Towing an M38

oldairplanenut · Post by **oldairplanenut** » Mon May 11, 2009 6:07 pm

I recently acquired an M38 and it came with a front bumper mounted tow bar. A friend told me that I would damage the tranfer case bearings and syncros if I towed it without disconnecting the rear driveshaft. He said that it is the gear on the front input shaft coming from the engine that "scoops" the oil to lubricate things. Is this correct? Thanks in advance for the info.
- Craig Young, Hudson, WI

Post by **wesk** » Mon May 11, 2009 7:14 pm

You can safely flat tow up to 300 miles one way with no problems at a reasonable speed. Assume reasonable here to mean not greater than 60 MPH. It helps to have locking front hubs that can be unlocked and the transfer case left in neutral. No nead under this arrangement to disconnect any drive shafts. Folks who tow a lot for great distances convert the rear axles to full floaters so they can use locking hubs on them as well.

oldairplanenut · Post by **oldairplanenut** » Mon May 11, 2009 7:22 pm

Thanks for the reply, Wes. Transfer case in neutral. How about the transmission? Should it be in neutral too, or in gear?