Published: 2026-03-02 · Updated: 2026-03-02

Setting Up a Toad (Dinghy) Vehicle Behind Your RV

What Is a Toad Vehicle and Why Do RVers Flat Tow One?

A toad — also called a dinghy — is a secondary vehicle towed four-wheels-down behind a motorhome. The rv toad setup gives you a normal-sized car at each campsite without needing a separate tow trailer, keeping your rig shorter and your GCWR lower than it would be with a car hauler or tow dolly. Most Class A and Class C owners choose a compact SUV or a Jeep because they're approved for four-down towing right from the factory.

The practical case is simple: park your 40-foot Class A at a campground in Moab, unhook the Jeep in five minutes, and go explore narrow canyon roads that would be impassable in the motorhome. When you return, you back the Jeep up to the tow bar, click in the pins, plug in the wiring harness, and you're done. That daily efficiency is why flat towing has become the dominant method among full-time RVers.

For a broader look at RV towing strategy — including GCWR math and how your toad affects your motorhome's weight budget — see our RV towing guide.

What Equipment Do You Need to Flat Tow a Vehicle Behind an RV?

A complete toad vehicle setup has five core components, and skipping any one of them creates a safety or legal problem. Here's what you actually need:

1. Tow Bar — Mounts to the motorhome's Class III or IV hitch receiver. Rated by gross trailer weight (GTW); most residential flat-tow bars are rated 5,000–10,000 lbs. Blue Ox and Roadmaster are the two dominant brands. Look for the GTW rating stamped on the head casting, not just printed in the manual.

2. Vehicle-Specific Baseplates — Bolt to the toad's frame (not the bumper) and provide the two attachment points where the tow bar arms connect. These are not universal — a Jeep Wrangler baseplate won't fit a Chevrolet Colorado. Roadmaster, Blue Ox, and Demco all manufacture model-specific kits, typically $300–$600 for the hardware alone.

3. Supplemental Braking System — More on this in its own section below, but budget $500–$1,200 for this component.

4. Safety Cables — Two cross-connected cables between the tow bar and the motorhome hitch, rated to the toad's GVWR. They're your last-resort connection if the tow bar disconnects. FMCSA regulations at fmcsa.dot.gov require breakaway capability for towed vehicles — safety cables satisfy this in combination with a breakaway switch in most states.

5. Wiring Harness — Powers the toad's tail lights, brake lights, and turn signals from the motorhome's 7-pin connector. More on this below.

Here's a cost breakdown by component:

Sources: Roadmaster, Blue Ox, and SMI published MSRP data; installer quotes compiled by RevFrenzy editorial team, 2026.

For more detail on what your motorhome's hitch setup needs to look like before any of this gets bolted on, our flat towing guide walks through the motorhome side of the equation.

Which Vehicles Can Be Flat Towed Behind an RV?

Flat-tow-capable vehicles are specifically approved by their manufacturers for four-wheels-down towing without transmission or transfer case damage. As of the 2024 model year, MotorHome Magazine's annual dinghy guide listed approximately 80 approved models — and that number shifts every year as manufacturers update procedures.

Enter your year, make, and model below to check flat-tow compatibility instantly.

Popular options consistently on the approved list include the Jeep Wrangler, Jeep Gladiator, Chevrolet Colorado (with transfer case in neutral), Ford Bronco, and Honda CR-V (2015 and earlier, with specific transfer case procedure). The Jeep Wrangler holds the #1 spot in nearly every RV owner poll — it's purpose-built for this application, and Jeep explicitly approves four-down towing across virtually every Wrangler trim.

What won't work: Most EVs and plug-in hybrids are not flat-towable. Towing a Tesla Model 3 or Chevy Bolt four-wheels-down spins the electric motor backward, generating heat it can't dissipate without the cooling system running — and the cooling system doesn't run when the car is off. Toyota explicitly prohibits flat towing the RAV4 Hybrid and RAV4 Prime in their owner's manuals. Rear-wheel-drive automatic vehicles without a neutral-towable transfer case generally can't be flat towed either without a driveshaft disconnect — which adds cost and complexity.

Always cross-check the exact model year. Approval can vanish between model years if the manufacturer changes the transmission or transfer case. A 2021 Jeep Cherokee was flat-towable; the 2022 redesign wasn't. That kind of change catches people off guard.

How Do You Install a Tow Bar and Baseplate System?

Installation starts at the toad, not the motorhome. The baseplates bolt directly to the vehicle's frame rails — typically requiring removal of the front fascia or lower grille, drilling new holes in frame brackets, and torquing hardware to spec (usually 40–60 ft-lbs on most light SUVs). This is the step where professional installation pays off most. A misaligned baseplate that's 5mm off-center will bind the tow bar arms under load and wear the attachment points prematurely.

A real-world example: Say you're installing Roadmaster baseplates on a Jeep Wrangler JL. You'll remove the lower bumper insert, locate the two factory frame weld-nuts, bolt the receiver pockets into position, reinstall the bumper, and snap the decorative covers over the pockets. Total job: about 2.5 hours with a floor jack and basic hand tools. The Roadmaster kit includes a torque spec sheet — follow it exactly.

On the motorhome side, verify your hitch receiver is Class IV (rated 10,000 lbs GTW). The rating is stamped on the receiver tube near the pin hole — look for "Class IV" or "GTW 10,000" in the casting. Then mount the tow bar to the receiver, connect the arms to the toad's baseplates, insert the pull pins and clips, and attach safety cables in a cross-pattern (right motorhome ring to left toad loop, and vice versa).

Professional installation at an RV service center or dedicated towing shop runs 3–5 hours total for baseplates plus tow bar. Expect to pay $150–$250/hour for labor, putting the full install job at $450–$1,250 beyond parts.

Towing in mountains changes everything about setup confidence. If you're planning routes through Colorado or West Virginia, read our towing in mountains guide before your first trip.

Do You Need a Supplemental Braking System for Your Toad?

Yes — both legally and practically. Most U.S. states require a supplemental braking system on any towed vehicle exceeding 1,500 lbs. Connecticut and Pennsylvania require brakes on any towed vehicle regardless of weight. All Canadian provinces require a supplemental braking system plus a breakaway switch. According to the FMCSA, breakaway protection is federally required for towed vehicles — and a properly installed supplemental system with a breakaway cable satisfies that requirement.

Check the specific threshold in your state with our towing laws by state tool.

The two most common systems for dinghy towing are:

• SMI Stay-IN-Play DUO (~$750 installed): A permanent unit that reads brake light voltage and applies the toad's brakes proportionally. Wires into the toad's brake booster vacuum line. Requires professional installation but is nearly invisible once mounted.
• Roadmaster InvisiBrake (~$900 installed): Similar permanent install, uses the toad's own brake pedal mechanism. Highly regarded for proportional response.
• Portable options (e.g., Brake Buddy Classic, ~$500): Sits on the driver's floorboard and presses the brake pedal physically. Works on almost any vehicle but must be installed and removed each time you hook up.

A supplemental braking system reduces motorhome stopping distance by up to 45% with a fully loaded toad — that's not a marketing claim, it's physics. A 4,400-lb Jeep pushing a 35,000-lb Class A under hard braking without independent toad brakes is a serious problem.

What Are the Wiring and Lighting Requirements for Dinghy Towing?

Federal law and all 50 state vehicle codes require your toad's brake lights, tail lights, and turn signals to function and be visible to traffic behind you. This means you need a wiring harness connecting the motorhome's 7-pin trailer connector to the toad's rear lights.

Two options exist:

Magnetic tow lights — A four-light magnetic kit that attaches to the toad's trunk lid or roof. Plugs into the motorhome's 4-pin connector. Cheap ($60–$100) and works on any vehicle. Downside: you have to mount and unmount them each time, and they can blow off at highway speed if not secured properly.

Diode-based wiring harness — A kit that splices into the toad's factory tail light wiring using diodes to prevent signal backflow into the toad's electrical system. Roadmaster and Blue Ox both make vehicle-specific kits for common toads. One-time install, no daily mounting required. This is the correct long-term solution for a dedicated toad vehicle.

If your motorhome has a 5th wheel or gooseneck setup rather than a bumper-pull configuration, your hitch setup differs significantly — see our towing 5th wheel guide for those specifics.

What's the Difference Between Flat Towing, a Tow Dolly, and a Trailer?

Flat towing (four-down) rolls all four toad wheels on the pavement. A tow dolly lifts the front wheels off the ground, leaving the rear wheels rolling — which works for front-wheel-drive vehicles that can't be flat towed. A full car trailer supports all four wheels completely off the ground.

Here's how the three methods compare practically:

Tow dolly: Weighs 450–600 lbs, which eats directly into your payload and GCWR budget. Works for FWD vehicles like a Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla. You still need to disconnect the driveshaft on some AWD/4WD vehicles to use one safely. Storage at the campsite is a nuisance — you're parking a 500-lb dolly somewhere.

Car trailer (full four-wheel): Adds 1,000–2,000 lbs of trailer weight plus the car weight. Increases rig length significantly. Works for any vehicle including EVs. Used by RVers who bring a non-flat-towable vehicle and have the GCWR budget for it.

Flat tow: Lightest method, shortest overall rig length, fastest daily hook-up and disconnect. Requires a flat-tow-compatible vehicle. For most RVers who can choose their toad, this is the right call.

For help deciding which toad matches your specific motorhome's towing capacity, the tow vehicle matchmaker tool can pair your rig with compatible vehicles by GCWR and weight class. And if you're still in the process of selecting your motorhome, our best trucks for RV towing article covers the chassis options worth considering.

Full-time RVers should also factor fuel economy — a heavier toad increases your coach's fuel consumption measurably. Our RV towing MPG guide breaks down the real-world impact by toad weight class.