What would YOU do? (4-down tow vs dolly)

[Campingnut16]

I have never had a problem using a dolly. Never had any damage so I don't know where you are getting your ideas. A full trailer can be very unsafe. ;D
Bill

Well my ideas come from experience not all tow dollies turn and some dollies have a shorter turning radius than others and some are rigid they're the worst  . If you make a sharp turn and your fenders etc are too close the car will get hit by the dolly fenders it happens a LOT.

 

[jubileee]

We have both. A cj5 jeep and geo tracker for flat towing, and usually a Honda Civic on dolly. The 5 minutes longer it takes to hook up dolly is a non issue with me. Just roll dolly under back of mh at campground. One thing about the dolly, I drilled a hole through the swivel plate and can drop a pin in, and backup carefully if I need to with back up camera. Get in a tight spot flat towing, you gotta unhook.

 

[BinaryBob]

Well my ideas come from experience not all tow dollies turn and some dollies have a shorter turning radius than others and some are rigid they're the worst  . If you make a sharp turn and your fenders etc are too close the car will get hit by the dolly fenders it happens a LOT.

In the old days, dollys did not swivel and the steering needed to remain unlocked to prevent serious damage. Not sure how newer cars can remain in Park with an unlocked steering wheel, nor can I see why you'd want to. In today's world, a swiveling dolly is a must, along with an acceptable turning radius. I've only heard of problems with very old, and very homemade dollys. On newer dollys sharp turns do not cause fender damage to your vehicle - only if you try to back up and jack knife.
Don't mean to argue Campingnut, but dollys remain a viable and safe option. As the point of this thread, I don't want the OP or others turned off based on problems with old, rigid (remember those U-Hauls?) dollys.

 

[WILDEBILL308]

Well my ideas come from experience not all tow dollies turn and some dollies have a shorter turning radius than others and some are rigid they're the worst  . If you make a sharp turn and your fenders etc are too close the car will get hit by the dolly fenders it happens a LOT.

The only time I have ever seen a car damaged by the dolly was when the owner did not follow the manufacturer's instructions. This includes trying to back up.
I still have my Acmy dolly it is a rigid design. I have had it out in this big parking area and turned as hard as I could (I had an observer) to see how close It came to causing damage. There was no way I could turn sharp enough with a 38ft coach to cause a problem. Wish I had taken pictures. The only danger is not being aware that a dolly, because the wheel spacing is so wide, will off track behind the coach. You can drag the dolly over curbs and into ditches if you don't pay attention to where it tracks.
If I didn't have a car that could be towed 4 down I would still use the dolly as I will never travel with out a toad.
Bill

 

[Campingnut16]

Not trying to argue either just saying it CAN be dangerous if not done properly . I would tow flat or on a trailer and last resort use a dolly . That's just my opinion to each their own !