I'm Going Dingy... Help

[freestoneangler]

Wow, I though narrowing the field of which class A was challenging enough... now we're looking to replace our 1998 Ford Explorer and I want to make sure whatever we get can be safely flat-towed. Getting into all this has me considering going back to our original plan... a 5Ver!

I have found the Motorhome website that lists the 2013 vehicles they say are flat tow safe... but see tons of info on this subject that would suggest those are not the only vehicles OK to tow.

Does anyone know of a comprehensive list of vehicles that can be safely flat towed?

[freestoneangler]

The REMCO site seems pretty good. Thanks

http://www.remcoindustries.com/Towing/Store.php

[JC2]

freestoneangler wrote:
Wow, I though narrowing the field of which class A was challenging enough... now we're looking to replace our 1998 Ford Explorer and I want to make sure whatever we get can be safely flat-towed. Getting into all this has me considering going back to our original plan... a 5Ver!

I have found the Motorhome website that lists the 2013 vehicles they say are flat tow safe... but see tons of info on this subject that would suggest those are not the only vehicles OK to tow.

Does anyone know of a comprehensive list of vehicles that can be safely flat towed?

Here is a link from another posting on this forum that might be of help.

http://www.royrobinsonrv.com/rv-towing-guide-washington

[j-d]

To my belief, there are four sources of towability information:
1. Vehicle Manufacturers Via Owner Manuals - This should be most reliable
2. MoHo Magazine Annual Listing - This is supposed to be a summary of 1. and accurate unless MoHo made clerical errors. MoHo says they list ONLY those certified by MFR (which is why it should mirror 1.)
3. REMCO Towing - Not sure how to classify this, but it purports to tell you which are towable without modification, with their modification kits, on dolly, on trailer (on trailer being essentially non-towable)
4. Anecdotal Comments - People saying "Well, I towed my XYZ a million miles no problem." - This group either doesn't know or doesn't care what MFR says, but there's a subset who tow vehicles too old to have a "Recreational Towing" recommendation in their Owner Manual.

And that reminds me, you want to be sure you're looking at the long distance/recreational towing, not short distance towing as from an accident or breakdown.

[sdianel_-acct_c]

In general, any manual transmission or 4 wheel drive can be flat towed. For automatics you may need modifications or have towing restrictions.
We tow a 2008 Chevy Colorado 4 door 4 wheel drive pickup. A button on the dash disconnects the drive shaft (puts the transfer case in neutral) for easy towing. Only had to put on the tow brackets. The Dinghy Guide is pretty comprehensive. If you don't see the vehicle on that list you could ask on this forum if anyone is towing it.

[Janss]

As Fire Up states, the Motorhome magazine Dinghy Guide is the go to list. If you narrow down your search based on your own requirements, you should be less overwhelmed. For example, when I was choosing, I only wanted an SUV, only wanted auto transmission (many cars shown on the list are NOT towable with auto trans.), wanted the weight to be under 4,000 lbs., etc. So I actually found very few vehicles to match my wants. Therefore the choice became very easy.

I always check the owner's manual of the actual car before I buy, even if the car is on the list.

[FIRE_UP]

freestoneangler wrote:
Wow, I though narrowing the field of which class A was challenging enough... now we're looking to replace our 1998 Ford Explorer and I want to make sure whatever we get can be safely flat-towed. Getting into all this has me considering going back to our original plan... a 5Ver!

I have found the Motorhome website that lists the 2013 vehicles they say are flat tow safe... but see tons of info on this subject that would suggest those are not the only vehicles OK to tow.

Does anyone know of a comprehensive list of vehicles that can be safely flat towed?

freestoneangler,
The "Dinghy Towing Guide", put out by either Motor Home Magazine or, Trailer Life Magazine is primarily the unilateral source for looking at what model of maker, is or, is not, flat towable. If you're liking a certain make/model/type of vehicle in terms of your next daily mode of transportation, then check that source to see if it's flat towable.

Then, to really get down and dirty and REALLY make sure, go to the owners manual of that particular car/truck/SUV etc. and look up the section on flat towing it. I won't begin to tell you all of the models I know are flat towable. Because you can find that out like stated, easily in the Dinghy Towing Guide for that year vehicle you're thinking about. Good luck.
Scott

[freestoneangler]

Considering a used Ford Escape... until I found this:
http://www.maliasmiles.com/blog/2009-ford-escape-dinghy/

This after just after having read this:
http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/general/pdf/towingguides/10FLMrvESCAPREsep09.pdf

I have to imagine many have gone through the same research and shaking of the head. Seems like some reputable group would have developed a reference guide of which vehicles can be safely flat towed... unless the one by motor-homes magazine is it?? The 5ver route is looking better and better.