Towing Questions - Smart Car of America Forums : Smart Car Forum

harbott · 03-13-2010, 01:47 PM

Hi,

I am a new guy to the group. I am most interested in using our soon to be purchased Smarty as a TOAD for the Winnebago View which is built on a Sprinter Chassis so weight is important.

I have read with interest the information concerning not disconnecting the battery and the importance of having the key in the off position. I am assuming this does not lock the steering wheel from turning.

I have read about the Brake Buddy but don't think that is for me. Are people using the wireless proportion supplemental brake unit.

In looking at the different two bars there is a considerable difference in the length. The Kwik-Tow seems to be very short which seems like it would be desirable. I am concerned how easy it is to hook the tow bar to the hitch ball with the fixed length unit.

Something like the Commander looks like it would be easier to hook up.

Even the smaller capacity units are for 5000# TOAD seems like an over kill for the Smart Car at 1800#. Is there a tow bar out there with a lower capacity and also hopefully a lower weight. 40#'s is a lot for an old guy like me to carry around.

Any information toy can provide would be most welcome.

Thanks,
harbott

Kermit · 03-13-2010, 06:22 PM

I'm in the process of helping my dad set up his car as a TOAD. We're not going to use a Brake Buddy or anything like that, our choice but we think the smart is light enough to not worry about it. Our opinion and others may differ.

Tow Bar - we got a used one for my dad. Got lucky and this lady was cleaning out her parents stuff and they had THREE tow bars to choose from. The one my dad had wanted was the one I think you may like. It was an aluminum Blue Ox. VERY LIGHT WEIGHT! He liked that it was so light. I ended up getting a Falcon 2 for him as it was brand new, not a scratch on it. When not in use it swings out of the way but stays on the receiver of the motorhome, this one came with a cover made specifically for it brand new in the package too.

Sooo, you can get an ultra light weight type or get one that swings out of the way. This thread may be better suited to be in the towing section for more visibility. There are a lot more experienced smart towers (TOADER?) out there than me. When I towed my smart I put it on a mini trailer. Hopefully those others will chime in with their experience.

FWIW, both units went directly into the receiver and did not attach to a ball.

harbott · 03-13-2010, 11:21 PM

Thanks for all of the information. I am going to look on eBay and see if I can find some used stuff (hopefully like new) as your Dad found. My View motorhome is very light so I want brakes but on a larger motorhome I can understand your choice.

How did your Dad find the lady with all of the like new parts?

Thanks again for the help.

Harbott

Kermit · 03-14-2010, 11:02 AM

They found theirs in the newspaper.

Here's an example of what they got:

Falcon 2 by Roadmaster
they also were lucky because they got a cover and safety cables included.

Blue Ox Aladdin
this one also does fold out of the way but only weighs 22lbs. I think the Blue Ox is liked more by a lot of people who are limited to what they can lift.

As you most likely know you'll also have to get a base plate. Roadmaster (Falcon 2) has excellent directions for installing the baseplate on the smart. $298 has been the cheapest I can find a base plate by Roadmaster. Expect to pay quite a bit to have that baseplate installed too.

I hope I didn't give you more information than you wanted.

Seems I've found a few people are funny about that.

harbott · 03-14-2010, 11:59 AM

Hi Bum-bling-B,

you can never get too much information when it comes to planning a large and relatively complex purchase like this one.

One last question. is there sufficient standardization where you can use a Roadmaster (Falcon2) with a BlueOX Tow bar or do I need to get something like the BlueOX Base Plate PPL part number 96-5961. I also see that they show the Pin Lock Set as a separate item. Does this not come with the tow bar and is this just a special one of higher capacity or something like that.

I guess that was more than one question.

Thanks again for all of your help.

harbott

Worker Not · 03-14-2010, 12:51 PM

If you are dead set on towing four wheels down, go for it. If it was me I would purchase a small trailer and put the smart on it. The other recommendation I have to make is to have the trailer equipped with either electric brakes of surge brakes.

Your tow vehicle is a very light. This also means that the brakes are sized to the vehicle. The brakes on this vehicle will NOT safely stop your proposed setup in a panic stop or braking on a long down hill grade. If you had a large class A motorhome that weighs considerably more than your View, the added weight of the smart should not make too much difference in stopping power.

You CAN NOT, and I stress this, you CAN NOT back up your proposed setup!!! The first time that you have to back up; into a fuel station, trying to complete a U-turn, etc, you could soon learn what road rage is. Please get in touch with someone that tows four wheels down and have him (or her) show you what it takes to unhook their 4 wheeler. Also clock the time it take to do this.

For YOUR safety and your fellow motorists I would go the trailer route. Please think about this.

Retired truck driver, RVer for 30+ years speaking from experience.

harbott · 03-14-2010, 01:11 PM

Worker Not,

Thanks for your information and a trailer has been in my consideration but have decided on 4 wheels down. A couple of years I rented a motor home and had my Harley on a trailer and found it was virtually impossible to back up more than a couple of feet due to the very short trailer tung and considerable overhang on the rented motor home. I am not the best person at backing up a trailer but have had boats for 30 years and never had a problem back any of them up so I am not thrilled at that need with a Smart Car trailer either. Also I live in a Condo so finding a place to store the trailer is a big problem especially in Fort Lauderdale where it would cost me $65 a month. If I were going the trailer route I would likely rent one.

I have pretty much made up my mind to go for the big buck Brake Buddy Vantage Select for my supplemental Smart Car system. This is a lot of money but gets great reviews and should provide the stopping distance one would like.

No matter what I do appreciate your input.

harbott

Kermit · 03-14-2010, 05:37 PM

They have adapters. You can use a Raodmaster Falcon 2 towbar and have a Blue Ox base plate with the adapter and vice-versa. I've heard both are very similar. If you look through the "Towing Section" of this website there is a lot of talk about the two and some excellent pictures

I have pics in my gallery of the trailer set-up I had on my old Class B FWIW, sometime next month I will be installing a base plate and will most likely take pictures of the installation even though they already have excellent pictures at the Roadmaster website. Good move on staying safe and using the Brake Buddy.

Worker Not · 03-14-2010, 10:18 PM

I see in your reply that you have done some serious thinking about towing the smart four wheels down. Like I stated, GO FOR IT! I hope to see you down the road sometime.

My toys

2005 Freightliner M2-112 crew cab
2005 smart passion coupe diesel
Having a 48 ft. fifth wheel custom built.
smart is winched in SIDEWAYS just behind the rear axle