Towing your toad

[Mostovi]

For those who bring their car, truck, jeep or whatever along, what is your preference of towing and why. Do you flat tow, use a tow dolly or put it on a trailer.

Planning to retire soon and looking for information from those of you who have experience in this kind of towing.

Thanks in advance for sharing your information.

[Ivylog]

No, center section of what in Australia would be called a “Rue guard”.

[Mr_Mark1]

Ivylog,

Is that a tire on the front of your tow vehicle?

Nice set-up by the way!

MM.

[Ivylog]

Ivylog wrote:

I appreciate being able to backup even more with my longer rig. With only 2 tires on the ground it’s very easy and it lets me make 2 point ‘turns where you backup a little to complete the turn. Without being able to backup I’d have to bend over and go to Flying J and pay their ridiculous prices.

While I really like our “new” ride the extra 3’ has made a noticeable difference in the turning radius. First time getting fuel I ran over 2 curbs (have not done that in years) getting into the cheapest fuel station. Yes, I only saved $30 over going to Flying J and only $250+ on our recent 4500 mile trip by going a couple blocks further off the Interstate.

[Mr_Mark1]

Mowermech, I wouldn't prefer to tow an old vehicle just because of reliability and you are absolutely correct in the mechanical gauges. The used 1973 VW bus that I bought when I was 20 left me stranded too many times! LOL! 😛

A guy in my Prevost group wanted to 'remember of times gone by' and found a 1950 Ford coupe just like the one he and his wife first dated in. Although the car was in good shape, it was still a 1950 car with the technology from that era.

So, he found a company that turns old cars into new ones. The car looks original but it has a brand new chassis, new modern motor, new brakes, new suspension, etc. All the instrument cluster gauges were rebuilt and act as new. It is a cool conversion.

To the OP: One thing a person should consider is the ground clearance of a tow vehicle. As we are driving down the interstates and come across a 'gator' in the road, the coach can straddle it but the low toad may not. That's why we have always had a 'SUV' as they have a higher stance and less of a risk of something getting caught as the coach passes over an obstacle.

Safe travels,
MM.

[mowermech]

Mr.Mark wrote:
Mr. Mac, miles don't add up on the toad if the ignition is off. We are on our third tow vehicle.

We've had an '07 and '13 AWD Honda CR-V's and now the MKX, miles don't add up.

Safe travels,
MM

However, if you tow an older vehicle that has a MECHANICAL speedometer/odometer, the miles towed WILL show.
A Volkswagen Beetle or Karmann-Ghia or Thing makes an excellent towed vehicle, but the miles will show up on the odometer!

[Mr_Mark1]

Mr. Mac, miles don't add up on the toad if the ignition is off. We are on our third tow vehicle.

We've had an '07 and '13 AWD Honda CR-V's and now the MKX, miles don't add up.

Safe travels,
MM

[MR_MAC]

Like Handy2sum, I tow with dolly, and back the MH over it on camp site, I also have Break Buddy and tow bars, but cost of base plate on a 5yr old car was costly, I now have a new 2017 ford and still use the dolly, can hook up in less than 15 min. I painted a stripe on the dolly plate to line up with the ft. tire So far this year I've towed my car some six K+ mi. and like that the miles don't add up on the "O D".

[paulm]

BJBear, just talked to the company they don't have anything for land rovers.

[paulm]

bjbear wrote:

paulm wrote:
dang it, I have a land rover that cannot be towed 4 down. the rover is paid for and we love it. I just cannot imagine selling it and buying some lesser car to tow. We do a lot of off-road touring in the mountains of the west and the land rover is the best I have ever owned.
Rats.

The Land Rover is definitly one of the best off road vehicles. Have you looked into a driveshaft disconnect http://www.hitchsource.com/remco-drive-shaft-coupling-sku-p-30332.html?pn=8663058495&cn=Remco&ag=Rem.... Assuming of course, you can free wheel the front axle. You could also consider a transmission lube pump.

P.S. owning one of the “lesser vehicles”, I still get by on the trails! LOL 🙂 🙂

[debandi]

We have flat towed for the past 20 or so years, tried dolly once and quickly back to 4 down. We tow a F-150 with axle disconnect. When flat towing, your toad will track in the same tire marks that the drive wheels of the MH.

[bjbear]

paulm wrote:
dang it, I have a land rover that cannot be towed 4 down. the rover is paid for and we love it. I just cannot imagine selling it and buying some lesser car to tow. We do a lot of off-road touring in the mountains of the west and the land rover is the best I have ever owned.
Rats.

The Land Rover is definitly one of the best off road vehicles. Have you looked into a driveshaft disconnect http://www.hitchsource.com/remco-drive-shaft-coupling-sku-p-30332.html?pn=8663058495&cn=Remco&ag=Rem.... Assuming of course, you can free wheel the front axle. You could also consider a transmission lube pump.

P.S. owning one of the “lesser vehicles”, I still get by on the trails! LOL 🙂 🙂

[JaneSiver]

When deciding on a TOAD you have to know exactly how the transmission works and how it is lubricated. There is a world of difference for a transmission in whether the motor is turning it or the wheels are. There are some transmissions that get lubricated only when the engine is turning them. Standards are usually safe.

[rockhillmanor]

Towing with 4 down you get a nice added bonus also!
You can attached a car hauler to the back end of the toad for extra storage space. :C

[handy2sum]

zigzagrv wrote:
...
I try to get pull-thru campsites when possible, but if not, I drop the car at the check-in office and the DW drives it in. When I get to the campsite, I stop so that the dolly is at the end of the campsite. I unhook the dolly and move it to the very back of the site with tongue facing forward so that when I back the motorhome in, the overhang covers the tongue leaving only the wheels and ramps (about 4 feet) sticking out the back. When ready to leave, simply pull forward a bit, hook up the dolly, load up the car and head out. Not too bad.

Exactly what we do. Back over tongue of the dolly - takes minimal space or effort. Bought a new Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and then decided to try RV travel... Love the car so got a tow dolly and so far have not had any issues. After a few practice runs we got the loading/unloading procedure down and as noted by another person, takes about 15min to do either. If/when we get another car will consider something that can be flat towed by selection is getting slim vs what can be dolly towed.