Community Forums

ButchT · 02-10-2017, 07:01 PM

I'm looking for advice on the best tow car as well as what type of tow bar is the best and easiest. I'm guessing that you want a car that you can disengage the tranny so the car isn't clicking off miles while you tow. And what is the best towbar system? Thanks all. Your help so far on other issues has been invaluable! Love this site!

GeezerViz · 02-10-2017, 07:10 PM

I like my Chevy Equinox. It is built on the old Saturn chassis, so is ready to be towed 4 down. Plus it is AWD, so great in any weather. To keep the miles from clicking off, you pull a fuse by the passengers foot. I added a fuse disconnect switch, so it just a flip to turn it off. Others can tell you about good tow bars. Mine is an old Stowmaster, which is functional.

brobox · 02-10-2017, 07:17 PM

Best tow bar I have used is the Ready Brute, Tow bar and brake system all in one. Also has a lifetime warranty and CS as good as Entegra's.
ReadyBruteâ„¢ Elite RV Tow Bar

As for a toad, it depends on how you plan to use it. We enjoy off road wildlife viewing and I water metal detect, so a 4 WD truck suits our needs.

If you plan on staying on paved roads, do you want luxury or just a driver to go to the store.

If you like 4 wheeling a jeep is hard to beat.

jrecord · 02-10-2017, 07:21 PM

Blue Ox has worked for me for many years. Towed both a Mazda 3 and a Subaru Impreza.

jestal · 02-10-2017, 07:45 PM

Jeep Grand Cherokee and Blue Ox. You will see lots of Jeep GC's behind motor homes. Very popular because they are excellent vehicles, easy to put into tow mode, have reasonably good off road capability and you can load one up as nice as any luxury car and they have nice styling (IMHO.) Jeep includes flat towing capability in the original vehicle design requirements for the power train and running gear so there are really no limits on flat towing them. Just be aware that the GC you look at has the correct 4WD towable drive train with the transfer case that has a true neutral. Plus you will find used GC's hold their value better than average.

I know that some people have been some issues with Blue ox but ours has been great and shows no sign of wear or damage. The Blue Ox "base plate" is very inconspicuous on the GC when not being towed.

But, there are many choices of each and any of them will probably work fine for you.

waterboy10 · 02-10-2017, 07:56 PM

Blue Ox with a CRV or Lincoln MKX.

UncleJamie · 02-10-2017, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jestal

Jeep Grand Cherokee and Blue Ox. You will see lots of Jeep GC's behind motor homes. Very popular because they are excellent vehicles, easy to put into tow mode, have reasonably good off road capability and you can load one up as nice as any luxury car and they have nice styling (IMHO.) Jeep includes flat towing capability in the original vehicle design requirements for the power train and running gear so there are really no limits on flat towing them. Just be aware that the GC you look at has the correct 4WD towable drive train with the transfer case that has a true neutral. Plus you will find used GC's hold their value better than average.

I know that some people have been some issues with Blue ox but ours has been great and shows no sign of wear or damage. The Blue Ox "base plate" is very inconspicuous on the GC when not being towed.

But, there are many choices of each and any of them will probably work fine for you.

X2... have had 3 tow vehicles all pulled with a blue ox. Tahoe Z71 then 2 Jeep Grand Cherokees back to back. The Tahoe was good, but the Jeeps have been great. Absolutely no issues with the Jeeps.

BurninDiesel · 02-10-2017, 09:33 PM

2015 Jeep GC with Active Drive II here. Blue Ox and Air Force One. No issues and super simple hook/unhook! No switches, no fuses, no stop and idle, no speed limit, no miles! 4X4 to explore!

royals1212 · 02-10-2017, 09:33 PM

X2 on Blue ox and Jeep very is to hook up and disconnect. Highly recommend a brake system for the toad. We are pleased with the air force 1 system.

Matt D · 02-10-2017, 09:39 PM

We've towed a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited, a Ford Flex, and two different F-150s.

Ranked in order of preference:

2015 F-150 (Platinum SCREW 4WD) Super easy to tow, and a Cadillac ride when you get there. We carry a flippin golf cart in the bed! Transfer case is electronic and no speed or time limits.

2012 F-150 (Lariat SCREW 2WD). The biggest difference here was the use of a Superflow (Remco) driveshaft disconnect. Frankly, these disconnects can be a bit finicky, but it permits towing a 2WD truck.

2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (Rubicon) Possibly the easiest vehicle to tow, period. We had the M&G Engineering braking system M & G Engineering - Car Braking Systems: Home Page Hooking up was super easy, and the vehicle didn't feel like it was back there. The vehicle itself was an incredible piece of junk.

2008 Ford Flex. While this was as easy to tow as the Jeep, or my 2015 F-150, it had a 65 MPH speed limit, and needed to be started every so often. While a nice car, Ford has discontinued the Flex.

We've always used Blue Ox base plates and towbar (10,000#) without issue. Our towbar is sometimes difficult to release depending upon the relationship of the towed vehicle to the coach. Evidently the Demco Excalibar is an excellent choice and less likely to bind up. Seeing as most Entegra coaches mount the hitch really high, something must be done to correct the geometry and get the tow bar more level. With our Blue Ox setup we need to use a drop adaptor. With a Demco we would not require that as I recall they drop 3" by design.

Ultimately, you need to define what kind of vehicle you can imagine driving. In our case, the Jeep Wrangler was not comfortable for longer ranging trips. The 150 can explore off-road somewhat, but is best suited to street duty with very light off-roading. The Flex is a great around town driver, and the 3 Grand Cherokees I owned way back were great vehicles.

Personally, I'd recommend sorting out how to pull what you currently drive. That may require a dolly or flat trailer. The small investment will permit you to save on adding expenses right now, and will also permit you to actually back up should you find that useful.

Best of luck,

-Matt

Hayman · 02-11-2017, 06:05 AM

Blue Ox AVAIL tow bar is a non binding design and we've had ours for almost a year and 12,000 + miles with great results. It's our 3rd Blue Ox over many years and been very pleased with customer service, tech support and longevity of the product.

All that being said I don't think you can go wrong with Demco, Roadmaster or ReadyBrute as it boils down to personal choice and pricing at the time of purchase.

Marcosdad · 02-11-2017, 10:42 AM

Demco pulling a Ford Flex. Very good car for hauling people, golf clubs or just stuff.

rbr · 02-11-2017, 11:33 AM

I've flat towed a stick shift Acura Integra, a stick shift Mini Cooper, two Jeep Wranglers (a TJ and a JKU Rubicon) and two Grand Cherokees (WK and WK2). They were all fine for their purpose at the time, but now that we're full timing and are down to just one car (hard for me to believe!), the Grand Cherokee is the best compromise for us.

We strap a kayak on top, hang bikes off the back, pull it with Blue Ox baseplate and tow bar, and brake it with an Air Force One system. No extra junk hanging on the front when not towing. No fuses, switches, trickle charge lines, etc. Just a simple switch of the electronic transfer case into neutral.

rbr · 02-11-2017, 11:54 AM

If you're an FMCA member (highly recommended, if not), they have a good collection of info on flat towing and publish an annual listing of current vehicles that the manufacturer approves for flat towing behind an RV.

https://www.fmca.com/motorhome/towing.html