Dinghy Setup

[lbyeary]

We have a 2018 Greyhawk Prestige 29MVP and want to start towing our 2017 Chevy Colorado but have no towing experience or idea what we need. Our dealer is putting together a quote for everything we need including installation. Can someone give me an idea what we need in regards tow bar, base plate, brake system and lighting and recommend some brands?

[RVermont]

I just finished setting up my Jeep
Roadmaster base plate ez5 approx $450
Brakes RVI $1100 can find others a little cheaper. This only takes 1 minute to set up. There are other systems that don’t have any set up time. Just plug but the install can be fairly expensive.
Nighthawk tow bar $1125 can use units that run around $600.
Using magnetic lights $35

I did all the install myself. Install could be in the thousands depending on the unit and car involved.

[GeeBee]

I have just picked up my 29 MVP and will be towing a 2015 Colorado. I bought the Ready Brake - Ready Brute Elite tow bar with the surge brake in the tow bar and Demco adapters. I had the GMC dealer supply and install the Demco base plate on the truck and the Demco wiring harness for the truck lights. They also installed the ready brake cable through the firewall to the brake pedal arm and the ready brake break away as well as a battery ground disconnect so the truck battery can be easily disconnected (required for flat towing this truck). I haven't hooked up and towed yet so I can't comment on that yet.

[cabinetmaker]

We tow a Jeep Rubicon 4 door Wrangler.

I did all my own labor installed a blue ox baseplate and wiring harness for lights. The wiring harness was plug and play to existing tail lights. Works great. We use a blue ox towbar and a pblue ox patriot brake system.

All total I have about $2500 invested. RVUpgrades has the best prices and no shipping or sales tax.

Jeep pulls great behind the Greyhawk. I must confess this is not my first tow vehicle to setup. I have setup a few Jeeps, a Chevy Colorado, a Honda CVR, and a Lexus LX470 for towing behind motor homes we have had. Did them all myself. Not a big deal really. There are plenty of videos online explaining everything in detail. I have the tools and like getting my hands dirty.

[rgolding]

Since the Fall of 2015, we have towed a 2016 Chevrolet Traverse behind our Seneca. It tows very well and though the odometer shows 35K, we have towed it another 47K. Its on it second set of tires. No problems.

We use a Blue Ox tow bar and a Roadmaster 9700 braking system. Just purchases a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado and it is currently being set up to tow. Accept for the base plates the same equipment will be used on both units.

Can't ask for better systems.

[tom463219]

I use the Blue Ox tow bar and the Blue Ox Patriot Brake System. I have had no problems with the tow bar. I cannot recommend the Patriot Brake System because it will not work in freezing temps. I have contacted Blue Ox about the problem and they said there is nothing they can do about it. I don't know if other units are sensitive to cold temps, but if I were planning to use it in winter, I would check it out. Here is a pic of their response to my question.

[lbyeary]

Does the Ready Brake cable you referenced connect to the wiring plug on the RV or does it go somewhere else?

[lbyeary]

The Patriot II braking system requires 12v DC supply but our Colorado requires the negative battery terminal to be disconnected. I thought about wiring the Patriot to the battery and putting a disconnect switch in the negative cable. The truck would be disconnected but the braking system would not. The only problem is that GM does not offer a battery disconnect switch for the 17 Colorado. This is a brand new truck and I am afraid of voiding the warranty if I put a non OEM switch on it. Can I get 12v DC from the RV towing plug?

[GrayHawk51]

Originally Posted by GeeBee

I have just picked up my 29 MVP and will be towing a 2015 Colorado. I bought the Ready Brake - Ready Brute Elite tow bar with the surge brake in the tow bar and Demco adapters. I had the GMC dealer supply and install the Demco base plate on the truck and the Demco wiring harness for the truck lights. They also installed the ready brake cable through the firewall to the brake pedal arm and the ready brake break away as well as a battery ground disconnect so the truck battery can be easily disconnected (required for flat towing this truck). I haven't hooked up and towed yet so I can't comment on that yet.

I have the same system setup on my 2015 Grayhawk 29mv. Love it.

[mbpharmd1]

The readybrake cable attaches directly to your brake pedal arm. It operates as a surge brake. The nice thing about the readybrake system is once you set it up you don’t need to remove anything from the toad and no electrical components to worry about failing. Setup with the readybrake is crucial though. Getting the correct slack on the cable that attaches to the surge brake is the hardest part but it is easy to adjust with a ratchet. I have the readybrute tow bar with readybrake integrated and blue ox clevis. I installed the readystop emergency breakaway, road master brake light harness and Currie baseplate on my Jeep Wrangler all in a weekend. Cost me around 1800 for everything.

[jd99336]

Originally Posted by mbpharmd1

The readybrake cable attaches directly to your brake pedal arm. It operates as a surge brake. The nice thing about the readybrake system is once you set it up you don’t need to remove anything from the toad and no electrical components to worry about failing. Setup with the readybrake is crucial though. Getting the correct slack on the cable that attaches to the surge brake is the hardest part but it is easy to adjust with a ratchet. I have the readybrute tow bar with readybrake integrated and blue ox clevis. I installed the readystop emergency breakaway, road master brake light harness and Currie baseplate on my Jeep Wrangler all in a weekend. Cost me around 1800 for everything.

x2 except on a Jeep Cherokee KL Trailhawk and used Blue Ox base plates. Tooks me about 6 hours in total to install and setup which on the Cherokee requires completely removing the front bumper facia and original towhooks. Plus....having forgot to mount some stuff I had to R&R the facia twice. So far the setup tows nice and I don't know the Jeep is behind me (other than when I start yelling at the guy tailgating me before I realize it's the Jeep).

[MrJackSprat]

Originally Posted by lbyeary

We have a 2018 Greyhawk Prestige 29MVP and want to start towing our 2017 Chevy Colorado but have no towing experience or idea what we need. Our dealer is putting together a quote for everything we need including installation. Can someone give me an idea what we need in regards tow bar, base plate, brake system and lighting and recommend some brands?

We just purchased a full Blue Ox setup (Ascent tow bar, Patriot II Brake, base plate and extras) via our local RV dealer. I did compare online pricing of components and dealer was nearly the same when job was bundled. We have a new 2017 Ford Edge that needed special wire kit for LED brake lights, negative battery terminal cut-off and constant 12V terminal installed under dash. Local dealer did the complete install on the Edge - took about a day. I considered doing the work myself, but dealer has hundreds of these installs under their belt along with all the tools and expertise (piece of mind). Plus I read the wiring for the tail lights is a real pain even with special kit supplied by Blue Ox.

[Bluesky46]

If you look at this it will give you a pretty good idea. http://images.goodsam.com/newmotorho...inghyGuide.pdf
You will need a tow bar (several brands out there) and a base plate on the toad and a braking system on the toad (also several brands available). Depending on how much of the work you can do yourself, including wiring, it might cost $4k. Before you get too far, be sure your vehicle can be towed. Some can, some require a dolly and some require a full trailer.