What does it cost to prepare a flat tow?

[walt_l]

Brand new to this and have gone from thinking of hauling a scooter, to a motorcycle to flat tow. I know buying the towed vehicle is only the beginning, I'd need hitch mount brake wireing etc. What can I expect to pay to outfit the towed vehicle?

[jgahlhoff]

About $3500 to $4300

[walt_l]

WOW! I Never expected THAT kind of $!!!! What am I buying for that kind of money?

[accumack]

If you do the work yourself $1000 -$2000. Base plate, wiring, tow bar, brake system.

[coupevillefish]

Originally Posted by jgahlhoff

About $3500 to $4300

Good estimate for new equipment installed. For $4000 plus tax we equipped our 2012 CRV with Roadmaster Falcon all terrain tow bar, Invisibrake, brackets for mounting and storing a rock shield, all wiring for the CRV and Georgetown. We were able to find a used rock shield so saved a coupla hundred bucks there.

They were able to add bulbs inside our tail light housing so they did not need to touch the wiring. The Invisibrake sends a trickle charge to the battery (requires running lights to be on) so they did not install the fuse switch that you read about for the CRV and other cars. Some people report that the trickle charge is not enough to keep the Battery charged. We have not towed enough hours yet to comment.

[rhart]

I too am looking at this.
Like Walt I went from thinking about bikes to lite motorcycle to flat towing
What is a rock shield?
Also what do you look for in a tail light housing to make things easier. An unused socket?
Does anyone know if a Jeep Wrangler or Cherokee has an empty socket?
Thank you

[carluv]

I had the Blue Ox tow bar and base installed and the SMI Stay and Play brake system and I installed the switch in the fuse panel to turn the navigation system off on my 2014 CRV. Installer drilled new hole in tail light panel and installed a new plug and bulb. He suggested not trying to hook into the Honda wiring system. Cost me about $3200.

[rad_jr]

rhart...not an unused socket...if the housing is big enough, they'll drill a hole big enough to add a socket. Advantage is no splicing into vehicle wiring...downside is now you have a new hole in your tail light. If you decided to remove the system, you'll either have to leave the new sockets in place or replace the whole assembly, which can be expensive. Also potential for water leaks.

Depending on what you purchase to tow, there are lots of companies that make "in-line" harnesses. I tow a Jeep Wrangler and use a Blue Ox setup. The wiring installs between the plug from the Jeep and the plug in the tail light, and activates the vehicle's lights. No no permanent change to the vehicle...if you want to take it out, just unplug everything, and plug the vehicle harness back to the tail light.

Brake setup is user preference...systems that require a box on the floor to push the brake pedal (these need to be removed to drive the car) seem to be the most popular, due to lower cost. Mine is more permanent, but does not require any equipment to be installed/removed to tow/drive. It's a little more expensive for equipment and installation, but i like it because it's easy to hook up/unhook. Google M&G Engineering.

Wrangler is a breeze to tow, particularly the newer ones that don't have the steering column lock....

[coupevillefish]

Originally Posted by rhart

I too am looking at this.
Like Walt I went from thinking about bikes to lite motorcycle to flat towing
What is a rock shield?
Also what do you look for in a tail light housing to make things easier. An unused socket?
Does anyone know if a Jeep Wrangler or Cherokee has an empty socket?
Thank you

The rock shield mounts on the tow bar to protect the front of the toad from rock trips. Definately optional or can be added later. My wife wanted one to protect HER new car.it includes a storage bracket for the back of the MH for when you are in camp,

They drilled a second hole in the housing on each side to add the socket and combination bulb. It just depends on how big the housing is. They told me that the CRV had plenty of room but some cars like the Mini Cooper do not. Do not know about the Jeeps.

[waianaegal]

I haven't even bought the class c yet... also like the others... the cost is just way out there. I thought most of the MH came with hitch receiver and wiring, why would there be more needed? rock shield guessing for the underneath? if the tow bar is already on the toad that would cut down more, I'm talking mid to late 80's mini pickup or samuri. Ok... in a campground on the south coast of Oregon... 5 days on the road and the van is getting smaller by the day, LOL! Thanks for all of the input, this is a great forum for the new folks! Tons of info.

[downeyr]

I have the Demco tow bar system and the RVi2 brake system. With installation of baseplates and wiring on a 2014 Honda CRV is came to approximately $2600.00. You can save a chunk if you can install the baseplates yourself.

[accumack]

I made a light bar that goes into a receiver hitch and doesn't use the vehicle wiring.

[RubberNail]

I've had a couple of toads and still tow. Couple of items I would add:

1. Be SURE TO SELECT THE TOAD FOR TOWING 4 down. NOT MANY VEHICLES are towable without extensive modifications (drive shaft disconnects, trans lube pumps, etc.), and not all of the same year and make. For example, my understanding is that the new Honda CRV's are NOT towable, even though the prior year models are a favorite of Rvers. Mine, current, is a 2007 Malibu, purchased new to be a toad because can carry 5, towable with auto trans, one fuse to pull, and weighs in at about 3100#.
2. I've had Roadmaster and Blue Ox tow setups. Greatly prefer the Blue Ox.
3. Judging by the questions asked, and your responses, I'm not sure you have a good understanding of what towing 4 wheel down entails. I strongly suggest you visit a campground or two, and ask some folks who have rigs. Rver's are most always happy to share their knowledge and experience. Some of us have already made the mistakes, and if we can't say what you should do, we can at least testify to what not to do.

[Myrle]

Originally Posted by walt_l

Brand new to this and have gone from thinking of hauling a scooter, to a motorcycle to flat tow. I know buying the towed vehicle is only the beginning, I'd need hitch mount brake wireing etc. What can I expect to pay to outfit the towed vehicle?

I done mine for less than a $1000 bought every thing at etrailer.com great customer service and have lots of video to help you. They also follow up on shipping what day it will get there. This was on 2015 jeep wrangler. Buy the diode lighting works like plug and play bypasses vehicle wiring.

[Boso]

The one I tow now cost 1200 for everything including tow bar frame brackets wireing everything except additional braking which I'm not useing I have had 4 vehicles done never spent the kind of money some are paying buy everything used except the tow bracket for the vehicle and wireing some vehicles the brackets go on in as little as an hour some do not check around you can buy like new tow bars for nothing

[rhart]

Thanks Rad and Coupe. Good info.
I'm going to look up M&G now...

[conceptumator]

Here's a copy of my costs for flat towing my .jeep Wrangler. I had posted it before, so I just pasted it here for you:

I just finished getting set up for flat towing my 2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. Bought all the parts and pieces at Amazon and saved quite a bit. I went really nice and bought some things that were a bit more than what I could have done with but felt it was worth the investment. Here are the exact costs of what I bought, including sales tax and free shipping through Amazon Prime:

1. Blue Ox base plate: $ 330.68
2. Blue Ox tow bar (Aventa LX): $ 699.00
3. Blue Ox EZ Light Wiring Harness: $ 193.56
4. Invisibrake: $ 899.00
5. Blue Ox Aventa Accessory Kit: $ 225.41
Total Materials: $ 2,3437.65

I have a good friend who builds race cars and owns a garage; he did the install for me as I trust him 100% and Camping World about 5%. Took him about 6 hours to install everything and cost about $450. I could have saved some money and gone with a less expensive tow bar than the Aventa but I liked the features it had and it was good for 10,000# in case I ever decide to tow something larger in the future. The accessory kit also came with diodes, wire and sockets to do the lights but I purchased the EZ Wiring Harness as it didn't require cutting into the existing wiring harness. You just pop out the taillight assembly, unplug the factory harness and plug in the new harness between the taillight and the original connector. It has a small controller that replaces all the diodes and tucks up under the back bumper or ? Highly recommend spending the extra cash.

Hope this helps some - recent, first hand hard costs. I know you have a different vehicle and will be a bit different in price, but this should be pretty close.

[rhart]

Originally Posted by rad_jr

rhart...not an unused socket...if the housing is big enough, they'll drill a hole big enough to add a socket. Advantage is no splicing into vehicle wiring...downside is now you have a new hole in your tail light. If you decided to remove the system, you'll either have to leave the new sockets in place or replace the whole assembly, which can be expensive. Also potential for water leaks.

Depending on what you purchase to tow, there are lots of companies that make "in-line" harnesses. I tow a Jeep Wrangler and use a Blue Ox setup. The wiring installs between the plug from the Jeep and the plug in the tail light, and activates the vehicle's lights. No no permanent change to the vehicle...if you want to take it out, just unplug everything, and plug the vehicle harness back to the tail light.

Brake setup is user preference...systems that require a box on the floor to push the brake pedal (these need to be removed to drive the car) seem to be the most popular, due to lower cost. Mine is more permanent, but does not require any equipment to be installed/removed to tow/drive. It's a little more expensive for equipment and installation, but i like it because it's easy to hook up/unhook. Google M&G Engineering.

Wrangler is a breeze to tow, particularly the newer ones that don't have the steering column lock....

I looked at the M&G setup. I really like that and really didn't like the removable aux brake units. They just seemed micky mouse to me. Did you have yours done at the factory in TX or a dealer. Have you had it long nuff to be confident in the technology? With the old Wranglers how do you tow with the steering col lock. Thanks for the M&G info.

[rhart]

Originally Posted by conceptumator

Here's a copy of my costs for flat towing my .jeep Wrangler. I had posted it before, so I just pasted it here for you:

I just finished getting set up for flat towing my 2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. Bought all the parts and pieces at Amazon and saved quite a bit. I went really nice and bought some things that were a bit more than what I could have done with but felt it was worth the investment. Here are the exact costs of what I bought, including sales tax and free shipping through Amazon Prime:

1. Blue Ox base plate: $ 330.68
2. Blue Ox tow bar (Aventa LX): $ 699.00
3. Blue Ox EZ Light Wiring Harness: $ 193.56
4. Invisibrake: $ 899.00
5. Blue Ox Aventa Accessory Kit: $ 225.41
Total Materials: $ 2,3437.65

I have a good friend who builds race cars and owns a garage; he did the install for me as I trust him 100% and Camping World about 5%. Took him about 6 hours to install everything and cost about $450. I could have saved some money and gone with a less expensive tow bar than the Aventa but I liked the features it had and it was good for 10,000# in case I ever decide to tow something larger in the future. The accessory kit also came with diodes, wire and sockets to do the lights but I purchased the EZ Wiring Harness as it didn't require cutting into the existing wiring harness. You just pop out the taillight assembly, unplug the factory harness and plug in the new harness between the taillight and the original connector. It has a small controller that replaces all the diodes and tucks up under the back bumper or ? Highly recommend spending the extra cash.

Hope this helps some - recent, first hand hard costs. I know you have a different vehicle and will be a bit different in price, but this should be pretty close.

Thanks for the above Conceptumator. How does the invisabrake work. Most cars don't stop well w/o the engine running. Is there a reason you picked invisibrake over the M&G?

Not meaning to hijack the thread but you do Class A. What do you recommend for a used Class A for someone on a 50-60K budget not including toad? FG roof no rubber.
Thanks again
Rick

[conceptumator]

I picked the Invisibrake mainly on the recommendation of my son's in-laws. They've been using one for a while with multiple RV's and really liked it. I also gad the concerns about how it would work without the brake boost from the engine running. Really, it's a great idea. The control unit is installed under the front seat of my Wrangler. The unit contains a small compressor and a vacuum pump. There is a pneumatic cylinder that installs under the driver side door sill with a cable routed around a pulley on the firewall. This allows it to pull on the brake pedal instead of pushing on it. The pressure setting is adjustable with a knob on the control unit (I can reach it under the back of the front seat). On their site, they give you the initial pressure setting for various vehicles. The vacuum pump in the control unit has a hose routed to the brake booster under the hood and spliced into the existing vacuum lines with a back check valve. When you step on the brakes in the zrV, power flows to the toad brake lights. This triggers the control unit to pressurize the cylinder and apply vacuum to the booster. To keep from draining the toad battery, you simply drive with the RV headlights on. This trickle charges the toad battery. Simple as that. There are also a number of videos on their site that show his the system works.

Just holler back if other questions.