Car towing in Adelaide
A hatch with a flat battery and a sports car with a lip that scrapes on driveways go up the same tilt tray, but they load in different ways.
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In short
A car goes on the tilt tray with all four wheels off the road, strapped by its tyres so nothing pulls on the body. SA Best Towing moves sedans, hatches, wagons, sports cars, EVs and hybrids around Adelaide from its yard at 48 Blenheim St, Angle Park. Ring 0457 300 057 for a price before you book.
What we move
- Hatchbacks and small cars
- Sedans
- Station wagons
- Sports cars and coupes
- Lowered and modified cars
- Electric cars
- Hybrids
- Prestige and European cars
A Mustang GT with a low front splitter
A red Mustang GT sits side-on to a suburban street, with black wheels, red brake calipers and a front splitter hanging low over the deck. Blue straps wrap the rear tyre and pull down to the tray. Holding the car by its tyres lets the body ride on its own springs, with the straps clear of the paint. Cars like this are the reason we ask about front lips and ride height before the truck leaves the yard.
How cars go onto the tray
The tray tilts until its tail touches the road. Here’s the order it goes in for cars.
Check the car will roll and steer
Before the tray tilts, the driver checks the car sits in neutral with the handbrake off and the steering free. Plenty of modern cars need the key nearby to stay in neutral with the engine off, and EVs often hide a tow mode in a screen menu.
Bring it up nose first and watch the lip
The tray tilts down to the road and the winch draws the car up slowly, nose first. On a low car the driver watches the front lip as it comes up. If the lip’s going to touch, the car can come up rear first instead.
Strap it down by the tyres
Once the tray levels out, wheel straps go over the tyres and ratchet down to the deck.
Roll it off rear first at the other end
At the drop-off the tray tilts again and the car rolls back down on the winch cable. The front lip crosses the tray tail last, so the driver watches it on the way off too.
What the driver watches for
Front lips and side skirts
Splitters, aftermarket lips and side skirts touch first on a tilted tray. Mention them when you call.
EVs that lock themselves in Park
An electric car with a flat 12 volt battery can stay locked in Park. Some have a transport release described in the owner’s manual. If it stays locked, say so on the phone so the driver can plan the load.
Loose panels after a crash
A crash-damaged car coming out of a holding yard can have a bumper hanging by one clip. Tell us about any loose panels when you call, so the driver knows before loading.
What changes the price
Every job is priced on the phone before it’s booked. These are the things that move the number.
- Distance from our Angle Park yard to the car, then on to where it’s going
- Whether the car rolls, steers and comes out of Park
- Extra time on a low car
- Nights, weekends and public holidays
- A second car on the rear lift in the same trip
“Fast towing amazing prices great experience super friendly”
Questions about cars
Answers to common questions. If yours isn’t here, ring and ask.
Can you tow a car without the keys?
Often, yes, but it takes longer. Without a key the steering lock can hold the front wheels straight or turned, and an automatic may be stuck in Park. Ring us first, tell us what you have, and we’ll tell you straight whether we can do it.
Can you tow an automatic car?
An automatic rides on the tilt tray with all four wheels off the road, so its gearbox doesn’t turn at all. If it travels as the second vehicle on a trip, the rear lift raises one end and the car rolls behind on its other axle. The driver picks which end to lift. AWD and lowered cars ride on the tray.
Can you tow a car with a flat tyre?
A flat tyre doesn’t stop a car going on the tray. The winch draws it up slowly and the strap sits over the flat like any other tyre. We don’t change tyres on the roadside, so tell us if the rim is bent or the tyre has come off it, and the driver will plan for it.
Will towing damage my car’s suspension or alignment?
It shouldn’t on a tilt tray. The straps hold the tyres, so the car sits on its own springs with nothing strapped to the steering arms or subframe. If the car already pulls to one side, tell the workshop when it arrives.
Do I need to be there when my car is towed?
That depends on the job. If you can’t be there, say so when you call and we’ll tell you whether the driver can load it without you. If so, tell us where the key will be, where the car’s going and who’ll take it at the other end. Plenty of people like to be there, and that’s fine too.
Also on the tray
Classic car towing
Hot rods, restorations, project cars and show cars, including cars that haven’t turned a wheel in years.
4WD and SUV towing
Lifted 4WDs, family SUVs and all-wheel-drive wagons, carried on the tray so no wheel turns on the road.
Motorcycle towing
Sports bikes, cruisers, tourers, scooters and dirt bikes, strapped upright on the tilt tray.
Advice for this job
Related services
- Breakdown towingA flat battery or a cooked engine. We carry the car on the tilt tray to the mechanic you choose.
- Accident towingAfter a crash, we move the damaged car from the holding yard to the repairer, assessor, home or wrecker.
- Tilt tray towingThe whole vehicle rides flat on the tray, wheels off the road. A second one can follow on the rear lift.