Do not Lock your Hitch

If you run the Vue for lub you must put the gear selector in DRIVE and then to NUETRAL as a last operation before shutting the engine off. If you run it in reverse without moving to drive and then nuetral, it will leave the reverse idler gear engaged and it will burn up the idler gear from the terrific RPM that will occur. Death to the trans for sure. Our Saturn Vue manual noted this carefully and we always followed the instruction never having a problem. I do know of one chap that had his Wife use the rig and she didn't follow the drive to nuetral instruction.... Yep, she burned up the trans in it.

Sorry you had the problem, but it sounds like it may have been a lack of following the correct towing procedure for the Vue.