Experiences hauling a motorcycle on your toad

[RestlessRVr]

HI all,

I am considering different options for taking my motorcycle along with us and am considering just putting it on the back of our toad vs the back of the MH with toad behind.

We have a 35' DP and I am not too interested in having the motorcycle weight added to the tail end, which will cause the front of the MH to wander so it seems like having it on the toad would eliminate that issue (but create others?). I am also well under my tow capacity even with the bike on the toad.

What I am wondering is if anyone else pulls a toad with a motorcycle on the toad and can tell me if and how it affects the handling of the toad while behind the MH.

The bike and carrier is about 400# total and does cause my truck to sag slightly but I have no handling issues when hauling my bike i.e no light front end feel etc.

Thanks all,
Troy R
Concord, CA
'95 Safari 3530
'03 Sport Trac Toad

[srydve]

I have a 34' DP and a Ford ranger toad. Hauled three dirt bikes, a 400 KTM a 650 Honda and a 400 Suzuki in the back of the Ranger for a 10 days and what must have been pretty close to a couple thousand miles. Even had three bicycles on a rack off the rear of the Ranger. We didn't experience any problems and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again if a plan came together. I'm sure you'll be just fine with your plans and I doubt you'll even notice that the bike is there.

[MDPD]

I have a 2011 Dodge Dakota and just towed it with my Harley Electraglide Classic in the bed for the first time on a short trip. I have a Blue Ox Sport Loader for the bike. The only difficulty I had was having to add air lift to the truck to level the load for towing.

We originally had a Jeep Wrangler as the toad and was expecting a different towing experience with the truck. Towed the truck several times before trying with the bike and the '06 Journey didn't know the difference. With the bike in the bed the mileage dropped 2/10, probably a combination of weight and wind resistance, but definately worth the money having the bike with us.

I chose the Blue Ox loader over the others because it carries the bike just 1" over the bed where most other brands place the bike 4" to 6" above the bed. The only drawback is the Blue Ox has removable ramps that would fit in the bed of a full size truck alongside the loader but the Dakota being 4" narrower, the ramps would not fit. I build a drawer in one of the storage boxes of the motorhome and put them in there instead.

Just for information, before I bought the loader, I tried loading the bike using ramps. The experience was as good as any stress test I have ever had and I would not try it a second time. Riding an 850 pound bike up and down a 30 degree ramp, 32 inches in the air is not for the faint of heart.

We are leaving for an extended several thousand mile trip soon and that will be the real test.

[Francesca]

Hi-
My husband and his fishing buddy put a motorcycle rack (with bike) on the back of that poor little truck you see in the picture and tow the whole shebang behind the 22 ft. M/H you also see.
(they do have to take the outboard off the boat)
If they can do that without getting killed, crashed, or arrested, I'd bet you'll do just fine with your bike toter toad!

Francesca

[RestlessRVr]

Great to hear others have tried this successfully; I am ready to give it a go

Thanks all for your input


Troy R.

[dshogman]

Anybody try this with a 3 wheel Spyder?? Full size pickup with 8 ft bed??

[Submustang]

I tow a Toyota Tundra with a CruiserRamp loader in the bed for my C50. It works quite well and does change the handling in any noticeable way. I have looked at how I might carry a Spyder. My wife really likes them. Best guess, it might fit in backwards. We have a six foot bed, so the tailgate would likely need to be reinforced for the front end weight of the Spyder.

[Triker56]

Spyder 105" long 61.9" wide 929 lb

How wide is your 6' bed?
Over 5' needed.