Dolly towing vs. 4 wheels down

I am close to buying a new motorhome and have been studying tow vehicles (toads), tow bars, brake systems and dollys. What are the advantages of using a dolly instead of towing 4 wheels. Can a dolly be backed up, I would think so but not sure. I have read where you can not back up a flat tow or really bad things happen.

A flat tow can be backed but it takes 2 people and lots of patience.  As for the advantages of a dolly, I don't think there are any vs. towing 4 down.  Backing a dolly shouldn't be any different than backing a flat tow but it's best to avoid situations where it's needed.

There are other threads about dolly towing with lots of opinions on each side, but the most seem against it. Apparently it is a lot more trouble to use, and then there's the issue of where to stow the dolly if it won't fit in your camp site. As far as backing, we tow four down using a Blue Ox system which includes a warning not to back up.

For us, the issue was having to deal with a third vehicle (the dolly) both after getting to our destination, and when we're at home not travelling.  It just seemed like a lot of trouble to have to find a place to put the dolly when it's not being used.  We needed another car about the time we wanted to get a toad, so we just bought one that is towable flat without having to modify it other than installation of the baseplate.  So far, we're very happy with it, having towed it on five trips so far, for a total of about 7,000 miles.  Cost to set up the towed vehicle was about the same as buying a good used tow dolly.  We bought the Roadmaster base plates new, but bought the tow bar used.

Well, I'll say it too, there are a lot of opinions both ways, so I'll tell you what I do and why but you will have to weigh the choices and decide for youself which is best for you.  I made the decision to tow with a tow dolly basically because the car I wanted to tow, a Toyota Prius, was not towable 4 down and Remco does not have any product that would modify it to tow 4 down.  I would have had to either trade the car in for one that is towable 4 down, which would have been expensive and contrary to my DW's wishes, or use a tow dolly.  I bought a new tow dolly with electric brakes for $1,500 and it works great towing the Prius.  I think by the time you buy a tow bar, base plate and installation for the toad and a brake system for the toad you will spend at least that much or more.  Then if you change your toad you have to buy another base plate and have it installed.

Many say that it is a problem storing the dolly at the campground, but I haven't found that to be the case.  Once I unload the car and unhook the dolly, I just push it up under the back of the coach and it only sticks out about 2 - 3 feet behind the rear of the coach.  My dolly has removable ramps so that helps with the length during storage.  Some say it's harder to hook up than a tow bar.  I don't know how long it takes or how hard it is to hook up with a tow bar, but I can hook the dolly up by myself, drive the car up on it, strap it down and be ready to roll in about 15 minutes.  The dolly tracks the motorhome very well in turns and I haven't had any problems using it.

As far as backing up, I have backed up mine a few feet when necessary, but it's not something you want to do often and you don't want to back up very far.  The problem with backing a dolly with a car on it is that the platform that the front wheels sit on swivels, so when you back up there is a possibility that the fender of the dolly could hit the fender or door of you towed vehicle.  If you don't have to back up very far, you should be OK.  You just need someone to watch for you as you do it.

Again, listen to the advice of others who have done it both ways and then decide which way will work best for you.

Dan

I understand using whichever method works for the vehicle you have. We spent one winter towing our Explorer on a dolly. It could not be towed 4-wheels-down. It was a PITA because not only did it have to be towed on a dolly, you had to drop the driveshaft, too. The next winter, we bought a classic VW beetle to tow because it could be towed 4-down. It's a whole lot easier towing the VW than it was the Explorer on the dolly. It wasn't so much finding a spot to stow the dolly when parked at a campground, it snugged right up against the MH with the hitch underneath. It was the extra weight, the extra work involved in hooking up the dolly, getting the SUV onto the dolly, tieing the straps down, etc. Our preference now is to tow 4-down and although we have no plans to switch from towing our cute little VW, if we decide to buy another car to tow, it will be something that can be towed 4-down.

Wendy

Wendy,

I should have also said that if I do change vehicles in the future, I would like to get a Jeep that I can tow 4 down and will, no doubt, change my towing method then.  But for now, the dolly works.

Dan

It takes us about 15 minutes to hook up too, we have magnetic signal lights that need to be put on and the cable ty-wrapped, safety chains, etc.  Sounds like it's about the same amount of hook-up time.  I've used a tow dolly in the past and considered it seriously a year and a half ago when we set this up.  If we hadn't been in the market for a car anyway, I probably would have went with the dolly.

I know I'm a little late to this one but, I chose the dolly because it will tow almost ANY car or truck and I will not have to go through a big expense of a base plate etc. when I decide to get a new car. As for storage at CG's, it slides right under the back and sticks out about 2'...not a problem at all. after a little practice I can hook up my wife's Ford edge in less than 10 minutes. Oh yeah, one other thing...looks. I don't have to look at mounting points on the front of my wife's new car all the time. 

I am in the process of acquiring a 95 HR Endeaver 35' tag axle and will be driving an 03 Chev Avalanche Z71 1500 4X4 at the time I pick up the coach and I will need to arrange some method of towing it at that time.
They tell me that the truck weighs 5300 lbs and that it is uniquely designed to be towed 4 down but in future [once I get back home] my preferred toad would become my 2003 front wheeled drive Toyota Solara [Camry] convertible.
I fear the truck may be too much for a dolly ??? but a 4 down system now means that the truck will be my toad forever.
Am I right about the limitations of a tow dolly in my situation?
Thanks to all who reply

Is this the gas chassis Endeavor or the diesel? The gas chassis version is likely limited to 5000 lbs towing - any maybe even as little as 3500 lbs. That's a show stopper for the Avalanche no matter whether you choose dolly or 4-down. If its the diesel, you probably have a larger tow rating, but check the specs to see for sure.

You are right - most dollies are limited to something less than 5000 lbs. The biggest Master Tow is 4750, and the biggest Roadmaster is 4380. Width may also be a problem with the Avalanche.

We tow 4-down and I have used both a trailer and dolly. I wouldn't consider going back to either unless I Really, Really, Really loved the car. For me, it takes approximately three times as long to load the dolly as to hook up our toad and then I worry about the straps and stop to check them quickly (no! its not that quick to check them, just stop real soon).
My experience with trailers is less, but I think they have the same disadvantages except they can be backed up easily (dolly and 4-down are equal as far as I can tell; both not good to back).
JM2C
Ernie

Probably hundreds of past thread on this (not exaggerating) if you feel so inclined to search... use the "Search" button at the top of the page.  Otherwise:

Dolly - cheaper, more versatile (can tow multiple cars), does require a little more crouching and manual labor (but not much)
4 Down - a lot more expensive to retrofit, requires additional braking equipment, easy setup while standing up

Like so many things in life, it all comes down to whether or not you want to pay for the convenience... and more specifically if you only have 1 car you plan to ever tow.

The OP didn't mention the camping intention (full-timing, part timing/snowbird, weekend/vacationer, etc.) but I'd say the more you plan on RV'ing, the more likely you may prefer 4-Down and may have the budget for it.  I'm a weekend/vacationer so a dolly works great.  Bought a used one for $350 and have no other towing expenses.