Tow Bars

[RetiredNavy]

In YHO (Your Humble Opinion) what is the best tow bar system for a 2013 Ford Focus behind a Coachmen Concord MH? The car weighs 3,000, so should I have the brakes on it also?

[the_trippers]

Have been using Roadmaster base plate with Sterling All Terrain tow bar for several years. Invisibrake installed in our Jeep Grand Cherokee recently makes for quick hook up, nothing to store or pull out and install like the Even Brake we previously used.

[Toot_Mc]

I have been towing with Roadmaster tow bars for the last 16 years. have never had one problem. I have always had roadster and airfare one brake systems on my towd. with breakaway system. Breakaway system has never been used so i would say tow bar system is very good.

I have towed a 1998 Honda accord, a 2009 Lincoln MKX and a 2005 Honda CRV.

I used the roadster tow bars with my Beaver diesel pusher and now I down sized to a Coach House class c and use the same tow bars. work great.

[RetiredNavy]

Thank you everyone for all your valuable information. It looks like a tie between Blue Ox and Roadmaster. So I have decided to go with the Roadmaster All Terrain Tow Bar with the Roadmaster base plate on the Ford Focus and the Invisi-Brake braking system. Thanks again.

[bucky444]

Another vote for Blue Ox

[golfknut]

ReadyBrute Elite tow bar with a Blue Ox baseplate

[RoWest]

I put the Blue Ox base plate on a 2015 Jeep Wrangler with the Ready Brute Elite bar with surge brakes. 5 minute hook-up and disconnect. The surge system requires an 1/8" cable run to the towed-vehicle brake pedal from the front connection. It has a eyelet and crimp visible under the front bumper. We were in Twisp, WA 2 days before their big fire and a local asked what that cable was for explaining that it looked like the smallest winch he'd ever seen.

[Perick]

I'm going to look into the NSA RV Ready Brute Elite tow bar that has a brake system built in.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IK56P1U?colid=24OGZUWOERTMC&coliid=IJDSM4VS3KO1Z&ref_=wl_it_dp_o...

[carringb]

If your Focus is an automatic, I recommend going to a dealer and having the 4-Down Towing update performed. It's a software update that will display a message in the dash confirming when the transmission is ready to tow. Prior to the update, quite a few owners trashed their transmission because they shut the ignition off before the car had finished putting the gearsets in the neutral.

[Bea_PA]

Blue Ox, be careful buying used, we traded ours in after 100,000 miles as we were concerned about metal fatigue. We have had both the Brake Buddy and the Blue Ox Brake, both are nice in that you can change them between different cars.

[tenbear]

I have a Blue Ox system. It is on the Motorhome with connectors on the toad. It also has a breakaway brake. I can feel it when the brake comes on in the toad. IMHO, it is a must have.

[PSW]

We had never towed before and decided to give it a try because our style of rving changed. We are going further for longer periods of time at one place and we normally boondock. A highly recommended local RV independent guy suggested the Roadmaster Falcon and the SMI brake system, just as several other posters in this thread have suggested.

Yes, it cost a little more but we can hook this up very quickly and all the visible stuff is left attached to the RV and that allows for a very clean look to our Jeep Trailhawk. Since this is our first rodeo with towing, I am so glad we took the guy's suggestion because it works perfectly for us and stops on a dime.

Paul

[j-d]

If I had nothing now, I'd say look hard at that Ready Brute. Then pick the baseplate from the Big Three (Roadmaster, BlueOx, DEMCO) picking the one you liked best from the install instructions (that usually also have pictures). For ease of installation, makeup of the Ready Brute adapters and maybe even the height off the ground where the tow bar will connect. You might get lucky and not need a Drop or Lift adapter for the RV end of the towbar.

[stripit]

Using a Blue Ox system and so far so good. Easy to hook up and feels well built.

[lanerd]

Other than Roadmaster, Demco, and Blue Ox, there is also a new kid on the block called Readybrute Elite. It's not only an excellent tow bar, it also has built in toad braking system plus breakaway capability....all for the price of the tow bar.

I just installed one on my friend's jeep wrangler and total cost was less than $1800 including a Blue Ox base plate, umbilical cord, toad lighting, and safety cables. It took me about three hours of labor to do the entire install.

If you go with any of the big three, you're gonna spend close to twice that amount for the entire package...plus another $1000 for labor to install if you can't do it yourself.

check it out...

Ron