Need TOAD advice ........................

Do you have to have an auto trans? You can find quite a few flat towable automatics during the years you want but a decreasing number as you get newer. Make sure the transmission you get actually is towable. The owner's manual is the final authority but finding it can be tricky. We have towed a Chevy Sonic (nice and lite and a respectable inexpensive car to own) and now a 2017 Ford Focus hatchback( 200 to 300 lbs. heavier and a questionnable trans. but I really like the car.). Unless you have a large Class A with a diesel I personally wouldn't tow anything much heavier (3000 lbs.) but plenty do.

Y-Guy ... I am happy that YOURS is serving you well , and I am sure that MANY other owners say the same ... however .... Car Complaints website shows a VAST disapproval by so many owners that I do not wish to chance them , as a whole.
The Cherokee - Grand Cherokee - Wrangler - Liberty being the worst of them .... and as I have personally looked at them in past years , I rarely found one that the AC worked ... or that the 4WD shifted without 3 ( strong ) people tugging on the lever.
Thanks for the response , and I hope YOURS serves you well in the future.

I owned an ENVOY / worked well but heavy
Saturn LW ...Great car but rather tight fit for humans
Saturn S-Series ... Small but fine car ... in it's day
Tracker ... GARBAGE
HHR ... Great Tow Car , but VERY VERY hard to sell
CR-V ... Transmission does NOT hold up

My Jeep is not garbage. Well, maybe it smells a little bit when I’m driving it, but it’s not garbage.

Richard_999 wrote:
I am looking for a FLAT TOW car , but it seems that almost EVERY one I consider , has really rotten ratings and histories on Car Complaints website.
I prefer something between 2005 and 2012 , for price reasons.
Jeeps ... ALL , seem to be a garbage car..

So when you say Jeeps you need to qualify it a bit as there is the JEEP (Wrangler) and then every other sub-model they make; Cherokee, Compass, Rengade, etc.

I have a 2011 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara coming up on 97k miles and I've had zero problems. Just normal service and tires. Vast majority of Wrangler owners I know are the same. There were some years that were prone to some issues. The 2012 year had the new 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 engine, and early on there were some issues. But to say they are a garbage car is a gross overstatement IMHO. However there is a reason you see so many Jeeps being towed behind motor homes, they are one of the easiest to tow and come with the fewest restrictions.

I tow a 2007 New Beetle with manual transmission. It is a great toad.

See how the Honda CRV in that date range rates. We tow a 2011 Toyota RAV4 that's been virtually trouble free (one O2 sensor replaced) since new. The RAV4 does require a Remco transmission lube pump though, that adds another $1k or so to the setup costs.