1nolaguy Posted February 26, 2023 Share Posted February 26, 2023 We decided to go 4 down after our tow dolly lost a wheel ( entire hub sheared off) why we were in mid-tow. New towable vehicles being priced extremely high and somewhat hard to come by, we though of going used. When going use there seems two routes, considering younger vehicles, say 2017-2020, and adding the cost of readying it for tow ($2-4K) or buying one that is older (2010-2014) but already outfitted. The only place I have found listings are on IRV2.com and they seem to be old with tons of miles or ridiculously priced ($60K+). Do any of you have experience in buying used toads (good or bad) and does anyone know of a source other than IRV2? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivylog Posted February 26, 2023 Share Posted February 26, 2023 While not a fan of Jeeps, they are a very popular toad. Buy one with a aftermarket steel bumper and a used tow bar… EBay or FB Marketplace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corgidad Posted February 26, 2023 Share Posted February 26, 2023 Good morning, There are 2 sites on Facebook Marketplace that have used tow vehicles one is RV Tow Dollies/Toads/Dinghys and the other is Dinghy, Towable, Tow Vehicles for sale. These vehicles are Tow ready and there are listings from all over the country. You could possible find something on one of these sites. Good luck in your search. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacwjames Posted February 26, 2023 Share Posted February 26, 2023 After we bought our Windsor we made a spur of the moment (I did) to go to Alaska. We did not have a toad and really regretted not having one as we couldn't go to the out of the way places. As soon as we got back I started looking for a toad. I am not a big fan of buying new as the satisfaction of new quickly diminishes once you realize the cost. Also towing behind a motorhome has hazards from paint chips, windshields, and potential damage of driver error. I kept my eyes in the used vehicle section but one of the local auction companies advertised a Jeep scheduled to auctioned so I took a shot and went to it. The Jeep looked pretty good but it had been in an accident all the repairs were done so visibly you couldn't see any indication of it. The Jeep ticked all the boxes so when it hit the floor I paid attention. I am a snipper type bidder, I waited until the bidding slowed down/stopped and just before the auctioneer started the going going bit I threw my hand up and ended up winning the auction. In 2010 I paid $12,700 for a 2005 Jeep, this was a pretty good price so I was happy. And I still have the Jeep and put ~60K driving miles and probably +40K miles pulling it. I went to work outfitting the Jeep to pull. I did go get a quote from Camping World for the whole package, YIKES, almost $6K in 2010. So I did some research and bought a used Blue Ox tow bar, a new base plate that I installed, and a Brakemaster 9160 supplemental brake, had ~$2K in all of this. Along the way I bought a second Blue Ox tow bar to have as a spare. Last year I tore one of the tow bars down and replaced all the parts I could buy for it, was not that expensive and relatively easy. Considering the use the Tow bar was if good condition with very little wear, really the only thing that was wore out was the plastic type spacers. I bought some new pins that connect the tow bar to the base plate also and kept the old as spare. So my recommendation, others will have different opinions, is to buy used if you can find something that meets your needs. A couple years down the road you won't know the difference except in your pocket book. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hex_nut Posted February 26, 2023 Share Posted February 26, 2023 My last three toads have all been Honda CRVs, bought used never new. The new CRV's are not towable anyway (after 2014). The recent one is a 2013 that I bought and set up last year. I was looking for a 2014, but could not find one in good condition at a reasonable price. Since I have Blueox towbars, I installed a Blueox baseplate on the 2013 CRV (about $500 and an afternoons work). I do not need (or want) a serious off-road vehicle, so I have been hesitant to even consider Jeep. I looked for toads that were already set up, but found the market extremely limited, so in all cases have purchased a good used vehicle and set it up myself. Good luck with your search. Richard 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1nolaguy Posted February 27, 2023 Author Share Posted February 27, 2023 Just as a reference, about how much do you now have invested in your 2013 CR-V? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hex_nut Posted February 27, 2023 Share Posted February 27, 2023 After installing the baseplate and aux. brakes (found a nice used Roadmaster Brakemaster air unit on Ebay for $200) and then running taillight bulbs and wiring (the CRV's actually have a spare light socket hole in the taillight lens), I am into it for about $13,000. I still have all 3 of the CRV's that I have owned. The original '99 is close to 300,000 miles and still going strong (my granddaughter is driving it to college). If you can find a nice 2014 all wheel drive CRV at a reasonable price, that would be my recommendation. Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve P Posted March 1, 2023 Share Posted March 1, 2023 We bought our 2014 CR-V with 56K miles in 2020 by watching and searching on RVTrader.com, and contacting RV owners asking if they were willing to split the sale of their toad from that of the RV (including of course the rideshare and brake assist stuff). Ours has a Demco towbar and baseplate and a Brake Buddy II. All of it is serving us well, although I will be wiring the Brake Buddy direct with a plug soon instead of the cigarette charger. We paid about $15,600, which was somewhat above average retail. The hassle of installing everything was removed from the equation. I did a reasonably thorough inspection for wear and cracks. 8000 tow miles and 7000 driving miles later, we're content with the choice. Oh, my DW was elated that the silver color matched one of the main colors on the coach. The other purchase was a Protect-a-Tow to deflect rocks and debris. That's doing a great job of guarding paint and glass! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ray Davis Posted March 1, 2023 Share Posted March 1, 2023 (edited) A fellow at church just bought a new diesel pusher ( I don't know what it was ) anyway he made the comment that they charged him $10,000 to set up his PU to tow. I'm completely out of touch with the price of things today so I was stunned. I've always done that sort of stuff myself except in 2012 when we bought a new Equinox Only to find that no one had a base plate. I finally stumbled onto a tiny shop in Tyler Tx that claimed he could get one but only if they installed it. So, lo and behold they actually did procure one and I let them install it. He didn't want to divulge his source and it didn't matter to me, because we could now go & tow. This story is to illustrate how much it could be worth to some buyers if a toad is already equipped to tow. 2 hours ago, Steve P said: including of course the rideshare Steve P, what is the ride share? Edited March 1, 2023 by Ray Davis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Cherry Posted March 1, 2023 Share Posted March 1, 2023 2 minutes ago, Ray Davis said: A fellow at church just bought a new diesel pusher ( I don't know what it was ) anyway he made the comment that they charged him $10,000 to set up his PU to tow. I'm completely out of touch with the price of things today so I was stunned. I've always done that sort of stuff myself except in 2012 when we bought a new Equinox Only to find that no one had a base plate. I finally stumbled onto a tiny shop in Tyler Tx that claimed he could get one but only if they installed it. So, lo and behold they actually did procure one and I let them install it. He didn't want to divulge his source and it didn't matter to me, because we could now go & tow. This story is to illustrate how much it could be worth to some buyers if a toad is already equipped to tow. I have a cousin that traded (business writeoff) Trucks frequently. He commented that the cost to remove and restore the front of the old pickup as well as purchase and install the new baseplates on the new truck....and the wiring and lights and such... (don't KNOW about his braking system....he is not that "technical") was in the $10K range....so he would hold off a year or so rather than his "old schedule". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve P Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 12 hours ago, Ray Davis said: A fellow at church just bought a new diesel pusher ( I don't know what it was ) anyway he made the comment that they charged him $10,000 to set up his PU to tow. I'm completely out of touch with the price of things today so I was stunned. I've always done that sort of stuff myself except in 2012 when we bought a new Equinox Only to find that no one had a base plate. I finally stumbled onto a tiny shop in Tyler Tx that claimed he could get one but only if they installed it. So, lo and behold they actually did procure one and I let them install it. He didn't want to divulge his source and it didn't matter to me, because we could now go & tow. This story is to illustrate how much it could be worth to some buyers if a toad is already equipped to tow. Steve P, what is the ride share? Don't ask me how towbar became rideshare, or how I missed it while proofreading. Grrr... stinking auto speller 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1nolaguy Posted March 2, 2023 Author Share Posted March 2, 2023 Thanks for the info. I am currently considering a used Equinox already set up to tow, except it is not wired for lights and charging. All the sub-compact and compact suv look very similar and I am unfamiliar with the Equinox. I have no experience owning GM products having never owned one (imports and some Fords and Chrysler pre-2010). What has been your experience with the Equinox both as a car and as a toad? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan K Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 Just make sure it is really towable, I had one in the shop that I considered but it wasn't, years ago. It had a blown head gasket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gene Y Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 We have a 2014 Ford Focus Hatchback that we use as our toad. (Already set up by previous owner)Great little car other than an issue with the automatic transmission. The previous owner did not disclose that the vehicle had a known history of transmission issues. So after acquiring the vehicle driving it home from one coast to the other, using it 2 times on RV trips we found the transmission to stutter. About $2,200 later we have a transmission that has a 2 year warranty, so every year or so we take it in and have the transmission rebuilt. The warranty renews every time we get it rebuilt. However we are considering replacing it with something larger. Something more useful to your post is that Ford has several later model vehicles that are flat towable. Besides the pickups, the current model of the Bronco (at least one edition), many of the later Explorer, Expedition, Edge, and I think even Escape can be flat towed. Having said all that I am also considering the Equinox to replace my Focus. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ray Davis Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 10 hours ago, 1nolaguy said: Thanks for the info. I am currently considering a used Equinox already set up to tow, except it is not wired for lights and charging. All the sub-compact and compact suv look very similar and I am unfamiliar with the Equinox. I have no experience owning GM products having never owned one (imports and some Fords and Chrysler pre-2010). What has been your experience with the Equinox both as a car and as a toad? Concerning our Equinox, I don't want to be the guy that whatever car I have is the best, but our Equinox has been a very good trouble-free, reliable, towable car. The miles are right at 200k and all we have done is change the oil and tires. Probably should get rid of it but the wife won't hear of it, she loves it and she says cars are too expensive. Everything is way too expensive, and it's all brought about by ( I can't say ) but you know or can guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimc99999 Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 If you want to explore fire roads and milder jeep trails, a Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk is not a bad option if you get a 2018+. If you buy from a dealer you can get an extended 7-year 100K mile warranty that will cover things like the PTU that is somewhat unreliable in pretty much all transaxle-based AWD vehicles. Jeep also has a Maxcare lifetime warranty but I'm not sure if they still offer that. The Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk was pretty much the same from 2012-2022, and has a longitudinal layout with transfer case, and a reputation for being pretty reliable. If I was in the market now I'd be looking for a 2018-2021. When we bought the Jeep Cherokee (ours is an Overland but has the right transfer case to be flat towed) it already had baseplates and a 4-pin taillight wire installed, and the RV came with a Roadmaster Falcon tow bar. I got the SMI Air Force One braking system installed for around $3500 for both coach and car components. When I had to replace the tow bar I found a new Roadmaster Falcon II All-Terrain bar on eBay for $400. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimc99999 Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 7 hours ago, Ray Davis said: Everything is way too expensive, and it's all brought about by ( I can't say ) but you know or can guess. It's mostly greed (corporate and personal). It's not really a political statement so I'm not sure why you feel like you have to be like "I can't say, but you know". Look at Cal-Maine, for example. The price of eggs increased because they increased the price of eggs. Cal-Maine doubled the price of their eggs, and they doubled their revenue. It doesn't take a genius to see that if they doubled the price of the eggs, and they doubled their revenue, that they sold about the same number of eggs. "But if their costs increased they had to raise prices!" you might exclaim. True enough, but that's a big if. Profit increased 65% in the 3rd quarter compared to previous years. But, we live in America, and they are allowed to raise prices as they see fit. We live in an pretty unregulated capitalistic society, and the government can't just easily march in and tell them their profit margins were high enough before so they need to lower their prices. They determined that the market would bear higher prices so they raised their prices, end of story. But we were talking about cars in this thread before you mentioned "everything". And for cars it's pretty simple too. Supply chain disruptions from a global pandemic in 2020 constrained the supply of cars. With supply constrained, sellers raised prices because they could. If you need a car, then you have to have a car; as such, demand is relatively inelastic. And automakers try to build just enough cars to sell; excess inventory not only costs money that could have gone to stock buybacks but also drives down prices. Supply chains have been stripped down to the bare minimum; excess supply chain capacity might reduce the impact of disruptions, but again, that costs money that could go to shareholders immediately instead of possibly at some unknown point in the future. But that hasn't hurt the car manufacturers. Through 3rd quarter 2022, domestic auto manufacturer 2022 profits were the highest since 2016, even though they sold only 75% as many cars. So again, it doesn't take a math genius to conclude that if a company made more profit while selling less items, then they raised the price of the items by significantly more than the increased cost. Also keep in mind that auto manufacturer profits are not including dealer "market adjustments". And really, which one of us, in the position of choosing whether to spend $200M on increasing supply chain robustness, or giving it to shareholders while keeping an extra $10M or $20M for ourselves, wouldn't do what almost every other executive has done. Because if you spent the $200M on "unnecessary" supply chain robustness instead of stock buybacks, the board would be displeased and might replace you. And what other board would put you in a $30M executive role when you now have a reputation of using money to improve the company instead of the shareholders? And the funniest thing is that many people are like "🤷♂️ what can they do, their legal responsibility is to the shareholders first?". It's not, but it is kind of funny that so many people willingly excuse that behavior. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walt2137 Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 On 2/25/2023 at 9:27 PM, 1nolaguy said: We decided to go 4 down after our tow dolly lost a wheel ( entire hub sheared off) why we were in mid-tow. New towable vehicles being priced extremely high and somewhat hard to come by, we though of going used. When going use there seems two routes, considering younger vehicles, say 2017-2020, and adding the cost of readying it for tow ($2-4K) or buying one that is older (2010-2014) but already outfitted. The only place I have found listings are on IRV2.com and they seem to be old with tons of miles or ridiculously priced ($60K+). Do any of you have experience in buying used toads (good or bad) and does anyone know of a source other than IRV2? Try rvtrader.com and notice all the boxes you can fill out , use your zip code and in the drop down the distance from you , new or used box, and many other options, i have used this site to buy the last 4 new vehicles i have bought and trucked some of them in and beat the price i could buy at a dealer (Manheim ) auction in Mississippi low milage used . Car prices used and new is kinda crazy now. From your name it looks like you are from NO LA , i livrd for 30 + yrs in the Venice Boothville area. Let me know if i can assist. Walt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walt2137 Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 Thats Autotrader.com not rvtrader Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1nolaguy Posted March 3, 2023 Author Share Posted March 3, 2023 Thanks Walt, I have looked at rvt.com and found a few but none close at hand. Will give Autotrader.com a look. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoaks5 Posted March 3, 2023 Share Posted March 3, 2023 On 3/1/2023 at 9:53 PM, 1nolaguy said: Thanks for the info. I am currently considering a used Equinox already set up to tow, except it is not wired for lights and charging. All the sub-compact and compact suv look very similar and I am unfamiliar with the Equinox. I have no experience owning GM products having never owned one (imports and some Fords and Chrysler pre-2010). What has been your experience with the Equinox both as a car and as a toad? I'm happy with my 2016 Equinox. Bought it with 70k miles on it and now have 160k on it. No issues. I was driving a full sized truck so going to the Equinox was a big change for me. I set it up to tow myself. Bought all the stuff from e trailer and installed it. No real issues was pretty straight forward. You do have to make sure the battery is getting a charge from the coach or it will die. I had a bad connection on the coach plug but once I got that figured out we haven't had any problems since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven P Posted March 3, 2023 Share Posted March 3, 2023 (edited) One thing to add would be how do you plan on using it? My toad is my daily driver so I went w new when I bought it and set it up for towing myself. If this is only gonna be used as a toad, I'd go used personally and find one of the most reliable ones (Jeep or CRV) that fits your lifestyle. If you wanna get off the beaten path a little, can't beat a Wrangler. I towed my Wrangler then traded for this Gladiator as it suits me better. The Wrangler was a good toad. Let me add that your type of towing may influence you. I chose a ready brute Elite 2 for its simplicity w surge brakes and have been happy. And I ordered a Rock Hard 4x4 bumper for towing and added a winch. Actually took it off the Wrangler and put it on the Gladiator. Wiring is setup trailer style. No charging system for me (yet) Edited March 3, 2023 by Steven P 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ray Davis Posted March 3, 2023 Share Posted March 3, 2023 53 minutes ago, Steven P said: I chose a ready brute Elite 2 for its simplicity w surge brakes and have been happy. Steven, just curious about your surge brake. When going down a mountain with the exhaust brake on is the surge brake responsive enough that your toad brakes are on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1nolaguy Posted March 3, 2023 Author Share Posted March 3, 2023 Thanks Steve. These are good points. While we occasionally do the dirt road at 70 we do not do much in the off road category anymore. That said I remember doing Valley of the gods in Az in a rental sedan back in the late 90's. Because of the state of the auto industry today and the fact that the RV is stored when not in use a state away we will likely use this as a daily driver, at least for a while. For these reasons I am leaning toward a late model used vehicle in good shape, if it is already set up to tow. If I have to spend $10k additional to set up a vehicle then I might look at something new or very low miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacwjames Posted March 3, 2023 Share Posted March 3, 2023 (edited) My 2005 Jeep has had multiple recalls, so if you get one or any vehicle I'd recommend checking on the NHTSA site. That's really the only complaint I have on Jeep is the customer service associated with the recall. The first one in ~2012-3 had to do with the potential for the Jeep free wheel while parked. The recall consisted of a reflash of the computer, seemed simple enough. I had it done as soon as I was notified but didn't have a trip planned for several months afterwards. Eventually, while on a trip while trying to get it go into neutral to pull it wouldn't work, even after multiple attempts. Ended up having to drive the Jeep home separate from the coach all the way from Florida. I immediately complained to the local dealer who did the recall and started to do some research, this was a big problem in the RV'ing community, multiple (literally hundreds or more) complaints. I contacted customer service and the said they did not have any complaints on record of this (COMPLETELY BS), same with the local dealer. Wife even got stuck up in NY by herself with it not wanting to shift into neutral, took it to two different dealers to have the computer reflashed. Eventually got it to go into neutral but not a good situation. I ultimately found a work around, had to pull a fuse to reset the computer, had to do this about half the time I wanted to pull the Jeep. They finally came up with a new program and reflashed the computer. The second recall had to do with the ignition, I'd be driving down the road and the whole dash would loose power, Jeep would still run but it was nerve racking. They eventually replaced the ignition switch with a warning not to have a lot of keys/weigh on the key while driving. I then started having a similar problem but no recall, Jeep would sporadically loose power on the dash. It got progressively worse. I was doing searches to try and figure out what was going on and happened to find a Youtube video. The wiring harness behind the ignition would loose contact, the fix was to replace the plug. I went to the Jeep dealer and told him what I wanted and why, he said the part was ~$60 but they had to charge me a $250 diagnostic fee before they would replace it. And he said there was no way replacing that part would solve anything. Needless to say I walked out. I bought the part on Ebay for ~$30 and watched a video on how to change, not that hard other then working in close corners. Took me ~1/2 hour and that solved the problem. That was the last time I ever went back to that Jeep/Chrysler dealer. My wife bought her 2005 Chrysler van from them new and took it to them for the servicing to maintain warranty. They things the did fix were shoddy to say the least. The first service she had done after the warranty expired the shop foreman came out and handed her a $3K list of things that needed fixing. The most expensive was the rack and pinion, which they said was leaking. She called me crying, I told her to just drive it home and I'd look at it. I could not find any evidence of leaks but the reservoir was low. I bought some power steering fluid and filled it to the original blue line that they mark during assembly, ~12 years later it has never leaked. (gee, I wonder if they vacuumed some out when they said the rack and pinion was bad????). I actually went and complained to the owner of the dealership and asked him about the list, he said "it's like going to the doctor, if you don't say anything they won't look at anything". Hmmmm>>> funny that they looked as soon it was out of warranty. Again, we do not take either of our vehicles to them for anything, never will. Luckily I have a mechanic that use to work me in the mines, he is trustworthy and reasonable. If he says something needs to be fixed I let him do it. Most of the time I don't think he charges me enough so I'll give him a pretty good tip and tell him to take his wife & father to dinner. You've got to take care of a good mechanic once you find one😁 Edited March 3, 2023 by jacwjames 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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