I have done towing before when I had my old FL1 (my licence covers it). I helped a neighbour back in 2010 get his car back up the hill and pulled a friends car out of a snow drift he slid into. I didn't do any in last winter as it was more like spring throughout

Anyway, I am looking to buy a new tow rope but have heard some negative reports about the supposedly heavy duty ropes from places like Halfords. Is there a good quality rope to be had without paying mega prices? I certainly don't tow any Tom, Dick or Harry but just in case the occasion calls for it this winter....

Any thoughts? 60 plate SD4 XS, Stornoway Grey, Arm rest pack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly--gT1RJdk

Also, my younger cousin has a Shogun but isn't covered for towing on his licence. He asked me what the penalty was if caught towing without a licence but I didn't know. Short of scouring the net, anyone know off the top of their heads? 60 plate SD4 XS, Stornoway Grey, Arm rest pack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly--gT1RJdk

There is an exclusion in law towing vehicles out of trouble or in an emergency (ie breakdown situation).

Get a towing strap or a rope with a bit of give.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Military-Arctic-...3ccb2bd979

A rope like this would be good but much more bulky to store

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-MTS-X-24-MM-NY...589024bd4e

Driving without insurance, 6-8 points + Fine

Driving without license 3-6 points + upto £1000 fine

So probable loss of License.

Thanks Apache

The first rope looks good and sturdy so will keep an eye on bids there. So does this exclusion mean that if my cousin was using his shogun to help a friend stuck in snow or broken down he would not be punished?

Keep the thoughts coming folks  60 plate SD4 XS, Stornoway Grey, Arm rest pack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly--gT1RJdk

I think you would be very unlucky to be done for towing someone on a rope who had broke down / got stuck in snow.

Towing another vehicle by rope is really for emergency recovery only.

It would be amusing if I found a stranded cop car and had to pull them out! Helping the emergency services is probably classed as an emergency, especially if they are en route to an emergency  60 plate SD4 XS, Stornoway Grey, Arm rest pack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly--gT1RJdk

Kal-El wrote:

It would be amusing if I found a stranded cop car and had to pull them out! Helping the emergency services is probably classed as an emergency, especially if they are en route to an emergency

One thing to be carefull of is the rating of the tow rope. Towing a 2 ton Freelander on tarmac is easy, pulling the same vehicle out of a ditch, or stuck up to the chassis rails in mud will take much more effort.

Towing your mates stranded (3 ton?) shogun will destroy the shackles on a 'car factors' bought tow rope - you then have flying shackles, a Freelander shooting forward, and possibly damaged vehicles / people.

I have a 5 ton webbing strap and 5 ton shackles - both will have been proof tested to 10 tons before certification. Removeable shackles allow the strap to be fed throuh the towing eye of the stranded vehicle. A longer length strap can always be doubled up for towing, a short strap might not be long enough to reach a stranded motorist stuck in a ditch, without placing your vehicle in a risky position.

My observations only - not trained in recovery, just done quite a few  Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

I have, and have used to help others on two occasions, 3 of these- Towsure part number S167, they are 4000kgs webbing.

I would never tow on a rope unless you absolutely have too. Use a proper rigid bar for towing, a lot safer and you have a bit of control over the vehicle you are towing

I think towing a vehicle is different to towing a trailer, the dvla only states b+e is for towing braked and I braked trailers, nothing about towing cars

Andy131 wrote:

One thing to be carefull of is the rating of the tow rope. Towing a 2 ton Freelander on tarmac is easy, pulling the same vehicle out of a ditch, or stuck up to the chassis rails in mud will take much more effort.

Towing your mates stranded (3 ton?) shogun will destroy the shackles on a 'car factors' bought tow rope - you then have flying shackles, a Freelander shooting forward, and possibly damaged vehicles / people.

I have a 5 ton webbing strap and 5 ton shackles - both will have been proof tested to 10 tons before certification. Removeable shackles allow the strap to be fed throuh the towing eye of the stranded vehicle. A longer length strap can always be doubled up for towing, a short strap might not be long enough to reach a stranded motorist stuck in a ditch, without placing your vehicle in a risky position.

My observations only - not trained in recovery, just done quite a few

The first for me would be the better bet, 7M seems a better bet for reaching a stranded vehicle that might not be on the carriage way. webbing stores easier and the hook looks more substantial - the advert suggests that it is rated to 9 tons, more than enough. The downside, the hook is not removeable, the hook and strap don't look to have ratings sewn/stamped on them, as you would find on modern lift rated items. you would still need to buy a suitable shackle for the other end, unless you are intending to loop it over a tow ball on your car.

The tow rope is shorter, the shackles do not look to have a rating stamped in them, and the rope does not have a label stating it's capacity. That said the rope does look substantial, the advert says that it has a 24 tonnes capacity, which is more than enough for car recovery. Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

The strap and rope I linked were just examples really.

I like the flat straps because they are easy to store and are available in decent lengths and capacities.

The advantage of the rope I list is that there will be some 'give' and that reduces snatching of the towing vehicle. Snap hooks are great.

I use straps. I don't use expensive lifting rated shackles because they are for infrequent use and if they snap they snap (never had a problem).

A rigid bar is no use for what you want. If you are trying to rescue a car stuck in a ditch you need correct angles and distances between the vehicles. If you have a snap hook or shackle you can drop the strap over your towball and snap onto the other car's front ring in less than 30 seconds - a real consideration if you are stopped on an icy road rescuing someone. Just take the tension as you drive forwards.

If you anticipated towing a vehicle far then you want a bar or ideally an A frame.