Everything You Need to Know About Flat-Towing Vehicles Behind an RV
Everything you need to know about flat-towing vehicles behind an RV.
Flat-towing allows you to bring the family car with you when you go on vacation in your RV, but not every car is suitable for flat-towing.
Taking your RV out on vacation can be an amazing journey. Exploring new places, meeting new people, escaping the daily grind—what more could you ask for?
Unfortunately, there are some roads that RVs just aren't meant to drive down. Trying to drive your RV along a narrow, windy, or uphill road can be frustrating, so it's no surprise many people choose to bring their car with them when they travel.
Bringing your car with you on vacation means either having another driver and paying twice the gas costs or towing your car. Flat-towing is a popular, low-fuss method of towing a vehicle behind an RV. To find out if flat-towing is suitable for your needs, keep on reading.
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Flat-towing is one of three common towing methods, the others being trailer or dolly towing. Flat-towing differs from these as all four wheels are kept on the road during the towing process.
Flat-towing is sometimes also called dingy towing, neutral towing, or four-wheel towing. Flat-towing needs some specialized equipment, but the result is a towing method that allows the car to be unhooked from the RV and driven straight away, without managing a trailer or dolly system. This makes it very popular for RV trips where regular short side trips are needed.
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1. Connect Baseplate and Tow Bar
A vehicle is going to need some modification before it can be flat towed. At an absolute minimum, every car is going to need a baseplate installed. A baseplate is a metal frame that bolts onto the front of your vehicle and has two connection points for the tow bar arms. Once installed, this can stay on the car indefinitely.
The RV is also going to need to be equipped with a tow bar. Both rigid and self-aligning tow bars can be used, though self-aligning tow bars make the process much easier.
It is possible to have the receiver mount installed on the vehicle to be towed, but this places more strain on the towed vehicle. The receiver mount is often the heaviest part of the towing setup, and having the additional weight at the front of the car can damage the suspension.
2. Attach Cables
Once the vehicle to be towed and the RV are successfully secured together, safety cables, electrical connectors, and, if necessary, supplemental braking systems, are connected between the two.
Safety cables are not just a good idea, they're also required by law in some states. If the car and RV become disconnected during travel and no safety cables are installed, you essentially have an unmanned vehicle left in the middle of the road. This creates a serious road hazard, as well as being very inconvenient.
Electrical connectors can connect a number of different accessories, but most commonly, they are used to synchronize the tail lights of the vehicle being towed and the RV. Additional tail lights may have been installed, or they may already be part of the supplemental braking system. In some cases, a cable is needed to provide power to a transmission pump in the vehicle being towed.
Supplemental braking systems may or may not be required by law, depending on the area you're traveling in. Supplemental braking systems synchronize the brakes of the RV and the towed vehicle to distribute the force between the two, reducing strain on the RV's brakes and the towing equipment.
3. Place Towed Vehicle in Manual
The car is then placed in manual, the parking brake is released, and you're good to go!
Before taking your new setup out for a spin on the open road, take some time to practice driving while flat-towing. The differences are small but noticeable.
On that note, don't forget to check your insurance. Occasionally flat-towing won't be covered by a standard insurance plan, so make sure you're covered before you head out.
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The biggest drawback to flat-towing—and it is a big drawback—is that cars are not designed to be towed. A car's transmission is designed with the intention that the motor will be driving the wheels, not the other way around.
Some makes of car are easier to flat-tow than others, and some makes of car will be severely damaged if you attempt to flat-tow them. Whether or not your vehicle is able to be flat-towed should be stated very clearly in the owner's manual. If you can't find your copy of the manual, most manuals can be found online these days.
Do not attempt to flat-tow your vehicle unless you are certain it can be safely flat-towed.
Vehicles That Can be Flat-Towed
Older vehicles
The older the vehicle, the more likely it is that it can be flat-towed. Many of the impediments to flat towing are due to newer innovations such as automatic transmission, all-wheel drive, and anti-theft devices.
Most cars with manual transmission
Manual cars are often able to be flat-towed, as the design allows for self-lubrication of the transmission. Automatic cars tend to require an electrical pump to provide lubricant, and without a running engine, this won't function.
Some cars with automatic transmission
Some automatic cars state in the owner's manual that they are able to be flat-towed, even if they still require an electrical lube pump. While these cars can be flat towed for short distances, longer distances can cause the lubricant to dry up or heat up, causing damage to the transmission.
For this reason, if you plan to flat-tow your vehicle and it has an automatic transmission, it's a good idea to invest in a lube pump. Lube pumps are installed in the vehicle being towed, but are powered by the RV. This allows the transmission to be kept lubricated and cooled when flat-towed while the engine is off.
Lube pumps cost between $1000-2000 and should be installed by an automotive technician, which is a big drawback. The installation will cost extra on top of that, and usually takes a day or so.
Another option to protect the transmission is to disconnect the drive shaft. This is a messy and time-consuming task, and the drive shaft will need to be reconnected when you stop towing. It is possible to buy a drive shaft disconnect coupling, which can disconnect or reconnect the drive shaft by pulling a lever. This also has to be installed by an experienced technician and can cost upwards of $750 plus labor.
Installing a lube pump or drive shaft disconnect is not guaranteed to allow your vehicle to be flat towed, but they often solve the main issue. However, installation of a drive shaft disconnect or lube pump can cause issues with your warranty or insurance, so in general, it's much better to buy a vehicle that is factory-ready for flat-towing.
Reasons You May Not be Able to Flat-Tow Your Vehicle
Damaged vehicle
If the wheels can't roll smoothly, the vehicle cannot be flat-towed. This means that vehicles missing a wheel, with damaged suspension, or a damaged axle will not be able to be flat-towed.
All-wheel drive
Cars with all-wheel drive (AWD) are not able to be flat-towed. If your car has four-wheel drive and the AWD setting can be turned off, you can usually flat-tow it with the AWD disabled, the transfer case in neutral, and the transmission in first gear.
Transmission design
Cars with continuously variable transmission (CVT) cannot be flat-towed, and attempting to do so will cause severe damage to the transmission.
Electronic lock
Your car has an electronic lock that prevents the front wheels from turning while the engine is turned off.
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Advantages
The biggest advantage of flat-towing is that you can disconnect your car from the RV whenever you want. This makes it incredibly useful when traveling with a group that may have different schedules. For instance, one group may want to go snowboarding, while the other wants to have a rest. Flat-towing allows this to happen without having to take the car off a dolly or trailer, and the RV driver won’t have to find somewhere to park the trailer.
Flat-towing requires a lot less gear than dolly or trailer towing, which decreases the amount of fuel needed to get where you're going. Trailers can weigh between 1500 and 2500 pounds, which is a lot of weight to pull.
Storing the trailer or dolly when not in use can also be a hassle. If you don't often go on vacation, maintaining and registering a trailer just isn't worth the effort. Hiring a trailer for any length of time can be an expensive task, and also has its own hassles such as paperwork and insurance.
Disadvantages
Not all cars can be flat-towed. All cars, functional or not, can be towed with a trailer. If you have a trailer you can drive out to your friend and tow their broken-down car back home, something which isn't possible with an RV that only has flat-towing equipment installed.
If your car is not factory ready for flat-towing, the process of getting the car fitted with the appropriate equipment can be expensive and time-consuming. Even if the car itself is ready to go, a baseplate still needs to be installed before the vehicle can be towed. This isn't necessary for towing on a trailer or dolly.
The vehicle is also going to experience some wear and tear as it's towed, as the suspension and sometimes transmission still have to deal with the movement of the car. Flat-towing also wears out your tires at the same rate as if you were driving, and in some models, the miles will be counted on the odometer even though the engine isn't running.
Another issue for the security conscious is that you might need to leave your keys in the ignition to keep the car in neutral. The ease with which a flat-towed car can be disconnected from an RV makes leaving the keys in the ignition a serious theft risk.
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- A tow bar installed on your RV
- A baseplate installed on the vehicle to be towed
- Safety cables
- Supplemental braking systems
- Automatics may need a lube pump or drive shaft disconnect
In addition to this, you may want to use tow bar locks. These increase the security of your towing setup, and also makes it more difficult for someone to steal your vehicle.
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Interested in giving flat-towing a go? STREAM RV has everything you need to get started. We offer a personalized service to find you the required parts and can help you with your installation.
STREAM RV has experience with repairing small to mid-range RVs and can help you with everything from a leaky roof to installing solar panels. We work with insurance companies and warranty providers to ensure your repairs are as smooth as possible.