My husband and I are about to hit the road in our rockin’ converted school bus-house, but first we need to figure out how to tow our 'dinghy,a 1999 Saab 9-3 with a manual transmission.
Ideally, we’d like to tow it with all four wheels down, thus avoiding the stress of a trailer. What do you think? Is it possible? Will this totally shred our transmission?
No problem since the Saab has a manual transmission. Pretty much any car with a clutch petal can be towed with all 4 wheels on the ground. It is cars with automatic transmissions that will have the auto transmission wrecked by towing unless you lift the drive wheels off the ground.
Actually there is a fair number of auto trans vehicles that can be towed. See more at Motorhome Magazine online. I did not see Saabs listed; can’t explain that.
Stress of a trailer on a school bus? You can tow a manual trans with all wheels on the ground but why? You have to unhook the car if you ever have to back up, using a trailer you don’t. Without a trailer you have to magnetic or tie on lights for brake lights and such on the car. IMHO it is easier using a trailer.
Every senior citizen RVer I know thinks the rig to tow on four wheels is much easier to handle than a dolly or trailer.
hippieflair, check with the service department at an RV dealership. They can outfit your car for towing on all four wheels. In addition to the towing hardware, you will need a brake control unit (so the brakes in the car are applied when you apply the brakes in the bus), and a connection for the lights.