Tow vehicles

Is it possible to flat tow a 2007 Mercury Milan behind an RV

The owner’s manual should have the answer to this question. My guess is it would be better to tow with the front wheels on a dolly, but I’m not a towing expert.

Read the manual.

Thanks, it is a car I am considering purchasing and do not have access to the owners manual at this time. I’ve tryed to find a manual online or just a web reference but have not had any luck. Thanks again.

I think he was referring to the RV’s owner’s manual, not the car’s.

It depends on the RV. They come in all shapes and sizes.

Take the RV and the car to a truck stop with a scale and weigh them. If the car doesn’t surpass the towing capacity, and the total weight of both doesn’t surpass the gross vehicle weight rating of the RV, it can be done. Make sure you include the weight of additional towing equipment in your calculations.

As to whether or not this car can be towed on all four wheels without being modified, that is a whole other topic. If it has an automatic transmission, you may need to put it on some kind of tow dolly or have it modified so the transmission doesn’t get ruined by towing it on all four wheels.

Thanks. I am confident that the RV can handle the load. I know that there are some front wheel drive vehicles that can be towed on all four wheels. I’m just tryig to find out if the 2007 Milan is one of them.

You can search for lists of dingy-able vehicles on RV pages, but most cars with automatic transmissions can’t be towed with the wheels on the ground unless some sort of driveline disconnect is installed.

One option to look at if you like this car is I believe the Ford version of it was available with a manual transmission.

In that case, check out this link. http://www.motorhomemagazine.com/dinghytowingguide/index.cfm The guides on the right side of the page have lists of vehicles that can be towed on all four wheels.

If you mean towing the Mercury Milan with all four wheels of the car on the ground and rotating?

No, if is an automatic transmission.

Yes, if it is a manual transmission.

U.T., that is too broad of a generalization. There are some cars that can be towed on all four wheels with automatic transmissions.

If it is a rear wheel drive, all you have to do is disconnect the drive shaft and tie it up off the ground. Then the steering wheel has to be unlocked to the front wheels can follow on curves and corners. If it is a front wheel drive, rent a front wheel dolly.

Hmm! That’s interesting that looking at the 2010 guide almost every automatic car can be towed on four wheels (albiet some with the get out and run the engine every so often caveat, including the car in question), wheras going back to 2002 almost none of them could. I wonder if this represents any actual change in engineering, or just a marketing decision?

EDIT: oops, nevermind, I guess the '07 Milan says no, but in the '10 guide it says yes. Again, does this reflect an actual difference between those two cars?

To view an owner’s manual for a Milan visit


hilight ‘glovebox’ and select ‘owner guide’

does this reflect an actual difference between those two cars?

That’s a darn good question. I wish I knew the answer. I hope it is because of a difference in design, and not just a marketing decision.

If the OP has towing capacity to spare, I would just get a tow dolly that gets the front wheels off the ground. That gives you the best protection for a FWD vehicle with an automatic transmission. Some of the aftermarket systems that make automatics towable can fail, especially the ones that unlock the hubs from the transmission. It would also protect steering components from wear.