Towing an EB... Myth or Fact

[DeVa70Bronco]

I've heard a couple of different arguements on towing an EB with a tow bar. One train of thought is the gears in the transfer case(Dana 20) don't sit submerged in oil so they will burn up while being towed. The other is that even though the gears are not fully submerged they still sling enough oil to keep the gears lubed while being towed. I can see both sides of the arguement and being a novice I am not willing to risk my transfer case testing either theory. Does anyone have any experience input on the subject.

On the other hand, I do have a friend that machined a 90 degree filler tube inorder to fill the transfer case further with oil. Sounds like a good idea and he towed it over 1000 miles recently without a problem. My question is is this a necessary fix and if so can any fault the idea... could it cause other problems?

 

[Bully Bob]

This comes up a couple times ea. year. :-B

More oil is an "exercize in futility"....it can only add a bit more drag while the veh. is under its own power. However., no real harm should come of it.

The lower gears are always submerged or more accurately, at, or below the oil level at rest.

The prob. you are refering to is the input & output bearings at the top of case.

In neutral., & being towed., these bearings spin but the gears below do not.

---(When in gear., the spinning gears move the oil UP {viscous migration} to these bearings.)---

Soooooooo.., in theory, during a long tow....the bearings could dry out somewhat. OR., if they're worn., this could bring them to an end.

The safest way is to remove/disconnect the dr. shaft & the worry is eliminated.... /

ALSO, one side note.., a "lift" can affect the tow-following of the front wheels..!

 

[S_bolt19]

The safest way is to remove/disconnect the dr. shaft & the worry is eliminated.... /

Thats exactly what I was going to say. For the 10 minutes it takes to take it off and put it back on, why rush it and risk shelling an x-fer case.

 

[DeVa70Bronco]

The lower gears are always submerged or more accurately, at, or below the oil level at rest.

The prob. you are refering to is the input & output bearings at the top of case.

In neutral., & being towed., these bearings spin but the gears below do not.

---(When in gear., the spinning gears move the oil UP {viscous migration} to these bearings.)---

Thanks for the clarification and specific nomenclature. And it seems disconnection of the drive shaft is the most common thanks for the help.