How to Keep Battery Charged While Flat Towing a 2015 Fiat 500

Updated 03/30/2020 | Published 03/28/2020

Products Featured in This Question

Roadmaster Battery Charge Line Kit for Towed Vehicles

(1199)

$45.64

Roadmaster 4-Diode Universal Wiring Kit for Towed Vehicles - 7-Way to 6-Way Straight Adapter Cord

(3186)

$205.66

Roadmaster Battery Charge Line Kit for Motorhomes

(140)

$67.45

Question:

I have bought and installed all parts I bought from you guys. All good. Question Should the steering wheel be unlocked when towing? How do you unlock without running the battery flat.

asked by: Cliff

Expert Reply:

Great question!

From what I could find in the owner's manual for a 2015 Fiat 500 (looking both at the Recreational/Flat Towing and Emergency Towing procedures) it does look like you need to keep the steering wheel unlocked while flat towing. Since this means your ignition is on, it can very well drain your battery. I'm not sure why this isn't something that is commonly known because even some of our flat towing manufacturers don't have this info on their site. I reached out to Roadmaster and he said that sometimes the manual will state to pull over every so often to start the vehicle, but yours doesn't state that (at least the one I saw doesn't state that).

Because of this I recommend installing the Charge Line Kit # RM-156-25 for towed vehicles. What you'll need to do is use the included wiring to connect the positive post of your Fiat battery to the center pin of your 6-Way socket that came with your Roadmaster 4-Diode Universal Wiring Kit # RM-152-98146-7. This then puts a maintenance charge on your battery using the battery in your motorhome.

If your motorhome doesn't have 12V power to the pin in the 1 o'clock position (see attached) then you'll need to also add the Charge Line Kit # RM-156-75 which is just designed for motorhomes.

expert reply by: Jon G