Newb needs help setting up a Toad

[Maddmike]

Originally Posted by BobC

There are a lot of explanatory videos online. This one seems pretty good:

Excellent! A simple and relatively inexpensive setup like this is what I am looking for. I will call them in the morning to make sure they have the right diode kit for my car etc but I think this is a winner. I like the simple but well thought out design and the integrated brake system.

[Maddmike]

I ended up ordering the ready Brute Elite II system with the integrated brake plus the breakaway kit and their lighting system (which is not on their website yet) that works with a LED strip and 3M tape which you can discreetly place on the tow vehicle and not have to mess with the wiring. At $140 I thought it was a decent value.


So $1809 for that system and another $415 for the Blue Ox, I'm under $2,500 which $7,000 for the whole setup including the tow vehicle. I can live with that.


I appreciate all the help on here, what a great group of people.

[BobC]

Great, keep us posted on how the installation goes. I installed my baseplate and Ready Brake by myself but it would have been a whole lot easier with a second pair of hands. Removing and replacing the plastic front fascia on my toad was "fun". You don't want to have to do it more than once if you can help it. Take photos of everything before you take it apart so you don't miss any screws, clips, etc. when re-installing things.

Depending on access, you might need a right-angle drill attachment when drilling holes for the baseplate. I have an air compressor so I bought a right-angle air drill from Harbor Freight. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

[Maddmike]

Originally Posted by BobC

Great, keep us posted on how the installation goes. I installed my baseplate and Ready Brake by myself but it would have been a whole lot easier with a second pair of hands. Removing and replacing the plastic front fascia on my toad was "fun". You don't want to have to do it more than once if you can help it. Take photos of everything before you take it apart so you don't miss any screws, clips, etc. when re-installing things.

Depending on access, you might need a right-angle drill attachment when drilling holes for the baseplate. I have an air compressor so I bought a right-angle air drill from Harbor Freight. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

Awesome feedback. My buddy is coming down from Philly next weekend and I will solicit his help in installing. I used to race and had to remove and replace more body panels than I would like to admit but setting up a toad is new to me so it should be an interesting learning experience.

[Morich]

One smallish part not mentioned yet will depend on how the height of your tow car and Rv line up. When you look at the way the base plates are set into the tow, you want the pulling/pushing torque between the tow bar and car to be close to level as pulling or pushing at a high angle will give the baseplate connections far more abuse and potentially break the connection!
Since this connection is inside the front of the car on many, this is something to really watch out and avoid as the damage could be just unseen cracking until the day it came completely loose! That's when you might be trying out that disaster callled "breakaway brake".

On the Blue Ox tow setups we have had, I believe the spec was no more than 3 inches difference in the hitch and car connection. That often means a drop hitch reciever.
Just another part to be aware of and look at how your combo may work.
In our case, we have always had sloping driveways and than drop hitch was a major problem as we could not get in/out of the drive with it in place as it would drag as the front of the RV went up!
Plus it adds yet another connection to rattle and be a pain when you have a nice firm reciever mounted on the RV but have to add a loose fittingdrop hitch befor mounting the tow bar!

Since things like dragging the hitch at driveways like gas stations was not something we wanted to deal with/worry about, we were willing to spent the extra money upfront for the shorter tow bar connection which makes it less likely to drag.

[Dibbsvtx1]

I went with blue ox. Bought all my parts from Etrailer. Very good prices and customer service. A brake system is not needed. Waste of money. I tow a crv with a 36' winnebago journey36l. Can't tell it's even back there if I didn't have a camera.

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by Dibbsvtx1

A brake system is not needed. Waste of money. I tow a crv with a 36' winnebago journey36l. Can't tell it's even back there if I didn't have a camera.

Be aware that you'll be driving illegally in a majority of states. No one will pull you over to check. But have a wreck while towing and be prepared to carry a seriously heavy financial liability. And then talk to us about "waste of money."

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by Dibbsvtx1

I went with blue ox. Bought all my parts from Etrailer. Very good prices and customer service. A brake system is not needed. Waste of money. I tow a crv with a 36' winnebago journey36l. Can't tell it's even back there if I didn't have a camera.

Your CRV weighs a minimum of 3,300 lbs. You will be illegal in every state except Texas. If you are involved in the smallest fender bender, your insurance will have cause to deny any claim and you could face stiff fines, even if you were not at fault in the accident. This chart shows state trailer brake/weight of trailer regulations.
https://www.readybrake.com/state-towing-laws.html

[Dibbsvtx1]

Another advantage for you is to use duck duck go as a search engine. Google only promotes big companies that only are there to charge you money and are in the big tech industry.

[Mtn Charlie]

Google doesn't write state motor vehicle codes. Use duck duck go and check the trailer weight restrictions for ALL the states, if you think my post is wrong.

[Red Sky]

We travel about 6 months a year, stopping for 3-4 nights on average. I.E., lots of hooking up & un-hooking. We bought a $12.5K Ford Fiesta, manual, to tow 4-down. Knowing how little I know about this critically important & frequently used system, I got a trusted recommendation on a first-class supplier-installer business, told them my needs, asked questions & took their expert guidance. I spent $3,800 on Blue Ox base plate & tow bar & automatic braking system. We just finished an 8,600-mile summer trip with 67 stops. No problems. I brag about how much I spent on the hookup relative to the toad cost. For me, it is about safety, convenience & reliability.

[Kvw613]

Our 2002 Itasca Horizon tows a Jeep Wrangler. You can’t really get around either a baseplate or different bumper.

We bought a Roadmaster tow bar and baseplate from e-Trailer.

We bought a NAS surge brake. It pulls a cable that is attached to the Jeep brake pedal. No power required. It cost less than $300, and has served us for more than seven cross-country trips. A trailer wiring harness takes care of the lights.

Hookup time is less than 10 minutes. Price for everything was way lower than conventional tow bar and electric brake controller package.

[Journey39n]

My first RV (2003 Journey) had a blue ox tow bar and a Brake Buddy in a compartment when I purchased it from the 2nd owner. Used that for several years. Put the Blue Ox base plate on my 2010 Wrangler myself, wiring was a snap. In 2010 I moved to a 2010 Journey, the blue ox tow bar continued to work great.

In 2017, I switched over to a 2017 Jeep Cherokee, installed the base plate myself, all works great to this day. The old Brake Buddy did finally get flaky and I replaced it with a Brake Buddy2, happy with that.

That being said, the simplest, and probably cheapest way to go, is a tow dolly, but . . . the problem is, where do you store the dolly when parking in a campground with little extra space. Just a consideration.

It takes me about 10 minutes to hook up before travel, perhaps 7 minutes to disconnect and park. (the jeep has a series of steps to prepare for travel, or it would be faster)

[Maddmike]

Originally Posted by Journey39n

My first RV (2003 Journey) had a blue ox tow bar and a Brake Buddy in a compartment when I purchased it from the 2nd owner. Used that for several years. Put the Blue Ox base plate on my 2010 Wrangler myself, wiring was a snap. In 2010 I moved to a 2010 Journey, the blue ox tow bar continued to work great.

In 2017, I switched over to a 2017 Jeep Cherokee, installed the base plate myself, all works great to this day. The old Brake Buddy did finally get flaky and I replaced it with a Brake Buddy2, happy with that.

That being said, the simplest, and probably cheapest way to go, is a tow dolly, but . . . the problem is, where do you store the dolly when parking in a campground with little extra space. Just a consideration.

It takes me about 10 minutes to hook up before travel, perhaps 7 minutes to disconnect and park. (the jeep has a series of steps to prepare for travel, or it would be faster)

I know have all the parts in my garage and will install this weekend.


I take a lot of ferries to the outer banks and stay in a lot of state parks. The ferry has a 40 ft limit and many of the state parks, I barely squeeze in at 35ft. With a flat tow, it is a quick disconnect to get on the ferry.


So, I bought a car that would have to either be trailered or flat towed as I had no intention of a dolly.

[Maddmike]

Quick weekend update. I was able to install the Blue Ox baseplate on the Impreza. The instructions can be a little confusing as some pages were for one model and some for another. There was some very minor metal trimming and drilling and two of the cross-bar plastic slats in the lower bumper were cut off with a hot knife even though it didn't say to do it.


I also winterized the boat and did some other projects so I did not install the brake much less hook everything up as the only real time I have was evenings after the babies are asleep. I wanted to do the heavy lifting while I had an extra set of hands.


Hopefully I'll get to the rest this weekend.

[BobC]

Good job. Looking forward to your update when you get to the brake install.

[Maddmike]

So, last night my wife decided to go camping for Veteran's Day. So, I went to work and set up the brake system, the emergency breakaway, and the lights. I didn't set up the light in the cabin that lets me know when the toad lights are engaged so I'll have to do that some other time.


Our site is only two hours away so it should be a good shakedown.

[BobC]

Good job, and your towbar is nice and level, as it should be.

[Maddmike]

Originally Posted by BobC

Good job, and your towbar is nice and level, as it should be.

Thanks! The one issue I have is when emergency braking (there is always someone who will look you dead in the eye and then pull right in front of you as slowly as possible) it is locking up the toad tires. This doesn't happen on normal braking). I think this has to do with the lightness of the car and the fact that the car is off so ABS is not engaging.


As far as leveling, it can come up a couple inches. I do plan on lifting the Subaru as it has a great AWD system but hardly any clearance. I want to get a beach pass for it as it is much easier to haul the kids and beach items out to the beach in the car but the soft sand we have in the Outer Banks I'm sure I will bury the axle. Seems I can lift it 1-1.5" for a few hundred dollars.

[creativepart]

After turning off your car, before towing, be sure to drain the vacuum power breaking assist by pumping the brake pedal 3 or 4 times.

On the Brake Buddy and other similar systems you run through 5-tests to relieve any residual braking vacuum assist.

If you don't lift the Subaru then get a 4" drop receiver hitch adapter.

https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories...er/RM-070.html