Towing a Rav 4 Auto Trans
Of course we all know that Toyota never recommends towing one of their vehicles with an Auto Trans. My wife has a cherry 2001 Rav with 80,000 km. I was considering a Remco lube pump. I was glancing th...
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Be very careful! After lots of research using the FMCA Dinghy Towing guides and reading owners manuals, I bought a 2011 Ford Escape XLT (4WD) to tow behind my Winnebago Sightseer. The owners manual says that for "Recreational Towing" I have to lower the trans fluid, unlock the steering, put it in neutral and start it every 6 hours to circulate fluid and cool the transmission.
In May 2017 my wife and I made a 2600 mile trip with no problems with the dinghy. IN August 2017 we went 300 miles and the transmission started slipping. I was towing it back home when the transmission started smoking, and the engine wouldn't start! It may be that the transmission was just ready to fail anyways. I got it rebuilt ($33oo with 3 yr unlimited warranty)) and didn't tow it again until last week. NEVER AGAIN!
Last week I only made it 200 miles from home when another car on the hwy let us know that the car was smoking! The trans was smoking again, locked in neutral and would not start. I called the trans shop that did the rebuild and called a tow truck to take it to a local trans shop in Springfield IL for warranty. DL Transmissions in Cape Girardeau MO is refusing to honor the warranty because it was being towed. They say that they have documentation from Ford that says it can't be dinghy towed. My owners manual says it can!
In May 2017 my wife and I made a 2600 mile trip with no problems with the dinghy. IN August 2017 we went 300 miles and the transmission started slipping. I was towing it back home when the transmission started smoking, and the engine wouldn't start! It may be that the transmission was just ready to fail anyways. I got it rebuilt ($33oo with 3 yr unlimited warranty)) and didn't tow it again until last week. NEVER AGAIN!
Last week I only made it 200 miles from home when another car on the hwy let us know that the car was smoking! The trans was smoking again, locked in neutral and would not start. I called the trans shop that did the rebuild and called a tow truck to take it to a local trans shop in Springfield IL for warranty. DL Transmissions in Cape Girardeau MO is refusing to honor the warranty because it was being towed. They say that they have documentation from Ford that says it can't be dinghy towed. My owners manual says it can!
