Towing a Toyota Corolla

[eheading]

We recently purchased a 2018 Corolla SE with manual transmission. We are currently outfitting it for towing. Toyota says you must tow with the smart key in the "accessories" position. Does anyone have experience with towing the Corolla? Is there any problem with draining the battery with the ignition in the "accessory" position??

Thanks,
Ed Headington

[eheading]

Ha, ha!! Good point!!! My boo boo. How about 3 minutes, does that sound a little bit more reasonable?? And I have to confess on our first trip out towing the Corolla we did NOT wait 3 months to drive it!!! (thanks for pointing that out)

Ed Headington

[Mich_F]

eheading wrote:
When we purchased our 2018 Corolla just 1 month ago, I carefully read the owner's manual that states a manual transmission Corolla can be towed. With a proximity key, you must leave it in "Accessory" so the steering wheel does not lock. After towing you should let idle for 3 months before driving off.

Ed Headington

That wouldn't work for most people. :B

[eheading]

When we purchased our 2018 Corolla just 1 month ago, I carefully read the owner's manual that states a manual transmission Corolla can be towed. With a proximity key, you must leave it in "Accessory" so the steering wheel does not lock. After towing you should let idle for 3 months before driving off.

As stated above, I really want to tow with the ignition off. I determined that opening a door is what triggers the steering wheel lock. So I removed the "door switch" for the driver's door. I lock the car so no other door can be opened by accident. So far we've towed it 35 whole miles with no problems:B

Ed Headington

[shirleyj62]

I was recently at a Toyota dealer getting my dingy (2010 Toyota Yaris) serviced (regular maintenance). I was walking through the showroom looking at the vehicles when I was approached by a salesman. He asked about my current car and he decided it was time for me to "upgrade"-. When I told him how we use the vehicle being towed four-wheels down, his attitude deflated and he told me that NONE of the new Toyotas can be towed 4 down. He then walked away.

I would definitely check and make sure that the Corolla can be towed all wheels down.

[charming]

We had a 2006 Corolla and never had a problem towing with it in the ACC. An older car so it did not have all the bells and whistles that kill a battery in a newer car. As was mentioned above - turn everything off, including unplugging phone chargers. If you have a new battery and everything off, you should not have an issue.

[eheading]

I think you are right on. I think that is exactly what is happening. The door switch does send the signal to lock the steering wheel.

Ed Headington

[j-d]

That locking is interesting. You have electric power steering. I wonder if the door switch sends a locking command to the steering rack. The older Corollas use hydraulic power and the wheel locks mechanically.

[eheading]

Actually I have modified our Corolla so that I can tow it with the ignition turned all the way to off. I determined that what activates the steering wheel lock is opening a car door.

What I did was remove the "door open" button on the door jam, so now the computer does not know whether I open the door or not. Now when I prep the car for towing, I lock all the doors except the driver door. I then exit the car. The only penalty I pay for this mod is that the interior light does not come on if all I do is open the driver door. If I open any other door, or use the handle grip or key fob to unlock the car, the light turns on.

For me this is a good solution. Unfortunately when I emailed this question to Toyota they just replied with a politically correct answer that said "don't do anything".

[Gjac]

I tow a 2002 Corolla and turn the key to ACC, I think most manuals are towed this way. It does not run down the battery. The only problem I had was with my radio that has a removable face when hitting a bump sometimes turned the radio on. When towing now I just remove the face.You should not have a problem with running your battery down as long as everything is turned off. I would buy another one as a tow car if I did not have knee arthritis.

[j-d]

If you are going to tow for several days, I think it might be good to start the Corolla and let it idle say 10 minutes if you're concerned about the battery. It's my belief that many of the manual transmissions still approved for towing, still do NOT actually lubricate themselves being towed. In other words, the gears in play in Neutral are not dipping into the lubricant and slinging it around. Manufacturer believes enough lubricant will stay in place to allow towing. Toyota believes you need to pre-lube the transmission by idling in Neutral before driving it after towing. So say you're taking a five-day trip and don't use the toad enroute. Start it after a day, if it cranks on its own, run it to lube the transmission and still longer (say 10 minutes vs. 3 for the transmission) and put some of the charge back into the battery.
I agree with getting a Corolla instead of some other towable vehicle that is far less pleasant, reliable, and comfortable to drive. The YUGO might be towable, but who'd want one?

[eheading]

Thanks for the informative ideas. Yes, Toyota says the manual transmission Corolla is fine to tow in the ACC position. It just says to make sure the radio etc are turned off. I have been thinking the safest thing would be to add the charge line directly to the battery as some of you have suggested.

And to Old Guy, I bought this car because I liked it, it met our needs, I like Toyotas, and Toyota says it is good to tow without removing any fuses or anything else. Toyota says if you leave the radio and accessories turned off, it will be fine. I have just been mildly concerned about towing it for several days. My conclusion has been to just add the charge line, but I was looking for any experience anyone else has had,that might indicate it isn't required. I got a lot of info from others, which I do appreciate.

Ed Headington

[K_Charles]

I have a Hyundai with a standard shift and the manual says to turn the key to acc to unlock the steering wheel. It also says to turn off the radio and heater so the battery won't run down. I left it like that one day and left it like that all night then the next day. The battery was low but it started. Turn the key off at the end of the day and you will be fine, or run a charge line if you want.

[j-d]

Our much older Corolla (2006) doesn't run the battery down to where it won't start, and we have a Brake Buddy connected to the battery also. But no NAV, Active Cruise, Cameras, Radar, Sonar, etc. like newer ones.

Does this 2018 have Navigation, and is the Screen automatically come ON in ACC? I looked at the manuals for 2017 Corolla and IM models, saw the "Tow in ACC, Idle three minutes after towing" words were the same when I looked at 2018 Corolla for you.

Try it. If the Screen and Entertainment System stay lit, you may want to add a Charge Line, or maybe find a fuse to pull. I'm cautious about pulling fuses on later model cars, just might trigger a Code.

[Mich_F]

Something like this battery charge line kit would probably work for you.