Towing the "i"

I've done recent dolly towing with a top of the line model that does not have a pivot table- it actually has steering knuckles at the ends of the dolly axle so that the dolly tracks just like the front axle of the car would when flat-towed. This reduces the steering angle by dividing it between two pivots and greatly cuts the chance of the towed vehicle crunching against the dolly fenders during a tight turn.. It has pins to lock the steering when reversing or unladen. The i could be towed on either a steering or non-steering dolly; you'd need to unlock the steering column by simply leaving a key in the ignition (in the accessory position so it won't bounce out or draw down the battery). Whether or not that puts undue stress on the front axle and steering gear is open for debate. Sway hasn't been a problem for me on other cars, as the towed car's steering damper is a built-in anti-sway device.

That American Car Dolly looks like a great value for a mid-market unit, probably better craftsmanship than the $999 Chinese version from Northern Tool, which also appears to be a 'pivot-table' design, but doesn't specify so, and I don't see any limit on the pivot to prevent a fender strike.
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200401171_200401171?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Trailers%20%2B%20Towing%20%3E%20Trailers&utm_campaign=Ultra-Tow&utm_content=578510&gclid=Cj0KEQjwjIy5BRClh8m_9Zu64d8BEiQAtZsQfyqfsbPwft7zcaaUrwN5MyjmWEHJ2myYo1b74FGifKUaAlFZ8P8HAQ

That Northern Tools dolly doesn't have brakes, which disqualifies it for my purpose.

I am only considering a dolly for towing the i-MiEV backwards, and thus strapping down the steering wheel in a dead-center position and also having it in Neutral when towing so as not to put any stress on the P-locking sprag due to slight movement of the car on the dolly.

Don, I agree with you that simply renting a dolly from U-Haul is the most cost-effective method. It seems that every time I go to rent a trailer from U-Haul I get hassled, even though my Isuzu Trooper has a massive full-length-welded-on Class 3 receiver and my lighting system works fine. When I tried renting a dolly from them a few months ago they insisted on recording exactly what vehicle was being transported and refused to rent me the dolly when I told them it was a rear-wheel drive i-MiEV and that I was going to tow it backwards (so much for living a clean life). They (incorrectly?) told me that towing backwards is illegal.

On my list of things to do is to add an electric brake actuator to the Isuzu Trooper and also convert to a modern 7-pin RV connector for lights and brakes.

JoeS said:

Don, I agree with you that simply renting a dolly from U-Haul is the most cost-effective method. It seems that every time I go to rent a trailer from U-Haul I get hassled, even though my Isuzu Trooper has a massive full-length-welded-on Class 3 receiver and my lighting system works fine. When I tried renting a dolly from them a few months ago they insisted on recording exactly what vehicle was being transported and refused to rent me the dolly when I told them it was a rear-wheel drive i-MiEV and that I was going to tow it backwards (so much for living a clean life). They (incorrectly?) told me that towing backwards is illegal.

Click to expand...

Wow! Getting a bit 'technical' aren't they?

The one we rented had no brakes and we were pulling a '66 Corvair with a '93 Mitsu Expo LRV mini-van - I think the Corvair probably outweighed our little Expo. We also towed the RWD Corvair backwards with no issues. We didn't get stopped anywhere and we left LOTS of space between us and anyone in front, so as to avoid any panic stops. About 100 miles from home around midnight, a deer jumped out in front of us while my brother was driving - Just before he was about to swerve to avoid the deer, I shouted at him to go ahead and hit the darned thing! Luckily the deer moved on before we would have hit him. One of the scarier moments in hundreds of thousands of miles of driving I assure you

Unless you'll be needing a dolly often in the future, I'd check with a few other U-Haul dealers . . . . and tell them you're going to pull a FWD Yugo! Not all dealers could be that 'helpful' . . . . . could they?

Don

I just drove my car till it wouldn't go any more. It was only a couple of miles from my house. I agonized over it and I towed it home :shock: . I left it in on/ neutral and towed it. I charged it up and it seems OK (fingers crossed)

It will be 'OK' . . . . you can uncross your fingers - You probably took away a percentage point or two of it's ultimate lifespan, but other than that, no harm done. Not something you want to make a regular habit of though - Proper planning prevents this sort of thing . . . . once it looked like you *might not* make it home (10 or 15 miles beforehand) you could have slowed down to 30 or 35 and this wouldn't have happened

Don

Towing with a rope?

https://youtu.be/AVHQSW75WpY

Hi
I am new to this forum)
From a personal experience : i have towed both of my..hence my username (Citroen cZero and Peugeot Ion) for a very long distances. Use Google map to see trips distances ,terrain,elevations etc.
Czero ( 2012) from Sandwich,Kent ,GB to Sligo,Republic of Ireland via Pembroke ,Wales. Towed in N,and key in Acc mode .
Nothing happened ,wife is loving driving it...and i did tow it for the last 80 miles in D(charged up nicely from 23 to 87 miles on Guess -o- Meter
Peugeout Ion( 2013)- ( bought as non runner, G sensor activated ,needs a bumper too) : towed From Peterlee ,GB ,to Sligo ,ROI via Belfast ,in N ,with Key in Acc .
I use a 2500 kg rated A-frame towing thingy and do tow at about 55-65 mph.
I did not see any energy flows in N ,while towing ,well,at least Canion App reported nothing but increase in total mileage ,so i would personally think this triplets (imiev,czero,Ion) are towable .

Welcome to the (new) forum.

Thanks for your input on towing with the car powered down (no READY light). Glad to hear that the car powered up fine afterwards. That was an unknown that most of us were not willing to try.