After cooking my wife's Honda Fit brakes, I bought a used tow dolly. My mechanic friend can put electric brakes on it for me or I can use my brake buddy and it will just operate the rear brakes. If I plan to tow my 2009 Tacoma, should I go with the electric brakes or will I be ok with just the Brake Buddy?

Richard is the Tacoma 4 wheel drive or do you plan to tow it turned backwards. I have wanted a Tacoma but Toyota claims it is not towable 4 down. I don't need a 4WD anyway and have considered a 2WD and installing a Remco Drive shaft disconnect. My current toad is a front wheel drive Mazda Tribute, towed on a dolly, that we do always take with us.

Nick

I also have a Tacoma 2008, auto and it is not towable 4 down unless the drive shaft is disconneted. Manual rans are supposedly OK. Don't know if a auto-trans oil pump can be installed, haven't checked. I personally don't like tow dolly.

I am trying to finish my toad, a 1990 Amigo with a LS1/auto/Dana 300 xfr. Will use brake buddy on that.

My Tacoma is a 4wd standard so I'm pretty sure I can tow it with the front wheels on the dolly. I am not sure whether or not electric brakes would be needed or if the brake buddy would suffice controlling the back wheels.

I would like to know how you cooked the fits brakes. Sounds like they activated and never released.

most tow dollies have brakes, so you do not need to use the toads brakes at all.

I have had Motor Homes since 1978 and have never owned a tow dolly. Just don't like them.

I use a road master brake cylinder that pushed on the brake pedal. I tapped into the front master cylinder air chamber. This gives me air to operate the brakes in the toad, but only when I depress the brake pedal.

That's 2 people that have said they just don't like dollies. I'd like to know the reasons. I've watched Nick hook up and it looked relatively easy. Seems to me that he's saving tires, bearings and anything else that moves 4 down. Just curious, as someday down the road I may want to tow a car.

Something else to deal with. Don't have a decent place to keep it at home.

Also watch people deal with them in campgrounds where you have to back into a site.

I have friends that have had them. They all switched to vehicle they could tow. The dolly is a short term solution to a long term problem. You will be hard pressed to find long term RVers using a dolly. We out grew them.

quote:

Originally posted by Danny Z:
I've watched Nick hook up and it looked relatively easy. Seems to me that he's saving tires, bearings and anything else that moves 4 down.

Nick only uses a dolly because he had the car BEFORE the coach. Next vehicle will definitely be towable 4 down.

Nick

quote:

Originally posted by Danny Z:
That's 2 people that have said they just don't like dollies. I'd like to know the reasons.

My reasons are the same as Gary's reasons. I ended up crawling underneath to disconnect and reconnect the drive line to avoid the dolly hassle.

I kinda second the motion that it is another thing to deal with. You have to find a place to store it both at home base and when you arrive. It is not just a simple matter of unhooking and going. The extra looseness of then dolly gives me concern. I have used dollies behind pickup trucks and never liked them or the feeling transmitted to the truck.

While I have never seen/used a dolly with brakes it seems to me that a properly set up brake buddy system and all 4 down is a lot safer. Each toad has its own particular set up for properly hitching and braking but once set should be trouble free.

It will be interesting to see how my Breakaway tows, with the long over hang and front/back weight ratio of 30% could get excitinhg--but maybe better

Smith Hicks (sniboy) tows an Outback 4 down with his 28' Breakaway.

This hasn't been substantiated but the sources I have are credible enough that I believe it. Many RV parks don't allow tow dollies or trailers because they are "unsightly". I was going to purchase one of those dollies that fold up and the two dealers I contacted informed me of this fact, even the fold up kind are not allowed. They were more than willing to sell me one but thought that I should know that fact before I did. Many other parks make those with dollies store them in a seperate location so that they won't be visible to others, sometimes with additional charges for storage.

The other main reason that I am not going to get one is the backup issue. When I purchased my Barth the person who sold it to me told me that when towing something behind it the word and concept of "backing" should be completely out of your vocabulary. Many others since have reinforced that statement. Backing up would then involve disconnecting the car, then the dolly, then backing up. After all backing operations are complete all the above may be reconnected. Alot of hassle just to backup.

As far as the parks not allowing dollies; if anyone else has had that experience please post your experience.

quote:

Originally posted by Lance Walton:
This hasn't been substantiated but the sources I have are credible enough that I believe it. Many RV parks don't allow tow dollies or trailers because they are "unsightly".

Yup. But only the really fancy ones. Most others accommodate somehow.

quote:

Many other parks make those with dollies store them in a seperate location so that they won't be visible to others, sometimes with additional charges for storage.

Yup. Saw that, too. Lots of the places we go have boat trailer parking, and that is where the dollies were sent to park. Also saw some folks push their dolly tongue up under the coach to take up less space or be less unsightly. Don't know which.

quote:

The other main reason that I am not going to get one is the backup issue. When I purchased my Barth the person who sold it to me told me that when towing something behind it the word and concept of "backing" should be completely out of your vocabulary.

I regularly back up with our toad 4 down. If it is over a few yards, or precision is required, Susan goes in the bedroom and looks out the window (or goes outside) to be sure the steering does not get cocked. It can happen fast, so caution is the word.

I was never brave enough to try backing a car on a dolly, but I saw one guy do it quite well.
I went over to see, and he had a home made dolly with wheels that steered (sort of). Castered might be a better word. Used the axle, steering linkage and spindles from a farm grain wagon. The kind you towed to town full of corn.

He locked it straight ahead for towing, and unlocked it for backing. The wheels pivoted (castered) on their kingpins, but were tied together by a tie rod. (duh) There was no steering command, they just followed like the front wheels of a 4 down toad. The steering had limit stops to keep from getting too out of shape. He was pretty good.

I'd like to know what caused the Fit brakes to cook too. No one seems to have an answer. I used the same Brake Buddy on two cross country trips with no negative results.

quote:

After cooking my wife's Honda Fit brakes, I bought a used tow dolly. My mechanic friend can put electric brakes on it for me or I can use my brake buddy and it will just operate the rear brakes. If I plan to tow my 2009 Tacoma, should I go with the electric brakes or will I be ok with just the Brake Buddy?

I don't think anyone ever answered you actual question. DO NOT use you brake buddy for just the rear brakes, instead use only the dolly brakes. The reason for this is that if the rear brakes have more pressure than the front (in this case the dolly) the rears can lock up and in a turn or downgrade can jacknife the toad. Either use just the dolly, brakes, no brakes at all (illegal in some places) or the aux brakes with four down (in which case your vehicles correct brake bias eliminate the worry of overbraking on the rear.

Tow dollys are fine for what they're made for. If you want to pull a front wheel drive car with an automatic, they are just about your only option. With brakes, a dolly is in many ways less troublesome than a toad that requires aux braking installation.

Four down is fine too, but the vehicle has to be equipped right and some vehicles are a pain.

So again, don't tow with either rear brakes only or the dolly and rear brakes only.



Four down is my chosen preference, but only because I