Looking to tow

[Rick B]

Have a 2020 Thor Challenger and looking for 4 wheel down tow recommendations. Much appreciated.

[16ACE27]

Have you tried the forum search feature? Checked any of the multiple threads and hundreds of posts about towing 4 down?

What you tow will depend on YOUR needs. Some tow a 1960 VW bug. Some tow an F350 4x4 pickup. Some tow on a trailer.

You can start with the towing guides:

https://www.motorhome.com/download-dinghy-guides/

But they are separated by year and what's towable in one year may not be towable in a different year.


Bottom line: Before you plunk down money for a vehicle, verify it is towable 4 down in the Owners Manual - usually under Towing, Recreational Vehicle.

[EA37TS]

Before you do anything determine what your towing capacity is based on GCWR - GVWR. Our 2015 Challenger was 4000 lbs so 4 down options were limited.

Once you determine your capacity then determine your needs while traveling and select the best option available to satisfy those needs. The experts on this forum don’t have a clue about what you need so keep that in mind. What I use and tow may not be a fit for you based on your requirements.

[HMCSW]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

Before you do anything determine what your towing capacity is based on GCWR - GVWR. Our 2015 Challenger was 4000 lbs so 4 down options were limited.

Once you determine your capacity then determine your needs while traveling and select the best option available to satisfy those needs. The experts on this forum don’t have a clue about what you need so keep that in mind. What I use and tow may not be a fit for you based on your requirements.

Exactly. We were thinking of a Palazzo but when we did the math on towing passed and went with more capacity and motor. We already had a car and did not want to go buy a car. Worked out well. Look at the Good Sam guide after yinz figure out what you can pull. It has the weight of the toads.Then get what you want. Good Luck.

[MJC62]

Originally Posted by HMCSW

Exactly. We were thinking of a Palazzo but when we did the math on towing passed and went with more capacity and motor. We already had a car and did not want to go buy a car. Worked out well. Look at the Good Sam guide after yinz figure out what you can pull. It has the weight of the toads.Then get what you want. Good Luck.

Good advice,
We bought the vehicle we wanted tow then found a motorhome with the correct
GCWR and hitch capacity to tow it. In our case a 4000 lb Jeep Cherokee would have been pushing the limit for several of the class C's we liked so we moved to a class A.

[Jimbo56]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

Before you do anything determine what your towing capacity is based on GCWR - GVWR. Our 2015 Challenger was 4000 lbs so 4 down options were limited.

Once you determine your capacity then determine your needs while traveling and select the best option available to satisfy those needs. The experts on this forum don’t have a clue about what you need so keep that in mind. What I use and tow may not be a fit for you based on your requirements.

“experts on this forum”! I resemble that statement.

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by HMCSW

Exactly. We were thinking of a Palazzo but when we did the math on towing passed and went with more capacity and motor. We already had a car and did not want to go buy a car. Worked out well. Look at the Good Sam guide after yinz figure out what you can pull. It has the weight of the toads.Then get what you want. Good Luck.

The problem with some Palazzos is the Allison transmission which limits HP and towing. I looked at one that was limited to 4K towing and could not be updated from 340 to 360 HP. Our current rig has a 12k hitch and towing capacity.

[HMCSW]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

The problem with some Palazzos is the Allison transmission which limits HP and towing. I looked at one that was limited to 4K towing and could not be updated from 340 to 360 HP. Our current rig has a 12k hitch and towing capacity.

Correct, we went to the Aria with Allison 3000 series. Tow our 6,000 pound Escalade with no issues. We have to go over mountain passes most every trip as we live on the western slops of the Cascades.

[streamintrip]

Originally Posted by Rick B

Have a 2020 Thor Challenger and looking for 4 wheel down tow recommendations. Much appreciated.

How's about a 2020 Fusion Hybrid. It has a CVT, weighs less than 4,000# and tows 4 down very nicely.

Until we realized we needed more functional carrying capacity options, we towed a 2014 version for almost 3 years. A bit low on the ground clearance, but fantastic fuel mileage and no external charging issues.

[Tiflog18]

We love our Blue Ox and we pull up a jeep grand Cherokee with our Vegas 24.1

[cgeace29.3]

My recommendation would be a 2014 or older Honda CR-V. Quality suv and light weight.
Towable vehicles cannot have continuous variable transmissions as most new cars have.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by cgeace29.3

My recommendation would be a 2014 or older Honda CR-V. Quality suv and light weight.
Towable vehicles cannot have continuous variable transmissions as most new cars have.

See post #9 above. Some CVTs are towable.

[Keschermer]

We have a 2018 Thor Challenger YT and have flat towed a Ford Focus about 2900#GVW, 2014 Honda CR-V GVW of about 3800# and finally a 2021 Jeep Cherokee trail hawk of #4000. We have travel thru the Rocky Mts. going to Glacier NP. We certainly feel the Jeep a bit more going up the passes but we keep up and pass most semi trucks. Only the Trailhawk model of the Cherokee can be flat towed but it’s also the most expensive model. The high ground clearance of the trail hawk makes it safer if boondocking on the rim in the Badlands!

[6inthefamily]

Rather than buying a new TOAD, I adapted the vehicle I had which happens to be listed as a vehicle not to flat tow.

Turned out buying a driveshaft disconnect for our 2019 Tacoma works great. We have flat towed around 14,000 miles this year. And this was a more economical solution than selling and changing vehicles.

[scubes3]

Love our little Fiat 500. Can "just" fit 4 people, manual 5-speed transmission, excellent mileage and fun to drive! Pulls as if nothing is back there, but still use a RVi brake system. Blue Ox tow bar. Installed the towing hookup on the Fiat myself. All-in-all a perfect setup for us. Repeat the idea -- for us.

[71_340]

We tow a 2014 Ford Focus behind our ACE. Weighs 2900# and I don't even know it's back there until I have to find a gas station I can get in and out.

I saved a lot of money by installing the Blue Ox bracket and lighting system myself.

[wrapped]

2019 challenger fh. 2021 buick encore gx awd tows great and is comfortable with great gas mileage.

[wrapped]

[Chateau_Nomad]

Asking this question is about as subjective as asking for a daily driver recommendation. And... you get everything from an Escalade to a Fiat.

Just do your research... narrow down a "class" of vehicle, new or used, mileage limits if used, etc. Then MAKE CERTAIN that vehicle model/year can be flat towed.

At that point, go out and start test driving.

[Pete'sMH]

It may not be enough to know if a vehicle CAN be flat towed - although that is the first and most important question to ask. But the procedure for some towable cars is more burdensome than for others. Speed and distance limitations, fuses to remove, leaving keys in the ignition etc. might influence your selection. There are very few vehicles that are as simple as putting the transmission in neutral and taking off the parking brake. But it is pretty nice if you can be happy with one of them.