CarolMaria Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 Hello We are new to motorhoming having defected after 27 years as caravanners. We would like to tow our 2008 Yaris (1000 kgs) behind our Autotrail Mohican (4250 kgs) & would like advice please if anyone tows this car & if it is successful, or if there are any problems that we should consider. It was quite a shock to find out the cost of fitting an A Frame so we really want to make the right decision. Many thanks for any advice. Carol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peedee Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 I don't tow a Yaris, no doubt someone will be along who does, but I cannot imagine you would have any problems but check with a dealer or the manufacturer and also the supplier of your A-Frame. peedee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david lloyd Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 Hi Carol We successfuly towed a Yaris for a while behind a 3500kg Knaus Sun Ti without any difficulty. Have downsized to a panel van now so use this without the need to tow a car any more. We used the (1600kg) braked A-frame form Car-A-Tow. Good luck David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w1ntersun Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 We tow a yaris no problem. Towtal do an a-frame for the model. Towed for last 4 years. Tip though carry a 10mm spanner and disconect battery when towing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 Hi Carol Welcome to the mad house! There are some issues you need to satisfy yourself about - such as if you are content that what you are proposing is legal. There has been a lot of debate as to whether this is actually legal at all and several postings have been made in the past about this. Leaving that to one side, though, there are lots of people who do it and lots who also use a small trailer instead. Towing a car on an 'A' frame means you cannot reverse it for any distance (despite some who seem to somehow be able to do it a little way but they are very much the exception). I assume your train weight is sufficient to allow this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnsandywhite Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 w1ntersun - 2009-11-08 10:18 AM We tow a yaris no problem. Towtal do an a-frame for the model. Towed for last 4 years. Tip though carry a 10mm spanner and disconect battery when towing. 8-) WHY? Had ours connected for a week with no problems. The towing vehicle provides power to the lights. The only thing necessary on ours was to disconnect the Brake Buddy from the onboard power supply when not actually towing and parked up for ferry or night/day/week. *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewJo Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 No problems at all we tow a Chevrolet Matiz down to south of France & back this year Had to keep switching the reversing camera on to see it was still there (Feels no difference to the van) I have a 9m long burstner so if the front goes through the rest will follow I fitted the tow frame myself so this kept the cost down You can purchase the kits direct from Car a tow The lads there where very helpful However a reasonable mechanical knowledge is needed to fit it yourself along with a decent tool kit & a drill As a side note I was stopped at the Milau Bridge but it was for a stop check breath test so if there was any problems with the French Police I expect they would have said something I suppose you may get stopped by some police with nothing better to do Car a Tow print off a load of stuff for you to take along "just in case you are stopped" I take the view that I have far more things in life to worry about So just go for it you won’t regret it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolMaria Posted November 8, 2009 Author Share Posted November 8, 2009 Thanks for that advice. Why the spanner? Why do we need to disconnect the battery? Sorry to be thick but this is all very new to us. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolMaria Posted November 8, 2009 Author Share Posted November 8, 2009 Hi Mel Thanks for your reply. Never used a forum before so it's nice to know they actually work! Our train weight is 5500 kgs so we can tow up to 1250 kgs, the Yaris is 1000 so we should be ok. We don't intend to tow abroad so hopefully we should be legal in the UK. We're really looking forward to picking our motorhome up at the end of the month, tho' I'm a tad anxious being so used to caravanning - it''ll be a challenge! Thanks again Mel and to everyone else who replied. Carol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david lloyd Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 CarolMaria - 2009-11-08 11:30 PM Thanks for that advice. Why the spanner? Why do we need to disconnect the battery? Sorry to be thick but this is all very new to us. Thanks again Hi again Carol I'm not sure either why wintersun feels it necessary to disconnect the battery for, as johnsandywhite says, the towing vehicle supplies power to the towcar lights so there is no conflict and during the time we towed ours we often travelled during late evening with the lights on. One other thing I meant to say was that some A-frames are fitted with the seven pin socket (or 13 pin if it is the new type) from the front of the Yaris on a shaot lead that is left loose under the bonnet when not coupled up. I fitted mine to the front bumber so that I didn't need to keep lifting the bonnet to get at it to couple up but it does mean, of course, that it can always be seen. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolMaria Posted November 13, 2009 Author Share Posted November 13, 2009 Many thanks for your advice David - much appreciated. We are trying to decide between towing the Yaris we already have or maybe buying a smaller car such as an Aygo - all very confusing! Thanks again Carol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machinehead Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Just a question from a curious camper. Why did you not stay with the car and caravan? Much cheaper and more convenient. I have been camping for 36 years and i'm trying to to decide on my setup for retirement. I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences comparing moterhomes and caravans. Thanks. M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 machinehead - 2009-11-13 12:57 AM Just a question from a curious camper. Why did you not stay with the car and caravan? Much cheaper and more convenient. I have been camping for 36 years and i'm trying to to decide on my setup for retirement. I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences comparing moterhomes and caravans. Thanks. M. How is a caravan more convenient. a hassle to tow, slow and ugly. You cant use the network of Aires throughout Europe, or just stop anywhere and lunch, rest whatever.......No comparison in my book. The only advantage is the use of a car while on site. but careful selection of sites plus bikes/taxis/public transport etc easily solve this dilemma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolMaria Posted November 13, 2009 Author Share Posted November 13, 2009 Hi M You are so right about the cost - it is becoming clear that motorhoming is vastly more expensive than caravanning if buying new - as we are! We too have just retired & after 4 years of research & soul-searching we finally made the decision at the Motorhome Show in October. All I can say is that at a standing start with our friends on site with a motorhome, they are ready to roll about half an hour before us. Also as we're not getting any younger we can do without the physical work involved with a caravan. Also we've just moved & the access & parking for a motorhome is much better. We've yet to find out the advantages but are looking forward to it. Good luck with your decision - it's not an easy one! Carol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machinehead Posted November 14, 2009 Share Posted November 14, 2009 JudgeMental - 2009-11-13 9:09 AM machinehead - 2009-11-13 12:57 AM Just a question from a curious camper. Why did you not stay with the car and caravan? Much cheaper and more convenient. I have been camping for 36 years and i'm trying to to decide on my setup for retirement. I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences comparing moterhomes and caravans. Thanks. M. How is a caravan more convenient. a hassle to tow, slow and ugly. You cant use the network of Aires throughout Europe, or just stop anywhere and lunch, rest whatever.......No comparison in my book. The only advantage is the use of a car while on site. but careful selection of sites plus bikes/taxis/public transport etc easily solve this dilemma I didn't explain myself very well in my post. By more convenient, I meant compared to a motorhome towing a car. That's just my opinion but considering that I have never towed a car with a motorhome (And probably never will) you might choose to ignore me. :-D To me, if you tow a car behind your motorhome, you dilute the advantages of owning a motorhome to the point where you might as well have a car and caravan. Especailly as most of us will own a car anyway so the cost is already there. That's my main point really. Over the years, and when I had a young family, I've tried most forms of "camping" from tents, through caravans, folding caravans (Rapido Confortmatic - google it, you'll be amazed) and I'm now on my No 6 campervan so that tells you something? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clay Posted November 16, 2009 Share Posted November 16, 2009 dont find any probs while we are away in the van, we normally use public transport or if there are places we want to see not really accessable by van or bus (park and ride) we hire a car locally for a couple of days, job done. caravan no thanks , had enough of that over the years. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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