Towing A Car

There are four basic ways of towing your car behind the motorhome.

Many people who drive motorhomes tow a car behind to use for shopping trips, sightseeing, and as a spare vehicle to go and find parts when something on the motorhome breaks down on the road. Small cars and four-wheel-drive SUVs make up the majority of vehicles that owners prefer to tow either with four wheels down, with a tow dolly, with a flatbed or in an enclosed trailer.

RVers with high-end Class A motorhomes often use an enclosed, tandem-axle trailer to protect their classic or vintage car as they travel down the road. The rear door opens to form a ramp that allows the car to be loaded with ease. The flatbed or enclosed trailer can carry almost any type of car as long as the total weight of the trailer with the car loaded does not exceed the Gross Combined Weight Rating of the motorhome. It does not matter if the car has an automatic or manual transmission as none of the wheels are actually turning when tied down on the trailer. With the car towed in this manner, it is not difficult to back up should you need to.

There are two disadvantages to this method of towing a vehicle. Such trailers tend to be a little top-heavy, as the full weight of the car rides above the height of the trailer wheels. And further, you face the problem of storing the trailer at the campground after unloading the car. There may be room at the site for your motorhome and the car, but not always for a third vehicle. Accordingly, the trailer must be towed away and stored elsewhere at the campground. To keep the total weight down, most people use a trailer constructed of aluminum equipped with its own electric braking system, controlled from the motorhome.
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The majority of cars and small trucks that you see being towed behind motorhomes are secured to the RV with a tow bar, and are towed with all four wheels flat on the ground.
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