Do You Need Brakes on a Tow Dolly for a Scion xB Behind a Minnie Winnie?

[Arknoah]

Greetings,

As we move ever closer to our first outing with our new-to-us 2020 Minnie Winnie (30 foot), we are looking for a tow dolly to tow our 2014 Scion xB with a dry weight of 3,100 pounds. (This vehicle cannot be towed flat, just so you know.)

When I spoke to Ford, they told me to get a dolly with electric brakes and a brake controller (mounted/ connected to the motorhome). But when I asked a local private party about that, he suggested that having brakes on the tow dolly might lead to jackknifing. He further suggested that a tow dolly wouldn’t need the brakes, but a tow trailer—towing all four wheels off the ground—should have it.



What do y’all have, and is it worth another call to Ford to clarify what the first guy told me?

Thank you!

 

[klook]

Why would a trailer not jackknife as well? I flat towed my Jeep and most if not all states require an expensive brake system. I just bought a trailer so I can back up. I cannot see it jackknifing. I would think brakes would still be required with a towed vehicle.

 

[be happy]

Wow how wrong can a person be!! Yes by all means you need brakes on the tow dolly. They can either be electric or surge style. I had a problem with my tow dolly wiring a few years back. The electric brakes did not work, that being said I really noticed the difference in the braking ability. My DP has much larger brakes than what you have. Sounds like Ford person knows what you want to do and is giving A+ advice.
I prefer the electric brakes over the surge just for the simple reason of being able to move the dolly around when not hooked up. Its a little lighter.
I have never seen or felt any type of jackknifing with either my DP or gas MH.

 

[Arknoah]

Thanks to you both. I am looking at several dollies with electric brakes and will be talking to my local RV tech about them.

 

[Waterbug]

Another advantage of electric brakes over surge brakes is that you can manually use the brake controller to set the dolly's brake effect. May be usefull on a long downhill or emergency situation.

 

[Morich]

State laws may be involved? I might go to state to ask if breakway brakes are required and at what weight?
The problem can come up that your specific state may not require them but states you travel through may, so consider where you will be going as well as where you start!
The idea is that if something like the trailer hitch cotter pin comes out and the trailer and car go wild, you DO want it to stop ASAP!

 

[Morich]

Perhaps a search for info.? This site seems to give some good stuff:

Neighbors Trailer

neighborstrailer.com

 

[Arknoah]

State laws may be involved? I might go to state to ask if breakway brakes are required and at what weight?
The problem can come up that your specific state may not require them but states you travel through may, so consider where you will be going as well as where you start!
The idea is that if something like the trailer hitch cotter pin comes out and the trailer and car go wild, you DO want it to stop ASAP!

Good points!

 

[wahoonc]

Most states have a minimum weight for trailers where they start requiring brakes. It varies from as low as 1500# up to 3500# depending on the state. I would use the requirements for the state you are registered in. In NC it is 2500# and a break away is required. I use a Master Tow with hydraulic surge brakes and am happy with the performance. YMMV

Aaron

 

[wkboardr]

I would suggest buying a tow dolly with surge brakes. For the size car you have, this would work great. I have one and its great!

Car Tow Dolly | Starting at $899.99 ! Car Tow Dolly | Starting at $899.99 !

 

[jkeeblejr]

I have a class C MH and tow a smart car on a Kar Daddy tow dolly with surge brakes. I’ve had no issues .

 

[Itasca2005-WO]

We have a Kia Soul that we tow behind our Winnebago Suncruiser. We use a "Master Tow" Tow Dolly with Surge Brakes and are very happy. Recently we had a car pull out in front of us and had to slam on the brakes going 35 miles an hour. The surge brakes did their job with no damage to the car or RV.
Talking to other tow dolly users, they said the brake controller installed inside the RV was a waste of money.

 

[Bobn1957]

Greetings,

As we move ever closer to our first outing with our new-to-us 2020 Minnie Winnie (30 foot), we are looking for a tow dolly to tow our 2014 Scion xB with a dry weight of 3,100 pounds. (This vehicle cannot be towed flat, just so you know.)

When I spoke to Ford, they told me to get a dolly with electric brakes and a brake controller (mounted/ connected to the motorhome). But when I asked a local private party about that, he suggested that having brakes on the tow dolly might lead to jackknifing. He further suggested that a tow dolly wouldn’t need the brakes, but a tow trailer—towing all four wheels off the ground—should have it.



What do y’all have, and is it worth another call to Ford to clarify what the first guy told me?

Thank you!

Most States and all of Canada require the trailer to have electric brakes with a breakaway switch that applies the brakes if it comes loose from the tow vehicle!

 

[Brennis]

Greetings,

As we move ever closer to our first outing with our new-to-us 2020 Minnie Winnie (30 foot), we are looking for a tow dolly to tow our 2014 Scion xB with a dry weight of 3,100 pounds. (This vehicle cannot be towed flat, just so you know.)

When I spoke to Ford, they told me to get a dolly with electric brakes and a brake controller (mounted/ connected to the motorhome). But when I asked a local private party about that, he suggested that having brakes on the tow dolly might lead to jackknifing. He further suggested that a tow dolly wouldn’t need the brakes, but a tow trailer—towing all four wheels off the ground—should have it.



What do y’all have, and is it worth another call to Ford to clarify what the first guy told me?

Thank you!

Hello,

Assuming the same guy @ Ford telling you not to use a tow dolly is correct and the car cannot be flat towed? I’m thinking your car is front wheel drive? I can tell you this from experience. I tow my front wheel drive Chevy Spark all over the country using a tow dolly w/electric brakes without any problems! If you go with a dolly you certainly want electric brakes, NOT surge brakes. Your new Motorhome should be prewired for the electric brake control device, so it will be a very simple plug n play. Will just need to wire up the connector that fits your MH to the tow dolly. One important fact, if your car does not have a locking steering wheel, you will have to manually tie down the steering wheel with a strap to prevent it from rotating.
Enjoy!

 

[gromhome]

I use a Master Tow with surge brakes and really like it. It's easier to maneuver around a campsite than the Acme I previously had. It has a much better center of gravity and less tongue weight than the Acme. We tow a Rav 4 front wheel drive. If you use an Acme the steering wheel needs to be unlocked as the car steers, the Acme doesn't have a steering plate. Again, my opinion is the Master Tow is a delight to tow and seems to follow better than the Acme.

 

[Morich]

Just a point to consider?
I did not build this chart and I don't know the laws in most of the states but it looks like getting to those who do not require brakes at 3100 pounds is going to be tough?

Sometimes those picky legal points turn out to have really bad issues if we are not legal!

 

[Waterbug]

We have a Kia Soul that we tow behind our Winnebago Suncruiser. We use a "Master Tow" Tow Dolly with Surge Brakes and are very happy. Recently we had a car pull out in front of us and had to slam on the brakes going 35 miles an hour. The surge brakes did their job with no damage to the car or RV.
Talking to other tow dolly users, they said the brake controller installed inside the RV was a waste of money.

The advantage of electric brakes over surge brakes is that electric tow dolly brakes continue to function when the tow vehicle brakes begin to fade. With surge brakes, when the tow vehicle brakes fade, so do the surge brakes on the tow dolly.

 

[Cooperhawk]

For at least fifteen years we towed a VW front wheel drive on a Demco Tow Dolly with surge brakes. They functioned perfectly the entire time. I have electric brakes on a couple of trailers and they work fine as well. The surge brakes are just simpler to use.

 

[Reniram]

We have towed the 1000 miles to florida as snowbirds for the last 12 years..Master tow with Hyd Surge brakes always towed with confidence in all weathers..but be aware that you cant back up with a tow dolly.... I would not bother holding out for a dolly with electric brakes..