Towing a vehicle. What kind of set up
Just bought a Bounder 35k with a 5k tow package. What kind of set up do you use to tow a car?
Forum Discussion
First you need to find out how MUCH weight you can tow. That helps decide what vehicle you should get. With a 5,000 lb rating on the RV you're looking at, it may already be overweight and so legally can't tow anything.
Engine size is important too. The rule of thumb is 100 lbs per 1 HP. So a 330 HP engine can fairly easily drive the RV and tow, up to a total of 33,000 lbs.
Tow dollies weigh about 600 lbs and that counts in your capacity calculations. Trailers weigh even more. That's why most RV'ers go with 4 down as RVs are notorious for not having the tow capacity the average person wants.
eBay has used tow bars and braking systems (required by many states) but tow plates that go on the car are semi-custom so generally hard to find on the used market.
You're looking at $1,000 - $1500 if you do much of the electrical wiring yourself. Often the RV needs wiring too. $2,000 if you have shops do everything...usually.
I just went through all this and there are sooooo many things to consider. I had the luxury of having plenty of time to work on it so spent many an hour online perusing RV'ing websites like this one to get as much info as I could. Even then there were some issues.
I have published a 'Towing' section on my blog that is fairly extensive with links to some helpful sites. Maybe you'll find some useful info there.
Engine size is important too. The rule of thumb is 100 lbs per 1 HP. So a 330 HP engine can fairly easily drive the RV and tow, up to a total of 33,000 lbs.
Tow dollies weigh about 600 lbs and that counts in your capacity calculations. Trailers weigh even more. That's why most RV'ers go with 4 down as RVs are notorious for not having the tow capacity the average person wants.
eBay has used tow bars and braking systems (required by many states) but tow plates that go on the car are semi-custom so generally hard to find on the used market.
You're looking at $1,000 - $1500 if you do much of the electrical wiring yourself. Often the RV needs wiring too. $2,000 if you have shops do everything...usually.
I just went through all this and there are sooooo many things to consider. I had the luxury of having plenty of time to work on it so spent many an hour online perusing RV'ing websites like this one to get as much info as I could. Even then there were some issues.
I have published a 'Towing' section on my blog that is fairly extensive with links to some helpful sites. Maybe you'll find some useful info there.
