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afrench45
04-10-2010, 09:10 PM
When I was in Indio, I saw many Smart Cars at the Motor Coach Country Club. Many had tow hooks on them so I assume they were towed. Does anybody have any experience towing them? I know I wouldn't be able to feel it behind the bus, but is it to small to tow? I know Alice Blade of Newell has one but I am not sure if they tow it behind a coach. Been looking at them and think one would be neat to have, and didn't know if it was smart to tow one.

tuga
04-11-2010, 01:22 PM
I know a guy who has rigged up a lift on the back of his Prevost to carry a Smart. He drives the Smart car onto the lift and raises the lift and he is off to the races! It can only be done with one of the original Smart cars because the length of a current Smart is too long.

If I remember correctly, his is 105 inches long. The new ones are 109 inches long or something like that. The bus is 106" wide so anything over that would be exposed to a wide load situation. Of course, I doubt if any highway patrolman would actually get out there and measure it. Unless you were in Kalifornia. Anything is possible out there!

The advantage of mounting it on the lift is that he can back up if necessary. He had to add braces to the Prevost because it would not be strong enough to hold the weight. I believe that a Smart weighs about 1700#.

This set up would not appeal to me because the Smart is too small for my needs. I find it very easy to tow my Honda Pilot 4 wheels down. Just put it in neutral and go! In 18 years of RVing, I have only had to disconnect to back up a couple of times. On the other hand, I have had many occasions where I needed the extra space or back seat to carry passsengers or cargo.

Now I'll tell you what I did see in Indio one year that was kind of neat. A fellow had 2 Segways (people movers); one for himself and one for his wife. They rode those things everywhere; to the grocery store (each had a large basket on the front), all over the campground, etc. He said if they rode a long distance (4 or 5 miles) like to a restaurant or to go shopping, they would ask the store if they could use an electric outlet to re-charge. He offered to let me and Karen ride the Segways and we took him up on it. It was a blast!
He said they were great for sightseeing and walking around in a large city. They would put them in the back of his pickup truck (he towed it) if he had a long way to go to an area they wanted to visit. They would just park the truck and ride the Segways.

I can also see a down side to a Segway; rain or cold! I'll just stick with my Honda!

HoosierDaddy
04-11-2010, 02:49 PM
I'm working on an idea for a light car hauler trailer that could be "backed" easier. (More daydreaming) I had to try to back (unhook etc) while flat towing my Jeep a few times with my 38' Newell. I'm thinking that backing up may be even more necessary with the 45' Newell considering my occasional lack of foresight!
Not to be picky Tuga ....I'm thinking Prevost is 102" wide. Maybe he had some add-ons that made it wider? 1700# hangin on the back would sure help the front axle load limit issue!!
I'm liking the Segway idea....