21 Dec 96 21:23, Paul Edwards wrote to andrew clarke:

 JT>>> Parking with your steering full lock in one direction makes towing a 
 JT>>> little inconvenient.

 >> Please explain.

 ac>> The above is assuming all four wheels are in contact with the ground 
 ac>> though.  If a tow truck is used the whole front of the car is lifted 
 ac>> off the ground (the car doesn't even have to have any wheels on the 
 ac>> front :-). 

 > Why can't they just pick up the front bit and then tow?

They can.  I said that.

 > Is it because rear wheel drive prevents that from happening?

If it's in first or reverse gear, that may make things more difficult, but
far from impossible.  On a front wheel drive car the only protection you
have from being towed away is your hand brake (ie. no protection). Anybody
with half a brain and the right equipment can sidestep any of these
problems without much trouble, eg. (depending on the weight of the car)
jack up the rear of the car and stick two trolleys under the wheels, or
some other movable object under the rear axle, secure it, then drive off. 
Or get a trailer-truck and use low-geared a mecanical winch to pull the car
onto the back of the truck.

If you come across an old car in a paddock or somewhere, you buy it, but
all four brake discs have seized up with rust, or it's stuck in gear and
the gearbox has seized, or there is a clutch problem, or something else,
you might go about things in much the same way as you would if you intended
to steal it.  :-)

 > If so, then wouldn't 4WD mean that your car is untowable unless they
 > get the entire car off the ground?  BFN.  Paul.

Most 4WD cars you see on city roads are only using two-wheel drive anyway -
their drive train isn't meant to operate in 4WD mode on grippy surfaces
like tar or concrete.  For all intents and purposes it is just like any
other rear-wheel drive car except when driving off-road when the driver
opts for all-wheel drive.

--- Msged/2 4.10 beta 2