Towing a vehicle behind an RV ?

whatsgnu · Mar 30, 2009

OK, Here's my question, when towing a car behind an RV is something done to the automatic trans of the car being towed to allow it to be towed ? I see all these cars being dragged around behind RV's and I assume most aren't standards, and I was always under the impression an automatic shouldn't be pushed or towed very far, never mind down the highway.

Just curious as to how all this works !

440roadrunner · Mar 30, 2009

Most of them are probably FRONT WHEEL DRIVE

but wait..........are you referring to the ones on tow dollies, or "flat tow?" There ARE a few rigs that you can tow ---certain 4x4's, etc, but generally you must yank the drive shaft on rear WD

Skyco · Mar 30, 2009

Depends on the car, some can be towed some cannot. Some have special procedures such as starting the engine and running through the gears every so many miles or hours of towing. Some can be towed with an external DC pump circulating the atf.
Short answer- yes/no /maybe

Eagleview · Mar 30, 2009

Cars with Auto trans should not be flat towed , the driven wheels should be carried on a dolly . Even cars with a manual trans will suffer in the long term from being flat towed . The input shaft bearing is not turning with the mainshaft because the engine is stationary . The oil is flung away from this bearing by the mainshaft as it rotates at high speed , driven by the drive shaft/s . The best setup is a front wheel drive car with it's front wheels carried on a dolly , but being double articulated they are a joy to reverse .

Skyco · Mar 30, 2009

Iron Horse said:
Cars with Auto trans should not be flat towed , the driven wheels should be carried on a dolly .

There are a number of automatic transmission cars that the manufacturers endorse flat towing. Many are Hondas, there are others..

CurlyDave · Mar 30, 2009

I have owned an RV (small one -- class C) and towed a car.

Some auto trans cars can be towed with 4 wheels on the ground and a hitch which usually mounts on the car.

Some can not be towed that way stock, but can be modified to have a transmission pump added so they are OK, and some can not be towed 4 down at all. Some makes are more popular with RV owners because they can be towed 4 down.

We had a Toyota Highlander, which can not be towed, and I opted for a tow dolly rather than a modification to the car which would have voided the warranty.

A tow dolly is a major PITA compared to towing 4 down. The biggest problem is that the wheels of the tow dolly are wider than even the RV, so corners become difficult. Hooking up takes much longer than when towing 4 down. And, best of all, what to do with the tow dolly once you park the RV in a small spot becomes an issue. Tow dollies weigh 500-600 lbs, and while they are well-balanced to allow you to move them by hand on level ground, even a slight slope gives them a mind of their own and a lot of mass to back that up. I added a trailer hitch to the Highlander just so I could move the tow dolly with it.

Check RV.net for more information and opinions. If you are even thinking of getting an RV some time in the future, think about getting at least one car that can be towed without a dolly.

tommu56 · Mar 30, 2009

I second Curley's experience about flat towing.

I tow a stick shift wrangler behind my truck with the transfer case in N even with stick shifts you have to double check to see if the transfer case in or in 2wd if spinning the drive shaft will lube the transmission / transfer case sufficiently when splashing the oil around. and the front wheels have to be able to steer.

Just remember with either there isn't any backing up with dollie or flat towing.

Tom

Bird · Mar 30, 2009

Yep, things are always changing. I used to tow an Opel Cadet behind a 1973 Winnebago, then in 1991, I bought a used Isuzu pickup and towed it behind a 1992 Bounder. At the end of 1992, I bought a new 1993 Ford Escort Station Wagon and towed it behind the Bounder. None of them had anything done or modified except for having the usual lights on the back end working; i.e., brake, taillights, and turn signals. The Escort manual said to stop and start the engine every 200 miles. It was the only car on which I kept detailed records. Towing with all wheels on the ground meant the odometer registered distance even when towed. I towed it 15,138.7 miles of the 121,243.6 miles on the odometer when my wife rolled and totalled it in 1999.

All 3 of those vehicles were manual transmission cars and I had no problems with them. But in the early 90s, the only car I could find that had no restrictions, special modifications, etc. that the manufacturer said you could flat tow any distance you wanted to with an automatic transmission was the Saturn. Now I've talked to lots of RVers towing automatic transmission cars with no modifications who claimed they had no problems. They included Buicks and Hondas, I know; can't remember the other brands.

Ford now has a very good 32 page 09 RV and Trailer Towing Guide available and if you look at page 12, you can see basically what they now recommend for their new vehicles.