Tow bar

[stvns1]

Do I really need a Blue Ox tow bar setup to tow my Jeep? Tow bars range from $100 to over a thousand dollars. How about some input for a first time newbie.

[Unplanned Tourist]

You could go "Old School" like me and get a solid one. $60.00 Canadian! Or $47.00 US.

Happy Glamping.

[wa8yxm]

There are manh Tow bars and Blue Ox sells at least 3 of them

One is a simple "A" frame. ball hitch Solid arms. YOu often see this type of Tow Bar on TV shows with a JEEP (the "A" frame sticks up in front of the jeep while it is being driven.. In reality you pull the pins and stow it on under or in the RV)

Nothing wrong with this low-cost bar but hook up is. Well you must align the hitch with the ball on the RV.

They also make two that stow on the RV. with Telescoping arms, one (I have) is rated 5,000 pounds and the other (I do not have) 10,000 max towed weight. See notes below on max tow ability.

With these I can pull up a few inches to one or the other side, at an angle or otherwise "off center" and still hook up no tribble, as I will do later today I really like these tow bars Plus it is "Stowed" on the RV (Self stowing) So the only thing on the car is the base plate.

THey do cost more however.

NOTE there are a few other companies. Remco, Demco, Ready Brute. for the most part they also make both tpes.. Ready Brute (With Ready Brake) IS the exception and the one I'd recommend because it includes a brake system.. THOUGH this system does have an issue in that the cable can rust and bind costing you a brake job.


Now the notes:
Max tow is decided by the lowest of 3 numbers
Fhe first is the tow bar rating
The second is the tow hitch rating (5,000 pounds on my RV as well)
Reduced by any Drop/Rise adapters you hae (2500 is safe on my rig)
The third is the difference between the loaded for travel weight of the Motor home and the motor home's Max COMBINED gross Vehicle Weight rating, (4,000 on my RV)

SO I tow 2500 pounds.

[vsheetz]

A motor home mounted tow bar is much more convenient. I towed jeep with a sub $100 A-frame tow bar for several years. I finally converted. Much better. But needed? No.

I do recommend to tow from the bumper instead of buying a base plate.

Good used tow bars come up on Craigslist and RV forum classified site. Cheaper than buying new.

[Waiter21]

If you opt for the straight "A" (non-collapsible) bar, get one that the arms are one solid piece, not two pieces bolted together... I think you can leave the bar attached to the jeep all the time.

Collapsible vs non-collapsible (Telescoping arms).. Hooking up..

I've owned both style bars that I used on different toads. Hooking up is very easy with the collapsible. Mount the bar on the MH. Pull the car up close, collapse the arms, attach it to the toad, and go. The arms of the bar will expand and lock into place.

The non-collapsible tow bar is a little different, they are usually the ball hitch type.

To hook up. I'd attach the bar to the toad. I'd then hold the bar up by the chains so the hitch was slightly above the ball. The DW would then drive the car back/forth, etc until she had the hitch directly above the ball, I'd then drop it on the ball.. The DW got very good at lining up the hitch..

WORD OF CAUTION.. While hold the bar up by the chains, I'd stand well off to the side in case something went wrong, I would not get crushed between the toad and the MH.

If I was doing this by myself, I had a short rope and bungee cord that I threw over the ladder, and used it to hold the bar up while I positioned the car.

[Unplanned Tourist]

I line up my solid bar with the rear view camera. It points down enough that I can see my ball and I have the tow bar held up with a strap. Pull up close to the rig, put park brake on. Hop into MH and line up the hitch, hop back out and drop the hitch onto the ball. It's just that easy. (It helps that we have a driver's door)
After the tow bar is hooked up, it's all the same to get mobile as any other set-up.
Happy Glamping.

[dlm1965]

Given the amount of money we tie up in these motorhomes and tow vehicles, it didn't make sense to me to scrimp on the tow package. We have a Jeep Wrangler Sahara. Went with a Blue Ox Aventa that has adjustable arms - Jeep doesn't have to be perfectly level or lined up exactly. Tow assembly stows on RV. Worth every penny. It takes me 4 minutes to hook up - and about the same to disconnect. That's big when sitting in a park with others trying to get to their spaces.

[TXTiger]

With a straight bar you must be right on to hookup. The more serious problem is when you unhook, you must also be straight on. Most of the time you won't be able to easily unhook with a straight bar but with some effort you can. The collapsible tow bars make it a lot easier to hookup and unhook. Blue Ox is the most popular, and Roadmaster is a close second.

[Rick50]

we use the blue ox, total flexibility just get the jeep close and our good to go. as stated in an earlier post 4-5 minutes to hook up and the same to disconnect. Great product.

[HighDesert]

Tow a Jeep Sahara 2 door with Blue Ox baseplate, Ready Brute Elite towbar, brake and emergency breakaway system. They work very well together. Bear in mind - sometimes, you get what you pay for. Another option, if you tow a Jeep Wrangler, is having the bumper with tabs on it that a towbar can be attached to. Works well and negates needing a baseplate. A lot depends on what you are going to be towing, too.

[dix39]

We don't have a Jeep, but we've towed first a Samurai for 5 years, and now a Tracker for the last 10+ years. Also a Metro for a few times.

I have both a folding tow bar that stays on the vehicle, and one of the A frame solid types that I got when we first started towing the Samurai 15+ years ago. I always use the solid one because I think it's stronger. We travel while towing about 8k miles/year.

Best of luck with your choice.

Steve

[MWKingSD]

It's a time and effort question - either will work. The simple rigid "A-frame" requires the coach and vehicle to be aligned pretty perfectly to mate. I went with the "self-aligning" collapsible style for the convenience - only need to be within a few inches for/aft and left/right to hook up. My wife describes the hook up times as "pretty quick," and it's not hard to do with one person. Read the descriptions above of what people go through with the rigid set ups and decide.

My choice was Roadmaster, but I don't think there's much difference between the leading brands.

Don't forget that nearly all states REQUIRE braking and lighting in the towed vehicle, and you really want that for the safety of you and your passengers. Truthfully, that's the more expensive part so saving a few hundred on the tow bar isn't as significant as you might think.

[R_2ndWind]

Does a dolly provide the auxiliary braking and/or light signals necessary or just enable towing of vehicles that can't be flat towed? How much do they weigh, which must be added to the total combined weight?

Thanks!

[JONWisconsin]

The dollies come with different features. Some come with surge brakes, others with delay brakes, etc. For others you need a brake controller in your MH. Almost all come with electric brakes, all with light signals/brake lights, etc. It depends on which one you buy.