Towing a Toad question

[twdenman]

Originally Posted by gprapim

never. Always make sure that whatever you go into, you can get out of .... Before you commit to the action. Good luck and have a wonderful and safe trip !!

x2 don't do it!

[Feltonj]

3 years, approximately 60 travel days, and I have had to disconnect and back up twice. At first I was worried but like a previous comment I learned to use Google maps for planning and I gradually got used to the turning radius of my MH with tow attached.

[Lillys Pop]

26xd pulling a Honda crv--Haved towed crv 55k miles with 2 diff Cl C and only had to disconnect once. In Pa DW wanted to stop at a market on a two lane road. Left her out and planned to drive around the buiding, oops got to back side and it didnt go around and as you know it takes a football field to make a u-turn with the E-450. Have had no problems with gas stations as I always look for a exit with at least 3 stations on the sign so I have a choice of getting out if I go in.As stated,plan your exit before going in.

[Johnynorthland]

I’ve done plenty of towing in the past owning 3 RV’s I agree with the others, try your best to not get in to a situation where you have to back up! But *^%# happens! So have a plan, be prepared. Practice backing up when your not under the gun and people are not watching and waiting for you. I use a tow dolly with a surge breaking system, you can not back up with this type of braking system unless you get out and install a locking key on the brakes, what a headache! I also agree fueling up is the thing I worry about most when I tow. If you can, purchase a 2016 “Next Exit” book. It will tell you which stations are RV accessible in the US. (2018 version is missing 50 pages!)

John

[cabinetmaker]

Do it once...you will never let that happen again. Your eyes will learn to scan and process with great accuracy what you can and can't do without backing.

Always try and get an outside pump. Way easier to get in and out. I use truck stops gas lanes when possible because they always have more room.

Really I like the gas pumps better...seems to move quicker and even if I have to wait on a outside pump it's never very long. When I had a diesel pusher and had to use the trucker lanes it could take forever to just get up to a pump. Truckers will go inside and be gone for 20`30 minutes after they spend ever how long pumping fuel with you sitting there waiting in line behind them. I found out truckers don't really like RV's and especially when we are using their pumps. Problem was I didn't have any choice. A 40 foot motorhome wouldn't fit in the other non trucker lanes!

The Class C is really a piece of cake compared to some out there. Just takes patience and practice.

[gprapim]

Originally Posted by cabinetmaker

Do it once...you will never let that happen again. Your eyes will learn to scan and process with great accuracy what you can and can't do without backing.

Always try and get an outside pump. Way easier to get in and out. I use truck stops gas lanes when possible because they always have more room.

Really I like the gas pumps better...seems to move quicker and even if I have to wait on a outside pump it's never very long. When I had a diesel pusher and had to use the trucker lanes it could take forever to just get up to a pump. Truckers will go inside and be gone for 20`30 minutes after they spend ever how long pumping fuel with you sitting there waiting in line behind them. I found out truckers don't really like RV's and especially when we are using their pumps. Problem was I didn't have any choice. A 40 foot motorhome wouldn't fit in the other non trucker lanes!

The Class C is really a piece of cake compared to some out there. Just takes patience and practice.

X2 - Agreed !!

[norty1]

Originally Posted by Johnynorthland

I use a tow dolly with a surge breaking system, you can not back up with this type of braking system unless you get out and install a locking key on the brakes, what a headache!
John

I have not heard of many that use the surge brake on a TOAD. What is your general opinion from using it other than the no backing statement? If it is a sufficient solution and less expensive, it would be a consideration for some.

Others may also like a conversation on this solution.

[putz]

The main thing is to get a tow bar that you can release if the toad is not strait. My old Blue OX just would not release if I was in a turn. I followed my gps in a city and it showed the street sent through. Wrong it was a dead end. I had to use a hammer to release the bars. I think the new Blue Ox bars work better, BUT be sure, call Blue Ox or other makes before you buy. New cost more but could save lots of problems.

[SloPoke]

Originally Posted by Johnynorthland

I’ve done plenty of towing in the past owning 3 RV’s I agree with the others, try your best to not get in to a situation where you have to back up! But *^%# happens! So have a plan, be prepared.

Originally Posted by cabinetmaker

Do it once...you will never let that happen again. Your eyes will learn to scan and process with great accuracy what you can and can't do without backing.

Originally Posted by Feltonj

3 years, approximately 60 travel days, and I have had to disconnect and back up twice. At first I was worried but like a previous comment I learned to use Google maps for planning and I gradually got used to the turning radius of my MH with tow attached.

Originally Posted by Mark S

I make sure I don’t get into a situation where I need to back up. I put 16,000 miles on my Jayco Seneca motorhome towing a jeep and I have not had a situation yet. I always make sure I can see my way out before I go in. It’s really not that tough.

And oh yeah, if you do get in a situation where you need to back up, rest assured, it will be in the worst possible place.

Originally Posted by jdux999

Thanks All. That's my concern. I know I couldn't back up even a few feet without un-hooking the toad. What concerns me most is making a wrong turn and ending up in a tight spot. It's good to hear that most folks haven't hit this situation.

All of these comments are just like our past experiences! When you are towing a Toad 4-down or dolly - you have an additional set of driver responsibilities on your shoulders. You can't make even a minor mistake of missing a turn or making a turn into the wrong street or driveway. (Just last July, we pulled into the wrong driveway at the RV Park) It is like you have to score a "Perfect Score" on the driving route... and that adds to the stress of traveling on the road.

For us, there is enough stress of being on the road... Fuel, Temperature, Tires, Potholes, poor drivers, road construction, detours, crosswind, downhill grade, speed limit and stuff. Most of our wrong turns seem to happen near the end of the day, usually within a mile or so from our campsite for the night.

Stacy and I are more of the wandering travelers as we go from place to place. Often times we have no firm destination to stop along the way until we get to our final destination. Sometimes we will see a lake along the highway with the perfect place to stop for the night (or week) and just wing it. Most times, we cant see if there is a place to turn around **YET** but if it doesn't seem to work out, we know that we can back out to the next driveway and get turned around and back on our way (we do this a lot).

[Bullitt6283]

What really happens if you try to backup a 4-down toad?
I have not tested my assumption, but it seems to me that the toad steering may go hard-over left or right due to caster geometry which is now in the wrong direction.
The resulting forces on the baseplate and towbar might become excessive, resulting in damage.


So, what if you only need to back up several feet, and relatively straight?
What if a person would sit in the toad and help the steering turn only in a desired direction or not turn at all?


.

[t18skyguy]

Originally Posted by Sam

Had my Seneca three plus years and 32,000 miles and I had to unhook for the first time last September. Following my GPS in a mid size town in WY, made a left turn as directed by the GPS and there it was, an undercrossing that said 13' clearance, (the Seneca measures about 13'3"). My wife let out a blood curdling scream and I came to a very quick stop. I calmly said to my wife that I had seen the warning, (not really). Lots of traffic, but I had no choice and jumped out to disconnect my toad. An oncoming driver stopped to help and advised that he had called the police. Three officers arrive in two or three minutes and shut down both lanes of the road. My wife jumped into and moved the toad and I backed up the Seneca about 200 feet or so to the road I had turned off of. I had several people helping me and it really was a great feeling so many came to our rescue. Now my question is, shall I tell my wife that I really did not see the 13 foot warning sign? She is really a sweet heart! Sam

I would tell her in the morning. It will make her day. Then she'll thank you in the evening.

[maprice]

We flat tow our CRV, and ran into a bad situation at a crowded gas station in New Mexico. My husband didn't make his turn in time, so we found ourselves blocked by cars parked in front of the convenience store. We could not disconnect the tow bar from the car because of the angle, so we did the unthinkable and slowly backed. We were then able to make our turn. The tow bar seems to have survived the incident, but we're not sure if there is damage. We haven't used it since then.

[Jamnpete]

We had to 'coast' back about 3 ft one time at a gas pump, everything worked out.
Not sure if more distance was needed, but this time was OK. We've had about 6 times over the last 13 years, mostly at gas stations, just poor planning! Now retired, with longer trips, we're so much better. Greyhawk 29MVP towing an Equinox, all wheels down.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Bullitt6283

What really happens if you try to backup a 4-down toad?
I have not tested my assumption, but it seems to me that the toad steering may go hard-over left or right due to caster geometry which is now in the wrong direction.
The resulting forces on the baseplate and towbar might become excessive, resulting in damage.


So, what if you only need to back up several feet, and relatively straight?
What if a person would sit in the toad and help the steering turn only in a desired direction or not turn at all?


.

Inexplicably, this will not work. I tried it.

DW and I got into that situation coming back from Florida earlier this year. First, and hopefully last, time. We got into the back of a parking lot that looked like it had a way out, but I missed it. I thought "surely we can back up just a few feet". NOPE. I even had DW get in the Jeep and turn it on to help, and for some reason we could not get it to work. So we ended up disconnecting (like we should have done from the get-go, or just not gone that way in the first place!) and moving the two pieces separately, then hooking back up in a different parking lot. It was a real PITA, but we made it through.

So, no, don't try it. Even for "a few feet". I suppose MAYBE if everything was in a perfect straight line, you MIGHT be able to get a couple feet out of it, but that's even a stretch IMO.

[Robbbyr]

In my recently received Motorhome magazine they list the year's biggest "Oops", and one was a story about someone backing their rig while towing. The toad's steering turned so far that it damaged a sensor in the car's steering system. Several hundred dollars in repairs taught them their lesson!

[Forelyndogs]

Someone asked if having a driver in the toad to steer would work. I doubt it because almost all cars today have power steering which is very very difficult to steer when moving very slowly unless you start the car. Still, it's best to just bite the bullet and unhook, less time, less frustration, and far far less aggravation. We have backed up a few inches, maybe a foot or two, when getting into a pull thru, but any other time we've tried to back the toad it has either been a nightmare or a disaster.

[norty1]

I'm a "Nosy Nellie" and like to watch campers set up. I have always seen them pull into a cg and first thing they do is disconnect the TOAD. Some do it at the check in station while others pull to the site and then disconnect.

I have saved many a campers from replacing their tv antenna or steps by being a Nosy Nellie.

[Sam]

Last July I watched a man back in his class A with a toad attached. He aligned the MH and the toad and simply backed everything up all in one continuous swoop. I would estimate 25 feet. I was amazed! I was approx. 150 feet from his location and I could not tell what brand of tow bar that he was using.

I use a Blue Ox and its instructions clearly state never to back up any distance because it can cause permanent damage to the tow bar. Sam

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Forelyndogs

Someone asked if having a driver in the toad to steer would work. I doubt it because almost all cars today have power steering which is very very difficult to steer when moving very slowly unless you start the car. Still, it's best to just bite the bullet and unhook, less time, less frustration, and far far less aggravation. We have backed up a few inches, maybe a foot or two, when getting into a pull thru, but any other time we've tried to back the toad it has either been a nightmare or a disaster.

In our situation, I had DW start the Jeep so that she would have power steering. Did no good. The angles just don't work going backwards unless it's in an absolutely straight line. And as I'm sure we all know, backing up keeping everything in a perfect straight line is like finding a purple unicorn.

Absolutely less time, aggravation, frustration, blood pressure, damage, $$$ ... to just suck it up and unhook.

Thankfully, the only thing we broke was a piece of trim on our bumper that I didn't like anyway.

[billjmck]

I'm wondering if a person could put the MH in neutral. start the toad and pull the MH back. Just thinking out loud and not sure if my CRV would pull the MH anyway. Might try it sometime.