How to Make a Wheel Car Dolly: Making a Car Dolly by 6+ Easy Steps

A wheel car dolly can be quite handy in moving and replacing the wheels of your car. For me, a wheel dolly is quite crucial because I often have to change and repair my wheels.

Searching for a good quality wheel dolly online can be frustrating and feels unreliable. It doesn’t mean that they are inadequate, but finding the right one is tricky. And always the it-does-not-fit in my car’s wheel problem can be so annoying.

So, without funding some extra bucks in a wheel dolly, I thought, why don’t I learn how to make a wheel car dolly with the objects around my house. To make it happen, I invited my friend Josh, who has a garage on his own, to my house and asked for his help.

I think our experience will help you to make those money-saving wheel dollies easily.

Contents at a glance show

What is a Wheel Dolly?

Trust me, if you really want to make a wheel dolly, then googling some random images will not help you. Before starting, why don’t you know what is a car wheel dolly?

A wheeled dolly is a simple yet complex mechanism that is a four-wheel platform to balance the wheel for GTI. Another car dolly triangular-shaped steel mechanism that is used for attaching carts and trailers behind cars.

It’s more like a wheel skateboard. It’s a pretty simple mechanism. With wheel dollies, you can do these things-

Move your car from one spot to another.
Can attach your trailer and carts.

And, also you can add a swivel to your tow dolly to carry trailers and other cars. But, does a tow dolly have to swivel? Actually, it depends on what you will do with your vehicle. If you like to carry your trailers, then you can add a swivel in your DIY ATV dolly.

It will make the trailer more balanced, or you don’t have to add a swivel, and still, you can use it. But the question is, how to make a wheel dolly?

6+ Easy Steps to Make a Car Wheel Dolly

With these 6 easy steps, you will be able to know how to make homemade wheel dollies easily. We will also cover all the necessary stuff, maths, and information about DIY auto dolly. All you have to do is follow them.

Step 1: Gathering All the Essential Materials

Before starting, it’s better to gather all the necessary tools and materials so that you don’t have to search for them while building. It’s time-consuming and unnecessary.

You will need these items-

An axle.
Built-in strong and powerful casters.
Few carriage bolts.
A necessary amount of nuts.
Finely cut steels.
A trailer coupler( can be found in any mechanical store).
Safety chains.
30 feet angle steel plate.
A pair of solid wheels.
Drill machine.
Wrenches.
Screwdriver set.
Hammer.
A welding machine.
A wooden plank.

We added some extra items with the already essential items. Because You may need these additional items, so we intentionally do it.

Step 2: The Axle Part

You may ask why we used steel? It is because your dolly has to endure an enormous amount of weight. So, you have to make heavy-duty tow dolly plans.

Axles are pretty crucial for car wheel dollies, and they are available in a car salvage yard. You can also find them in an old and ruined car’s rear site. This axle will be attached to the rear wheels of the vehicle, which should help you with the wheels.

Moreover, You don’t have to find any unnecessary unattached wheels. This axle will be the body of your dolly. One sad thing is, this axle part comes in pieces, and you may not get one pieced together. So, if you want to buy one, it will be a bit more charged. But, if it’s an old version, then the price may be $80 to $100.

Step 3: Cutting the Axle

Now, you have to cut the axle. Find the center part of the axle and pinpoint it with a marker or chalk. For being a hollow tube, this part will be easier to cut.

To attach the pieced parts, you will need a sprinkler pipe. Check the diameter of the cut hollow tubes. This measure is various for different vehicles. After measuring, buy the sprinkler pipe or black pipe according to the outside diameter of the cell.

The purpose is to attach the parts by accurately inserting the black pipe inside the separated tubes of the axle and combine them together. After inserting the tubing and attaching the cut parts, weld the thing exactly where the axle components were connected.

Like this, your axle will be durable and fit for heavy-duty works.

Step 4: Constructing the Cradle Part

Your cradle will be a triangular angled steel construction that will be attached to the rear side of the car. The universal required dimensions of a cradle should be 80 degrees wide and 23 degrees deep.

After the measurement, put 18-inch angle steel from the cradle’s end between the two sides and weld them. Now, set the two-angel steel inside the box and weld again. Be careful and precious while welding the steel parts.

One crucial thing you have to consider is the alignment of the cradle and the BMW wheel part of the tow dolly. Be sure to attach the cradle and the wheel box according to precise center alignment so that they can easily carry the front side of a vehicle.

Accurately doing it will let you weld the cradle with the center of the axle. Always keep the mechanism square.

Step 5: Assembling the Tongue

Building the tongue will be a bit difficult, but manageable. Take a box tubing and cut a piece from it that is 4 feet long. The removed proportion is necessary so that it can fit between the axle and cradle, and now weld all the outer sides of the dolly.

Now take 2 long pieces of steel that are 2*3 diameter. Take one piece of steel and place it on the other piece’s top. Remember to push forth the top piece 6 inches and weld them. Take this cross-type steel mechanism and weld it in the premade box tubing. This extra part will make your dolly a bit long.

For maximum protection of the dolly, You can either use bolts to attach the coupler or weld it, your choice.

Step 6: Building the Ramp

Building the ramp is easy compared to the other processes. All you have to do is, cut the wood plank in half and the meantime, cut off two angle steel pieces.

Now, with high-quality bolts attach the one surface of the angel steel at the end of each board.

Step 7: Attaching the Straps

After finishing the dolly, attach heavy-duty straps to the dolly. Remember, your strap has to endure the pressure of 3500 lbs.

Some Crucial Advice
Well, when I and Josh tried for the first time we failed. After a few failed attempts, we were finally able to build the entire thing.
Here is some crucial extra stuff that you have to keep in mind before making the tow dolly-
Keep the measurements accurate.
Wear safety goggles and masks.
Do all your work in the garage or the backyard.
Try to work with an expert, if you are not that experienced.

Concluding How to Make a Wheel Dolly

If you come this far to the article, then I will definitely assume that you are a DIY enthusiast. Building a car dolly on your own can take a lot of time and effort, even buying one online feels right.

But, a DIY car dolly can be useful from time to time, and the fun that comes with it while making is incomparable.

If you have any questions about how to make a wheel car dolly, then please ask them in the comments. We will try to answer every one of them. Have a good day.

Raphael E Loy

Hi, I am, Raphael E Loy, have profound knowledge of the automotive industry, and my passion for the car goes beyond just the technical aspects. For the past decade, I have pursued a carrier in automotive photography and journalism. I am a car enthusiast and love everything that has to do with cars and automotive vehicles. In my leisure time, I can be found in my small garage under the hood of a rare model. Over the years of experience in line with this, I have been writing for popular blogs and websites.