does anyone know if towing my Prius from MD to New England behind a rental truck will damage my car? Any suggests or help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
The Prius in not a lot different from other front wheel drive cars. I would tow it with the front wheels on a dolly trailer, and cover the front to avoid stone schip damage from the rear wheels of the truck.
Make sure the rental agency has an approved dolly, and it does not hurt to let a mechanic check everything out before you leave.
Yes, if all 4 wheels are on the pavement it will damage the transmission.
It is all in how you tow it. Best option is to put it on a trailer and get all 4 wheels off the pavement. Next best option is to put the drive wheels (front) on a dolly and that gets the drive wheels off the ground.
If there is someone who can drive it behind your rental, that might be best. The cost of gas and tolls for the Prius might be less than the cost of the extra rental equipment and more gas going into the rental truck.
There are risks in towing. Even if the car is off the ground you’ll find it more difficult to back up the truck, more difficult to drive the truck if you get on narrow or congested streets, and you’ll need more room when you pass another vehicle or move into traffic. The Pruis is narrower than the tow vehicle so you can’t see it behind you at all, this will make lots of maneuvers, especially backing up very tricky. To avoid damage to you car and other property you’ll need a spotter every time you pull into a gas station, restaurant, or motel.
I would tow it with all four wheels off the ground.
Normally, with a FWD vehicle, I would just get the front wheels off the ground, but with a Prius, the regenerative brakes are integrated. I would play it safe.
Reading the subject line of your post, I thought you stopped making car payments and the bank’s repo guys were taking it away. Thanks for clarifying it.
Twotone
Posters have learned to jazz up their title lines in order to get more responses…
According to Prius owner’s forum on this question…
You can buy a car trailer, or a car tow dolly (lifts only the front wheels) to safely tow a Prius. The transmission is always “in gear” which is why you can’t tow with front wheels down. As long as the bumper isn’t dragging, you’re fine.
I looked at that for a while before deciding it must be a repost of the “long distance towing” thread which has mysteriously picked up -1 replies. Of course I suppose there’s always the chance the OP has to tow the car to New England so the repo guys won’t find it!