New to Dingy Towing - Need help?

My Roadmaster base plate(s) for my Terrain came with simple, east to read and understandable directions. I followed them line by line, and never had a problem. I was surprised at how easy it was to remove the entire front fascia of the car...a few plastic snap buttons and a few sheet metal screws and disconnect the two fog lamps and the whole front end was off.

Now removing my US Gear Unified brake system from my old toad and re-installing it (with directions from US Gear) was a little more intense.....and time consuming...but still way within my simple abilities. If you can read and follow written directions, it's a piece of cake.

Without the mfg directions, I would have had it done in a shop.

Ron

after watching them dismantle my toad and putting the base plate on, I would pay for somebody to do that. the rest of it is a breeze for DIY. I was going to question the 4-5K myself.
bumpy

gmatti wrote:
Thank you all for the very insightful remarks on this subject. After a lot of research we have come to the conclusion that dolly towing provides the most flexible and cost effective solution to our needs. Although flat tow might be a little easier it seems to be much more costly especially if we trade "toads" after spending $4,000 to $5,000 for set up (that is what we have been quoted by two different RV shops). We have found very few vehicles that we like that can be flat towed and then there is the hassle of running the vehicle every six hours even if we did find one. Its obvious from the number of flat tows that we see out there that many have found a way to deal with all the issues but we just don't see it as a solution to our application.

You're very welcome. If you have further questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Just for kicks, I did a few searches and came up with the following prices for items needed for flat tow.

Base plate....$350
Tow Bar.......$950
Light Kit.....$ 50
Brake Sys.....$900 (note: not the cheapest)

Total price for parts....$2250

I originally had my first system installed by a reputable rv service shop for a total price of $750 for labor....and in hindsight, I feel I was over charged, but at the time I had no idea what was entailed.

That comes to $3000 for everything. The shops you got your estimates from are (in my opinion) way over charging you and I would not be doing any dealing with them. Look around some more for lower estimates.

Now as mentioned, installation is not that difficult and does not require a certified mechanic/technician. It can be done in your driveway with minimal tools and knowledge. But I understand that this can be beyond a person's ability or needs.

There are lots of vehicles that can be towed four down, from very small to very large...utilitarian or luxury. Some do require starting and running the engine every few hundred miles, but you gotta stop for fuel anyway, so it can be done at that time. Also, some need a fuze to be removed, but a simple replacement with a switch will take care of this. Just takes a little researching to find what you want. Just remember with a dolly, you're pretty much limited to a FWD vehicle...or a vehicle that can be towed four down.

However, it sounds like you have made up your mind, so more power to you. Good luck in your decision and hope you have many fun filled trips.

Ron

gmatti wrote:
Thank you all for the very insightful remarks on this subject. After a lot of research we have come to the conclusion that dolly towing provides the most flexible and cost effective solution to our needs. Although flat tow might be a little easier it seems to be much more costly especially if we trade "toads" after spending $4,000 to $5,000 for set up (that is what we have been quoted by two different RV shops). We have found very few vehicles that we like that can be flat towed and then there is the hassle of running the vehicle every six hours even if we did find one. Its obvious from the number of flat tows that we see out there that many have found a way to deal with all the issues but we just don't see it as a solution to our application.

just so you know...Jeeps have no time/distance/mileage restrictions. most models can be flat towed as long as it has a manually selectable neutral position in the transfer case. but if you're going to go with a dolly be sure to know your weights and weight ratings before you commit to buy.

Thank you all for the very insightful remarks on this subject. After a lot of research we have come to the conclusion that dolly towing provides the most flexible and cost effective solution to our needs. Although flat tow might be a little easier it seems to be much more costly especially if we trade "toads" after spending $4,000 to $5,000 for set up (that is what we have been quoted by two different RV shops). We have found very few vehicles that we like that can be flat towed and then there is the hassle of running the vehicle every six hours even if we did find one. Its obvious from the number of flat tows that we see out there that many have found a way to deal with all the issues but we just don't see it as a solution to our application.

I've pulled my Vibe on a KarKaddy dolly for 9+ years and 51,000 miles over quite a bit of the USA and it's not as bad as some folks lead you to believe. That said 4 down is probably a little less complicated but I can load or unload the Vibe by myself in less than 7 minutes each. I try to get pull through sites but the majority of the time they are not available so I off load the Vibe, unhitch the dolly, push it to the back of the site and park the MH over the dolly tongue. I've only encountered two CG that I had to park the dolly other than on site. I’ve never had to “crawl on the ground” to hook up the wheel straps or safety chains. I do have to get on my knees to hook them up (the down & ups are getting a little harder at age 75 but still doable).

If you can afford to get a light weight toad that can be pulled 4 down and you plan to keep if for many years I’d suggest that you do that. If you like to change cars frequently I’d strongly recommend the dolly. From my experience I’d recommend a Demco KarKaddy SS dolly because it’s fully galvanized (no rust problems), the tongue folds back and the ramps fold up to reduce home storage by almost 50%, has surge brakes so you don’t need a brake controller and can be pulled with any vehicle plus Demco provides excellent customer service.

Dave

ACME tow dolly... $1299 with surge brakes. Lightest tow dolly out here. Can be stored in upright position. Can back up your rv over about 2/3rds of it on a back in spot. Yes you will have to unhook it and push it back, but it's not bad to do. Don't have to worry about if I change cars and having to get another base plate, lights and etc hooked up on the new car. Lights are sufficient on tow dolly.

Hank is correct, if you decide to tow 4 down then find a vehichle you like, and check to see difficulty in installing the base plates. Some require drilling, some require removing the whole front cap to install. It depends specifically to the vehichle and what towing system you decide on. Sometimes you can find baseplates on Craiglist as many change vehichles and remove them. I have one for a 2005 Honda CRV sitting in my shed, why? I don't know what to do with it!

Yes self install can be done on most, but if you do want to tow 4 down and install yourself, look at sites like roadmaster and I think blueox and see what it takes to install the components. I bought my stuff thru camp world and they installed for $29 at the time, they also installed the light kit. I could have gotten the baseplate and installed myself, but it would have take a couple of part time days to do. CW got it done in a day and half with the light kit install. I did not want to pull the front facia, the bumper support etc as required. The kit was about a $100-150 more from CW than off net but the install price required the parts to be bought at cw. Really a no brainer for me as the cheapest install at a another place was at $75/hr and the install called for about 3-4 hrs.

If you can do yourself than craigs list is one way to go for the tow bar, base plates can be found but will depend on your towd veh as to being the required parts. I wanted CW to install the brake system that the guy we bought the rv from passed on. They claimed they were not familiar with the install so they wouldn't. I did it myself took about 2 hrs. permanent mount only requires turning/flipping switch from off to on. Worked well for us. Most require putting the brake system in each time to be towed and or blocking something in the driver side, removing prior to driving. Ours is virtually invisible and as I said only need to have a switch flipped to on/off as needed. It by SMI and there are youtube videos on stalls and use.

I have installed My Own Baseplates / Mounting Hardware on several vehicles.
Each had its own quirks but all were relatively Easy to install.

The advantage in doing Your Own installation is that In doing it You are intimately familiar with All the Components and where there are Bolts that may cause problems or require re torquing in the future.

I have seen several Professional Installations that were done improperly ,where the Owners had No idea what was skipped in the installation process because the Installer was too lazy to do the job right!

The obvious Cost savings by doing the job myself was also a strong factor in making My choice.

If You are somewhat mechanically inclined and can handle simple tasks like hanging a Door or Changing the Oil , You can probably follow the instructions and get the job done!