tow vehicle

[floydbarnhill]

We have a 1996 7.3 power stroke diesel 22ft BFT........Am considerting purchase of a tow vehicle.........Would appreciate suggestions as to vehicles and advice regarding any special considerations for towing with 22BFT.
Am considering smart, honda CRV or element, or other makes.

[tomzleapin]

Click the link below to download a PDF of towing guide from Motorhome Magazine:

http://www.motorhomemagazine.com/assets ... 4294968673

[Dallas Baillio]

Use the search link above for more info.

Here is one link that may be of help.

http://www.bornfreervclub.org/bulletin_ ... w+vehicles

[Peter Robinson]

Take a look at "Travels With Andy" "Skylarking" on the internet. Andy Baird writes about setting up a Honda Fit and Tow Brake and Tow Bar on his Lazy Daze. Great discussion of which car, bar, and brakes and installation description and pictures. The 22 BFT is so handy to drive around and park with its short length but I'm sure there must be times one just wants to leave the BFT set up where it is and use a tow car. If only the tow car could be there only when needed! No such thing as a free lunch I guess.
www.andybaird.com/travels/skylarking/2009/fit.htm

[robert newby]

We have driven to Alaska 6 times and have not taken a tow car -- when going to certain Rallies we do take our PT --

[mockturtle]

My toad is a Honda CR-V and it tows very easily as well as being a great daily driver. My tow system is in my signature. I don't recommend the VIP braking system--it works very well and trickle charges the toad battery but it's cumbersome. The Unified brake system is probably the best--and probably the most expensive. To me, a more enjoyable trip is one where can leave the toad at home. Most of the places I camp are back-in sites where I only stay a day or two and it's a pain to have to unhook the car every time I want to back into a site. But if you're going to be there for a while, it's handy to have some transportation.

[Dave&JanPotter]

Floyd. We tow a 2001 VW Cabrio behind our 2005 22' BFT. The 6.8L engine has no problem pulling the toad and it follows easily. There are some decisions in your gear selection however which are unique to the 22' BFT due to the center rear door. Depending upon your selection of a tow bar, you may or may not be able to exit the vehicle from the rear easily with the towbar in place such as at a rest stop or other stop in transit. Check out the height of your setup prior to purchase to minimize interference problems. To make using the rear door easier when at our destination, we remove the tow ball/bar from the receiver in the rear bumper of the BFT. This gives us unobstructed use of the rear door and steps. This in turn led me to use a towbar which attaches to the toad and not one which remains on the RV. Since I would be handling it frequently, I opted for the one from Blue Ox vice Roadmaster. It is about 15 lbs lighter than the Roadmaster model and that makes it easier for me to handle. It is lighter because of how Blue Ox and Roadmaster handle the cross bar between the attachment points on the toad. With the Roadmaster model, it comes off with the tow bars but on the Blue Ox model it stays with the toad making the tow bar lighter and easier to handle. Depending upon your vehicle, you may need a drop ball or adjustable receiver. I use one by Master as it has enough depth on the receiver arm to handle the increased depth of the BFT bumper. That is something to check before purchase. There are many toad braking systems that will work and it is more a preference tied to your toad than the BFT although I definitely would recommend an auxiliary braking system. We use a plastic fresnel lense in the window of the rear door to expand our view a bit and I find that a backup camera is not necessary. If you have further questions on the above, feel free to PM me.

[CANDE]

We have a 2008 BF 24RB and tow a 2009 SMART Car which tows easily. The Car only weighs 1800 lbs. which makes it light on the front axle which necessiatates using a bungy cord on the steering wheel. We use a SMI brake system which means we have to disconnect the battery with a flip of the switch. (This is a requirement for 2009 and later). We have a Blue Ox 10,000 lbs. hitch a little bit of over kill. At first, we had a Brake Buddy which did not work because the Smarty has a round brake pedal and as soon as we applied the Brake Buddy the claw released leaving unusable without resetting each time. As you probably know the SMART car is for two and has limited storage space.