Tag: tow

Video: Nissan Patrol attempts Guinness record with 170-ton cargo plane tow

Filed under: SUV, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Nissan, Middle East, Off-Road

Nissan Patrol SUV pulls 170-ton cargo plane for Guinness world record.

Yesterday, Nissan teased us with a video showing a Patrol pulling up to a 170-ton cargo plane at an airport in the Middle East – we could only assume that the not-for-America sports utility vehicle would attempt to tow the jet.

Well, somebody leaked the official Nissan video, which indeed shows the Patrol successfully pulling the plane 30 meters for what reportedly is a Guinness world record. While Guinness hasn’t confirmed the record on its website at time of writing, the 170-ton jet would be the heaviest plane ever towed by a production automobile. The video was taken down quickly, but another video shot by an observer at the event was posted for our enjoyment. We figured Nissan would move to repost the official video sooner rather than later, and it did.

The Patrol seems to have no problem towing 340,000 pounds, but let’s just say it wasn’t a quick ordeal. Check out the official and unofficial video of the tow below, as well as Nissan’s teaser video. In a reversal of fortunes, we also threw in another, somewhat smaller but perhaps just as impressive vid, just for fun.

Note, this isn’t the first time a passenger vehicle has towed a massive air-bound machine behind it. See here and here, and for another record-breaking tow record, click here.

Continue reading Nissan Patrol attempts Guinness record with 170-ton cargo plane tow

Nissan Patrol attempts Guinness record with 170-ton cargo plane tow originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 23 Aug 2013 10:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: McLaren takes P1 up the hill at Goodwood with contest winner in tow

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Performance, Videos, Toys/Games, McLaren

McLaren P1 on the Goodwood Festival of Speed course for the Forza McLaren Ride

Andrew Freeman is proof that video games will take you places. That’s not really news, we suppose, considering the success of Nissan and the GT Academy, which takes talented gamers and turns them into full-blooded racecar drivers. Freeman’s case is a bit different, though, as it was more deduction than a blistering lap that got him a seat in a McLaren P1.

Freeman won his spot by taking part in the Forza McLaren Ride, a Facebook contest where he had to watch the trailer for Forza Motorsport 5, then use a map of the circuit shown in the video and figure out where the starting grid was at. The person closest would win a free trip to the Goodwood Festival of Speed and would be the first person from outside the McLaren organization to ride in a P1, with McLaren’s head test driver, Chris Goodwin, at the wheel. And to top it off, they’d be tackling the Earl of March’s driveway.

Take a full look at the video of Freeman and his trip below.

Continue reading McLaren takes P1 up the hill at Goodwood with contest winner in tow

McLaren takes P1 up the hill at Goodwood with contest winner in tow originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Aug 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Official: 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel gets 9,200-pound tow rating

Filed under: Truck, Diesel, Ram

The current-generation Ram 1500 is entering its fifth year on the market, but Ram’s half-ton truck is not showing its age whatsoever. While we continue to wait for the fuel economy figures for the all-new EcoDiesel V6, Ram has released towing figures for trucks equipped with this new engine, as well as models fitted with the upgraded gasoline-powered V6.

The EcoDiesel – a $2,850 option – will help the Ram compete with V8-powered trucks with its max towing capacity of 9,200 pounds, which is just 50 pounds shy of the 2013 Ram 1500 with the 5.7-liter V8. The true benefit here is that the diesel should return impressive fuel economy in the process, and even though official estimates have yet to be released, Chrysler has promised that it will achieve more than 25 miles per gallon on the highway.

But even with the Pentastar 3.6-liter V6, upgrades to the eight-speed automatic transmission have resulted in an increase in towing capacity, now up to 7,450 pounds. This number is expected to be best in class for base-engine trucks.

Continue reading 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel gets 9,200-pound tow rating

2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel gets 9,200-pound tow rating originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Jul 2013 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: How not to tow a Chevrolet Corvette

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Etc., Videos, Chevrolet, Police/Emergency

Corvette tow

Chevrolet Corvette tow fail – Click above to watch the video after the jump

Remember the driver of that snowplow in Brooklyn that absolutely destroyed a parked Ford Explorer? Looks like he was fired by the City of New York, only to find gainful employment in Chicago. Either that, or he’s got relatives working for the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Apparently the owner of this C5 Chevrolet Corvette managed to crash or disable it early on a Friday morning last month despite what appears to be favorable road conditions. That part we know little about. What we can see is what happened after.

In the video after the jump, you’ll see a big-rig tow truck come to the Corvette’s aid, but it ends up causing more damage than the original crash did in the first place. Apparently without a flatbed available, the tow truck driver tried several times to lift the Vette up by its rear axle using a claw, shredding the fiberglass bodywork in the process. But as if that weren’t enough to put the “car” in carnage, the operator apparently didn’t even get the claw hooked in properly. Compounding matters is that the Corvette may have had a damaged (or missing) right-front wheel. The end result is that the bodged Bowtie gets dragged down the highway sideways like a toddler pulling a stuffed animal around by its tail.

Follow the jump to watch the teeth gnashing footage, but be warned: it’s not for the faint of heart or the weak of stomach when it comes to Kentucky’s finest.

[Source: YouTube via Tampa Bay Examiner]

Continue reading Video: How not to tow a Chevrolet Corvette

Video: How not to tow a Chevrolet Corvette originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 12:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: How not to tow your modified Subaru

Filed under: Etc., Videos, Subaru

Subaru Towing Fail

A lesson in how NOT to tow – Click above to watch video after the jump

Sometimes you have to tow a car. It’s generally not a big deal and most of us have been a tower or towee at some point. One rule of thumb when manning the car being towed – leave the keys in the ignition so you don’t lock the steering wheel. If you fail to heed these words, as do the chaps you’ll see after the break, you might ended up causing some serious damage to your modified Subaru non-operational vehicle

The two gents riding in the Subaru seen in this video were very lucky they only managed to hurt the car. This adventure in towing could have gone way worse… click past the jump and watch the clip to see what we mean, but be warned there is some NSFW language involved.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: How not to tow your modified Subaru

Video: How not to tow your modified Subaru originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Retriever lets you tow 5,000 pounds… with a Honda Goldwing

Filed under: Aftermarket, Etc., Motorcycle

The Retriever – Click above for high-res image gallery

We don’t know why you’d want to haul a car with a Honda Goldwing, but a Swedish company called Coming Through hasn’t constrained themselves to our tiny imaginations. That’s why they’ve created The Retriever, a stowable towing unit you can have installed on the back of a Goldwing 1800 that’s good for pulling up to 5,500 pounds. If you want a little more help doing a dirty job, you can get a winch added to the package. The only drawback: maximum speed while towing is 20 miles per hour. That wouldn’t stop us from wanting it, though, even though we never imagined… Hat tip to Alexis!

Gallery: The Retriever

[Source Coming Through]

The Retriever lets you tow 5,000 pounds… with a Honda Goldwing originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 21 Sep 2010 16:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota lowers tow-rating of Tundra, but it’s a good thing

Filed under: Truck, Toyota

Automakers have been on the honor system when stating the tow ratings of their pickups, and that has led to lofty numbers that could only be achieved under a very particular set of ideal conditions. Claiming the biggest number for any truck spec is a big deal, but maximum towing capacity is the crown spec. So it was only natural that these automakers – mainly Ford, General Motors, Dodge (Ram), Toyota, Honda and Nissan – would feel the pressure to keep coming up with better and better tow ratings.

Enter the Society of Automotive Engineers and détente: Five of the six truck manufacturers mentioned above have agreed to assess their trucks’ tow rating based on SAE standard J2807. The new standard lays out several benchmark tests for pickups, so automakers won’t be allowed to simply find the right conditions and produce the highest tow rating possible anymore. For the J2807 test, a standardized trailer is hooked up and the truck is put through acceleration tests on level ground and an incline, and its response to effects like understeer, trailer-sway and braking are measured. Only Ford, General Motors, Toyota, Honda and Chrysler will be employing J2807 now, but by 2013 all pickup truck makers will be obliged to adhere to it.

Someone had to go first, and today we learn that Toyota has adjusted its pickup’s tow rating to the new standard, and so the Tundra can tow less on paper today despite not a single change being made to the vehicle. Its towing capacities were lowered anywhere from 400 pounds on the 2WD regular cab (10,800 to 10,400) all the way up to 1,100 pounds on the 4WD CrewMax (10,100 to 9,000).

This shouldn’t be viewed as a knock against the Tundra, because we won’t know where it really falls until we get revised ratings from each of the other five manufacturers, and we expect them all to shift downwards.

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Toyota lowers tow-rating of Tundra, but it’s a good thing originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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