cost to mod vehicle vs total cost of setup

[mtofell1]

Kind of a general question as I'm still in the preliminary stages - How much am I going to spend on the vehicle to be towed 4 down versus the equipment altogether?

I'm weighing the option of modifying my older vehicle (2008 Honda Odyssey, only 75K miles) versus getting a new vehicle - probably a newer Chevy Equinox diesel since it seems like the only one out there. Obviously at 10 years old my Odyssey could fail so I'm wondering how much I'd spend getting the Odyssey setup that I couldn't take with me to another vehicle if/when the old Honda gives up?

[mtofell1]

Bumpyroad wrote:
I certainly wouldn't tow something not authorized by the manufacturer before the factory warranty runs out..............
bumpy

Agreed - my 08 Odyssey warranty was gone years ago so I'm flying free 🙂

I'm not sure how I missed it with my initial research but it looks like the Ford Edge is 4 down tow-able. I'm finding some conflicting info about which years/engines but that's easy enough to clarify. Also, pulling the negative battery cable seems to be a bit of a hassle and complaint but some folks are running a charging line off the coach instead. I mention all this mainly for anyone running across this thread later.

[Bumpyroad]

I certainly wouldn't tow something not authorized by the manufacturer before the factory warranty runs out..............
bumpy

[jplante4]

I bought a 2014 Equinox coming off a lease and it tows great.

[mtofell1]

Thanks everyone - I had forgot about the thing with towing the Odyssey. I remember it's possible but not endorsed by Honda. I seem to remember getting deep into reading about it once and found it's fine as long as you follow the directions but too many people didn't and Honda got sick of warrantying the repairs so they just said don't do it.

I've been doing a bit of research and the Equinox diesel doesn't look like it's getting any critical acclaim so I'm open to any suggestions for similar vehicles that are somewhat 4 down towing friendly. I understand I'm probably going to have to make some modifications.

[Dutch_12078]

We have a 2002 Toyota RAV4 that we no longer tow, but it's still running fine. When we bought our then new 2011 RAV4, the lighting, brake equipment, etc., from the 2002 moved over to to the 2011 except the base plate. Since the base plate was the only made to fit item, I'd expect most similar toad updates would be similar.

As for towing your Ody, REMCO says:

Officially from both Honda and REMCO the vehicle is not towable. However, we at Remco have a large number of customers who are flat-towing that vehicle behind their Motor Home and they are not having any issues. Follow the "Emergency Towing" procedures in the owner's manual to a "T" except ignore the restrictions and follow those procedures each and every time you tow. NOTE: If you choose tow your Honda, and have any damage to the Transmission as a result, you will have to pay for that expense out of pocket. It is nothing that Honda or Remco will warranty. Also, it should be noted that Remco sells no aftermarket product (Lube Pump or otherwise) to make this car towable.

[Halmfamily]

If I recall correctly the Odyssey cannot be towed 4 down. We have a 09'with 205000 miles and still runs like new, make sure you get your timing belt changed along with the water pump and timing belt tensioner as preventative maintainence.

[Isaac-1]

I have been doing similar math, and it depends on a number of factors, like if you are going to install the baseplate yourself, and how you count things like braking systems, some of which are easily moved from car to car and towbars. Depending on the exact model of car, it seems baseplates run about $500 plus installation, tail-light / brake light wiring kits run another $100 or so plus installation, beyond that a lot depends on how you decide to do things, if you use a portable braking system, wired or wireless, ... and of course labor for all of this