Flat towing

eric2011 · Member

Flat towing

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Check with your State authority first. It is not legal in some.
Also check the particular vehicle. Some can not be flat towed or there are difficulties.
Otherwise a good idea (if you REALLY) need to tow except you will probably not be able to reverse the combination more that a couple of metres.
Cheers,
Peter

bgt · Guru

We have flat towed behind 3 motorhomes for almost 20 years. Lots of pros but there are some cons as well. Make sure the Ducato is capable of the constant towing. As Peter says check your local authorities. Make sure the towed vehicle is suitable and covered by warranty if it is new. Check your insurance company. Always look ahead and avoid dead ends. Unhooking is a pain when you 'have to' not 'want to'. Backing is a no no. Yes you can back up a few feet if you have to. But do you 'really' need a towed vehicle if you are driving a Ducato? Our first 3 motorhome, which we toad with, were all over 35ft. So shopping, sightseeing etc etc wasn't possible. So a toad was 'essential'. We now own a Ducato. We go everywhere without a towed vehicle. Turns on a sixpence. No dead end worries. No hooking up or unhooking. No locking 2 vehicles. 1 rego and 1 insurance. Small sites aren't an issue. We love the new freedom. We drive into rest areas and gravel sites with the knowledge we can easily turn around. Less stress.

It's a compromise. I would think really hard before I towed again.

Steel Dog · Veteran Member

Hi eric2011,

As you can see in my Avatar, I flat tow a Suzuki Jimny 2008 (auto) and because it's auto I have had a 'Dog Clutch' fitted, when towing I can hardly feel the TOAD on the back.
I have had this setup for 2 years and we have travelled from Melbourne (home) to Cairns and back in 2019.
I opted for the Suzuki Jimny as it's 4WD and is within the weight limitations.
It's best to do your own research as you do need to be familiar with all the details associated (plenty of info on all the A Frame Distributors websites below and on YouTube) and it will also depend on the vehicle you choose to tow, most folks have the A-frame Distributor do all the work as it's guaranteed and certified, I have no association with any of the below, I just did my research on these sites.

HitchnGo (Check website for Distributor locations - Australia wide)
Janer.com (Apollo Bay Victoria)
Northcoach (Slacks Creek Queensland)

I have been caught out a 3 or 4 times where I have had to unhitch to get out of a tight spot, for me it's not a big deal as it always holiday time and there is no rush, I just unhitch and the Co-Pilot follows me to a suitable spot to rehitch. The reason you can't reverse is when going backwards the the front wheels of the TOAD will turn sharply to one side and drag which is due to the steering reverse castor angle (eg, shopping trolley castors) when going backwards.

Hope this helps and good luck with your research.
Cheers
Steel Dog