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Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Yahoo Message Number: 137083
Wonder what 4x4 can be towed with all 4 wheels down?

The Honda CRV all wheel drive automatic does very well in moderate off road conditions. We have had ours on some fairly severe grades in the western mountains. It also gets very good gas millage. It has always been available to be easily towed 4-down. Our 2005 CRV now has 130K+ driven miles and another 70K towed miles that doesn't show on the electronic odometer. Car is in great condition and we will probably keep it several more years. I have a Blue-Ox base plate and a Road Master All-Terrain (motorhome mounted) tow bar. Road Master sells the adapter connector for the Blue Ox hidden base plate. The Blue Ox connecting pins are removable when not in use.
Also for toad braking, I installed the SMI "Air Force One" brake system. You don't have to remove it every time you want to drive the toad. It does require some toad battery power, so I ran a #10 wire (30amp fused at each end) from the LD engine battery to the toad battery to keep the toad battery charged while towing. I did have to change to a standard 7-blade truck trailer connector for the extra circuit. The light circuits are wired directly to the Honda's tail lights using one-way diodes to keep from back-feeding power from the lights to the dash.  The 6-ft pigtail from the LD to the toad I bought at Tractor supply and it uses #10 wire for the power circuit. All has worked very well for many towed miles and years.
See the link below for the all wheel drive Honda CRV:
 http://automobiles.honda.com/tools/build-price/trims.aspx?ModelID=RM4H5DJW&ModelName=CR-V&ModelYear=2013&EColor=NH-700M&IColor=BK

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2010 RB "Monty"  & currently: 2021 RB "Villa Verde"
2004 Born Free 26'
1998 Beaver Patriot 33'
1992 Barth Breakaway 28'
1982 Fleetwood Jamboree 23'
1982 Dolphin/Toyota 22'
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137089
"Also for toad braking, I installed the SMI "Air Force One" brake system. You don't have to remove it every time you want to drive the toad."
 I have read that the SMI "Air Force One" uses air from the RV's braking system to activate the vacuum booster on the Toad. If this is true it can't be connected to an LD since they have hydraulic brakes, not air assist. I used the US Gear unified braking system with vacuum booster pump. You can find significant discounts for these on Ebay.

Bob

Quartzsite, AZ. for a few...
01 23.5 TK, Jeep Cherokee Toad
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137093
Quote

How does the driven toad miles not show on the odometer?

Gary

On Feb 26, 2013, at 11:05 AM, mikecoachman31  wrote:

Wonder what 4x4 can be towed with all 4 wheels down?
 The Honda CRV all wheel drive automatic does very well in moderate off road conditions. We have had ours on some fairly severe grades in the western mountains. It also gets very good gas millage. It has always been available to be easily towed 4-down. Our 2005 CRV now has 130K+ driven miles and another 70K towed miles that doesn't show on the electronic odometer.

It's the towed miles that don't show which is what Mike said.

Chris H
Formerly: 2002 30' IB
Re: Toad mileage
Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137098
"How does the driven toad miles not show on the odometer?"
 As Mike said, it's an electronic odometer. When the ignition is off (or even in "accessory" position for towing), it can't count mileage. As far as i know, most modern cars work this way.

Andy Baird

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137099
"I have read that the SMI 'Air Force One' uses air from the RV's braking system to activate the vacuum booster on the Toad. If this is true it can't be connected to an LD since they have hydraulic brakes, not air assist."
 Correct. SMI's website says "Air Force One uses a small amount of air from the coach's air brake system to create the vacuum necessary to activate the power brakes of the towed [vehicle]." This wouldn't work with a Lazy Daze. SMI's Stay-IN-Play Duo and US Gear's Unified Tow Brake are popular choices for LD owners.

Andy Baird

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137102
Steve,

The CRV weighs around 3500lbs with all Elizabeth's painting supplies that are stored in the back and a few interesting rocks we pick up along the way. Maybe, we may carry a couple of kayaks in the future. Towing mileage varies depending on driving conditions (flat, hilly, mountain grades, & speed).  On the flat interstates we drive around 70mph and get 7.5 to 8.3mpg. Back roads at slower speeds (50 to 65mph) we get 8 to 9mpg. Mountain grades we have gotten as low as 6.9mpg.
I sent the wrong SMI system that I use. It is NOT the "Air Force One" but it IS the "Stay-IN-Play Duo" system.  See below link:
 http://www.smibrake.com/stay-in-play-duo.html

I will send you a photo in a separate E-message as photos don't show up in this group site messages. I do have some photos in two LWALD albums "Coachman's Enhancements to Monty" and Coachman's Campsites."  You can check those out for ideas.
Mike
2010 RB "Monty"  & currently: 2021 RB "Villa Verde"
2004 Born Free 26'
1998 Beaver Patriot 33'
1992 Barth Breakaway 28'
1982 Fleetwood Jamboree 23'
1982 Dolphin/Toyota 22'
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137105
Chris,

i misstated my question.  I understand the 130k driven miles will obviously show on the odometer.  It is the 70k towed miles that Mike said that don't show on the odometer is what I meant to ask clarification.  When the wheel turns on the automatic CRV the odometer turns.  I think his total mileage must be 130k. 70k of which must have been accumulated through towing.  Quoting Mike:
 "Our 2005 CRV now has 130K+ driven miles and another 70K towed miles that doesn't show on the electronic odometer"
 That is the quote that confused me.  I own a 2012 CRV with an automatic transmission that does register miles when towed four down behind my LD.  To prove it I put my car in neutral and coasted.  The odometer still moved and registered.  How do I keep the towed miles from being registered is another way to ask my question?  I don't know any method other than using a tow dolly or a flatbed trailer.  Sorry for the confusion.

Gary
Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137106
"I own a 2012 CRV with an automatic transmission that does register miles when towed four down behind my LD. To prove it I put my car in neutral and coasted. The odometer still moved and registered."
 Forgive my skepticism, Gary, but putting the transmission in neutral with the engine running isn't the same thing as towing the car with the engine off. Are you quite sure that the odometer registers miles while the car is being towed? My 2009 Honda Fit definitely doesn't.
 Have you recorded the car's indicated mileage before and after a tow, and was there a difference?

Andy Baird

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Where to winter in New Mexico ?
Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137107
Just wondering where is it warm in New Mexico in the winter?

ie where is Andy

thanks

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Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137108
Andy

The car is new and I only towed it once.  I did not check the mileage before towing but I did notice that my mpg was very high on my information system.  That is why I assumed the odometer must register through shell movement.

I will most certainly check next tow!  Thanks

Gary
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137109
Quote

Chris,

i misstated my question.  I understand the 130k driven miles will obviously show on the odometer.  It is the 70k towed miles that Mike said that don't show on the odometer is what I meant to ask clarification.  When the wheel turns on the automatic CRV the odometer turns.  I think his total mileage must be 130k. 70k of which must have been accumulated through towing.  Quoting Mike:

"Our 2005 CRV now has 130K+ driven miles and another 70K towed


 Gary, I think you'll find that if you check your mileage before and after towing 4 down, you will see that the odometer does not change. I have a 2010 CR-V which does not accumulate miles when being towed 4 down.

Chris
Formerly: 2002 30' IB
Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #12 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137110
Dear Andy and Chris,

Thanks to you both.  I will certainly check the mileage before towing the second time.  I now admit I must be mistaken.  It was a combination of the MPG information system (which showed 55 mpg average; I assumed it was adding the towed miles) and my odometer test while in neutral that resulted in my erroneous conclusion.
 I am home now, on my home computer which makes it much easier to type and read than with my iPhone.  Forgive my typos ' "Wheel movement" not "shell movement"; spell correction/check error.  I figured there must be a sensor in the wheel that fed the odometer.

Best to all, 
Gary
Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #14 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137114
If your Honda CR-V is anything like our Dodge truck, that information system's MPG is unreliable and reads high.  I keep track of every single fill up, so I know what the "real" mileage is...the information system on the truck consistently reads much more than what we're actually getting.
So, unless you also keep track of every fill up and have real numbers to compare to what the CR-V is telling you, I wouldn't take those numbers as gospel.

Linda Hylton

http://earl-linda.blogspot.com
Linda Hylton
Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #15 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137115
Hi Gary:  Guess by now you've learned more than you wanted to know about the CRV's recorded (or not) mileage when towing!   We've towed our 2005 CRV for about 35,000 miles so far and none of those miles ever recorded on the odometer.  It's pretty simple really....when you're driving your CRV it records mileage and when you're towing it doesn't.   The CRV is a great tow car, enjoy!    Gale
G N Wilson
2008 Mid-Bath
Re: Where to winter in New Mexico ?
Reply #16 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137117
I don't know where Andy is, but we've spent lots of time in NM in the fall/winter/spring over the last few years with our trusty LD...and while there can be mild days in Las Cruces, by and large, it's cold. Not screaming cold, but definitely warm jacket weather.
 We were there in Nov-Dec 2011 and could not leave on time due to the blizzard that caused the authorities to close I-10 from El Paso to AZ!
 However, the snow didn't last that long and and the sun shines bright!

TinaP

2006 MB "Wild Thing"

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
2006 MB
Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #17 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137119
"So, unless you also keep track of every fill up and have real numbers to compare to what the CR-V is telling you, I wouldn't take those numbers as gospel."
 That's good advice. When I first bought my Fit, I kept fillup-to-fillup records of fuel used and miles driven, and compared that with the Fit's indicated average gas mileage. I found that the car's display was optimistic by about 4%--if it showed 25 mpg, I was really getting 24; if it showed 50, I was getting 48, and so on.
 In the four years since then, the Fit's fuel economy has averaged better than 45 actual mpg. The low point was last summer in Colorado, when four months of mountain driving reduced the average for that period to 41 mpg. Since returning to New Mexico last fall, the average has been a little more than 47 mpg, which is about what I normally get.
 These numbers are substantially higher than the EPA ratings for the car, by the way. I attribute that to the fact that I do almost no city driving. Stop-and-go driving really kills fuel economy (this is where hybrids shine), and if I were puttering around town instead of driving ten or twenty uninterrupted miles from a remote campsite to a grocery store, I'm sure my gas mileage would be a lot closer to 35 mpg than 45.
 On the other hand, for the kind of driving I do in the Fit, a hybrid would probably offer no advantage in fuel economy. And it's kind of nice to know that I'm doing as well in my $14,000 subcompact as I would in a $24,000 Prius--which can't be flat-towed. :-)

Andy Baird

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: Where to winter in New Mexico ?
Reply #18 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137121
Because there's no place in New Mexico lower than 2,800 feet, winters are not as mild as in the warmer low-altitude parts of Arizona or California. But while it can be chilly overnight, temperatures are usually mild by mid-afternoon. I've spent many pleasant winters in southern NM, staying in the state parks where $4 a night (with my annual camping pass) gets me a beautiful site with water and electricity. Being plugged in means I can stay warm with my small electric heaters, so I only use propane for the water heater and for baking.

Andy Baird

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: Build and Price a Honda
Reply #19 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137122
Quote

"My 2009 Honda Fit definitely doesn't."

Andy Baird

Ditto here Andy, my 2008 CR-V does not register when towing and neither did my 2002 Honda Civic.

Steve S.

Lazy Bones & Jiggs
Steve S.
Lazy Bones & Cedar
2004 30'IB (Island Bed)
Yesterday is History, Tomorrow is a Mystery
Live for the day!
 
Re: Build and Price a Honda - Official Honda Web Site
Reply #20 –
Yahoo Message Number: 137123
If the vehicle was still running (ignition on) the computer is still operating, thus recording miles.  If the vehicle is turned completely off, nothing registers.  It has been that way on all vehicles for years (since maybe the late 1980's sometime?). The computer controls and logs everything. Now even the turn signal clicks are fake and generated by the computer and fed through the audio system on board (left front speaker only)

4-wheel down toad miles don't count (on the toad anyway), honest.

Dave '06 MB, Indianapolis