MTFCA Forum

The buyer of my Roadster Pickup has asked me a very interesting question. We will be taking it back home on an open trailer. We will secure the convertible roof but he is worried about the windshield on highway speed. I have never transported my T’s in the open. What should I do to protect the windshield?

Thanks
George

I moved several cars from FL to WY during summer just fine. A winter shipment through snow and salt with an open/incomplete freshly restored body and wood was a disaster that I recovered from but still was a pi$$ poor decision driven by FL home selling at a terrible time of year.

the buyer will be fine so long as he doesn't get into snow/salt...

No law says you have to drive 70 mph. I have always used an open trailer, and I have observed my own 55 mph speed limit. The transported T has always arrived unscathed, and my gas hog Suburban has escaped descending into single-digit gas mileage.

George
I have hauled my Ts all over the West with visits in Elkhorn.
Bugs have been my biggest issue.
Worst case as far as the windshield is concerned is a $100 replacement at the local glass shop.
Below picture Taken in Idaho Falls this summer. Look close you will see lots bugs.

Don't be concerned about the glass, it can be replaced, but be concerned about the force of the wind straining the windshield posts. Since its being towed behind something there might be some drafting effect reducing the strain, and that depends on several factors. Steve had a windshield post brake on one of his trips just driving (more a condition problem with the post but..) and like he says, there is no law saying you need tow it at 70mph. In fact there are laws restricting towing at that speed. If your diving a long distance and want to "make time", driving fast doesn't help as much as infrequent stops of short duration. If their worried about the glass getting shipped have them tape a sheet of Styrofoam on it.

Note on above pictures that the upper part of the windshield is either partly folded back or completely folded back.
Note also, that there are folks, which on stock Model T's drives around 50 mph in average over 3 days (Montana500) and have no issues with the windshields.
So 55 mph is probably the speed to go.

This post is just for a tiny bit of reference. I towed a 1920 grain dump TT on an open trailer from Illinois to Colorado at 60-65 mph. It had three pieces of original glass left in it when I bought it. All three made the trip just fine. I almost lost the entire dump bed because the nails rusted utterly, and the bed started sliding sideways off the main beams. Good thing I had brought a bunch of 3" wood screws and a screw gun. I did take duct tape and "X" the glass to give it some support and keep the big pieces from falling all over the highway if one of them should break. While this truck has a wood cab with a fixed windshield, I agree with the previous postings; the windshield glass should be fine with minor precautions.

Good Luck,

One could fold the top of the windshield down and use pallet wrap around the whole unit.

Steve had a windshield post brake on one of his trips just driving...

Yes, the windshield frame broke where it was badly rusted. The rust damage wasn't apparent until the break happened.

MichaelPawelek wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 20, 2021 8:24 am

One could fold the top of the windshield down and use pallet wrap around the whole unit.

I tried the pallet wrap trick. After about 10 miles it started to come loose. Had to pull over and remove it.

I have never had any windshield issues trailering "open". If you can fold down the windshield, then do so. Should be fine.

Unprr wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 19, 2021 9:51 pm

The buyer of my Roadster Pickup has asked me a very interesting question. We will be taking it back home on an open trailer. We will secure the convertible roof but he is worried about the windshield on highway speed. I have never transported my T’s in the open. What should I do to protect the windshield?

Thanks
George

George

It is the responsibility of the Buyer - not you
to facilitate transport.

If the Buyer wants to transport it on an open
trailer - that is their choice and responsibility.

Don’t do anything to prepare the car for transport
other than have air in the tires - make sure it
rolls freely and steers straight.

Don’t be a solution to someone else’s problem

If you prep the car and damage occurs
then the Buyer can blame you ….


FJ

If an open trailer is used all the loose items have to be removed first such as floor boards floor mats andt seat bottoms... anything that is not secure to the car itself

From 2005 until about 2011, I hauled my 1924 Touring around the country on an open trailer. (Longest trip was probably St. Louis MO to Kanab UT and back for the 2009 Canyonlands Tour.) Initially, I worried about the dire warnings. I did lower the top and secure it with bungee cords, but I never removed the seat bottoms or the floorboards (or the floor mats, for that matter). To be on the safe side, I put a couple of bricks on the front and rear floorboards. Not sure they were necessary, but they were also handy on tours when I had to park on a hill. I would also stop after 40-50 miles to check that everything was still secure. It always was. Once, as I was leaving home, I noticed a wadded up piece of paper on the back floor which I meant to retrieve before I left, but forgot. When I got to a highway rest area about 45 miles from home, the wadded-up paper was still on the back floor. Disclaimer: This is a description of my experiences, and is not meant to be interpreted as a recommendation or form of advice. (Happy now, lawyers?)

...is not meant to be interpreted as a recommendation or form of advice.

After the scandal of rigged TV quiz shows in the fifties, broadcasters wanted to appear honest. So in commercials when an actor played a doctor or blissfully happy people were shown using the sponsor's product, the words A DRAMATIZATION appeared at the bottom of the screen. They don't do that anymore.

Dick Lodge is pictured below wearing red shirt at Kanab in 09

KirkieP wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 20, 2021 2:34 pm

Dick Lodge is pictured below wearing red shirt at Kanab in 09

Indeed. Weren't the headdresses part of some kind of skit we were putting on?

Yep
A western or something