Dolly vs trailer

[searay268]

We purchased a 2011 Greyhawk 31SS that says it's rated for 5,000 pounds last fall. We're new to owning a motorhome, we've always had a 5th wheel.

We don't have a vehicle that can be flat towed so we're either looking at a dolly or a trailer.

The benefit of a trailer is no wear at all on the car itself but you have to deal with putting it somewhere plus I'm concerned about the tongue weight on the RV given how far the hitch point is behind the rear wheels.

The dolly is smaller which is nice for storage and tongue weight should be negligible.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

[Midnightmoon]

Dolly. Much easier to move by hand to a spot that is out of the way at your site.

[tom35758]

To me a dolly is much more manageable than a trailer, weighs less. They take 5-10 min to load and get the wheel straps on, and don't take up much space when storing. The optimum is all 4 down flat tow... but if you buy a car just so you can tow it, plan on spending at least $2000-$3000 for the towing equipment.
We use an Acme tow dolly, one of the lightest and easy to use(although we ended up selling the car).
Our new option is just renting a car if we are going to spend a few days at a destination.

[WinnieView]

We have towed mostly 4-down over the years but did start with a dolly as the car we had when we purchased our first MH was not towable 4-down.
Our dolly could even be folded up in a way that allowed us to store it in the garage next to the car and it didn't take up much room at all.

We also agree with all the previous comments that a dolly is the way to go for a basic towed, not necessarily for specialty or collector vehicles.

[RayPayne]

Another vote for a dolly. I started with a dolly but quickly moved to flat towing.

[che57vy]

I use a dolly when I arrive at site I unhook put it at end of site and back the RV over it keeps it safe and somewhat hidden

[F419sr1]

I havnt used a dolly but neighbor did. He went to flat tow because he always was having problems with the straps coming loose. Again I Have no personal experience but do with a car trailer. I have not had any problems with my straps.


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[Wertles]

Unfortunately, if you can’t flat tow, the dolly is the best option for the class c. I have a dolly and I hate it. I hate that I can’t back up. I hate the way the wheels strap down and I hate the way I need to put the safety chains on. Granted, in good weather, it only takes ten minutes to do but in rain or snow, it’s down right miserable. I love my enclosed car trailer. Drive in, easy to strap down and bam, you are done. The main problem is what you alluded to. The class C doesn’t tow it well. You have weight issues, a huge overhang from the rear wheels and harder to store at home and at campgrounds. I have to use a trailer because the race car can’t go on a tow dolly. So I did what any sane person would do. I bought a class A diesel pusher and now have my class C and tow dolly for sale. If I were going any distance in a class C, I would just rent a car when I got there. A decent used dolly is around $1000 if it has a swivel deck and brakes and that $1000 (plus gas savings from not towing) goes a long way towards car rentals.

[RVermont]

This is always a topic that can bring out a broad range of opinions. If you are eliminating the flat tow option it gets much simpler.

If you have rear wheel drive car you must use a trailer. Trailer and or dolly will both need to have brakes. Dolly is not easily backed up more than a few feet, a trailer you can back up a long way. Trailer, no wear on tires or car systems, dolly rear wheel wear, fewer road hazards impacting the car. Trailer, the car is off the ground, you are working on a raised surface, dolly you have to roll around under the car to install safety chains. Dolly is small and most of the time can be kept on your site, trailers might have to be parked in other areas. If I was going to be bringing a lot of toys, such as golf carts, motor bikes, quad etc, I would probably use a trailer however since I have multiple front wheel drive vehicles and don't have toys yet, I use a dolly.



I would agree that the Acme unit is well built with a good hydraulic shunt brake, no controller needed.

[searay268]

Thanks everyone for the input.

[WaltW]

And don't forget to add the weight of dolly or trailer to the tow capacity.

I used a dolly and in was a PITA but much less than having to deal with a much larger trailer.

[SloPoke]

If you can manage the tongue and overall weight - the Trailer allows you to back up.

But at only 5,000# hitch capacity, that is limiting you with a trailer and a vehicle on it.