Prius towing capacity

[Linctex]

Originally Posted By: Panzerman
Can the police enforce towing capacity though?

I'd tell the cop go fish.


Not wise in Texas, TX-DPS (hwy patrol) are not idiots and look out for this tomfoolery.

Local/municipal police might not catch it as often.... but if something doesn't look quite right, they WILL research and find a safety violation while they make you wait.

 

[901Memphis]

He probably would have had better luck towing the prius with the Jeep.... Assuming it was a running vehicle

 

[CKN]

Originally Posted By: Panzerman
Can the police enforce towing capacity though? Might look like a bad idea, but police enforce the law, not common sense or ideas.
It actually takes a DOT police with scales to even enforce it on big trucks. I think the cop may have him pulled over for lights because I doubt they have a pigtail kit for a Prius but towing capacity?
I'd tell the cop go fish.


Yep-tough talk is cheap on the Internet.

 

[CR94]

Originally Posted By: mk378
... Not following the car manufacturers instructions (which for small cars usually are not to tow anything) makes it not road-worthy.
Even though those same cars are deemed safe to tow (within reason) in other countries? Kinda like thick oil is allowed in new cars in Australia?

 

[KrisZ]

You can tow stuff even with a motorcycle, the trick is to set it up right. In this particular case it is obvious these people didn't know what they were doing. It has nothing to do with the vehicle and everything to do with the operator.

 

[Andrew1972]

A Mainer no less. MN>ME is a loooooong way to go.

That unibody is going to get tweaked on the Prius. The steering is going to be awful and dangerous on that Prius.

The trailer is also poorly loaded. Back that SUV up and toungue weight will likely lessen on the vehicle. But then again this person may have missed or never took high school physics....

 

[tig1]

Originally Posted By: Chris142
I saw that on another site. They had the trailer hooked to the car with one of those small recievers. Like 1.25 inch square ones that are rated for like 1000 lbs.


2000 lbs. At least mine is on my Focus.

 

[eljefino]

Originally Posted By: madRiver
A Mainer no less. MN>ME is a loooooong way to go.


Not Maine plates. Color is close but font is wrong and passenger cars are formatted 1234AB.

 

[KD0AXS]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
Originally Posted By: madRiver
A Mainer no less. MN>ME is a loooooong way to go.


Not Maine plates. Color is close but font is wrong and passenger cars are formatted 1234AB.



They're MN "Support Our Troops" plates. I have the same plates on my truck. This was in Cambridge, MN which is about 40 miles north of Minneapolis.

 

[Ifixyawata]

My Focus used to be a tow rig for a jet ski in it's previous life. Still has the class 1 Reese hitch on it, also.

Now to convince my wife we need a small fishing boat.

Rated for 1000 pound loads.

 

[funflyer]

The Prius has a capacity of 825 pounds, passengers and luggage. No towing is recommended.

From the Prius manual

 

[SwampSurvivor]

And I thought I was doing something by pulling my popup camper with my Ford Focus! I have been one-upped.

 

[redhat]

When I pulled into Tall Pines ATV park, I had people all giving me thumbs up, shouting to me and some even taking pictures.

But I guess an Accord is a little more car than a Prius... more tq/hp as well.

Car did great with the 4-wheeler, popup and utility trailer to-date. I've also flat towed a blown up '92 Prelude 10 miles

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: funflyer
The Prius has a capacity of 825 pounds, passengers and luggage. No towing is recommended.

From the Prius manual

It's still quite legal to tow with a Prius or Mirage or Smart Car though. Up here you can drag around upto 2990 lbs unbraked with anything you want, as long as you have the Class 2 hitch attached properly, or upto 2000lbs with a class 1. Ecohitch makes a Class 2 hitch for the Prius V, so as long as you have your trailer well balanced and all the safety equipment in place, you are legal, and if you keep your speeds reasonable(55-60mph), quite safe IMO.
These guys know what's legal and what works.

I do find it interesting the the traditional tow vehicles look more awkward going through the slalom than the sedans.

 

[Jetronic]

Originally Posted By: funflyer
The Prius has a capacity of 825 pounds, passengers and luggage. No towing is recommended.

From the Prius manual

Yet in europe the Prius CAN take a bicycle rack on atowing hitch. No towing otherwise though.

Gotta love the consistency...