THE PORTAL HUB - Pinzgauers, Haflingers, Volvo 303s and more!

NYPinz wrote:I did a search on the forum and read an old thread that mentioned a factory tow bar. Anyone know where that is available from?

audiocontr wrote:
You also do not want to flat tow the pinz at the speeds your truck can safely maintain. It will put unnecessary strain on the reduction gears.

This is absolutely not the case. Pinz's are flat towed extensively here in the US and WW. I'm aware of multiple pinz's towed routinely being RV's and other vehicles. The factory has provided flat towing gear as well. (Actually developed by Herbert Krois)

I've towed mine on 1000-2000 mile trips on a 6000# car hauler as well as flat towing, and feel that flat towing is far superior for all aspects except maybe tire wear.

The factory (herbert's) design properly spreads the load starting with the nose ring, and ties into the front body mounts, all as a rigid structure.

Drivetrain wear is minimal, as the gears are essentially unloaded. Far less stress/wear than driving. Virtually zero torque. You will not want to drive 80-90, but the seals are spec'd for rotational speeds above that assuming you have your hub oil level right.

Don't know where this idea that pinz factory spec is 55mph max.... Official top speed is 110kph for the 710 which is 68mph. Even the swiss army spec'd them for 100kph minimum top speed.

So towing at 60mph/100kph is a piece of cake, and no risk to the pinz.

I find braking with the flat towed pinz far more stable than the car hauler with electric brakes. the trailer weighs half again as much as the pinz, so for my tow vehicle (dodge Ram with cummins) it's no issue at all to stop with the pinz flat towing. Less sway, etc.

Key things you need to do:
- tranny in Neutral
- xfer case in neutral
- Steering wheel unlocked, let it turn (and it will)
- Magnetic trailer lights, Northern Tool, etc. They sit upside down in the license plate area on the rear. Or just inside the rear rollbar if canvas is up.
- Proper pintle hitch on the tow vehicle. The factory design is intended to allow pinz to pull pinz, and both civilian & military pinz's have been delivered this way, with vehicles swapped mid-trip.
- You cannot just attach tow bar to the bumperette's!!!!! The factory setup ties the nose ring to the body mounts making a three sided triangle. Very strong.

Anyone at the recent FL treffen saw the factory flat tow setup on mine. I pulled the bar off to free up my front tow point. Take me 15 minutes to connect and drive away. Once you flat tow one with a factory towbar you will not want to trailer again.

If you do decide to trailer, balance is a key issue to avoid swap. You'll want to tie down at the body mounts to avoid having the pinz springs create high CG sway.

Hope this helps!