Flat Towing a 2018 Ford F-150 STX Behind an RV  

Question:

Expert Reply:

Your 2018 Ford F-150 STX can be towed behind an RV if it is a Four-Wheel drive model. You'll want to follow the instructions in your vehicle's owner's manual to the letter, as it uses a function of your electric shifting case to switch into a specific towing compatible mode and then back again to a driving mode.

If you do have a four-wheel drive model, then you'll need a base plate, tow bar, tow bar wiring, and a supplemental braking system.

For the base plate, I recommend Road Master's EZ4 Base Plate Kit, part # RM-524431-4. This kit includes removable arms so when you detach from the RV, you don't have anything extra on the front of the truck.

For a tow bar, I recommend the Roadmaster Sterling All Terrain Tow Bar, part # RM-576. This kit includes the safety cables and mounts to the RV for easy use. It self adjusts and centers the vehicle, for incredibly easy mount and go application.

Then, you'll add wiring to get the vehicle's supplemental braking and lights to work. I recommend the Roadmaster Flexo-Coil kit, part # RM-15267. This kit transfers power from your RV's 7-way port to the tow vehicle to help the supplemental braking system and towing lights operate correctly. Additionally, you'll need the battery charger add-on, part # RM-156-25 which will keep the battery of your F-150 charged while its being towed.

For the supplemental braking kit, I recommend a permanent solution, as generally you tow the same vehicle over and over again, and there's less parts to lose and less variance. I recommend adding the Stay-IN-Play Duo system, part # SM99251 to your vehicle. This kit has an involved installation process, but automatically engages when connected to the RV, reducing the amount of time needed to reset and validate the braking settings on the kit.

This kit requires the Roadmaster Relay Override, part # RM-88400 to avoid confusing the vehicle's brake signal and turn signal impulses, preventing the brakes from operating correctly during turns.

Finally, you'll likely need a High/Low Adapter to get the tow bar into the safe zone of three inches above or below the center of the RV's hitch. This is difficult to predict prior to installing the full kit, so I've included a help article about selecting the correct drop/rise and our full selection of adapters.

expert reply by: Jacob W

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Dave

5/2/2020

Does a 2018 Ford F-150 add miles when being flat towed

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Chris R.

5/5/2020

The ignition is off when flat towing your 2018 Ford F-150, so it doesn't look like the odometer should track mileage. With that being said, I read some interesting things from other people with this same truck when researching this - basically saying that for some reason it tends to track about half of the trip's miles. I'm not quite sure why this is but I wanted to make you aware that SOME mileage might be accumulated when flat towing the F-150.

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