Towing a GS100GL shaft drive

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I have an interesting question for those GS inclined.

My 83 GS1100GL was used as a donor bike for a three wheeler. The vehicle works fine, but I am wondering about towing problems if such a situation arises.

I have a towbar which attaches to the front wheel of the vehicle, so my question is, if I put the bike in neutral, can I safely tow the shaft drive at speeds of 55+ with no adverse effects on the bike?

I could just place the whole thing on a flatbed, but would love to tow the vehicle.

Any insights would be appreciated

All the best,

Robert :roll:

[focus frenzy]

It would seem to be ok but I cant find any info on the subject, being towed is probably the last thing on the designers minds when they designed these bikes.
looking at the diagrams of the transmision it apears that the gears will get sufeciant lubrication.
maybe one of the GS masters may know wether it is ok or not. (what do you think nick?)

[JJ]

I remember reading here a while back that you should NOT tow a shaft-drive GS. Something about the gear-oil in the shaft drive assembly overheating, or not lubricating everywhere that it needs to. I'm sure that Nick can give us the definitive answer.

[Anonymous]

This answer is not definite, but my instincts say, "Don't tow it." Put it on a trailer or truck bed, van, whatever.

I used to have, in my much younger days, a TS250 (known as the Savage) Suz, 2-stroke single on-off road. I used to tow it to the off-road riding areas while leaving the rear wheel on the ground. Every time I would tow it, I would remove the master link and chain, so that the transmission would not turn while the rear wheel is rolling. Something tells me not to do the same thing for a big GS shaftie either.

Nick

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys... I wasn't sure if placing the bike in neutral would be sufficient for towing. I have a resident "expert" here who told me it wouldn't hurt a thing. That's why I check the GS resources.

Thanks again,

Robert

[saaz]

I would think that if you are not supposed to tow cars on the driven wheels, similar caution for bikes would be a safe bet

[focus frenzy]

I would think that if you are not supposed to tow cars on the driven wheels, similar caution for bikes would be a safe bet

you should not tow a car with a automatic transmission, auto trannies are lubricated by a pump that is driven off of the input shaft, so it is not getting any lubrication while it is being towed.
It is ok to tow most cars with manual transmisions, they are splash lubricated by the gears spinning in oil.

[Anonymous]

Sooooo, now I am confused again. Are you saying that it may be okay to tow a shaft drive because the gears are spinning oil? :roll:

[saaz]

If you have to, I think it would be ok to tow normally. If you tow it with the front wheel off the ground I would be less certain as the oil the gears normally get lubricated by would not be in its designed location (ie at an angle)

Interestingly, it is illegal to tow a bike with another bike in Australia....safety concerns I suppose, but it would be good to be able to do it if needed and care was taken.