Community Forums

RealNiceTent · 12-14-2021, 11:30 PM

I'm going to throw my 2 cents at this one, why tow on a dolly or flat tow at all? Have you looked at using a car hauler trailer? In my mind there are so many advantages to using a trailer vs flat or dolly towing: The first being you can back up a trailer, dollies and vehicles on tow bars are nearly impossible to back up. Second, no supplemental braking system required, most car hauls are equipped with at least one braking axle. Three, flexibility; with a trailer you are not tied to one Towd that is set up to tow behind the coach. If it can be on the trailer you can take it, and you are not limited to street legal vehicles or even vehicles. Four, a flat tire is less likely to cause damage to the Toad and with a tandem axle trailer there are more options to reach a safe area the remaining good tire on the same side of the trailer will carry the load for a short distance. There are plenty of other advantages to having a car trailer, but these four are the primary that apply to RV Towds.
Now there are a few drawbacks to a trailer: Weight, putting the Towd on trailer may make the load heavier than the RV's towing capacity. this can be mitigated by using an aluminum trailer. This brings up cost, a trailer will be more than a dolly or flat tow set up, but if you purchase a used trailer you can keep cost down. Last real drawback is storage/space; at home most of us would not have a problem stashing a car trailer, on the road though it could be a small problem. Smaller RV parks CGs may not have excess parking for the trailer or room in the spots for the trailer. Pull through spots this is less of a problem because you can park the toad on

the trailer if needed. (I used to do this when I played with off road cars.)

All and all I think the benefits of a trailer outweigh the pitfalls because of the multiple uses, and ability to back up. (I'm sure that more than one person on these forums has wished at least once their Towd was on a trailer when they turned into someplace they were not going to get out of without backing out.)

AKIQPilot · 12-15-2021, 05:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RealNiceTent

I'm going to throw my 2 cents at this one, why tow on a dolly or flat tow at all? Have you looked at using a car hauler trailer? In my mind there are so many advantages to using a trailer vs flat or dolly towing: The first being you can back up a trailer, dollies and vehicles on tow bars are nearly impossible to back up. Second, no supplemental braking system required, most car hauls are equipped with at least one braking axle. Three, flexibility; with a trailer you are not tied to one Towd that is set up to tow behind the coach. If it can be on the trailer you can take it, and you are not limited to street legal vehicles or even vehicles. Four, a flat tire is less likely to cause damage to the Toad and with a tandem axle trailer there are more options to reach a safe area the remaining good tire on the same side of the trailer will carry the load for a short distance. There are plenty of other advantages to having a car trailer, but these four are the primary that apply to RV Towds.
Now there are a few drawbacks to a trailer: Weight, putting the Towd on trailer may make the load heavier than the RV's towing capacity. this can be mitigated by using an aluminum trailer. This brings up cost, a trailer will be more than a dolly or flat tow set up, but if you purchase a used trailer you can keep cost down. Last real drawback is storage/space; at home most of us would not have a problem stashing a car trailer, on the road though it could be a small problem. Smaller RV parks CGs may not have excess parking for the trailer or room in the spots for the trailer. Pull through spots this is less of a problem because you can park the toad on

the trailer if needed. (I used to do this when I played with off road cars.)

All and all I think the benefits of a trailer outweigh the pitfalls because of the multiple uses, and ability to back up. (I'm sure that more than one person on these forums has wished at least once their Towd was on a trailer when they turned into someplace they were not going to get out of without backing out.)

I have both and I much prefer flat towing the Wrangler as opposed to towing the trailer with something on it. For all around ease of use while out traveling in the RV, flat towing is way easier and more convenient.

EdInArk · 12-15-2021, 06:03 AM

We had a MasterTow 80THD to tow our RAV4. It worked well for us. I added a spare tire carrier and spare and a tongue jack with wheel to make it easier to lift and move around. It worked well for us.

It sat outside all the time, and after 4 years or so the plastic fenders and light housing had become brittle and started cracking. They were cheap to replace, but I should mention it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKIQPilot

I have both and I much prefer flat towing the Wrangler as opposed to towing the trailer with something on it. For all around ease of use while out traveling in the RV, flat towing is way easier and more convenient.

Of course, but we had a RAV 4 that we'd owned for years, and I maintained it personally. Rather that trade cars and spend another few thousand to equip the new one to tow we dollied. We'd load and unload basically twice per trip. It wasn't enough effort to spend the thousands it would taken to go to flat tow.

AKIQPilot · 12-15-2021, 06:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EdInArk

We had a MasterTow 80THD to tow our RAV4. It worked well for us. I added a spare tire carrier and spare and a tongue jack with wheel to make it easier to lift and move around. It worked well for us.

It sat outside all the time, and after 4 years or so the plastic fenders and light housing had become brittle and started cracking. They were cheap to replace, but I should mention it.

Of course, but we had a RAV 4 that we'd owned for years, and I maintained it personally. Rather that trade cars and spend another few thousand to equip the new one to tow we dollied. We'd load and unload basically twice per trip. It wasn't enough effort to spend the thousands it would taken to go to flat tow.

Yep. I would use a dolly over a trailer if I couldn’t flat tow. A dolly is way easier to deal with than a tandem axle trailer.

EdInArk · 12-15-2021, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKIQPilot

Yep. I would use a dolly over a trailer if I couldn’t flat tow. A dolly is way easier to deal with than a tandem axle trailer.

Same here. I did consider trailering because they can be backed and I've got lots of room to store it. But in the end, we dollied. We now travel trailer, so it's all academic anyway.