The Big Rentals Guide to Towing a Car Hauler Trailer in and around Minneapolis, MN

In Minneapolis the car-hauler season starts when the roads finally clear of salt and the stored cars come back out. The calendar runs the work here: haul-out in spring, shows and cruise nights all summer, storage runs in fall. And Minnesota winter shapes every choice, starting with whether the car should ride open at all.

Haul a clean classic on an open deck through spring salt-spray and you undo a winter of careful storage. Get the securement wrong and the car shifts on the highway. Skip the enclosed trailer for a show car and you deliver it grimy. This guide covers the car haulers that match real Minneapolis loads, the Minnesota rules that apply the second you couple up, and the seasons that make a car hauler trailer rental in Minneapolis its own particular job.

Why Minneapolis Renters Choose Car Haulers

The Twin Cities have a deep classic-car and street-rod culture. The Minnesota Street Rod Association's big summer show fills the State Fairgrounds, and cruise nights and local shows run all season, so classics, hot rods and project cars are constantly moving to and from shows, shops and new owners on car haulers. Read more about how open and enclosed car haulers compare.

The long winter drives the other half of the calendar. A lot of cars are stored from fall to spring here, and the hauler is how they get to and from storage, and how a spring purchase or a finished project comes home. Plenty of those cars don't run under their own power yet. Read more about how to tow a non-running vehicle with a rented car hauler.

Underneath the hobby, a big metro buys, sells and moves cars year-round. Wherever the car is headed, you'll find trailer rentals across the Minneapolis area from local owners near you.

Minnesota Towing Laws Every Car Hauler Renter Should Know

A car puts you in the brakes tier

Minn. Stat. § 169.67 requires trailer brakes at 3,000 lb, or whenever the trailer's gross weight exceeds the empty weight of the tow vehicle, with an automatic breakaway, and combinations over 10,000 lb must stop within 50 ft from 20 mph. A car is 3,000 to 4,500 lb on its own, so a loaded car hauler is in the tier. Assume you need working brakes and a breakaway, and confirm the trailer's brakes, the breakaway and your tow vehicle's brake controller. Check the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) before you book. Read more about what GVWR means and how to read it.

Securing the car

Minn. Stat. § 169.81 requires the load fastened so nothing shifts or falls. 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 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.

Spring frost laws, briefly

From roughly early March to mid-May, Minnesota posts axle-weight restrictions on some roads while the ground thaws (Minn. Stat. § 169.87). A car hauler is far under a loaded truck, so it usually isn't the target, but a posted local or gravel road in spring can still apply, so watch the signs on back roads during thaw.

Chains, width and license

Safety chains cross under the tongue, rated to the load. Width is capped at 8 ft 6 in, which a car hauler sits inside, and a standard Minnesota license covers a personal car haul. Read more about what hitch and tow vehicle you need to pull a car hauler.

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, because 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 classic question

A lowered street rod 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. If the car doesn't run — a project, a barn-find, a car pulled from winter storage with a dead battery — you need a winch and a plan, so confirm the trailer has a working winch before you go get it.

Open or enclosed

This is the Minnesota call. An open deck is fine for a beater or a project shell. For a classic, a show car or a fresh restoration, an enclosed hauler keeps spring salt-spray, road grime and weather off it, which is exactly why the show and storage crowd reaches for one here.

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.

The Seasons, the Salt and the Show Haul

The spring haul-out and the salt

Cars come out as the roads clear, but early spring still means salt and sand on the highways, and an open haul can spray a freshly stored car with the exact grime you spent the winter keeping off it. Time the trip for a clean, dry day or take an enclosed trailer for anything you care about.

The show and cruise season

Summer fills with shows and cruise nights, so plan your loading and unloading and the event traffic around them. A show field is a tight place to unload a car, and arriving early beats jockeying a trailer through a crowd.

Frost-law season on the back roads

During the same spring thaw, some local and gravel roads carry posted weight limits. A car hauler is usually well under them, but check the signs if your route runs off the main highways.

Winter, storage and cold loading

If you're hauling into or out of storage in the cold, Minnesota winter seizes latches and stiffens straps and ramps. Clear ice and snow off the ramps and threshold before you load, work the tie-downs so they aren't frozen, and don't seal a wet car into storage, since trapped moisture is its own problem over a long winter.

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 classic or a show car 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 you care about in spring salt. Do that and a car hauler is the tool that runs your whole season, from the first thaw to the last storage run. When you're ready, browse car hauler trailer rentals in Minneapolis from local owners near you.

The Short Version

• Car haulers run Minneapolis's classic-car season — shows, cruise nights and the fall-to-spring storage cycle — plus the metro's everyday car flow.
• A car puts a hauler in Minnesota's brake tier, so assume working trailer brakes and a breakaway (Minn. Stat. § 169.67).
• 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 lowered rod or a classic drags on a steep ramp. If it doesn't run, confirm the trailer has a winch.
• For a classic, a show car or a fresh restoration, an enclosed hauler keeps spring salt-spray and grime off it.
• Watch for posted spring frost-law limits on local and gravel roads during the thaw, and keep 10% to 15% of the weight on the tongue.