Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
RV Trip Planning Discussions

Go Back   iRV2 Forums > MOTORHOME FORUMS > Toads and Motorhome Related Towing
Click Here to Login
Join iRV2 Today

Mission Statement: Supporting thoughtful exchange of knowledge, values and experience among RV enthusiasts.
Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on iRV2
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 10-19-2020, 10:39 PM   #1
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 19
My first experience towing

I am relatively new to motorhomes but I bought one after some successful rental trips.

Planning to tow a car was very intimidating given all the complexity:
- weight limits of the coach
- weight limits of the tow hitch
- weight rating of the tow bar
- towability of the car
- supplemental braking systems

I did a lot of research and felt like a lot of the company marketing was high-level and useless, and a lot of advice in forums was from people who were very DIY-oriented and made it sound like taking a coach to the shop would result in people doing stuff to the coach who don’t really know what they’re doing. So I was even more intimidated, argh!!! The only confidence I got was seeing so many motorhomes towing cars and therefore thinking “how hard can the really be???”

To make a long story short, if you are in the position I was in DON’T WORRY...you do need to work through some issues but once you do it’s easy, easy, easy.

In my case:
- GCWR is 33,000 lb and GVWR of the motorhome is 29,410 lb (on a sticker inside the motorcycle, by law) but I took it to the scales (don’t be intimidated about that either) and weighed it and turns out even will full gas and fresh water etc I was only a bit over 26,000. So I could tow something up to about 7,000 lb.
- I bought a Jeep Wrangler because everyone tows them and my kids wanted us to finally own one “not boring” car. The complexity of “can I tow this car” basically goes away with the Wrangler.
- I settled on the Air Force One braking system and took the car to a very professional outfit in Elkhart IN to have it all installed. Total cost ~$4k for all the work on the Jeep and coach plus the tow bar itself and the braking system

Once they taught me how to hook everything up and get the transfer case set to tow etc I went on a few short trips. I literally couldn’t feel the tow car whatsoever. I had to leave the rear camera on just to make sure the car hadn’t fallen off!!!

After a few times it literally took me 3 minutes to hook or unhook the car. I have a big Rubbermaid bin to throw all the tow stuff into (air line, electrical umbilical, breakaway cable, etc).

Based on this experience I weighed my Chevy Suburban and realized that as long as I didn’t have 100 gal of fresh water I could be below the GCWR and tow that car too. So another ~$3k for baseplate and AirForceOne system etc and that car is all set up (for that car, needed a battery cutoff set up in the car). The procedure to get the car into towing mode is the only difference, everything else identical.

Unlike the Jeep, towing the Suburban does materially negatively impact acceleration and on hills you sometimes can’t maintain speed (that said, I recently drove hwy 441 through the Smokies towing and it was fine).

Bottom line: I used to see motorhomes towing suburbans and thought to myself “that is just nuts”. Now I’m THAT person and honestly it’s super easy.

Lessons learned, perhaps helpful for a first-time tower who does not do any of their own mechanical work:
- don’t be intimidated by weighing, just get it done and do the math
- find a reputable service center that is super-experienced with towing setups, they will make the install painless...yes it will cost more than buying all the parts and doing stuff yourself, and yes it is more “gold plated” eg battery cutoff solenoid switch mounted professionally in the car, brake activation indicator mounted professionally in the coach, etc), but low hassle and worth it IMHO
- practice the hook and unhook process (including getting the car into tow mode) until you can get it done in 3-4 mins
- put a pair of work gloves into the bin where you keep the tow stuff...hooking and unhooking will get your hands really dirty
- if you have a diesel pusher / air brakes, the AF One is has been great for this newbie...lots of different views on braking systems but that is my experience with a professional install of that system

In case anyone is curious, the shop I used to set me up was Dan’s Service Center (aka Dan’s Hitch) in Elkhart IN, just a few mins from Elkhart Campground. Totally specialized in hitches and towing and Tom of experience with motorhomes. My experience there was outstanding FWIW. I’m sure I paid more than average since I have no personal technical skills, but it was well worth it to me to go with a more “high service” approach.

Matt
MattyA is offline   Reply With Quote
Join the #1 RV Forum Today - It's Totally Free!

iRV2.com RV Community - Are you about to start a new improvement on your RV or need some help with some maintenance? Do you need advice on what products to buy? Or maybe you can give others some advice? No matter where you fit in you'll find that iRV2 is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with other RV owners, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create an RV blog, send private messages and so much, much more!

Old 10-20-2020, 09:16 AM   #2
Senior Member
 
96Bounder1st's Avatar
 
Monaco Owners Club
Fleetwood Owners Club
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: Manitoba, Canada
Posts: 968
Matt, congratulations on working thru this.

I also went the route of having a very qualified hitch, base plate installer get my Toad ready for me. They did the install, wiring and setup. When i came to pick up car they spent an hour showing me how the portable brake unit installed, how the base plate tabs went in, where the fuses for external battery charging where and the fuse for the extra power point they had to install. Money very well spent.

Sometimes we would rather spend the money for the peace of mind we get from having an install done. Sounds like we both had great experiences and a shop with a solid track record is peace of mind.

Enjoy your towing

Terry & Pat
__________________
2002 Monaco Windsor 40PKD. Marjorie 2.
2015 Equinox V6 Roadmaster tow setup
2019 ALP Adventurer 24DS for the short trips. April, 2021
96Bounder1st is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-20-2020, 10:00 AM   #3
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Houston
Posts: 1,374
Quote:
Originally Posted by MattyA View Post
I am relatively new to motorhomes but I bought one after some successful rental trips.

Planning to tow a car was very intimidating given all the complexity:
- weight limits of the coach
- weight limits of the tow hitch
- weight rating of the tow bar
- towability of the car
- supplemental braking systems

I did a lot of research and felt like a lot of the company marketing was high-level and useless, and a lot of advice in forums was from people who were very DIY-oriented and made it sound like taking a coach to the shop would result in people doing stuff to the coach who don’t really know what they’re doing. So I was even more intimidated, argh!!! The only confidence I got was seeing so many motorhomes towing cars and therefore thinking “how hard can the really be???”

To make a long story short, if you are in the position I was in DON’T WORRY...you do need to work through some issues but once you do it’s easy, easy, easy.

In my case:
- GCWR is 33,000 lb and GVWR of the motorhome is 29,410 lb (on a sticker inside the motorcycle, by law) but I took it to the scales (don’t be intimidated about that either) and weighed it and turns out even will full gas and fresh water etc I was only a bit over 26,000. So I could tow something up to about 7,000 lb.
- I bought a Jeep Wrangler because everyone tows them and my kids wanted us to finally own one “not boring” car. The complexity of “can I tow this car” basically goes away with the Wrangler.
- I settled on the Air Force One braking system and took the car to a very professional outfit in Elkhart IN to have it all installed. Total cost ~$4k for all the work on the Jeep and coach plus the tow bar itself and the braking system

Once they taught me how to hook everything up and get the transfer case set to tow etc I went on a few short trips. I literally couldn’t feel the tow car whatsoever. I had to leave the rear camera on just to make sure the car hadn’t fallen off!!!

After a few times it literally took me 3 minutes to hook or unhook the car. I have a big Rubbermaid bin to throw all the tow stuff into (air line, electrical umbilical, breakaway cable, etc).

Based on this experience I weighed my Chevy Suburban and realized that as long as I didn’t have 100 gal of fresh water I could be below the GCWR and tow that car too. So another ~$3k for baseplate and AirForceOne system etc and that car is all set up (for that car, needed a battery cutoff set up in the car). The procedure to get the car into towing mode is the only difference, everything else identical.

Unlike the Jeep, towing the Suburban does materially negatively impact acceleration and on hills you sometimes can’t maintain speed (that said, I recently drove hwy 441 through the Smokies towing and it was fine).

Bottom line: I used to see motorhomes towing suburbans and thought to myself “that is just nuts”. Now I’m THAT person and honestly it’s super easy.

Lessons learned, perhaps helpful for a first-time tower who does not do any of their own mechanical work:
- don’t be intimidated by weighing, just get it done and do the math
- find a reputable service center that is super-experienced with towing setups, they will make the install painless...yes it will cost more than buying all the parts and doing stuff yourself, and yes it is more “gold plated” eg battery cutoff solenoid switch mounted professionally in the car, brake activation indicator mounted professionally in the coach, etc), but low hassle and worth it IMHO
- practice the hook and unhook process (including getting the car into tow mode) until you can get it done in 3-4 mins
- put a pair of work gloves into the bin where you keep the tow stuff...hooking and unhooking will get your hands really dirty
- if you have a diesel pusher / air brakes, the AF One is has been great for this newbie...lots of different views on braking systems but that is my experience with a professional install of that system

In case anyone is curious, the shop I used to set me up was Dan’s Service Center (aka Dan’s Hitch) in Elkhart IN, just a few mins from Elkhart Campground. Totally specialized in hitches and towing and Tom of experience with motorhomes. My experience there was outstanding FWIW. I’m sure I paid more than average since I have no personal technical skills, but it was well worth it to me to go with a more “high service” approach.

Matt
Good review and well said. Safe travels.
__________________
2002 Newmar Kountry Star 3669
Freightliner 300HP Cummins
Towing 2014 Honda CRV EX-L & 2010 Tundra W/Remco DD
noserider is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-20-2020, 10:38 AM   #4
NXR
Senior Member
 
NXR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 5,625
Quote:
GCWR is 33,000 lb and GVWR of the motorhome is 29,410 lb
One thing missing from your excellent write-up is any mention of the actual hitch rating. A motorhome with only a 3,600 pound difference between GVWR and GCWR usually has a 5,000 pound rated hitch installed, especially if it's a gasser.

Later on you mentioned the Air Force One supplemental braking system, which usually is only used with a diesel pusher (DP) but can be used on a gasoline motorhome with a supplemental air pump installed on the motorhome.

Those two are fairly subtle nuances that someone new to towing may not understand or even consider.

I'm guessing you have a DP. What was the original hitch rating and if you had to upgrade it, what rating hitch did the shop install?

Also, what safety margin did you select for the tow bar weight rating? Me, I try to use a tow bar rated for close to double the weight of the car. My car weighs 3,600 pounds so I went with a 7,500 rated tow bar.

That point is that someone new to towing and wanting to tow a 4,800 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (four-door) might believe that a 5,000 pound rated hitch and a 5,000 pound rated tow bar is perfectly acceptable.

In ideal circumstances and when the equipment is brand new that may be true. But as things age the parts will develop wear and slop, corrosion sets in, the roads get rougher, etc., I prefer more of a margin myself.

Good job and thanks for taking the time to share your experience.

Ray
__________________
2020 Forest River Georgetown GT5 34H5
2020 Equinox Premier AWD 2.0L/9-speed
NXR is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2020, 08:44 AM   #5
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 19
Couple of replies:

- The place where I did the install likewise had the tech spend an hour or so going through the hook-up and car-shifting procedure etc. Super-helpful and confidence-building.
- Yes, I have a DP
- Hitch rating is 10,000 lb
- In anticipation of possibly towing a heavier car in the future, I got a 10,000 lb tow bar
- I didn’t know that a gasser could use an air pump to be compatible with the AF One…that is cool to know about for future reference

Cheers!
MattyA is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2020, 03:03 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 35,317
Air Force One is for air brake equipped motorhomes only.
twinboat is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2020, 03:40 PM   #7
NXR
Senior Member
 
NXR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 5,625
Quote:
Originally Posted by twinboat View Post
Air Force One is for air brake equipped motorhomes only.
My mistake. As twinboat obliquely noted, I inadvertently confused the M&G Engineerng air braking system with the Demco Air Force One.

The Demco gasser equivalent is their Stay-IN-Play DUO, which I actually have...

Sorry,

Ray
__________________
2020 Forest River Georgetown GT5 34H5
2020 Equinox Premier AWD 2.0L/9-speed
NXR is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2020, 06:50 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
Prairie Dog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2019
Location: Carmel, IN
Posts: 768
Quote:
Originally Posted by MattyA View Post
I am relatively new to motorhomes but I bought one after some successful rental trips.



Planning to tow a car was very intimidating given all the complexity:

- weight limits of the coach

- weight limits of the tow hitch

- weight rating of the tow bar

- towability of the car

- supplemental braking systems



I did a lot of research and felt like a lot of the company marketing was high-level and useless, and a lot of advice in forums was from people who were very DIY-oriented and made it sound like taking a coach to the shop would result in people doing stuff to the coach who don’t really know what they’re doing. So I was even more intimidated, argh!!! The only confidence I got was seeing so many motorhomes towing cars and therefore thinking “how hard can the really be???”



To make a long story short, if you are in the position I was in DON’T WORRY...you do need to work through some issues but once you do it’s easy, easy, easy.



In my case:

- GCWR is 33,000 lb and GVWR of the motorhome is 29,410 lb (on a sticker inside the motorcycle, by law) but I took it to the scales (don’t be intimidated about that either) and weighed it and turns out even will full gas and fresh water etc I was only a bit over 26,000. So I could tow something up to about 7,000 lb.

- I bought a Jeep Wrangler because everyone tows them and my kids wanted us to finally own one “not boring” car. The complexity of “can I tow this car” basically goes away with the Wrangler.

- I settled on the Air Force One braking system and took the car to a very professional outfit in Elkhart IN to have it all installed. Total cost ~$4k for all the work on the Jeep and coach plus the tow bar itself and the braking system



Once they taught me how to hook everything up and get the transfer case set to tow etc I went on a few short trips. I literally couldn’t feel the tow car whatsoever. I had to leave the rear camera on just to make sure the car hadn’t fallen off!!!



After a few times it literally took me 3 minutes to hook or unhook the car. I have a big Rubbermaid bin to throw all the tow stuff into (air line, electrical umbilical, breakaway cable, etc).



Based on this experience I weighed my Chevy Suburban and realized that as long as I didn’t have 100 gal of fresh water I could be below the GCWR and tow that car too. So another ~$3k for baseplate and AirForceOne system etc and that car is all set up (for that car, needed a battery cutoff set up in the car). The procedure to get the car into towing mode is the only difference, everything else identical.



Unlike the Jeep, towing the Suburban does materially negatively impact acceleration and on hills you sometimes can’t maintain speed (that said, I recently drove hwy 441 through the Smokies towing and it was fine).



Bottom line: I used to see motorhomes towing suburbans and thought to myself “that is just nuts”. Now I’m THAT person and honestly it’s super easy.



Lessons learned, perhaps helpful for a first-time tower who does not do any of their own mechanical work:

- don’t be intimidated by weighing, just get it done and do the math

- find a reputable service center that is super-experienced with towing setups, they will make the install painless...yes it will cost more than buying all the parts and doing stuff yourself, and yes it is more “gold plated” eg battery cutoff solenoid switch mounted professionally in the car, brake activation indicator mounted professionally in the coach, etc), but low hassle and worth it IMHO

- practice the hook and unhook process (including getting the car into tow mode) until you can get it done in 3-4 mins

- put a pair of work gloves into the bin where you keep the tow stuff...hooking and unhooking will get your hands really dirty

- if you have a diesel pusher / air brakes, the AF One is has been great for this newbie...lots of different views on braking systems but that is my experience with a professional install of that system



In case anyone is curious, the shop I used to set me up was Dan’s Service Center (aka Dan’s Hitch) in Elkhart IN, just a few mins from Elkhart Campground. Totally specialized in hitches and towing and Tom of experience with motorhomes. My experience there was outstanding FWIW. I’m sure I paid more than average since I have no personal technical skills, but it was well worth it to me to go with a more “high service” approach.



Matt


How far did you have to drive to Dan’s hitch? Did he need the coach there?
__________________
Bill & Marsha & Devin
2019 Entegra Anthem 42DEQ/ Sold last year
Looking at B Vans
Prairie Dog is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2020, 06:49 AM   #9
Moderator Emeritus
 
JMonroe's Avatar


 
Jayco Owners Club
RV Trip Wizard
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Poinciana FL
Posts: 7,781
Quote:
Originally Posted by Prairie Dog View Post
How far did you have to drive to Dan’s hitch? Did he need the coach there?
There is equipment needed on the coach side so yes, the installer would need the coach, with a few newer coaches as exceptions.
__________________
Jay and Peggy Monroe
"Can't take it with you, not leaving any behind"
2024 Jayco White Hawk 26FK
2024 Ford Expedition
JMonroe is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2020, 07:16 AM   #10
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 19
Quote:
Originally Posted by Prairie Dog View Post
How far did you have to drive to Dan’s hitch? Did he need the coach there?
It was about an hour's drive for me. I left the car there and the work took a few days. On the day I picked up the car I drove the coach to the pickup and left it with them for ~4 hours while they did the coach-side work. Then towed the car home!
MattyA is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2020, 12:15 PM   #11
Senior Member
 
Prairie Dog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2019
Location: Carmel, IN
Posts: 768
Quote:
Originally Posted by JMonroe View Post
There is equipment needed on the coach side so yes, the installer would need the coach, with a few newer coaches as exceptions.
That is interesting as I was under the impression my coach needed nothing. What do they need to do to it?
__________________
Bill & Marsha & Devin
2019 Entegra Anthem 42DEQ/ Sold last year
Looking at B Vans
Prairie Dog is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2020, 12:26 PM   #12
Senior Member
 
777 Driver's Avatar


 
Entegra Owners Club
Spartan Chassis
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 4,191
Quote:
Originally Posted by JMonroe View Post
There is equipment needed on the coach side so yes, the installer would need the coach, with a few newer coaches as exceptions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Prairie Dog View Post
That is interesting as I was under the impression my coach needed nothing. What do they need to do to it?
Hi Matt,

Your '19 is newer than my '18. Yours is exceptional, mine is not.

In the '19 model year, Entegra started including the coach side equipment necessary for the Air Force One supplemental braking system. Look just above the receiver hitch and you should see a quick disconnect air connection.

Take care,
Stu
__________________
"I would rather have questions that can't be answered than answers that can't be questioned."
2018 Anthem 42DEQ
777 Driver is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2020, 07:23 AM   #13
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 19
Quote:
Originally Posted by 777 Driver View Post
Hi Matt,

Your '19 is newer than my '18. Yours is exceptional, mine is not.

In the '19 model year, Entegra started including the coach side equipment necessary for the Air Force One supplemental braking system. Look just above the receiver hitch and you should see a quick disconnect air connection.

Take care,
Stu
My coach is a Winnebago Forza so no air hose connection standard and needed to be installed. Maybe someday I'll graduate into the Entegra or Newmar stratosphere where you get all the bells and whistles, lol!!

(truthfully every time I go into the Forza I'm impressed...it has a lot of bells and whistles already!!)
MattyA is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
tow, towing



Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
2020 Equinox LT First Towing Experience Yellowboat Toads and Motorhome Related Towing 4 02-15-2020 05:32 PM
TETON EXPERIENCE :: 2004 Teton Experience lformby iRV2 Owners Registry 0 11-10-2018 10:57 AM
First Towing Experience - Florida to Texas aknavy Trailer Towing and Tow Vehicles Discussion 9 03-03-2017 03:55 PM
First Time Towing Dingy Experience hoosierrun Toads and Motorhome Related Towing 5 10-04-2016 06:22 PM
Petty Driving Experience - WHAT AN EXPERIENCE!! WWFan Toy Haulers Discussion 18 12-06-2005 06:21 PM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 08:47 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.