Towing Issues: Towing a Kia Rio, 2005 kia rio, tow dolly

Question
I am towing a 2005 Kia Rio automatic behind a sixteen foot moving truck.  I have the option to rent a tow dolly or a car carrier, and I'm very unfamiliar with towing at all.  Which would be better for my car, and the easiest for an inexperienced driver--the largest vehicle I've driven prior to this was a Ford Escape!--to handle?

Also, if you don't mind, could you share a "towing for dummies" checklist of the most vital things to go over on the car, truck, and trailer?

Answer
Well first of all be careful and remember that the moving truck is a lot bigger than any vehicle you have driven before.  It will get up to speed a lot slower, and it really takes a lot longer to stop, and its worse when you are towing anything behind the truck. It will not corner as well as the car either.

That being said, you will have to learn to plan ahead and drive ahead so you can react in time to anything that happens or is in front of you. Expect lights to change when you are getting close.

Also backing up is very hard, so try to find places where you can just pull though.

Now as to a tow dolly verses a car trailer, I would say you can go either way. A trailer is where the vehicle is all the way off the ground and it kind of has some more "BODY" around it till it would get to the car in case of an accident.  A tow dolly would have the front of the vehicle loaded on it and tied down and you back tires would be on the ground.


As to a "CHECK LIST" well the rental company might have some guides, but basics are important. Are the tires up, are the straps - chains attached and tight which hold the vehicle on the trailer or dolly.
Do the lights work?.  Is the trailer still attached to the truck.
Check the oil and stuff on the truck also, along with just a general look see and if you see anything that looks wrong.


Hope this helps but its real hard to cover everything involved and this kind of towing is different from what I normally do. I do it with a tow truck so its different from trailers and moving trucks.

Just ask questions when you get the truck from the rental place and they should help you or answer the questions.  

Good luck.