# Using a hybrid vehicle to tow **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [September 30, 2010, 11:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800 "2010-09-30T23:02:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![AnnHinkle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@AnnHinkle](https://community.cartalk.com/u/AnnHinkle)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 11:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/1 "2010-09-30T23:02:41Z")
Does anybody know of a hybrid vehicle I could use to tow and ultralight travel trailer? Gross weight around 3,700. ---
**Author:** ![mark9207](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71c47a/32.png) [@mark9207](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mark9207)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 12:11am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/2 "2010-10-01T00:11:38Z")
The Toyota Highlander Hybrid would probably be your best bet if you really want a hybrid. When bought with the towing package, it is rated to tow up to 5,000lbs. A new one starts around $37,000 which is 10 grand more than the regular Highlander, and will get you around 5mpg better, but may be worse on the highway. Hybrids are best as commuter vehicles rather than travel vehicles. ---
**Author:** ![bscar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bscar/32/34_2.png) [@bscar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bscar)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 12:16am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/3 "2010-10-01T00:16:42Z")
Silverado/Siera hybrid, Tahoe/Yukon/Escalade hybrid, X6 activehybrid. Silverado/Siera starts around $38k, Tahoe/Yukon $50k, Escalade $73k, BMW X6 $89k. Take your pick, but you’d probably get off cheaper buying a 3/4 or 1 ton diesel ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 12:43am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/4 "2010-10-01T00:43:31Z")
The diesel engine costs an extra $7000. The base gas engine is probably more cost effective. ---
**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 1:51am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/5 "2010-10-01T01:51:23Z")
It’s MUCH cheaper just to fly to your destination, rent a car and stay in a hotel… ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 1:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/6 "2010-10-01T13:31:52Z")
From someone who tows a camper a lot…Trust me…there are no flights from NH to Cape Cod… ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 1:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/7 "2010-10-01T13:39:14Z")
$10k difference is NOT a fair comparison…You have to compare a comparably equipped Highlander to the Hybrid…The hybrid highlander comes fully loaded…The base highlander is a 4-cylinder with a 5-speed manual. When you add all the options that are STANDARD in the Hybrid (minus the hybrid technology) to the base Highlander - the price difference is less then $3k. I’d consider a Hybrid Highlander if my normal commute was city or back-roads instead of mostly highway. I only tow about 5-10 times a year…Most of my driving is commuting to and from work…For me with my commute…the hybrid highlander doesn’t make sense. ---
**Author:** ![mark9207](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71c47a/32.png) [@mark9207](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mark9207)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 2:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/8 "2010-10-01T14:41:08Z")
I think I misused the word ‘commuter’ in my previous post. I was thinking of using a vehicle to scoot around town or drive through the city to get from place to place. This is where a hybrid excels. A hybrid would not make sense for my daily commute to work. I drive 40 miles of highway each way to get back and forth to work. This type of ‘over the road’ driving is best left to conventional vehicles rather than a hybrid, in which the extra weight of the hybrid components will only be taxing the gasoline motor, reducing gas mileage to less than that of its conventional counterpart. The hybrid system will also be useless for towing, unless you’re towing stuff from place to place in the city. ---
**Author:** ![dagosa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/dagosa/32/9837_2.png) [@dagosa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dagosa)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 2:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/9 "2010-10-01T14:50:35Z")
Any thought of towing extensively and I would not recommend a hybrid. The advantages are quickly dispelled and the cost of the unit will not be recovered. Get a regular car if towing much is any thought. The lighter the vehicle and the lesss the load the more advantageous they become. ---
**Author:** ![AnnHinkle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@AnnHinkle](https://community.cartalk.com/u/AnnHinkle)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/10 "2010-10-01T16:09:25Z")
Thanks for all the input. My non-travel (9 months) driving is almost exclusively city streets. That’s why the desire for the hybrid. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/11 "2010-10-01T17:16:08Z")
Then the Highlander Hybrid MAY be a good idea… The other factor to consider is “How many miles you drive annually??” AND “How long you plan on keeping this vehicle?” If you only 10-15 thousand miles per year then it’ll take you close to 7-10 years to re-coop the cost difference of the Hybrid and non-hybrid. If you’re like me who drives 30k+ a year then the payback is close to 2-3 years. ---
**Author:** ![StrongDreamsWaitHere](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/strongdreamswaithere/32/2014_2.png) [@StrongDreamsWaitHere](https://community.cartalk.com/u/StrongDreamsWaitHere)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/12 "2010-10-01T17:57:53Z")
You might even be better off with two cars, such as a small efficient commuter car for your in town driving and a used SUV with a towing package for your longer trips. If you don’t need the cargo capacity of a Highlander in your every day driving, you can get the same or better mileage at half to 2/3 the cost of the Highlander hybrid. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 6:00pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/13 "2010-10-01T18:00:59Z")
Financially that wouldn’t make sense at all…Even a cheap commuter car you better be saving THOUSANDS of dollars a year in gas to justify the cost. ---
**Author:** ![bscar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bscar/32/34_2.png) [@bscar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bscar)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2010, 1:40am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/14 "2010-10-02T01:40:33Z")
Yes, the V8s in them would be cheaper, but the cost of the diesel engine just about covers the price difference between normal and hybrid Silverados ---
**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2010, 4:58am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/using-a-hybrid-vehicle-to-tow/55800/15 "2010-10-02T04:58:09Z")
“Using a hybrid vehicle to tow” I suspect something is going to get hotter than normal and YOU will end up being towed…