Towing a vehicle. What kind of set up

Forest66 wrote:
Just bought a Bounder 35k with a 5k tow package. What kind of set up do you use to tow a car?

Your toad should be your daily driver, for making it most useful and cost effective. We chose a JK Wrangler with a READYBRUTE ELITE tow bar and braking system setup, along with a COOLTECH wiring harness for all around simplicity and one that's ready for any kind of terrain during our travels. Usually ends up being a mall crawler, but works out well in that capacity too.

RedRollingRoadblock wrote:

usersmanual wrote:

Forest66 wrote:
Just bought a Bounder 35k with a 5k tow package. What kind of set up do you use to tow a car?

1) find TOAD that's fits your needs and make sure its towable
4 down with no modifications

2) then add one of these.includes the auxillary brake
https://www.amazon.com/NSA-RV-Products-RB-9050-Ready/dp/B00IK56P1U/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854150&sr=8-3&keywords=Rv+tow+bars

3) plus this (example only all vehicles vary) https://www.amazon.com/Roadmaster-5231201-Tow-Mounting-Bracket/dp/B0089UQ7D2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854332&sr=8-2&keywords=Rv+tow+bar+brackets

4) wiring kit similar to this
https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Ox-BX8848-Diodes-Taillight/dp/B003VARHBQ/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854443&sr=8-10&keywords=Rv+tow+light+kits

Made links clickable.

ok thanks

usersmanual wrote:

Forest66 wrote:
Just bought a Bounder 35k with a 5k tow package. What kind of set up do you use to tow a car?

1) find TOAD that's fits your needs and make sure its towable
4 down with no modifications

2) then add one of these.includes the auxillary brake
https://www.amazon.com/NSA-RV-Products-RB-9050-Ready/dp/B00IK56P1U/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854150&sr=8-3&keywords=Rv+tow+bars

3) plus this (example only all vehicles vary) https://www.amazon.com/Roadmaster-5231201-Tow-Mounting-Bracket/dp/B0089UQ7D2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854332&sr=8-2&keywords=Rv+tow+bar+brackets

4) wiring kit similar to this
https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Ox-BX8848-Diodes-Taillight/dp/B003VARHBQ/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854443&sr=8-10&keywords=Rv+tow+light+kits

Made links clickable.

Forest66 wrote:
Just bought a Bounder 35k with a 5k tow package. What kind of set up do you use to tow a car?

1) find TOAD that's fits your needs and make sure its towable
4 down with no modifications

2) then add one of these.includes the auxillary brake
https://www.amazon.com/NSA-RV-Products-RB-9050-Ready/dp/B00IK56P1U/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854150&sr=8-3&keywords=Rv+tow+bars

3) plus this (example only all vehicles vary) https://www.amazon.com/Roadmaster-5231201-Tow-Mounting-Bracket/dp/B0089UQ7D2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854332&sr=8-2&keywords=Rv+tow+bar+brackets

4) wiring kit similar to this
https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Ox-BX8848-Diodes-Taillight/dp/B003VARHBQ/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1475854443&sr=8-10&keywords=Rv+tow+light+kits

Also, don't just take a salespersons word that a vehicle is towable without physically looking at the manual for that vehicle. Some have no knowledge whatsoever and will say anything to sell you a car!

First you need to find out how MUCH weight you can tow. That helps decide what vehicle you should get. With a 5,000 lb rating on the RV you're looking at, it may already be overweight and so legally can't tow anything.

Engine size is important too. The rule of thumb is 100 lbs per 1 HP. So a 330 HP engine can fairly easily drive the RV and tow, up to a total of 33,000 lbs.

Tow dollies weigh about 600 lbs and that counts in your capacity calculations. Trailers weigh even more. That's why most RV'ers go with 4 down as RVs are notorious for not having the tow capacity the average person wants.

eBay has used tow bars and braking systems (required by many states) but tow plates that go on the car are semi-custom so generally hard to find on the used market.

You're looking at $1,000 - $1500 if you do much of the electrical wiring yourself. Often the RV needs wiring too. $2,000 if you have shops do everything...usually.

I just went through all this and there are sooooo many things to consider. I had the luxury of having plenty of time to work on it so spent many an hour online perusing RV'ing websites like this one to get as much info as I could. Even then there were some issues.

I have published a 'Towing' section on my blog that is fairly extensive with links to some helpful sites. Maybe you'll find some useful info there.

Mr. Wilson, I tow my vehicle with all 4 wheels on the ground (flat tow) I tow a 2014 Honda CRV, My welding shop recommended a Roadmaster Tow Bar System to me. I've owned my tow bar system for 17 years now and it looks and operates in near new condition.

Choosing the car should take a few things into consideration as others have mentioned. validating the car you like is towable is the first priority. But a car can be towed several ways. 2 down with a dolly, 4 down with tow bars, or 4 up on a trailer. If you really like a car that isn't towable 4 down, a dolly or a trailer is still an option. Of course there are pros and cons to any method. But any method you choose must take the entire weight of the car and/or dolly/trailer into consideration. Everything you are towing is the total. The second piece to the puzzle is figuring out what you can tow. Just because your Rv has a 5k lb hitch does not necessarily mean the RV can handle 5k lbs. You need to load your RV for travel (water, people, food, etc) and weigh it. The difference between your chassis' capacity and how much it weighs is what you can safely tow. Many people are surprised to find that their MH cannot tow anything near what the hitch is rated for. So your car, the weight and the method need to be figured out before you can shop for the equipment. Different tow bars, brakes, dolly's, and trailers.

I would never ever buy a vehicle that needs a drive shaft disconnect or tranny lube pump to modify it to be towable. too many other optons out there.
bumpy

Since towing 4 down or flat uses the least amount of weigh/rubber and storage space it is the preferred method for most people. Starting there, look in Motorhome Magazine Towing Guide for a comprehensive list of vehicles that can be towed without major modifications. Watch the weight carefully, I assume at 35K you are talking pounds of GVWR and 5K car is pounds of car. That number is the car AND contents. Plan to buy a car that weighs 4,500 lbs at most. You would be surprised at what finds its way into the car.

If you find a vehicle you reall, really want to tow and it does not show in the guide, or the owner's manual is not happy about recreational towing, go to Remco website to see if they have modifications to make the vehicle towable and kiss any mfg warranty goodby.

The next item is the supplemental brake system. Unless you plan to change tow'ds a lot get one that installs in the toad and is setup by plugging in an electrical connection or an air line. The brake in a box things work, but you might be inclined to skip the setup for a short haul or on a hot day, not good!