ACE 30.1 and Mini Cooler
We traded up to a Thor ACE 30.1 from a Keystone trailer this summer. We dolly tow a 2015 Mini Cooper S using an American Car Dolly. We first made a few short (100 miles each way) trips and just got back from a 2500 mile road trip to Northern California. Experiences are generally quite good. The ACE doesn't even know the Mini is back there, but climbing Vail Pass and the Continental Divide were a bit slow.
But there are few things -
The Mini seems a bit touchy about being towed with the front wheels up. About the half the time when we pull if off the dolly it throws up 2 to 3 diagnostic errors such as "Drive Train Malfunction" and "ABS Failure". If I drive the Mini a few miles, these errors clear. I've discussed this with my local Mini Service Department and they seemed unconcerned and say they have a program upgrade. So Mini will make a visit to the service guys soon. Behavior is inconsistent - We we can tow the Mini 100 miles and get the errors, but after the 1200 mile tow back from California, no errors came up.
The American Tow Dolly brakes and controller appear to be very sensitive. I've got the gain dialed way back and still can lock up the brakes on gravel and feel them grab at low speeds. I have to discuss this with ACD to see what they recommend. Possibly the Mini is so light that you have to all but turn off the brake controller. May need to dig under the ACE dash and find the controller connector and try my old Tekonsha controller.
I'm still looking for somewhere to attach a safety cable to the Mini. The bottom of the Mini is sealed up and I haven't found a spot yet. I've been checking the straps about every 60-90 minutes and find I need to make minor adjustments at most checks. Nothing so loose to be of concern, but it validates the need to regularly check the straps.
ACD standard straps seem to wear quickly. The originals are still OK, but I'm going to get a couple set of their premium straps.
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