A tow bar was a factory option and owners report good luck towing their Pulses.
WARNING: Always use safety chains. And make sure the bolts at the front wheel are tight.
Owosso Motor Car Co. tested the Litestar for flat towing purposes. Here are a few photos.
Nice factory Tow Bar for Pulse #310
Steve Cole's (Pulse #195) Towbar Design
The Pulse will follow along behind the tow vehicle much like a wagon follows the person pulling it. The front wheel will turn with the towbar, which is being turned by the towing vehicle. Likewise, when stopping, the towbar transfers all the momentum of the Pulse to the tow vehicle. My only concern is that it seems that things could get out of control in a panick stop situation when the Pulse is not directly lined up behind you, such as a quick stop on a freeway cloverleaf or while making a turn at an intersection. Just a thought.
by: Bob Cervero:
It really makes no difference in this case if the tow bar is attached to the sprung or unsprung part of the Pulse. The tow bar is not attached rigidly to the Pulse, nor the tow vehicle. There is no tongue weight like a boat trailer for example.
Actually it's better for the tow bar to be attached directly to the front wheel when you hit a pot hole. If you hit a large hole with the tow bar attached to the suspension, not the wheel, then the front wheel is forced to the rear by the impact. This impact to the rear, however is no worse than if you just drove the Pulse itself through the same hole.
If you hit the same hole while towing by the front wheel, then the wheel is not allowed to recoil to the rear because it's being pulled forward by the tow bar. The impact is taken by the tow bar. The suspension will absorb the upward movement no matter how you are towing the Pulse.
As a practical matter, the tow bar attached to the front wheel also steers the Pulse while towing around a corner. It's hard to know how the quick steering of a Pulse would react to being towed by the suspension. The front end might not follow the tow vehicle or get into a high speed wobble if it is allowed to be unrestrained while towing.
Also, there is a long history of the Pulse being towed all over the place by the front wheel, mine included. I have not heard of any problems. The previous owner of my Pulse #61 towed it from Venita, Oklahoma to Reno, Nevada and back without a problem. I would however remove the drive chain for long tows. Other than that, I wouldn't be concerned.
Thanks to Randy Pinkham for the pictures.
The overall length is 78"
There is a drop, from the hitch head to the middle of the tow bar of 3", then it raises back up. This drop insures 'nose clearance' when towing the Pulse with the front shock in the lowered position.
The bracket (where it attaches to the front hub) is 20" long and 9 1/2" wide.
Steve Geroge
I built my towbar in less than 2 hours. Using two lengths of
tubing with a couple of flats welded to it on the ends, another short
section of tubing stacked and welded on the other end with a couple cross
braces, a hitch, and brackets made to fit the front swingarm.
The whole thing cost about 50 bucks total....the hitch being the most expensive part.
I fitted the brackets first, then using heavy bolts for mounting (1/2 inch) and 5/8th for the swing action. Then I fitted the drops to the tubing on each side and then brought the two together and clamped, then tack welded. I then took the assembly off the vehicle and finished the hitch allowing for the nose, drop, ect.
Note I would not recommend this hitch for anything but a car, due to the height. Otherwise you could hit the nose of the Litestar/Pulse.
I also bolted everything and welded and used high quality bolts, washers and self-locking nuts and installed a harnass for wiring and a plug-in for the tow lites.