RV ‘dinghy’ towing not the same as it once was

A popular (and almost necessary) feature of larger castleson-wheels is a towing system to allow bringing along a more suitably sized vehicle for when the need arises.

Not that long ago, this was accomplished by a simple trailer hitch mount to the front bumper and sticking the gearshift of the towed vehicle (or dinghy) in neutral, and away you went.

Try doing that now with a more modern dinghy and you’ll end up with some major driveline damage.

Motorhomes in Canada are a big and growing business.

The Canadian Recreational Vehicle Association reported sales of Class A units (the behemoths) increased by almost 40 per cent in the first 11 months of 2017 over the previous year, and $470 million of product was built in Canada that same year. The group also estimated RV travellers spent more than $3.3 billion during their tours last year.

The main problem with flat-towing almost any type of smaller passenger car with four wheels on the ground is that the drive axle will spin the internals of the transmission without the benefit of its cooling system (which is only operational with the engine running).

Let this go for a short run at highway speeds on a hot day and you’ve got a perfect recipe for gearbox disaster.

Some will avoid all of this by towing with only two wheels on the ground via a dolly-trailer but good ones can cost serious money, in the range of $1,200 to $3,000.

Most RVers who opt to dinghy tow prefer a direct flat-towing system with a specially made hitch that connects to receiver latches mounted on the towed vehicle. They can provide a more stable ride, and with the right wiring hook-up will use the vehicle’s existing lights for brake, signal and running lamp functions.

When you consider all the costs of rigging a dinghy vehicle, making sure you’ll be keeping it for more than a few seasons will make sense because it will avoid the extra costs of refitting another choice.

When checking out dinghy vehicles at your favourite retailer, make sure you impress upon your sales rep that any deal is conditional on the vehicle being flat-towed and have them show you the manufacturer’s spec sheet proving it.

Motorhome.com has free downloadable lists indicating which models can be flattowed and those that can’t.

Some carmakers offer ready-made plug-and-play wiring kits to connect to the RV’s system for lamps and other functions.

Don’t go cheap on the RV-to-dinghy hitch; this is what’s keeping your towed vehicle safe and connected.