Can You Tow With a Rental Truck?

Can-you-tow-with-a-rental-truckWe've all been in a position where we need to tow something. If you own a pickup truck or an SUV that's capable of Towing, that's simple. What happens if you don't own the right vehicle or equipment to tow? You might be surprised. We did the research, and here's what we were able to find.

According to our research, you can tow with a rental truck. Most of the major rental companies advertise this right on their sites. As it turns out, most rental companies have Towing abilities to match whatever you need. You can rent everything from a standard pickup truck all the way up to a full-size moving truck and of the equipment to complete, or Towing needs.

If you are unfamiliar with how to tow, that might be a problem. Relax in this article will give you the basics of Towing what you need to understand about weight and balance some great tips and suggestions to make your Towing experience as easy as possible. Look at all of the excellent information that we found for you below.

Know What You Need for Towing with a Rental

It is always best to make sure that you understand the type of equipment that you will need. Before you contact the rental company, you should sit down and think about precisely what you need to tow. Think about your experience level. Make a note of any specialized equipment that you may need. Also, consider the distance that you need to pull.

Contact the rental company and have a discussion with them provide them all the information that you've come up with, ask them any questions that you have, and also inquire about any special equipment that they may have to make your Towing experience better. The best part about all of this is when going through a rental company, you are borrowing the equipment. You don't have to pay for it.

Do You Know How to Tow?

Before we get into all that, let's talk about Towing. If you are familiar with Towing the most of this will be a refresher for you. If you are unfamiliar with towing, then this is an excellent place for you to get some information and started studying before you actually put it to the test. If you have any direct or unfamiliar or unsure about any portion of this, then we recommend asking a friend or a colleague for a little help, especially if you know somebody familiar with Towing.

Read more: How to prevent travel trailer sway?

The Basics of Towing

Towing may seem easy, but it is a dangerous business. If you aren't sure how to tow, here are some basic principles to follow. These will by no means make you a master, but they will start you out with a great foundation. You can use the same principles no matter what you're towing, these don't fly to Rental trucks.

Considerations to Have Before Towing

As previously mentioned, there are several considerations to have before towing. The following information will help you determine if your vehicle can tow the trailer that you want. This is very important and can help you from making a dangerous or expensive mistake

Tongue Weight

One of the first and most important things to consider is tongue weight. For those who are not familiar with the principles of towing. Tongue weight is the amount of pressure that the hitch is putting on your vehicle.

In basic terms: The more weight there is and the more weight that is in the front of the trailer, the more tongue weight you have. This is great because it really helps with the overall stability of the vehicle and trailer.

This section applies to all forms of towing. Except for using a box truck or the bed of a pickup. We will discuss that in the following article. Tongue weight applies to trailers that are hitched to a vehicle that is providing power and pulling them.

Payload

Let's talk about payload. The payload is the weight of the occupants of a vehicle, their gear, and any cargo. If it is loaded directly into the vehicle. A motorcycle loaded into the back of a pickup is a great example. An automobile loaded into a box truck is also a great example of payload. Make sure that you are not exceeding the maximum weight of your vehicle.

Basic Tips of Towing

As promised, here are the principles of towing. If you have never pulled before, it might be a great idea to ask a friend for advice! Following these steps will help you understand everything that is at play when you are towing.

  • Check all your equipment
  • Practice hitching your trailer
  • Practice trailer backing:
  • Make sure your tires are good
  • Take your turns wide
  • Use your mirrors
  • Watch your weight
  • Secure the trailer:
  • Check the lights:
  • Make sure your vehicle has towing power
  • Make short trips to learn how your vehicle handles
  • Drive slowly
  • Give yourself space to stop

The rental company that you select should have all the information that you need about vehicle weights, balances payloads, and tongue weights. That is the beauty of using a rental company for your Towing needs. You have all of the information that you need at your fingertips and will be using a truck that they are very familiar with, and they can help make suggestions on the equipment that will work best for you.

U-Haul

U-Haul has a fantastic selection of rental trucks that you can tow with. We learned that you can pull vehicles and even other moving trailers with U-Haul moving trucks. That was awesome! They also have specialized equipment if you need to tow a car or motorcycle or any other thing behind their vehicles. This applies to pickup trucks and box trucks that are rentable. Click here for the official site!

Do Rental Cars Have Hitches?

This is a great question. The answer really isn't that simple. Some rental cars come with hitches and even tow packages. The reality is all you need is a 2-inch hitch. The problem that you may find here is that the company that you're renting from does not allow you to tow away from their vehicles. We found that Avis, National and, Enterprise will not allow you to pull with their vehicles no matter what it is entirely against their company policies. There is an exception to this enterprise operates a Truck Rental as well. You can use those trucks to tow based upon their policy.

Can You Tow With Hertz Rental?

This is a two-sided answer. If you are renting from Hertz Penske, then yes, you can tow using their vehicles. Hertz has gone through a policy change recently that allows you to tow with their vehicles if the tow bar and package were installed by Hertz. In either case, you must use a trailer that has been rented from the company and not your own equipment. If you don't follow these sets of rules and you damage the vehicle, then you are responsible for it, and the penalties are stiff! Click here for the official site!

Can You Tow With a U-Haul Pickup Truck?

U-Haul allowed towing with their pickup trucks. They have a section on their site that will help you choose the right trailer and equipment that you can rent directly from them. If you own your own container, U-Haul is one of the companies that will allow you to tow your personal equipment. It's highly suggested that you speak with a representative when you rent the truck figure out what the towing capacity is of the truck and make sure that you don't exceed it. This goes back to the previous section of the article, where we discussed weights and balances.

Will U-Haul Install My Hitch?

They sure will. Most full-service U-Haul locations will install your hitch. They carry a wide selection of hitches and other Towing components that they can fit on your vehicle. They will even help you match the correct equipment to your vehicle. Click here for the official site!

Can You Rent a Truck to Tow a Fifth Wheel?

You can rent a truck to pull a fifth wheel. When researching this, we found that almost every facility that carries trucks large enough to accommodate a fifth wheel can and will provide a fifth-wheel hitch. If this is something that you intend to do, make sure that the company that you are working with has trucks that can handle this in inventory. They may need extra time to locate and reserve a truck for you. Also, confirm that your fifth wheel will be compatible with the hitch provided on the rental truck.

If you have been worried about renting a truck to tow with, you can relax. We discovered that this is a really cost-effective option. Why go through the hassle of buying everything if you are only going to need it once? If you rent the truck, you get the correct equipment and the advice to go with it. That is hard to beat!

Towing with a rental truck is a perfect way in getting that trailer out in the open but is driving one hard? Check out Is Driving a Pickup Truck Hard?

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