One thing that has puzzled me for many years, is why do empty car transporters have their top ramp up in the air when running empty?
It’s usually at about chest height in an FH size lorry & at eye level when in a CF sized one, I can’t see why they do this, unless it’s to kill or maim somebody who is unlucky enough to hit them up the arse 
As far as I know you load the top deck first, then lift the rear ramp & load the bottom one, this means that the natural place to leave the ramp when empty would be in the fully down position, even if the front cars on the bottom deck are loaded first/unloaded last, the ramp wouldn’t be in the position that it is often left in.
I’m sure many of you do/have driven car transporters, so what’s the story? Is it to protect the hydraulics or something? Or is it to maim/kill? Or maybe to avoid people tailgating?
hahaha.
the way you usually see an empty transporter is usually in the loading position,albiet a few clicks up on the rear deck.the top deck of the trailer on the short unit/long trailer combos are loaded first,the top of the unit on a normal half and half equal length drawbar is loaded first.the decks are raised slightly when tipped for two reasons:
1)decks are lifted and lowered by rams and chains.when you settle a deck onto a lock(which it isnt on in the fully down position),you should then raise it very slightly just to take up the chain tension.this helps prolong chain life and avoids stretching of the chain.
2)if you dont lift then decks will chaff together causing damage to both decks.
anyone who doesnt lift their decks is purely lazy,and doesnt care about their equipment and should be shot on sight 
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im also sure on the new version of 11+ trailers,the loading ramps are on hydraulics and will not go into the stow position until the deck is raised,mine is the older version so im not 100% sure.
having worked on car transporters, the top deck is lifted slightly just in case you have to brake suddenly or if you are at a stand still and the vehicle behind you is in capable of braking properly, it stops them from shooting up the ramp, flying over the top of the outfit and causing a hell of alot of damage when they come back down to earth. 
On some Transport Engineering 9 plus, if you run with the decks down, they rub the tyres, so I always run with them up a few clicks, on an 11 plus the top deck is not always the last to be unloaded, as the unit is unloaded through, the middle deck, I always liked to run with the deck straight where possible, and locked out because they are floating, so running on the slope always puts strain on the chains. hope this answers some of it.
dont know about empty, but I saw a loaded one a couple of months ago on the m60 had hit the bridge and chopped one of the new cars on the top deck in half. how he managed it I dont know cos hed already gone under a couple of bridges.
Transporter Engineering recommend that when plus 11/12 are running empty the rear of top deck is raised roughly until it is level with the front this prevents the pillars from flexing. Deck 10 & middle deck of Plus 12 should be lifted one click to prevent decks chafing with the bottom deck
