I am looking at moving to another state and need to tow a Focus. Uhaul will not rent me a vehicle trailer because they are Explorer haters. Is there another rental company that you guys know of that I could get a trailer for cheap? BTW, I am going from CA to AZ.
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Where to rent a vehicle trailer?
- Thread starter flyguy
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Since you are pulling a front drive Focus, a dolly is more practical than a tandem axle trailer. I believe Penske rents dollies. Or pick up the trailer with something else, then tow it with the Explorer.
celly
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Or don't deal with U-Haul altogether. They have a long history of shoddy maintenance practices and other not so scrupulous business activities. I'd see what Penske has as was already mentioned. I wouldn't use U-Haul even if they would rent to us.
flyguy
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I am not exactly U-Hauls #1 fan either, but I cant really find an alternative that has easy to load tucks. The Penske ones look too high. Also, I looked into Penske, and they only rent trailers attached to their trucks and not personal vehicles.
BTW, this is my first time towing anything... so excuse me if I sound a little noobish. U-Haul will rent me one of thier vehicle trailers if it is attched to a U-haul truck I rent. Can I essentially remove this from the U-haul and attach it to my explorer? Will I need to make any modifications to accomidate a height difference? Also, are any parts needed other than what came with my factory installed Class III/IV hitch?
BTW, this is my first time towing anything... so excuse me if I sound a little noobish. U-Haul will rent me one of thier vehicle trailers if it is attched to a U-haul truck I rent. Can I essentially remove this from the U-haul and attach it to my explorer? Will I need to make any modifications to accomidate a height difference? Also, are any parts needed other than what came with my factory installed Class III/IV hitch?
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U-haul is pretty much the only big name national company that rents such things and lets you rent it in one state and drop it off in another. If you're going back to CA, you can probably find a local rental place and rent a dolly there. Unless you can find a rental chain in the west that's in both CA and AZ, you're probably stuck with U-haul if you're going to AZ one-way. You can either remove the Ford and Explorer badging and replace it with Mazda Navajo/ Mercury Mountaineer / Lincoln Navigator stuff or whatever, as long as it doesn't say Ford Explorer they'll probably let you rent it and drive off. The easiest option is as mentioned, to just pick it up with a different vehicle than the Explorer. Borrow a pickup, suv, anything with a trailer ball on the bumper or a hitch.
You might need a wiring harness or an adapter depending on what trailer harness your Explorer has and what the trailer has. I believe most of U-hauls trailers use a 4-flat plug. It's loads cheaper to get an adapter elsewhere (walmart, auto parts stores), and would be good to have anyway. If you pick up the trailer and the plug doesn't fit, U-haul will insist you buy an (overpriced) harness/adapter from them before you can drive away. Also, once it's hooked up, be SURE the lights and signals work, especially if you will be driving at night. You might even want to make some kind of "VEHICLE IN TOW" sign and stick in inside the back window of the car so other drivers on the road behind you get the idea.
You might need a wiring harness or an adapter depending on what trailer harness your Explorer has and what the trailer has. I believe most of U-hauls trailers use a 4-flat plug. It's loads cheaper to get an adapter elsewhere (walmart, auto parts stores), and would be good to have anyway. If you pick up the trailer and the plug doesn't fit, U-haul will insist you buy an (overpriced) harness/adapter from them before you can drive away. Also, once it's hooked up, be SURE the lights and signals work, especially if you will be driving at night. You might even want to make some kind of "VEHICLE IN TOW" sign and stick in inside the back window of the car so other drivers on the road behind you get the idea.
flyguy
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Ok... sounds easy enough. My explorer came with some sort of other wire harness which I am sure will make more sense when I have the trailer. I just wasnt sure if there was some sort of adapter peice I would need to have to actually attach the trailer to the Explorer.
It sounds like if I am renting a Uhaul truck anyways, that just picking it up with the U-haul would be the best bet. The only reason I didnt want to tow in the U-haul is that I will be needing thier largest truck and that combined with the trailer is going to be REALLY long.
It sounds like if I am renting a Uhaul truck anyways, that just picking it up with the U-haul would be the best bet. The only reason I didnt want to tow in the U-haul is that I will be needing thier largest truck and that combined with the trailer is going to be REALLY long.
BWilliams
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flyguy, I would assume that the '05 and '07 setups are pretty much the same, so you should have an adapter similar to what I got with the truck, to convert the 7-pin on the truck to a 4-pin flat for the trailer. Just make sure that all of your lights work, and there shouldn't be a problem with towing it.
T
TinwoodyII
Years ago, my brother and I flat-towed a Vega (anyone remember those) with a Penske 26' truck, and while it was long, it wasn't any problem to drive, and I regularly drive a 26' cargo truck from Sacramento to Fresno at freeway speeds. I believe that 26' single axle is about as big as the rental guys have for ordinary consumers without a Class B or C license.
Bill W
BWilliams
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Ah, no... I have that harness as well, but I haven't a clue what that actually is (my guess is that it might be for a trailer brake controller, but I don't know). The adapter I have is just a round male connector, that goes into the truck's 7-pin round trailer connector, with a 4-pin female connector at the other end.
Mine looks something like this, just without the ring on top:
http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/brandsportinc_1950_23089466
The backside of that picture would just be a 4-pin flat connector.
Mine looks something like this, just without the ring on top:
http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/brandsportinc_1950_23089466
The backside of that picture would just be a 4-pin flat connector.
BWilliams
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Mine was in the back, under the same door as the tire change equipment -- it's in a Ziploc bag, with the 7-to-4 adapter, the trailer brake connector, and wiring diagrams for the Class II and Class III/IV hookups (said diagrams confirm that the 6-pin harness is a TBC harness).
manaen
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Most u-haul trailers use a 4-flat to 4 wire adapter that needs to be connected to the trailer. They almost always make you buy the stupid adapter, and since I never use it for anything else I loose it and then need to buy another one every time (it's a conspiracy <G>)
Anyway you need the 4flat connection (as stated) but then you also need the 4-flat to 4-wire adapter from uhaul. It has the 4-flat on one end with 3-push connectors(lights) and one aligator clip (ground) that adapts to thier trailer wiring. Oh and usually the people that work there don't know the wiring of the plug so it is trial and error to get the right combination of push connections to the trailer <G>
With uhaul always check the bearings on the trailer before you drive off the lot. I've had a closed trailer that was so bad that it would violently shake at anything over 35mph because the tandem axles were that loose. Ever since then I check, and refuse to take any trailer that has excessive bearing play.
Do you have a Rentals Unlimited out there? they have car trailers..
Anyway you need the 4flat connection (as stated) but then you also need the 4-flat to 4-wire adapter from uhaul. It has the 4-flat on one end with 3-push connectors(lights) and one aligator clip (ground) that adapts to thier trailer wiring. Oh and usually the people that work there don't know the wiring of the plug so it is trial and error to get the right combination of push connections to the trailer <G>
With uhaul always check the bearings on the trailer before you drive off the lot. I've had a closed trailer that was so bad that it would violently shake at anything over 35mph because the tandem axles were that loose. Ever since then I check, and refuse to take any trailer that has excessive bearing play.
Do you have a Rentals Unlimited out there? they have car trailers..
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