Towing a car behind your RV

Traveling around in your RV is a wonderful liberating experience. Also liberating is having the freedom and convenience of a car to get you around town or to nearby attractions once you've reached your destination. Plus there are places that your RV just can't go. That's why you will seldom see us without a car in tow.

Our RV and CRV Toad at Yellowstone

I get asked a lot by friends or beginning RVers how this whole "towing your car" thing works. We'll I use the four wheels on road method which requires a tow bar setup. Here's a video to show you how I connect and disconnect my tow vehicle.

RV Speak
Now this is important. If you don't want to sound like an RV newby, you'll have to learn to use the correct RV towing lingo.

1. Be sure to refer to your tow vehicle as your "Toad" or "Dinghy"
2. A "Dolly" is not something you play with. It's like a trailer that lifts the front two tires off the ground and leaves the rear tires on the ground

Can your car be towed?
Certain makes and models of cars are designed to be towed and some are not. If your's is in the "not" category, then you need additional equipment installed first. Your car's owner's manual should have a section about towing if it is designed to be towed. There is also a list of vehicles in the 2011 Dinghy Towing Guide (PDF). Finally, check your RV's towing capacity. My RV can tow up to 5000 lbs.

What Equipment Do I Have?
My tow vehicle is a 2004 Honda CRV and the equipment I use is:

• Roadmaster Sterline All-Terrain Tow Bar
• Roadmaster Even Brake Proportional Braking System

Is it expensive?
Configurations vary, but plan on spending around $2000 to $3000 to get a quality towing setup (car not included...of course).

Does towing affect my gas mileage?
Yes. I drop about a mile or two in MPG when towing versus not towing.

Good luck! Once you're setup to tow your car, you won't want to leave home without it. Enjoy.