Has anyone towed their MINI behind an RV? I may do this when I take my RV out west and I was wondering if any of you had some recommendations. I've got prices from five grand, to seventy bucks a week for a tow dolly rental.

Buck

 

Stick or automatic?

 

Check your manual, it will tell you about towing. But as long as you are towing 4 down, do NOT try to back up. It don't happen and that goes for any 4 down towing with steering in the front.

That been said, you could use a tow Dolley (front wheels up) Much too hard to install a tow bar for proper use and it would only really work with a stick. With an automatic you have to take other steps and it is not advisable. Deals with pump in transmission not working when you are being towed, you also have to deal with the steering lock (remember it is electric in some vehicles). An even better method is a complete car hauler.

You may also check the state you are traveling through. Some require brakes for a certain weight.

 

ive seen them pulled around here quite often (south NJ) behind RV's without a dolly...Who knows how much they spent though. Why not just get a flatbed car trailer or a Enclosed car hauler. A mini is small so you wouldnt need one that big and im sure you could pick up a used one pretty cheap.

Keeps the wear and tare off the tires and Mini and prevents any nasty rock chips from flying up.

 

I've been told by my RV dealer that there is a tow bar available that requires an extra device that actually presses the break peddal down on the towed vehicle so that it acts like trailer brakes. The down side to it is that it requires a retrofit to the front bumper of the towed vehicle. That means drilling holes and installing connectors for the tow bar to hook on to. All for the low, low price of $5000! I wouldn't want them to touch my MINI so I don't think I will go for that. I may though do the tow dolly thing. Maxx is a 6 speed standard tranny so that should be okay. I was wondering if I should get some really cheap rear tires for the long tow accross the nation???

Buck

 

I'd leave your good tires on. Forget the cheap traveling tires. You probably will not be able to see it towing behind you even with a backup camera. If your motor home is large, you may not know it has a flat if one was to happen. Don't take the chance.

 

i still say Car hauler trailer enclosed preferably but heres a cheap NICE new open one!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Lawri...ht_1779wt_1165

Heres one with 16" on center studs (important) enclosed trailer. more then enough room to put your Mini in! Throw some etrack on the floor and put a nice "shop" in the front to keep your cleaning and maintenance supplies in there and you would even have a nice "garage" to keep your mini in while your away! and you could always throw in some extras like 4 wheelers golf carts etc...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/8-5x2...ht_9044wt_1165

Best of all...NO rock chips

 

Great ideas guys, thanks. If I had a bigger motorhome I might go for the covered one, but I have a Roadtrek, which is basically a converted van, so something smaller would be better. Also, I'll be taking it one way out west and leavening there for two seasons then maybe bringing it back to re-licence it. I have personalized plates and would like to keep them, if I move here out west I'd have to change them. So I'll be towing one way once every two years.

Buck

 

I just bought a 2011 Mini Cooper Countryman 6 speed manual transmission. I have been told by Mini not to tow but everyone else, (my mechanic, other mini owners) say it is ok. Mini says it will damage the computer, the manual says tow on flatbed but no reason why. If the steering wheel doesnt lock and it is a manual transmission, can someone tell me why it cannot be towed....help....

 

I have towed cars for 100k behind my motorhome. Some automatics can be (easily) towed, some can't. Actually, you can tow anything, but the modifications necessary aren't worth the trouble; electrically operated transmission pumps etc. The Mini manual can be towed, but you need to put the necessary tow bar hardware on the front of the frame. Both Roadmaster and BlueOx make the hardware, but it adds 40-45 lbs to the front end of a very light car, and that's why I haven't done it on my Mini. The brakes are another issue. Many people don't put any braking ability in the "toad" at all. And if you are towing a 2600# car behind a 40,000# diesel pusher with air brakes and engine compression brakes you probably don't need it. Some states, however, do require it. We run an air line from the air brakes on the coach back to the Honda Pilot that we tow. It operates a air diaphragm that is placed between the master cylinder and vacuum booster, and application of the coach brakes is applied to the car. There is, however, certainly no room for that under the hood of a Mini.
The are many braking options, far to many to discuss here, But if I were towing mine, behind my rig, I would not bother with brakes. If on the other hand I were towing it behind, say, a small Class C motorhome that has trouble enough stopping itself. I would do some braking arrangement. The Open Roads Forum of the Motorhome Magazine website has a sub forum on all these issues.
This is probably more that you wanted to know.

 

Frankly, I would not tow with four wheels down. Doing so just creates a lot of problems like dealing with the transmission, locking the steering, attaching the tow bar, etc. Get a tow dolly and be done with it. Drive it up, secure the front wheels, and you're good to go. And I wouldn't worry about extra wear on the rear tires. It will be minimal and besides, the rears last so much longer than the fronts anyway.

 

capt Fred....it is already set to go with a blue ox towing system. I had that gentleman that has done this for all of our vehicles make one to fit the mini to go with the blue ox system...looks great. the issue from mini seems to be the locking steering column...well I hate to tell them but my manual transmission mini countryman does not lock, I even checked my neighbors mini cooper converticle (manual tranny also) it does not lock either. so my question to them was does the key need to be in it or not...I tow it behind a class A 30 ft motorhome...I have towed jeeps and other small cars without a problem...what do think about the key in or out....

 

Sorry, I'm a little late on board this. . . I had a 2005, S, 6 speed, that was a toad for over 60,000 miles. It showed 27,700 on the odometer when I sold it in August 2012 to get my 2013 Justa. The only difference I recognized as a result of flat towing was premature tire wear. MINIs do not register toad mileage. My MINI service people (to remain nameless for their protection) assured me that flat towing a manual MINI did NO harm what-so-ever and would not change service requirements. With both the old and the new MINI I have installed an always HOT accessory (cig lighter) plug for a Brake Buddy. I rarely used the Brake Buddy with the old MINI but I will start out using it with the new MINI. I changed no wiring, other than a new accessory plug connected directly to the battery, in either MINI. I use good quality magnetic LED lights stuck to the roof of the MINI, with a cable to the motor-home, for all lights. I call them Mickey Mouse ears. I run the cable into the MINI from the hatchback, through the MINI and out the forward, right, side of the front door. From there the cord goes through the engine compartment and out the front to the motor-home hitch electrical plug.

I always left a key in the ignition with the old MINI to prevent steering wheel lock. I have not tested it but I see no reason to leave the pod (disk) key in the 2013 MINI because the steering wheel does not lock and I do not need it in for power to the accessory plug.

Does anyone know something about the newer MINIs (2013) that I might be missing here?

 

I tow my Mini behind my motorhome and have since I bought it new. It's a manual transmission, but I will warn you Mini says "no" to using it as a toad. There have been countless people that do it though. I recently towed it 1,850 miles without any issues.

I used Blue Ox baseplate and installed it myself. Total cost was less than $400. It's an easy DIY. I use wireless magnetic lights to avoid cutting into my Clubman's wiring.

As far as the post above goes, I don't see any reason why the 2013 will be different than my 2010, but your are right in that the 2nd gen Mini's steering does not lock. I do not leave my key in the pod, and the tires turn as my RV turns.

 

Thanks for your reply. My BlueOx is already installed. Did it the day after I picked up Pip. I use magnetic LED lights but they have a wire going to the motor-home plug. I explained how I did it. Please tell me what wireless lights you use and how you like them?

 

http://www.wirelesstowlights.com/

I love them. Had them for around 5 years and will never use anything but these. I'll buy a new set when these wear out.

 

Thanks for that info. I've been researching this evening and the TowMate Wireless TM3L also looks like good quality and I like the recharge system: http://www.towmart.com/towmate-wireless-tm3l

I like that the TowMate will come with a 7 pin RV plug. I'm a bit put off by the AA batteries, website dead links, and the lack of dealers for the wirelesstowlights.com system. Frank

 

Those are a little pricey but look awesome. I like the idea that they are rechargable. It is a pain worrying about the batteries. Good find.

 

I am buying my son's 2011 S. I thought it was a manual but he just told me that it is a automatic. I was fairly confident after researching this site and others that the S standard transmission is towable(toad) four wheels down. I have little if any information about towing an automatic. I really don't want to use a dolly. I have a 40' diesel to tow the mini with. Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

Unfortunately your automatic MINI is NOT towable four down. Were it a manual it would be although most MINI dealers will not tell you that. I towed a 2005 S for a number of years and now tow my 2013 MINI but both have manual transmissions. Automatic MINIs and ALL4 MINIs, either transmission, are not towable. Check with your local MINI dealer.

 

Understand thanks for the quick response. I sort of thought the auto was a no go for towing so your information is appreciated.

 

I got here a little late on this thread as well.

I have a 2013 MINI Cooper S, 6-speed manual that we tow four-down behind our Winnebago Journey diesel pusher. I had the Blue Ox base plate made for the MINI installed for under $700.00 total cost including the base plate cost. I also had the Blue Ox wiring kit that adds separate bulbs to the tail light housings installed. This system adds a separate wiring run from the hitch plug at the front to the tail/turn/stop bulbs and does not disturb the MINI's wiring system.

The MINI does not register mileage while towing, does not need the key pod in place as there is no steering lock, and, needs no pulling of fuses like my Jeep Wrangler did. I like the ideas of a hot plug for the Brake Buddy and the wireless tail light pods--will investigate.

It does not cost anywhere near $5,000 to set up a manual MINI for towing four down. The MINI tracks great and I never know it is still with us except by checking the rear view camera.

We have a Blue Ox KarGard shield installed on the Blue Ox tow bar. The MINI has the 3M clear bra installed on its nose and the motor home has individual mud flaps at each wheel well and a coach wide rock guard at the rear. The MINI has no marks, chips, etc so far.

I towed a PT Cruiser (automatic) on a dolly for five years. I towed a Jeep Wrangler four-down for four years and a Miata for three years before that. Four-down towing works best for me after having done both.

Good luck and enjoy your MINI either way--dollied or four-down.

 

thanks so much for the detailed reply. I currently have a Jeep wrangler that we are towing four wheels down. I am going to give this to my son and was going to take over his 11 cooper S. Because it is auto, it is not towable. However, now that I have found this site, we are considering trading in his mini on a new mini cooper s with six speed. I am not sure if it will be the coupe or the clubman. I am really impressed on how helpful the members here have been to me a potential newbie at best. I will update what transpires in the next few weeks. Thanks again to everybody.

 

One further question regarding using a 13 cooper S standard as a toad. Does doing this void your warranty? I hope not but can't seem to figure this out from going to the mini usa site and also reading the owner's manual. Thanks again.

 

MINIUSA seems to be silent on the warranty subject for a towed vehicle as you might expect. The owners manual gives detailed instructions on how to tow a non running or disabled MINI--automatic and/or manual tranny equipped.

The only items subject to wear while towing four down are the tires, wheel bearings, CV shafts and joints and the output shaft in the transmission. The infamous clutch is disengaged with the gearbox in neutral. If I had a warranty claim for any of these items, a dealer might want to do some close inspection to determine if the failure was towing related and we would go from there. My dealer's Service Manager told me they have honored towed MINI warranty claims in the past. I don't expect towing my MINI will ever become a warranty issue. I will continue this thread if a problem arises in the future.

I did tow a six-speed Miata four-down for four years with no issues. The only precaution I took was to put synthetic transmission oil in the tranny.

BTW, there are a lot of MINIs out there being towed behind motor homes--some on dollies, some four-down, but I have never seen one four-up on a trailer. That would seem to defeat the whole purpose of bringing your MINI along.