The Big Rentals Guide to Towing a Car Hauler Trailer in and around Indianapolis, IN

In the racing capital of the world, a car on a trailer is an everyday sight, and a lot of them are headed somewhere specific: the Speedway, the race shops out in Brownsburg, the drag strip, or the Mecum auction at the fairgrounds. Indianapolis moves cars the way other cities move furniture, and the car hauler is how they get there.

Get the trailer wrong for the car and you can't load it. Get the securement wrong and the car shifts on I-465. Skip the enclosed trailer for a car that needed one and you deliver it covered in road grime, or worse. This guide covers the car haulers that match real Indianapolis loads, the Indiana rules that apply the second you couple up, and the tracks, the shops and the roads that make a car hauler trailer rental in Indianapolis its own particular job.

Why Indianapolis Renters Choose Car Haulers

Indianapolis is the racing capital of the world, and that's an industry, not just a race. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway anchors it, but the deeper story is the cluster of race shops out west in the Brownsburg motorsports district — IndyCar teams, NHRA operations, chassis and engine builders — and Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, home of the NHRA U.S. Nationals. Race cars, project builds and shop vehicles move constantly on car haulers: open decks for the workhorses, enclosed trailers for the cars that can't be seen or rained on. For anyone in or around that world, the trailer is the tool that connects the shop to the track. Read more about how open and enclosed car haulers compare.

Then there's Mecum. Every May and October, Mecum brings what it bills as the world's largest collector-car auction to the Indiana State Fairgrounds, and thousands of classic and collector cars change hands. A car bought at auction needs a way home, and a car hauler is it — especially a project or a barn-find that doesn't run under its own power. Read more about how to tow a non-running vehicle with a rented car hauler.

Beyond the pros, Indianapolis has a deep everyday car culture — clubs, shows, Cars and Coffee, and project cars moving to and from specialists across a big metro. Wherever the car is going, you'll find trailer rentals across the Indianapolis area from local owners near you.

Indiana Towing Laws Every Car Hauler Renter Should Know

A car puts you in the brakes tier

Under IC 9-19-3-3, a trailer needs brakes at 3,000 lb gross, operable from the cab and designed to apply automatically if the trailer breaks away from the tow vehicle. A car is 3,000 to 4,500 lb on its own, so a loaded car hauler is at or over the line the moment the car rolls on — assume you need working brakes and a breakaway. Confirm the trailer's brakes and breakaway work and your tow vehicle's brake controller works, and check the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) before you book. Read more about what GVWR means and how to read it.

Securing the car

Indiana requires the load to be secured so that nothing can shift, fall or escape. For a car that means four rated tie-downs to the car's designated points — not to suspension components — with the parking brake set and the car in gear. A car that shifts on the deck is a car that wasn't tied down tightly enough, and it's the most common thing that goes wrong on a car haul. Read more about how to load and tie down a car on a rental trailer.

Safety chains, width and license

Indiana requires safety chains crossed under the tongue as a secondary connection. Trailer width is capped at 8 ft 6 in, which a car hauler sits inside. A standard Indiana license covers a personal car haul — commercial thresholds are well above a pickup and a single car.

Matching a Car Hauler to Your Vehicle and the Car

Deck length and the car you're actually hauling

Car haulers commonly run 16 to 20 ft of deck. Measure the car rather than trusting the category — a long sedan, a classic with real overhang or a full-size truck uses more deck than people assume. Check the trailer's payload against the car's curb weight, too: a midsize car runs 3,000 to 4,000 lb, and a full-size truck or SUV climbs past that quickly.

Ramps, clearance and the race-car question

Indianapolis's loading angle ties straight to the racing scene. A race car, a lowered build or a classic with a long front overhang will drag on a steep ramp, so match the ramp angle and deck height to the car — a low approach angle, longer ramps or a tilt deck for a low car. And if the car doesn't run — a project, a barn-find, a race car between events — you need a winch and a plan, so confirm the trailer has a working winch before you go get it.

Open or enclosed

An open deck is fine for most hauls. For a race car, a Mecum buy, a show car or a fresh build, an enclosed hauler keeps weather, road grime and eyes off it, which is the call the racing and collector scene makes here all the time. For a beater or a project shell, an open deck is fine and simpler.

Hitch, brake controller and where the car sits

Match the coupler to your ball size, confirm the receiver is rated for the loaded trailer and confirm the brake controller works. Put the car forward on the deck for 10% to 15% tongue weight, because too far back and the trailer sways. Use four rated tie-downs and recheck them after the first few miles. Read more about what hitch and tow vehicle you need to pull a car hauler.

The Speedway Haul, the Roads and the Weather

Hauling to the track, the shops and the auction

The places a car goes here are specific: the Speedway on the west side, the race shops and drag strip out in Brownsburg, the fairgrounds for Mecum. Race weeks and auction weeks bring heavy event traffic, so plan the timing — 500 week in May turns the whole west side into an event, and Mecum's May and October auctions pack the fairgrounds. Know where you're loading and unloading before you go, and give yourself margin around the big events rather than sitting in the crush with a loaded trailer.

Open or enclosed for an Indiana drive

Indiana weather makes the open-versus-enclosed choice a real one. Rain, winter road salt and grime all land on a car riding an open deck, so for anything you care about — a race car, a collector buy, a fresh paint job — the enclosed trailer earns its cost. For a beater or a project shell, an open deck is fine.

Rough roads and the tie-down check

The terrain here is flat, so the hazard isn't grades — it's the pavement. Indiana's freeze-thaw winters leave rough, patched roads and expansion joints that shake a car and work its tie-downs loose over the miles. Recheck the tie-downs after the first few miles and again at your first real stop. This matters more on a car hauler than people expect, because the car moves a little every time you brake in I-465 or I-70 traffic, and a little movement, repeated, is how a strap goes slack.

Winter loading

Indiana winters bring snow and ice, and an icy ramp or a salted, slick deck makes loading a car hazardous. Clear the ramps and deck before you load, and if the car and the ramp are both wet and cold, take it slow and use a spotter.

Insurance and Damage Protection

What about insurance and damage protection?

Before towing a rented trailer, contact your auto insurance provider to ask whether your policy covers liability and towing-related damage claims.

Eligible rentals booked through Big Rentals also include Basic Rental Protection at checkout. This added protection can help limit your financial responsibility for certain damage or theft events during the rental period.

For full details on how Basic Rental Protection works, including deductibles, exclusions, and renter responsibilities, review our FAQ and platform terms.

One thing worth being clear about: that protection applies to the trailer. The car riding on it is a separate conversation, and for a race car or a collector buy it's one to have with your own insurer before pickup day.

Ready To Book?

Size the deck to the car, confirm brakes and a winch, secure the car at four points, and choose an enclosed trailer for anything valuable. Do that and a car hauler is the most reliable way to get a car to the track, home from the auction or across the metro. When you're ready, browse car hauler trailer rentals in Indianapolis from local owners near you.

The Short Version

• Car haulers move Indianapolis's racing world — cars to and from the Speedway, the Brownsburg race shops and the drag strip — plus Mecum collector-auction buys and the enthusiast scene.
• A car puts a hauler at or over Indiana's 3,000 lb brake threshold, so assume you need working trailer brakes and a breakaway (IC 9-19-3-3).
• Secure the car with four rated tie-downs to its designated points, parking brake set and in gear. A car that shifts wasn't tied down tightly enough.
• Match the ramp angle and deck height to the car — a race car or a low build drags on a steep ramp. If it doesn't run, confirm the trailer has a winch.
• For a race car, a Mecum buy or a show car, an enclosed hauler keeps weather and grime off it.
• Put the car forward for 10% to 15% tongue weight, and recheck the tie-downs after the first few miles — Indiana's rough roads loosen them.