Has anyone towed their Gen3 Prius using a tow dolly? I plan on touring the National Parks in the West next year with my motorhome and wondered did anyone have any experience using a tow dolly to tow their car. The service writer at the dealership where I purchased my car in July 2009 said that I could not tow it except on a full trailer with all 4 wheels off the ground. Some members of IRV2 web site state they have used tow dolly's for Gen 2 but I cannot find out about Gen 3 experiences. I would appreciate any help from the group.
Towing is mentioned several times throughput the manual, but nowhere does it talk about long-term towing behind an RV. Page 42 says: If your vehicle needs to be towed, do so with front wheels raised. If the wheels connected to the electric motor (traction motor) are on the ground when towing, the motor may continue to generate electricity. This may cause a fire. Another page says it can be towed a short distance under 18 mph without any dolly, obviously not recommended though.
There are many pictures of Gen3 Prii being towed on dollies on Google. Pretty much any FWD car can be towed on a dolly, just make sure the parking brake is off. One issue you might run into is the low bumpers may make it more difficult to find ramps that are a shallow enough angle and keeping your rear from dragging.
If you will tow for long distance, you have to be aware that the rear tires will wear out a lot. Probably you will be facing a tire blowout and not even noticed wile pulling with the motor home, this is the disadvantage.
I don't think there would be any appreciable weight transfer to the rear tires to be concerned about. The best way to test that theory would be to weight the rear of the car while it's on the dolly. If you did enough research on the Internet, there would probably be someone who has done just that. If you stay within a reasonable range of the tire weight specification, you should be safe. Also, you should probably step up the tire pressures in the rear tires when carting on a dolly.
If being towed you must have the front wheels off the ground (not being turned). You can use a full trailer and get the car off the ground completely or you can use a dolly. The dolly is popular because it is less expensive than a trailer and easier to store. A trailer will protect the car somewhat from "road debris" and cause zero extra wear on tyres and bearings. It can also be used to haul "stuff" when not being used to haul the car. Your choice.
