bucks2

I have towed my 2014 Chevrolet Silverado just over 5000 miles now. The manufacturer, Chevrolet, is the one that states the negative terminal must be disconnected. When I was doing my research prior to purchase the best answer I found for why, is that the electric power steering (not hydraulic, not manual... electric) must be totally depowered during towing. The key must be in ACC, to unlock the wheel, which may discharge the battery if towing for long periods of time. One of my concerns was unlocking the doors with the remote in order to pull the inside hood release cable when the battery was disconnected. With one key in the ignition, I'd need an additional key. I didn't want to do that, so I installed a latching relay (similar to the one used for the battery disconnect in the MH) with the switch for it hidden in the grill. (less than $100 for parts) Now I can connect/disconnect the battery from outside and use the remote to lock/unlock the doors. I use an M&G air brake system with break-away protection, so electricity to the breakaway portion of the M&G is needed and provided by it's own isolated wires connected directly to the battery side of the latching relay. Concerns of leaning over a wet/dirty fender to connect the cable each time I tow helped to convince me that the relay was the way to go. The only "memory" items I find are lost when the battery is disconnected, are the drivers side electric window, it must be lowered and raised after reconnecting the battery to reset the auto-down function. The radio loses it's memory of which station it was on. The presets are all preserved, you just have to push (touchscreen) a preset button to put it back on a station. And lastly the MPG display on the dash loses it's memory of your fuel mileage for the last 25/50 miles. This is my actual experience towing a 2014 Chevrolet Silverado 4x4 for the past year. My experience seems to be contrary to what FMCA's tech expert advises in the Aug 2015 magazine and even others on this forum who state that the radio presets are lost, etc. so do your own research as to whom to believe. I can give detailed information of how I put the relay in and the materials needed if someone is interested. Ken

I have towed my 2014 Chevrolet Silverado just over 5000 miles now. The manufacturer, Chevrolet, is the one that states the negative terminal must be disconnected. When I was doing my research prior to purchase the best answer I found for why, is that the electric power steering (not hydraulic, not manual... electric) must be totally depowered during towing. The key must be in ACC, to unlock the wheel, which may discharge the battery if towing for long periods of time. One of my concerns was unlocking the doors with the remote in order to pull the inside hood release cable when the battery was disconnected. With one key in the ignition, I'd need an additional key. I didn't want to do that, so I installed a latching relay (similar to the one used for the battery disconnect in the MH) with the switch for it hidden in the grill. (less than $100 for parts) Now I can connect/disconnect the battery from outside and use the remote to lock/unlock the doors. I use an M&G air brake system with break-away protection, so electricity to the breakaway portion of the M&G is needed and provided by it's own isolated wires connected directly to the battery side of the latching relay. Concerns of leaning over a wet/dirty fender to connect the cable each time I tow helped to convince me that the relay was the way to go. The only "memory" items I find are lost when the battery is disconnected, are the drivers side electric window, it must be lowered and raised after reconnecting the battery to reset the auto-down function. The radio loses it's memory of which station it was on. The presets are all preserved, you just have to push (touchscreen) a preset button to put it back on a station. And lastly the MPG display on the dash loses it's memory of your fuel mileage for the last 25/50 miles. I can give detailed information of how I put the relay in and the materials needed if someone is interested Ken

Some good replies here that all miss the most important item, as far as I'm concerned. After 31 years of responding to emergencies of all types as a professional firefighter, the thing I hear most often is "I wish I'd taken a class and knew what to do". A knowledgable person can improvise many items, but without the ability to recognize the problem and then figure out how to fix it, you will be frustrated when the emergency happens. Yes you can read the book..... if you carry one, and if you can figure out which part to read during the emergency. You could also overhaul your RV's transmission if you had the book. But, how practical is it to rely on that without the hands on training to go with it? Fancy kits, new super duper blood clotting agents (which the military is now reevaluating due to some problems encountered with it's use) and one of every splint in the book doesn't fix the problem if you haven't trained and practiced the techniques needed. Electronic calls for help are wonderful, if they work where you are, and if the help can get to you in time. Several people have died on Mt. Hood in Oregon in recent years that were able to call for help on their cell phones and talk to the dispatcher. Without the proper survival gear, and due to weather related problems getting to them, they perished. In short there is no one right answer. But, as I said above, all the equipment in the world won't help if you can't recognize the problem correctly and make proper use of the tools you have. Take a good class, get a good book (and read it occasionally) and practice with the materials you decide are right for your level of knowledge and availability.