Okay trailer guru's, here's the deal. I have pulled many o trailers but I have never owned my own. Now I would like to get a car hauler for my Land Cruiser. I know that I will need a 18' deck and a GVW of 10k lbs (the Cruiser weights right around 6k lbs). Other than that, I am clueless. I will probably end up buying a used one and I need to know the things to look for. Any help would be appriciated!

 

check the top deck, if its wood make sure its sturdy and not rotting out. check the tires for dry rotting as well or weather cracks. make sure siring is clean and tight and not been chewed on by mice or other animals. and make sure the metal isnt rusting too bad. that should get you a pretty good start. and make sure its at a minimum a dual axle trailer

 

Jack the wheels off the ground and make sure the hubs are tight and spin freely w/o resistance. While it's off the ground, hook it up to your truck and make sure the trailer brakes work, along with all the lights.

 

Great advice! Is there a way to tell the trailer axle rating by looking at the trailer? I know I need a pair of 5k axles under the trailer so I'm looking for an easy way to tell them apart. Do most trailer mfn put a rating tag on the trailer?

 

8 lug hubs is a start.

 

For the most part...

5 lug - 3,500lb axle
6 lug - 5,200lb axle
8 lug - 6,000lb or 7000lb axle

So make sure you at LEAST get 6 lug axles. I would go with 6,000lb axles though if it was me.

 

Some of the newer 3500s have 6 lugs, just something to look out for.

 

i havent pulled a trailer that didnt have 12000lbs axles under it and wont run less then 10000s so i dont know what to tell you on this subject but i would try to get a trailer you can use to make some money on

 

if the trailer doesnt have torsion axles check the shackels and equilizer bars for excessive wear

 

Thanks guys! Now I need to measure the width of the Cruiser to make sure I get one that it will fit on... What are the bennifits / drawbacks to a deck-over?