How did you learn to tow a vehicle behind your RV?

Just wondering how people went about doing it besides just hooking up and going. I can safely say that my towing experience has been limited to a few times putting a boat into the water and pulling one out, never driving at highway speeds. Love to see hear some tips and suggestions as I'm about a month away from hooking up a toad (flat towing a Ford Escape) to my Class C and heading to Florida.

There is nothing to learn. It just follows you wherever you go. Pretty simple.

Are you sure that your Escape can be flat towed? Most if them can't.

  Your biggest concern will be ( and you’ve already experienced this),  making wider turns with something in tow.  Also, possibly a little longer stopping distance. Oh... and fuel stops “will” be more frequent! 

    To answer your question directly,  for me.... it was trial and error! You really want to “minimize” the error part!

I've been towing stuff since I was 15. It is actually pretty simple. you have to be constantly aware that you have that extra weight and that appendage behind you.
With a car, it can be a lot different than things like boat trailers and such.
If you get into a tight spot, you cannot just back up and start over. the four-wheeled toad will make that near impossible. You have to know whether you can fit or not before you try.

The best way to get the feel of it is to find a big parking lot where you can practice. Get some boxes and weigh them down with bricks to keep the wind from taking them, and create lanes to maneuver around in. Hook up your toad and give it a go.

You can rent a u-haul trailer and drag it around for a while just to get the feel of having the extra length, first, and then try the Toad, too.
It takes some practice, but before long you get the hang of it.

I watched Dad a lot, and listened a little, but mostly it was just hook and go.  If you're a little unsure, try pulling around an empty parking lot some until you become more comfortable.  It will come pretty quickly, but never get too comfortable.  Always be aware of what you are doing.

Oh, and it helps immensely to have the right tool for the job.  What I mean by this is, make sure your tow vehicle is enough to safely and comfortably able to pull the trailer you buy.  If it's not, you will be white knuckled every time you get behind the wheel.  A proper tow vehicle makes all the difference.

I too just learnt watching my Dad. When I was 13, I was backing up short utility trailers. Those can be tough. My daughter learnt the same way watching me. When she first got married, they purchased a boat and she always had to back the trailer down the boat ramp. So you see, it's fairly simple. Just needs practice.

If you can drive the motor home without the toad, you can drive with the toad:
    1.  No Backing up with the toad in tow
    2.  Account for extra stopping distance because of the weight added
    3.  Make sure your auxiliary brakes are working

your turning radius remains the same with the toad or without and make sure you car can be towed 4 down or with a dolly. I started towing my VW beetle in 1980 but towed other stuff on the farm beginning in 1953.

The biggest difference is that you need to not get yourself into a situation where you need to make too tight of a turn since you cannot back up a toad more than a couple of feet straight back.  I make it a practice to never back up with my toad attached.  Also, i use my rear camera to make sure that the back of the toad has cleared an obstacle like the truck that I am passing.

Memtb said:

  Your biggest concern will be ( and you?ve already experienced this),  making wider turns with something in tow.

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Not necessarily.   

Due to the more narrow width of the tow vehicle, and the motorhome's long rear overhang causing tail swing towards the outside of a turn, some toads will follow the same path as the motorhome's rear tires or actually track wider through a turn.

I've observed this when both my Nissan Sentra and now my Bronco II toad.

Of course, it's best to verify this in advance before taking it for granted.

And I will add something else to what Lou says. The turn may not have to be wider with the toad, but you may have to hold the arc of the turn longer before starting to straightening the RV back up.  A good example is I was turning into a beach campground in Ca.  The turn was a sweeping right turn off of the street to pull up next to the kiosk. Then exiting the single lane kiosk required a turn back the other way. I cleared the curbs on both sides with the 40' rig, but while turning back the other way cause the rear tire of the Jeep to climb the curb. Nothing you can really do about it other than disconnect and drive each through separately. Not a real common occurrence, but it does happen.

The best advice I can give you is go slow when navigating through turns, and don't worry if the guy behind you wants to test out his horn. He'll get over it.

HappyWanderer said:

Are you sure that your Escape can be flat towed? Most if them can't.

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its manual transmission and 100% flat towable

I'm going with Tom.  Hook it up and it will follow you wherever you go.  It is easier than a boat or trailer because you CAN NOT  back it up very far.  Upon arrival, unhook it and drive off!

It really is more complicated, but I know you already have proper tow bars, brakes and lights.  So that is all behind you!  ;D

decaturbob said:

Just wondering how people went about doing it besides just hooking up and going. I can safely say that my towing experience has been limited to a few times putting a boat into the water and pulling one out, never driving at highway speeds. Love to see hear some tips and suggestions as I'm about a month away from hooking up a toad (flat towing a Ford Escape) to my Class C and heading to Florida.

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I just started pulling a Toad in 2016. The salesman ran us thru hookup & unhook a couple times and off we went. I do have the experience of being a truck driver for 15 yrs, so that helps a lot. I would say the toughest part is going thru the hookup sequence at the beginning of the next season. But, a check list takes most of the guess work out of that. I have my "backup camera" on all the time while towing. I like to keep an eye out for any changes in the way the little Focus is following. Do a light check & towed brake check while moving out slowly. Then, have fun!

decaturbob said:

its manual transmission and 100% flat towable

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Cool, those are getting pretty hard to find.

99dart said:

I just started pulling a Toad in 2016. The salesman ran us thru hookup & unhook a couple times and off we went. I do have the experience of being a truck driver for 15 yrs, so that helps a lot. I would say the toughest part is going thru the hookup sequence at the beginning of the next season. But, a check list takes most of the guess work out of that. I have my "backup camera" on all the time while towing. I like to keep an eye out for any changes in the way the little Focus is following. Do a light check & towed brake check while moving out slowly. Then, have fun!

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Which braking system are you using with your Focus?  Are you towing in the Off mode?  Have you ever experienced any brake lockups on your toad?

As far as highway goes - that is about as easy as it gets for pulling something.
Two things to consider - I haven't looked up your vehicle but 90% are limited to 65mph while being towed.
IF you feel the need to pass someone (going 65 most will pass you) you need to pull farther ahead before pulling
back into the right lane as I assume you can't see your vehicle in your mirrors.

I agree with empty parking lots for practice just to see where it tracks around a point (curb or light pole) etc.

Since unlike your boating days you can't back up, Make SURE you know BEFORE you enter a gas station etc that you
can leave without having to backup.  Unless you want a lesson on unhooking under pressure.   

While not exactly a part of pulling the toad, unhitching can be a challenge.  The most important thing is to find a place that is level and long enough to unhook without the tow bar binding.  If the toad is not on level ground, it will either be pushing or pulling on the tow bar.  Not sure if all work the same but mine is not easy to disconnect in either situation.  Also don't forget to set the parking brake in the toad and chalk the wheels in extreme situations.

garyb1st said:

While not exactly a part of pulling the toad, unhitching can be a challenge.  The most important thing is to find a place that is level and long enough to unhook without the tow bar binding.  If the toad is not on level ground, it will either be pushing or pulling on the tow bar.  Not sure if all work the same but mine is not easy to disconnect in either situation.  Also don't forget to set the parking brake in the toad and chalk the wheels in extreme situations.

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The arms on my Falcon All Terrain tow bar need the toad lightly pushing forward on the tow bar to release.  The arms have to collapse a half inch or so when I pull the handle or they'll lock again when I release it.  The only place that binds are the pins holding the tow bar arms to the toad if they're under pressure.

If the toad is pushing towards the motorhome, releasing the arm lock lets them compress and removes the pressure from the pins.

If the pins bind while the arms are fully extended, i.e. on an uphill slope, I just start the toad and use it's engine to nudge the toad slightly towards the motorhome. Then I set the emergency brake to hold the toad in place before taking it out of gear.  With both arms now slightly in compression I can pull the release handles and let the arms compress to release the pressure on the pins.

If the toad is turned relative to the motorhome, the outside arm will be in tension and the inside arm in compression.  In this case, I release the inside arm, then start the toad and nudge it forward until the outside arm is in compression, then release it.

Or if there's no tension on the pins to start with, I can pull them out with the towbar arms at full extension, then collapse the arms when I stow the towbar.

garyb1st said:

While not exactly a part of pulling the toad, unhitching can be a challenge.  The most important thing is to find a place that is level and long enough to unhook without the tow bar binding.  If the toad is not on level ground, it will either be pushing or pulling on the tow bar.  Not sure if all work the same but mine is not easy to disconnect in either situation.  Also don't forget to set the parking brake in the toad and chalk the wheels in extreme situations.

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Our ReadyBrute Elite combination tow bar/brake system is an "all terrain" design that's very forgiving about levelness and angle when hooking up or unhooking. If the toad is pressing hard against the arm latches in either direction due to a grade, it's sometimes necessary to start the car and relieve the pressure before unlatching, but that's a minor issue that only takes a minute.