?

My 04 was towed Saturday night.

One of those "KFC parking only" signs
KFC is next to Old Town in Kissimmee FL... there were 1000's of people around for a car show/cruise, people parked on the medians etc. I drove my Buick into the show, my wife went to park the explorer (carrying two 3yr olds) and our friend. Oh and my wife is 7 months pregnant. The only spot she could find was behind KFC... seems like a parking lot separated from the KFC lot by a grass median you have to drive though an opening.

Any way, she parks in there, walks over to the car show, we have the cruise etc, and after the show I suggest I go get the explorer so she and the kids do not have to walk such a long distance being so pregnant.

Well I cannot find the Explorer. after 15 minutes of walking around, out of the corner of my eye I see a tow truck scoop in and lift a trail blazer and leave... 20 seconds if that, the driver did not even get out of the truck. It hit me.. our's was towed too.

I find this little towing company sign on the parking lot near the KFC building, call the number, as sure as there's **** in a cat, they had my Explorer. Was told to bring $125 cash to get it back.

The guy I had to deal with said they have spotters there, and if you dont walk directly to KFC, they wait until you're out of sight and nab your vehicle. A racket if you ask me.

I had to leave our friend with the kids (who by this time were tired, cranky etc) because the car seats were in the explorer, and so was my GPS. Took me 2 hrs to find the damn yard, in the middle of nowhere, pay up, and get my Explorer back.



Anyway... sorry for the rant...
but I got to thinking....

There are opinions on the Brown wire mod could be harmful to your transfer case in situations where the front/rear wheels turn at different speeds for a period of time.

What about when the vehicle is off? Im sure they did not flatbed my Explorer, and it has no 4x4 badges on it so they just towed it rear in the air for about 15 miles to the yard. Nothing seems out of the ordinary, I drove the truck all day, and even tested 4x4... works fine.

Think anything harmful could occur from that? The manual suggests a flat bed for 4x4 and AWD explorers...

if it was an AWD ex u would def have a problem. but if it is a 4x4 you will be fine. since it was 4x4 and the car wasnt running it didnt know to shift the transfer case into 4x4 so it was just unlocked and the rear wheels spun freely.
nothin to worry about.

Tks man... I know it should be fine but sure nice to hear another opinion

They probably lifted by the rear and the front was rolling. Ex was in park and they would probably not even go under to shift it to neutral. Front wheels free roll and since vehicle was not running the transfer case was not engaged. You should be OK. We all had the tow OPPS sometime or another. Glad you got your truck back and all is well.

So there was a sign that said KFC CUSTOMER parking only??? If not... I presume you could press charges for something?? That's basically stealing a vehicle... I myself would have fought it all... but due to your situation.. I see why you wouldn't have...
Glad to hear that you got it back accordingly though...

it is entirely possibly the T case was damaged by this form of towing.. the rear tires moving and the front tires not moving is what causes T case failure in these units, as even when they are not engaged there is quite a bit of parasite drag.. i would sue them for the damage if there is any, and there is likely some. Throw it into 4x4 on some mud, dirt or snow and see if the front tire still hooks up. I would deffinately hold them liable if repairs are needed, to remove a vehicle from the property they are still responsable for it, as in if it was hit while they were moving it or their tow truck crashed and took your rig with it, they would have to pay you for the damages, i believe you could easily prove in a court that they did indeed not follow the propper procedure for towing your vehicle... again check and see if your front wheel still locks up.


BUT there is a little wheel rack that they can hook up to the rear wheels as well that picks the back tires up off the ground too. i have seen them do this to my truck once before and with out rushing a two man team came in and lifted the front end, and dropped one of these little babys around my back tires and was driving off less than 3 minutes later... thankfully to a transmission shop, but still you get the idea... so ask them how they towed your ride too.

I used to work for a bookstore on campus. We had a really small lot, so it was imperative that only customers be allowed to park in it, and not students who couldn't find a space (parking is HORRIBLE on campus). But, despite the two giant signs when you pull in, people still parked in our parking lot and walked to class. On one busy day, I was deemed the "parking Nazi" and I had to do what you described: watch the parking lot like a hawk and call the tow company the second they walked past our entrance. I felt bad, because I empathize with the kids who can never find a spot, because I'm one of them, but I had to anyway.

And I've always been kind of worried about my truck being towed improperly as it is also a 4x4. Tallahassee is INSANELY tow-happy. The tow companies around here must make a fortune, because they tow cars like it's nobody's business. So far I have eluded being towed, but I'm worried one day they'll hook it up by the rear wheels and tow it (I've seen them do it before) not realizing or not caring that it's a 4x4.

I hope yours is okay, but I would definitely closely inspect it. I would say they're liable if something is wrong.

Oh and I love Old Town. But parking is terrible. I think there's a lot behind Red Lobster that people can park at, for future reference. But don't hold me on that! You may get towed there, too. lol

Correct me if I'm wrong. If they tow by the rear wheel (on the hook or lift) and the front wheels are rolling on the road it shouldn't affect the transfer case because it's not engaged to the front axle and the front is free wheeling. I understood it was bad to tow from the front and have the rear wheels rolling because the axle is turning the driveshaft which is connected to the trans and is spinning the output shaft and it has an effect on the transfer case. I believe this is why FORD makes a "wire kit" for people who tow the Explorer with all four wheels behind their motor homes. The wire kit makes the vehicle "go onto neutral" mode.

Some tow companies automatically do a dolly tow (small set of wheels under the trailing/rolling wheels) on SUV. Besides they get to charge more for this. They usually lift by rear because they don't have to deal with the vehicle being in PARK gear since the fronts just free rolls and they can get in and snatch quickly.

It was lifted by the rear as my wife was parked head on in the spot.
I did check out 4x4 yesterday on pavement and got the usual hopping with no unusual no noises or movements. (I never do it on pavement but did this time to check it out)

And yeah I wanted to fight it and get nasty with the tow company but I just needed the truck back that night.
And there was a sign, as small and as ambiguous as it was about the larger parking lot behind KFC.

That same lot behind is also shared with a Red Lobster.
When I was picking up my vehicle there was another couple there to get theirs. Except they had to take a cab - $50! They said they went in to Red Lobster to pick up desert and came out to find their truck gone.

There is no line on this extra back lot to say half is KFC and half is Red Lobster.. what a PITA..
The tow guy said Red Lobster hates that KFC enforces this as it hurts RL customers too.

That's a bunch of crap. Especially since, if memory serves, that lot back there is HUGE. There's no way they even come close to filling a quarter of that lot on a regular basis. Pretty ridiculous they won't allow people to park back there. There's plenty of room and it won't hurt their business at all.

So I looked on google earth and got my wife to mark where she parked.
Not as far back as I thought, but still outside the drive through and main lot around the building.
Still pisses me off...



Oh well... live and learn right?

Yeah, like I said, that parking lot is friggin gigantic. There's no way they use all those spots. No way in hell.

Last time we went, we lucked out and got a spot along that curvy road on the left (there's parallel parking all along it). But people park all over the place over there. Some of them are all up on the grass and in the median...but they bother the people parked way out in the parking lot that gets little to no "legal" use. Horse ****.

XLT03 our T-cases are always halfway "engaged" its why when the auto 4x4 kicks in you wont even notice it, the disks and clutches are always touching, its just no force is applied to push them firmly togeather untill the case is activated, this is why the BWM can lead to tcase failure if you do burn outs a lot. I have had my truck up on jack stands and while the truck is at idle the front tires wont spin but the backs will, after 20mph or so the front tires were turning just as fast as the rear ones..(With the BWM engaged) Old school t cases would have made this a safe venture, but not with our rigs. Id ask them if the used a wheel block on the front tires man, if they did your totaly safe. If not, id have your T-case inspected and then go ahead and let them know you will be sueing them for damages to your ride.


EDIT

I See you tested hte 4x4, go ahead and do it on dirt and make sure its throwing dirt good. the T case may still be slipping a little if there was clutch wear. ALSO, most tow companies tow on a contract basis, so the KFC People likely didnt even make a phone call, Id bet money there was a couple guys in trucks just waiting for people to violate the contract. Was there any signs posted in this parking lot? in that parking space? Id see about sueing them for my money back in small claims court if there wasnt.. I hate tow companys who tow stuff from parking lots... lowest form of life in the automotive industry.

Why Not Tow if Auto Trans?

Scanned all above, think one point was not mentioned, an important one:

Automatic transmissions years back had 2 oil pumps in them- the front turned with the engine, the rear pump turned with the output shaft (therefore, driveshaft). So, if towed, the rear pump provided lubrication for the spinning members within the transmission. It also allowed push-starting as the system being pressurized by the pump while rolling with engine off, would "turn over" the engine when shifted into "drive", and allow starting.

Today's auto. trans. has only ONE oil pump, driven by the engine. So, if towed with driveshaft(s) turning, the transmission, if not the transfer case, will eventually be damaged by "running dry" with no lubrication.

This is why the motor-home set often ordered their Explorer with Manual TRansmission, so they could tow it any distance behind their Winneybago.

BTW, who knows the answer: When an Explorer with electronic odometer is towed, with engine off, does the odometer register the mileage or not? imp

As an ex tow truck driver ive seen the damage done to 4x4's not dollied or flatbedded, most companies will come down hard on the driver who doesnt. but repos or illegily parked vehicles are snatch and go.

A good operator will tow around the corner and then dolly a bad one only cares about numbers, id have it checked by a garage then go to the tow company if any problems arise