Towing a small sports car behind a Class C

Generally you cannot tow a RWD vehicle on a dolly. But they may be able to be towed 4 down with the manual tranny.

Best way to find out if it is towable is to look in the owners manual under "recreational towing".

You would put a Boxter on a tow dolly backwards?

RTrider wrote:
I would like to buy a 'manual shift' sports car like a boxter, or BMW and would tow it on a tow dolly or possibly 4 down. any issues?

Could you just leave it in neutral and go?

I guess you could back it up on a tow dolly??

What have others done in this case?

Gary

Four down would be my first preference and it would be better to do some studying here... Dinghy Towing and before buying anything. Then re-post for other owners with the vehicle you've chosen for their input and experience, as you might be changing your mind. I have seen older manual shift Miata's being towed and their fish mouth for a grille, makes for a good base plate mounting area. My second thought would be for a trailer and never a dolly for a sports car, especially a rear wheel drive. In fact, no car likes being towed with it's front wheels down.

I traded in my truck for a smart car because it the car is only 1,800 lbs and is hook-and-go. A battery disconnect switch is the only mod needed (other than the tow bar) for towing.

2-seater
5-speed manual with paddle shifters on the column (OK, technically an automated manual. It has no clutch pedal)
sporty -ish
excellent gas mileage (I average 42 mpg)
74 hp

tropical36 wrote:
I have seen older manual shift Miata's being towed and their fish mouth for a grille, makes for a good base plate mounting area.

It is not just older Miatas that are being towed. I tow a 2012 and have a friend who is towing a 2014.

Tim

Get you a Honda. CR-V, problem solved

RTrider wrote:
What have others done in this case?

Gary,

I have sent you a Private Message.

Tim

There are some small, sporty roadsters that can be towed four down, particularly manual transmission front drive or mid-engine with transaxle, and even a few front-engine rear drive (like Miata). Some will have lubrication procedures to follow (typically start the engine every so many miles and spin the transmission in neutral to re-splash everything).

But I don't think you are going to get either BMW or Porsche to say this is OK with one of their cars.

Bigger issue than transmission lubrication, for sports cars, tends to be ground clearance, suspension and steering geometry. Forces at the towbar connection tend to slam things to the suspension stops on bumps and dips you might otherwise drive over, and steering geometry tends toward quick response rather than stability in trail. Even if you don't damage suspension you might be rapidly chewing up expensive performance tires.

Anything car really valuable to me I would put on a trailer, but for some people their Boxster or even a "plain" Ferrari might be treated as a beater.

I see quite a few older Miatas being towed, and the occasional MR-2.

dons2346 wrote:
Best way to find out if it is towable is to look in the owners manual under "recreational towing".

X2
IMHO the only way to determine if a car is towable 4-down or dolly. It's all right there in the car manual.

Personally, I wouldn't say it's the ONLY way. If the owner's manual says it's safe to tow it, then you know it is. Some manuals either say no, or don't mention it at all. In that case it might be that it is unsafe to tow, but OTOH it may be that the manufacturer didn't want to go to the time and expense to determine if it was or not.

As mentioned earlier in this thread, many people tow Mazda Miatas equipped with a manual transmission. It works well. But the owners manual doesn't state that it's safe to do so. The Miata is a low production "halo" car for Mazda, and they just didn't go to the trouble of testing it and approving it.

The problem comes in determining which cars you can safely tow when the owners manual doesn't tell you. I happen to know that the Miata is safe to tow because a gentleman who has worked on MANY Miata manual transmissions has stated that the transmission in the Miata will lubricate well while being towed in neutral.

But other makes and models won't be so clear. In the end it's your call, and YMMV.