Towing RV itself with a tow dolly?

[F4Gary]

Sign up for AAA RV roadside assistance with enough coverage for 25+ mile towing. Get it towed and next month cancel the AAA and get most of your money back.

[MarvinG]

I am impressed by the OP’s attempt to better himself in a very difficult financial situation. I understand all too well trying to accomplish something with virtually nothing to make it happen. My thoughts: Might some of us RVer’s in your area have tires/rims that could be borrowed for the trip? If not could you source some elsewhere? If you had a couple of decent tires you could get the safer $250 tow couldn’t you? Getting a couple used/cheap but better tires and maybe inner tubes if need be might be doable without too much money if all else fails.

My second thought is if you can get one good tire on the back you can probably make it 21 miles. So if you get at least two decent for 21 miles tires (one for back and one for spare?) then you might rent a UHaul truck and obtain a tow bar. But I wonder if the cost won’t come close to the $250 tow before you are done.

If I understand you correctly at least at this point, you are trying to get a better place to live more than you are trying to build up a coach to drive all over the U.S. Surely all of us together can come up with a way to help you achieve this.

[DryCreek]

Do you know anyone with a Ford dually? maybe they'd loan you their tires from a weekend. On the other hand, if you know someone with any dually they'd make a better tow vehicle.

I would try the fuel can connected to the fuel pump. If its' carbureted, then there will be a mechanical pump. Those old cam-driven mechanical pumps seldom go out. When they do, its usually the diaphragm and the weep hole will be the indicator of pump failure.

As for the intermittent issue with keeping your ignition hot, a hot jumper from a battery to ignition "pack" (early EEC most likely) should keep it going. Google Ford E-350 van wiring for your year and jumper the ignition.

[Jshemack]

Originally Posted by Unicorn Driver

Would the driveshaft need to be disconnected?

Yes, to avoid damage to the transmission.

[jamesham]

I have had the same problem. Old Ford Class C Travelmaster mini died on the way home just 50 miles from my driveway. The Ford van chassis is too wide and too heavy for my tow dolly. U-Haul does rent a few heavy duty tow dolly models with surge brakes, but width is still a problem.

Bite the bullet and hire a tow truck. An experienced operator can place it wherever you want it at your house to permit repairs. The driveshaft on a 1986 model does have to be disconnected. Presume all the Ford Econoline chassis require this.

Any towing coverage with insurance, AAA, Coachnet, or Good Sam?

[Taz4570]

This will certainly be one to remember...

[Ray,IN]

Originally Posted by Unicorn Driver

Would the driveshaft need to be disconnected?

Only if it has an automatic transmission.
Towing that amount of load is likely to destroy your van. Then you have 2 vehicles to get running again.
A standard auto tow-dolly may not have the load capacity to support the front end of the MH.

[NeilV]

Unfortunately most road side assistance plans only cover towing on registered road worthy vehicles you already own or have rented and have broken down on you while driving them. Getting them to move a new to you unregistered and uninsured vehicle from the dealership to another parking lot probably wouldn't happen.

Does the dealership have a tow truck available to them capable of getting the job done? If so would they be willing to help defray the cost of moving it? Paying a wrecking yard to take it away would likely cost them more. Potentially though a towing company might not want to be involved in moving it to anything but your own property or a service facility that has agreed to repair it for you since they likely would not want to be involved in what some might construe as abandoning a derelict vehicle in a parking lot since that could put their business license at risk.

A Class C of that era and length would be a bit much for anything less than a 6 ton truck to pull at over walking speed across a flat parking lot and may cost substantially more than having it towed if you use a personal vehicle that is any lighter.


For it to be driven after sitting about a decade without going through the brakes, cooling and fuel systems would also be taking a big chance. If there was ethanol put in it 10 years ago you can rest assured that before you will be able to get it to stay running well enough to be drive-able you will need to pump out that ancient fuel and clean the scum out of the tank along with change out the filters. If it has an engine driven diaphragm fuel pump then you can probable also bank on it leaking in short time if it isn't already and that there will be some fuel in the crankcase.

The chance of a wheel fire can be pretty high on a vehicle in that condition even if its only towed at 40 mph for 20 miles and if flat towed the chances become higher since the front brakes will likely be dragging and the wheel bearings in need of repacking or possibly even replacing.

16.5" low profile tires to support that will likely be 10 ply minimum and high pressure so nothing to fool around with. Thankfully they are not 16" split rims that can blow apart sending the bead rings flying. The reason for the 16.5" low profile tires is to prevent tip overs on those C chassis which were loaded pretty much to their max capacity just by having the camper body on them. It is not unusual for one that has had the roof leaking for years to have the mild steel lower frames collapse after going over a bump in the road.

Yes there are a lot of factors going against moving this one on a shoestring budget that does not allow for at least flat bed towing or getting the wheel bearings and brakes freed up and lubricated.

RV's can be like Boats where the rule holds pretty much true that the Free Ones will generally be the most expensive.

[Diesel-Lover]

I am for asking the dealer if they could help you out for the relocation of the rig. If not at least give you some good tires as a loan to get the rig home. Weld the tow bar to the front and have a tail car with flashers behind you or attach a bunch of blinking lights to the back (Christmas sled). Use a heavy duty moving truck (17 footer can tow 10000 lbs) they are 30 ish a day plus a buck a mile or some such. Drive slow and steady.

[NeilV]

FYI - A 26 foot Tioga Class C weighs in at close to 14,000 lbs empty. In the 1980's they really hadn't perfected light construction so even despite the lack of slides they were quite heavy.

The Econoline vans of the late 70's and early 80's were also not as heavy duty as one would like to believe either (we had to do a bit of frame boxing and other reinforcements to get them to hold a load without sagging to badly) so welding a tow bar to steel suitable for towing a 14,000 lb vehicle especially where hills are involved may not be that good an idea regardless of the hour of the day.

[hpykmpr47]

Originally Posted by OneToRememer

Has anyone had any luck or experience good or bad with towing your entire motorhome with a dolly? I have a 1983 Fleetwood RV that I would like to tow to my home to work on it vs traveling to another county all the time to work on it. You keep costs low I'd like to pull it with a dolly.

I'm interested in the logistical issues, clearance issues, legal issues, and etc. This Fleetwood is 26 feet long and has a Ford econoline chasis with dually wheels In th back. I would probably pull it with a 1989 chevy vandura v8 or larger.

Is the motor home not drivable ? f not I think there are more cost effective ways of getting it home than on a dolly .By cost effective I mean looking at everything including damaging the rv and the dolly included. If it is drivable why don't you just drive it home ?

[hpykmpr47]

Originally Posted by OneToRememer

Has anyone had any luck or experience good or bad with towing your entire motorhome with a dolly? I have a 1983 Fleetwood RV that I would like to tow to my home to work on it vs traveling to another county all the time to work on it. You keep costs low I'd like to pull it with a dolly.

I'm interested in the logistical issues, clearance issues, legal issues, and etc. This Fleetwood is 26 feet long and has a Ford econoline chasis with dually wheels In th back. I would probably pull it with a 1989 chevy vandura v8 or larger.

Is the motor home not drivable ? f not I think there are more cost effective ways of getting it home than on a dolly .By cost effective I mean looking at everything including damagung the rv

[Diesel-Lover]

A tow rating of 10K should be good if you keep it in low gear and below 25 mph. The main thing is this is a nightmare in liability for all involved.



Perhaps an officer bud with a f350 or GMC HD or Mega RAM or better who wants to demo the strength of the truck. Better yet if you got a connection to those guys who deliver mobile homes or even move buildings!



The tow bar welded to the front frame member better be done very very well with some backup chains as well.


Some one in the RV in constant communication with the towing vehicle to assist in stepping on the brakes etc.


Better have a very strong foot because the power brakes wont be working unless you get the engine running or idling.


Just remember the parable of the tortoise and the hare and slower the better and safer too. Drive or bicycle the route a few times paying attention to what, where etc. Imagine your goal trip. The more people you have on that mission trip driving vehicles the better to assist in navigating the path and running defense from crazy drivers.


Last thing you need is some reckless person crashing the parade.


I'd love to see some pics of the trip.



As to parking it after you have it set up build a simple one side slope/shed roof to protect it from the weather, hail etc and things will be much much better. If you go to salvage yards you can pick up some corrugated metal very cheaply. Keep about a foot or two between the rig roof and the shed roof so if you need to work on stuff you can manage.

[Ret.LEO]

Some things are not meant to be.
Prime example.
If you try it..........do it at about 3AM on a Monday night, stay to un-populated areas