Community Forums

Bruce33.5 · 08-17-2020, 03:16 PM

Has anyone towed 4 wheels down without a rock guard. I just got rigged up to tow and don’t want to get my truck chipped up. I have a Palazzo 33.5 and there is quite a bit of overhang between back wheels and back end. If you do use a rock guard what kind?

ByeTheWay · 08-17-2020, 03:23 PM

I took my ad flap off years ago. I didn't want chips either. No problem. No Chips. My mud flaps right behind the duallies are in place.

18 wheelers don't use ad flaps and people follow them close.

rffowler55 · 08-17-2020, 03:43 PM

We use an ad flap (Newmar) that hangs about 6 to 8 inches inches above the surface, which helps with rocks coming off the mud flaps but does not pickup gravel from sweeping the road that occurs with some of the units you see on the highway. It has helped with our toad, a fiat 500, which has a low ground clearance so nothing is going to go below the car without causing a ding.

vseasport · 08-17-2020, 04:39 PM

Our 38' Phaeton has a big flap the goes across the entire coach near the back and hangs down about an inch from the road.
Last month was my first trip with a toad and we just completed 6,000 miles through nine states towing our Mini Cooper. The first 5,000 miles we went through several road construction sites and the car never got a scratch. I was pretty confident we weren't going to have any problems. Then without warning encountered construction with several miles of loose gravel. To my horor when we stopped I discovered the entire front of the car had been peppered and chipped up. Paint, chrome, windshield and more, the car is a mess. I went back to the site and confronted the job foreman. He remembered us driving through and saw my car being damaged. To make a long story short I filed a claim with the construction company who turned it over to their insurance who denied my claim. Total damage to my car was more than $13,000.
I have been looking and can't find a suitable rock guard. I have now purchased a bra for the front and cover for the windshield but will be watching this thread for a better alternative for toad protection.

tucson.don · 08-18-2020, 01:42 AM

I bought a bra for my tow but I don't like it. I think it does okay but it constantly needs adjusted. Also, you're not suppose to leave it on in the rain; another reason I don't like it. It ends up to be a maintenance issue I don't need while traveling.

Winemaker2 · 08-18-2020, 05:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vseasport

Our 38' Phaeton has a big flap the goes across the entire coach near the back and hangs down about an inch from the road.
Last month was my first trip with a toad and we just completed 6,000 miles through nine states towing our Mini Cooper. The first 5,000 miles we went through several road construction sites and the car never got a scratch. I was pretty confident we weren't going to have any problems. Then without warning encountered construction with several miles of loose gravel. To my horor when we stopped I discovered the entire front of the car had been peppered and chipped up. Paint, chrome, windshield and more, the car is a mess. I went back to the site and confronted the job foreman. He remembered us driving through and saw my car being damaged. To make a long story short I filed a claim with the construction company who turned it over to their insurance who denied my claim. Total damage to my car was more than $13,000.
I have been looking and can't find a suitable rock guard. I have now purchased a bra for the front and cover for the windshield but will be watching this thread for a better alternative for toad protection.

Did you consider filing w your own insurance as a comprehensive claim and let them go after the const co if they choose?
IMO 1-2" off road is way to close. More chance to stir up gravel than stop it.
I considered raising mine up several inches but when I looked at it I just took it off. I have mud flaps on rear wheels. I did mount 2 large rubber mud flaps in front of the frame for my tow bar mounting. They are tight to the frame and maybe 8-10" off the ground. My thinking is they push air flow from center towards rear corners and help keep toad cleaner.
When it rains I get road dirt but no dings.

vseasport · 08-18-2020, 05:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker2

Did you consider filing w your own insurance as a comprehensive claim and let them go after the const co if they choose?
IMO 1-2" off road is way to close. More chance to stir up gravel than stop it.
I considered raising mine up several inches but when I looked at it I just took it off. I have mud flaps on rear wheels. I did mount 2 large rubber mud flaps in front of the frame for my tow bar mounting. They are tight to the frame and maybe 8-10" off the ground. My thinking is they push air flow from center towards rear corners and help keep toad cleaner.
When it rains I get road dirt but no dings.

I believe insurance is as big of a rip as big pharma and choose to self insure and only carry liability. In my lifetime I have had very few claims and never a fair settlement. Everyone with a lien on their property is forced to have insurance to cover the lien holder. Insurance companies know it and take advantage. If my rig was a total loss I'd still be ahead with all the savings in premiums.

Enough of that. I don't mean to hijack the thread.

Never thought of raising my flap. Maybe that and installing other flaps just behind the tires will do the trick. Thanks!

rffowler55 · 08-18-2020, 07:13 AM

We bought a bra for our Fiat 500 and promptly sent it back for a refund after reading the instructions stating you should never leave the bra on if it is wet because it might damage the car's paint. We live in the North Georgia mountains and average over 80" of rainfall per year with the past 2 years exceeding 100"s so we knew the bra would never be on our toad.

If our current approach of using the full length rear mudflap with about a 6 to 8 inch ground clearance ever proves ineffective we will look into a netting that goes over the tow bar that does not overly restrict the air flow to the toad's engine and transmission.

iluvuk · 08-18-2020, 07:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce33.5

Has anyone towed 4 wheels down without a rock guard. I just got rigged up to tow and don’t want to get my truck chipped up. I have a Palazzo 33.5 and there is quite a bit of overhang between back wheels and back end. If you do use a rock guard what kind?

Bruce,
I am a fellow Palazzo owner. You can tow 4 down just fine and I doubt you will get a single chip from your coach to your toad. The Palazzo is very low and long in the rear and if you study the angles from rear tire to toad by looking at it from the side it is almost impossible for a rock to hit. I have about 12000 miles towing my brand new Jeep grand Cherokee, no rock guard, no large mud flap, and on many types of roads, even dirt roads, and no problems or chips. I of course cannot guarantee your situation will be like mine.

My experience in watching and seeing others use those full width rock guards is that they actually sweep up rocks and dust from the ground and make more damage to the toad. Most of the folks that use those full width rock guard/flaps on the coach are dealing with a coach with a much higher rear end exposing the Toad to the rear wheel fly off and they have no other alternative. Palazzo's don't really have that issue.

IN short, no problems towing 4 down at all on mine so far and no need for flaps or rock guard.

The biggest risk of road rock damage I see to RV or Toad is not from rocks flying up from the rear (at least on a Palazzo) but rather from rocks flying from large tires on trucks coming in the opposing lane! I lost a $4400 windshield from a rock coming from the opposing traffic lane; those can hit the toad also!

DuraFlap Mud Flaps · 08-18-2020, 09:39 AM

The Palazzo is lower to the ground than many other coaches and if you have added large enough mud flaps behind the dual tires you are probably good for rock chips. At least as wide as the tires and within 4-6" of the ground when driving.
The mud flap across the back would be for protection from items like the dead alligators in the center of the lane. As the coach moves across those they can tend to be lifted slightly off the road. When it hits the rear mud flap that flap can help push it back to the ground to keep it from hitting the front of the toad.
I have heard enough stories of items like this being stopped by the mud flap.
Yes, that flap must be at least 4" off the ground to not throw any rocks at the toad.
It can also be fun to have it custom made to read something fun, not just the name of the coach manufacturer.
Many folks leave the stainless face plate blank and put vinyl stickers on it with their favorite team name on them.

creativepart · 08-18-2020, 09:52 AM

We've never used anything behind our RV to protect our Toad in 35,000 miles. And, we can honestly say we've never noticed any rock chips or paint or Windshield issues the entire time.

We do have large mud flaps behind the dual tires. But other than that the LOOOOONG RV overhang prevents rock splatter better than any "rock guard."

This question comes up a lot on this forum and the majority of responses I see are that the "rock guard" causes more to damage the front of the Toad because it bounces off the ground and sends up rocks delivered right into the front of your Toad.

Then there are others that have a rock guard that they've cranked up so high off the ground that it does nothing at all and so it doesn't chip your car and those folks are happy with their "rock guard".