Protecting a tow vehicle August 28, 2024, 06:52:53 pm What do you use to protect your tow vehicle from rocks and debris? I've been using "PROTECT-A-TOW" for a long time but it's kind of a pain pain to mess with.Would those brush style rear flaps be just as effective if I mounted one behind each dually?
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #1 – August 28, 2024, 10:05:06 pm "What do you use to protect your tow vehicle from rocks and debris?"Rocks & Debris? What's that?I've spent the last nineteen (19) years towing two different Hondas', Civic and CRV, and have had NO damage!Perhaps the reason is the eleven (11) foot overhang between the dual's and the bumper. 1 Likes
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #2 – August 28, 2024, 10:29:59 pm Quote from: Lazy Bones - August 28, 2024, 10:05:06 pm"What do you use to protect your tow vehicle from rocks and debris?"Rocks & Debris? What's that?I've spent the last nineteen (19) years towing two different Hondas', Civic and CRV, and have had NO damage!Perhaps the reason is the eleven (11) foot overhang between the dual's and the bumper. The bumper on the car or the bumper on the motorhome?
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #3 – August 30, 2024, 11:58:27 am The first thing I noticed about my friends tow vehicle was that it looked like someone took a shotgun to the front of his engine hood. After I set up up our (Her) Honda CRV with a Roadmaster tow bar, the very next item was the Roadmaster 4750 tow defender. It adds a little more time getting set up to tow, but there's no shotgun effect on our (Her) Honda. As an added benefit, I'm convinced it has added to our marital bliss since that Honda is her favorite vehicle ever and she babies that thing. Gotta keep Momma happy!Ron 1 Likes
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #4 – August 30, 2024, 12:18:18 pm Quote from: Ron45761 - August 30, 2024, 11:58:27 am The first thing I noticed about my friends tow vehicle was that it looked like someone took a shotgun to the front of his engine hood. After I set up up our (Her) Honda CRV with a Roadmaster tow bar, the very next item was the Roadmaster 4750 tow defender. It adds a little more time getting set up to tow, but there's no shotgun effect on our (Her) Honda. As an added benefit, I'm convinced it has added to our marital bliss since that Honda is her favorite vehicle ever and she babies that thing. Gotta keep Momma happy!RonI've noticed on my old 2002 CRV we were using as a tow vehicle had that exact same shotgun blast look on the edges of the front bumper where the netting did not quite cover.
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #5 – August 30, 2024, 02:02:26 pm "The bumper on the car or the bumper on the motorhome?"Either one... the overhang is long enough on the 30' so that any road debris kicked up by the duals does not reach far enough to damage anything. Many folks criticize the 30/31' LD but this feature is a winner! 2 Likes
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #6 – August 30, 2024, 05:43:16 pm Tedeboy wrote: I've noticed on my old 2002 CRV we were using as a tow vehicle had that exact same shotgun blast look on the edges of the front bumper where the netting did not quite cover.There is no way around this as I the same stone marks on the front outer edges of the fenders of my (past) Jeep Cherokee when using the Roadmaster Tow Defender mat over the Roadmaster Sterling tow bar. The rest of the front grill had no stone damage. The mat did its intended job. The same applies to the Honda CRV I towed before the Jeep. I keep the mat rolled up and strapped down above the tow bar that lives on the LD back bumper (see photo). I have always used the Blue Ox base plate on my toads (and still do) and use the Roadmaster to Blue Ox hitch adapters for the connection to the toad. I like the Tow Defender as all I have to do is unroll it and connect it to tow bar hitch pins using two snap pins connecting the mat. There are two hydraulic tension arms on the mat arms at the coach end to keep the mat edges in place when turning. I just recently traded the Cherokee in for the Chevy Trax ACTIV that is now set up for towing. The new Blue Ox hitch points are closer together than what the Cherokee had and all I had to do was drill new matching holes in the Tow Defender mat metal brace square tubing to match the new hitch points for the snap pins. It all works quite well. As the mat is now wider than the front of the Trax we will see if any rocks will hit the front outer fenders in the future.
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #7 – August 30, 2024, 06:20:06 pm Quote from: tedeboy - August 28, 2024, 10:29:59 pmThe bumper on the car or the bumper on the motorhome?31’ LDs have a very long overhang.Ridgway, Co.Larry 1 Likes
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #8 – August 30, 2024, 07:10:24 pm The degree of chipping depends on the vehicle. My Jeeps have not been badly damage by towing, being high off the pavement.Our friend’s 2014 CRV doesn’t have much chipping after 30,000+ miles of towing. One thing nice about older toads is not worrying so much about the cosmetics. Larry 1 Likes
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #9 – August 30, 2024, 11:15:02 pm I bought my 2011 CRV in 2013 as a lease return. Looked good but not showroom quality. After nearly 60K miles, still not showroom quality. There are some stone dings in the paint down low, but nothing remarkable for 130K total miles. Maybe halfway across the County from the rear duals has something to do with it.YMMVjoel
Re: Protecting a tow vehicle Reply #10 – August 30, 2024, 11:25:20 pm One thing nice about older toads is not worrying so much about the cosmetics.That's my philosophy regarding the toad. We bought a used 2015 Forester in 2020 which already had a couple of minor dings and blemishes so, as long as the windshield doesn't get hit by a rock, I'm good!
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Topic: Protecting a tow vehicle (Read 280 times)
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