Towing with the FR-S

[tobkin]

I'm gonna get flamed so hard for this.

Has anyone towed with the FR-S? U-Haul sells a hitch receiver, and I wanted to tow about 700 pounds. Tongue weight wouldn't exceed the GVWR, so that's not a problem, but curious to know if anyone has had any world-ending problems.

And yeah, I know that the manual says not to tow, so there are probably risks of increased wear to the drivetrain. But I'm sure there are a lot of rules we don't follow

[logoris]

It may be 700 at the tongue but you should also be aware on cars you shouldnt tow more then half the weight of the tow vehicle. So you may be able to tow something like a lotus super 7 or a motorcycle. What were you planning on towing?

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[tobkin]

Originally Posted by logoris

It may be 700 at the tongue but you should also be aware on cars you shouldnt tow more then half the weight of the tow vehicle. So you may be able to tow something like a lotus super 7 or a motorcycle. What were you planning on towing?

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No, like 700lbs total, including the motorcycle and trailer.

[ilpad]

Originally Posted by tobkin

I'm gonna get flamed so hard for this.

Has anyone towed with the FR-S? U-Haul sells a hitch, and I wanted to tow about 700 pounds. Tongue weight wouldn't exceed the GVWR, so that's not a problem, but curious to know if anyone has had any world-ending problems.

And yeah, I know that the manual says not to tow, so there are probably risks of increased wear to the drivetrain. But I'm sure there are a lot of rules we don't follow

I know that @chiprez is selling a tow setup in the northwest classifieds. Not sure if he still has it, but I'd shoot him a PM or wait for him to show up in your thread here. He also may know what you're looking to find out.

[Chen]

I've seen people tow with a corolla. I don't see why an frs can't.

[tobkin]

Originally Posted by Chen

I've seen people tow with a corolla. I don't see why an frs can't.

Well, there are two additional points of failure possible in the FR-S over a Corolla: a propeller shaft and an LSD. I'm curious to see if someone raises their hand and says, "Hey I broke that!"

That said, I'm almost certain that the FR-S can tow whatever a corolla could though. Toyota probably didn't test it simply because they didn't think it was important.

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[vroom4]

Search. I installed the curt hitch, which I believe is the exact same as the 'new' uhaul design except for slightly cheaper. It may or may not work with aftermarket muffler/race pipes.

[AtlasMick]

I hope you are talking about a bolt on tow hitch receiver and not the weld on kind!

[Forty]

A Corolla could have a LSD...

[gily25]

Car sits low so can't imagine that trailer is going to sit nice. Also with the way this car slides, I would be concerned with a trailer jack-knifing or at the very least feeling completely unstable in every curve.

If you absolutely must tow something and choose to do this, tow during some off-hour when traffic is sloooooooow or non-existent so that if it does start to come around, you don't take out 3 cars with you.

Also check over your insurance policy, if your vehicle is not rated for towing from the manufacturer, most likely you would have coverage issues if you were involved in an accident while towing.

That said...I used to work at a track and have seen plenty of Miatas, S2000's, etc. towing tiny single axle trailers with nothing on them but a set of tires and a floor jack.

[fourvalleys]

Forum vendor @kask2_6.0 makes a nice "hideaway" hitch. It isn't rated but it's solid. Mine is going on tomorrow. A little more money but I think it's worth the difference!

Lightweight Hitch Receiver - Tow with your 86!

@Scooby South installed and towed with it:

[tobkin]

Originally Posted by gily25

Car sits low so can't imagine that trailer is going to sit nice. Also with the way this car slides, I would be concerned with a trailer jack-knifing or at the very least feeling completely unstable in every curve.

If you absolutely must tow something and choose to do this, tow during some off-hour when traffic is sloooooooow or non-existent so that if it does start to come around, you don't take out 3 cars with you.

Also check over your insurance policy, if your vehicle is not rated for towing from the manufacturer, most likely you would have coverage issues if you were involved in an accident while towing.

That said...I used to work at a track and have seen plenty of Miatas, S2000's, etc. towing tiny single axle trailers with nothing on them but a set of tires and a floor jack.

Insurance issues. That's a good call. I'll check up on Florida law.

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[Jyn]

FYI, if your car hitch isn't rated or if your car isn't listed as able to tow, places like uHaul aren't supposed to rent trailers to you.

[tobkin]

As an update, I've logged about 9,000 miles towing about 1500lbs with the FR-S and had no problems. I was doing cross country trips from Miami to San Francisco and back with my sport bike and other stuff. Total mileage is now 76,000 on the car.

People still look at me funny towing a 5x8 trailer packed with dirt bikes but the car actually has plenty of power for lighter loads, even in places like the Sierra Nevada or Rockies at high altitude.