(By Greg Rourke) – Towing and recovery is a dangerous job. You have weather, other drivers doing their taxes while driving, and vehicles in all sorts of predicaments that you have to get picked up and out of the way. Then there are times you just don’t have the correct tool for the job.
Here we have an old Dodge, appears to be a CNT1000. These babies had a unique setup for engine access. The hood opened hinged at the rear, like a pickup, then the front fenders were hinged next to the grill and opened forward. The example in the video doesn’t sound like it was equipped with what would have been the most powerful engine available in these, the Screamin’ Jimmy 8V-71, at 318 horsepower. The other options were Cummins 250 and smaller diesels, as well as a few snortin’ Dodge gassers. The wrecker body seems like a shop built special, made from tubing and H beams. It also appears there is a fifth wheel over the axles for hauling semi trailers.
All this might have been fine 99% of the time. But not this time. When the poor antique was called upon to move a Caterpillar rock truck, weighing approximately 11 jillion metric tons. Who knows, it may have even been loaded. The wrecker goes all tractor pull as it tries to drag it up a grade. Not to worry, helpers grab the front bumper before it gets too high to reach and pull it back down, hoping the truck can steer. Then they stand on it, still not much help. Did they ever get where they were going? Will this become an event at next years Rodeo Du Camion? Did the Federales make them pull into a weigh station, where they broke the scale? We may never know.
WATCH THE BIG TOW TRUCK THAT COULD…TRY –
What a display of awesome stupidity – but the guy in the shorts really really wants to cut down on his bean intake!
My ear drums are still vibrating and I thank the Lord my laptop doesn’t have smello-vision!
Stupidity? I dunno. I’ve done that very type thing when I was in the Air Force, moving firetrucks and large fork lifts with 10 ton wreckers when they were the largest thing we had available. Its the difference between someone who will get the job done no matter what, and someone who makes excuses for why they can’t do something. Its the same difference between most business owners, and most employees…
Yeah – but I bet you hadn’t eaten a ton of beans first!
My guess is that haul truck weighs in the neighborhood of 80 tons, which is probably about 30 tons over anything that wrecker is likely to be able to safely tow.
Truck looks Mexican. There\’s a shit ton of those old Dodges down there. Mexicans will get more done before 9:00am than you will all day.
I was thinking – why don’t they put the FAT guy in the white shirt on the bumper. Makes sense to me and when he finally makes a move he wanders off camera.
Probably worked up a hunger with all that watching. LOL
Or maybe he’s the brains of the outfit and has had enough.