Towing with a Uhaul....Is this even possible?

[Miranda_and_Oscar]

Hi everyone,

I made the plunge and bought a horse trailer a few months ago (an '88 Cotner that is in decent shape and had been reinforced to haul Percherons). I had decided that I should space out my purchase of a trailer and truck so I don’t drain my rainy day funds all at once. I drive 100 miles a day and can’t have a truck as my main vehicle so I would need to buy it as a spare vehicle just for towing.

My question is, can a uhaul rental pick up truck really tow a horse trailer until I get my own truck? I have heard of people doing this but have some concerns:

1.) My trailer has a circle connection and apparently uhaul’s have square ones. They sell adapters but I have heard that my electric trailer breaks will not work if I use the adapter (I have heard that the circle connectors have more prongs than the square ones and so inherently, some of the prongs do not work…?)

2.) Uhaul pickups do not have break controllers inside, so would my trailer breaks work anyway? And if they don’t, I would assume it is a big no-no to trailer without my trailer breaks working.

Anyway, just wanted some input. Like I said, I have heard of people doing this but I didn’t know if these people were just being risk takers or if it really is safe and plausible. I would like to show in the spring and am trying to figure out my transportation options. Thanks in advance!

[asterix]

1. Pretty sure you are required to have trailer brakes. The vast majority of trailer brakes in this country are electric and work by electric hook up to the truck, which has a controller regulating the activation of the brakes. So that sounds like a no right there.
2. Without electric, you also would not have turn and brake lights.
3. You would need to know the tow capacity of the truck AS configured and what the loaded weight of your trailer is, along with the size of the ball on the hitch (must be compatible with your trailer)
   i think you’d be much better off borrowing a truck that you know is compatible with the electric hookup and is properly configured to tow.

[trubandloki]

@asterix

1. Pretty sure you are required to have trailer brakes. The vast majority of trailer brakes in this country are electric and work by electric hook up to the truck, which has a controller regulating the activation of the brakes. So that sounds like a no right there.
2. Without electric, you also would not have turn and brake lights.
3. You would need to know the tow capacity of the truck AS configured and what the loaded weight of your trailer is, along with the size of the ball on the hitch (must be compatible with your trailer)
   i think you’d be much better off borrowing a truck that you know is compatible with the electric hookup and is properly configured to tow.

I totally agree with number 3.

Number 2 confuses me - there would be electric for the lights. A converter to convert from one plug to the other will accommodate that.

I think the rental pick-up trucks that Uhaul has are for towing small trailers. Not horse trailers.

[pologirl27]

I can’t comment on Uhal, but I know someone who just rented a regular old F250/ Ram 2500 to haul her kid to USPC champs when her truck was on the fritz. She was able to get one that had the same circular 7 pin connector that the trailer had. And yes, you will need a trailer break controller installed in whatever truck you use- new trucks may have them built in.

[Highflyer]

Typically the UHauls I’ve seen have not been in great shape mechanically.

[Gainer]

I personally wouldn’t (I’m not even sure it’s possible). I only feel safe towing with a vehicle I personally know, that I’m confident of its proper care/maintenance. I’m hauling precious cargo.

[Where_sMyWhite]

I would concur with not using a U-Haul truck rental to tow my personal trailer with horses.

I would also confirm with U-Haul that you are covered in the event there is any problem with the truck while hauling your load.

Just because other people do it doesn’t mean it is a good idea

PS it’s a trailer brake not trailer break - I suspect you want to stop your trailer, not break it…

[findeight]

They have a weight limit on any of their vehicles that will be used to tow. Pretty confident a 2 horse with a draftie in it would well exceed the weight of a boat or small car typically towed by these easily.

There are many other places to rent a pick up to tow something heavier with. Google it. That type place would be more familiar with weights and hook up details then the typical UHaul rental place…which is usually a storage facility or other business, not primarily a vehicle renting agency. Last box truck I rented for a move was from Penske, it was clean and well maintained but the business handling the rental also sold beer and bait…wouldn’t trust their expertise with a heavy tow like a horse trailer.

[Miranda_and_Oscar]

Thanks everyone! As I said, it didn’t seem safe or plausible to me but I am not an expert of trucks and have very rarely even used uhaul so I just figured I would see the opinions of the masses! Thanks!

[Texarkana]

I’ve done it.

1. Buy a Prodigy RF brake controller for your trailer. They are about $300 and work flawlessly. The box attaches to your trailer and you have a remote control that plugs into the cigarette lighter to adjust the strength of the brakes and operate the hand brake if necessary. I’ve only gotten a Uhaul truck with an in-dash brake controller once, so while it’s possible, it’s unlikely.

2. Know the weight of your trailer and what you will be hauling. Uhaul pickups are “guaranteed” up to 6,000lbs towing capacity. You don’t want to max that out; I like to follow the 80% rule. Trailer + horse + stuff should not exceed 4,800lbs. That’s one reasonably-sized horse in an average 2H bumper pull with minimal cargo; I would not even consider two horses unless the trailer was exceptionally light.

3. Electricity: there is no adapter that goes from a 4 pin flat on the vehicle to a 7 RV blade plug. (they only go the opposite direction) Specify in advance you need a 7 way RV blade electrical connections, and DOUBLE CHECK before you take the vehicle off the lot. With some finagling and electrical skill, you can build your own adapter from a plug kit… but it won’t have the accessory line to work your Prodigy RF brakes which is a HUGE problem. I’d say about 75% of their trucks have 7 way plugs, so it’s usually not a problem… but it’s also not a guarantee.

4. CHECK EVERYTHING before you leave the lot: check the ball & draw bar, check the hitch class, check the spare… sometimes they put locks on their draw bars, so if it’s the wrong size ball, you’ll need them to unlock it to swap it out (I always used my own adjustable height one). Very rarely, they have aftermarket class III hitches on their vehicles, which are only rated for 4K or 5K lbs? That will reduce the weightload you can haul safely.

5. Take out their insurance. It’s dirt cheap and covers the truck being used as a tow vehicle. I also obviously had my own insurance + US Rider for the trailer.

I’m glad I don’t have to rely on this anymore, but it CAN be done safely. Clearly, it is not ideal. I had to do it to get my horse back and forth for medical procedures when I was flat broke and my truck died.

[red_mares]

Do a search through COTH again, there was a thread a year? 6 months ago? about this. I think it was under “Around the Farm”

Someone posted that they had done it & did it with some frequency. Maybe it was Texarkana above.

I got pretty familiar with U-Haul over last summer when I redid my tiny back yard. All of the trucks & vans I rented were practically brand new & had less than 25K miles. Where you rent from matters. I rented from a large U-haul branded location with a large inventory & self storage facility on-site. It was not a gas station with a couple of trucks.

Enterprise also rents trucks. Half tons or smaller can be had at their car rental outlets. They rent larger trucks at their commercial rental locations. You don’t have to be a business to rent at the commercial sites.

[luckycricket123]

@red mares

Do a search through COTH again, there was a thread a year? 6 months ago? about this. I think it was under “Around the Farm”

Someone posted that they had done it & did it with some frequency. Maybe it was Texarkana above.

I got pretty familiar with U-Haul over last summer when I redid my tiny back yard. All of the trucks & vans I rented were practically brand new & had less than 25K miles. Where you rent from matters. I rented from a large U-haul branded location with a large inventory & self storage facility on-site. It was not a gas station with a couple of trucks.

Enterprise also rents trucks. Half tons or smaller can be had at their car rental outlets. They rent larger trucks at their commercial rental locations. You don’t have to be a business to rent at the commercial sites.

I’ll link you to it, because I remember this post seeing as I was the OP https://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/forum/discussion-forums/around-the-farm/9808365-uhaul-as-towing-vehicle

Personally, I opted not to rent from UHaul since the customer service reps had no knowledge of the mechanics of the truck and the actual rental locations with pickups never returned my calls. Fortunately I love my pro shipper.

Enterprise is obscenely expensive for a rental truck, or at least it would have been for my use case. Also may or may not matter to you, but you must be 25 or older to rent a truck. No added fees for being younger, they just won’t let you.

[Texarkana]

I’ve had terrible experiences with Enterprise actually having the correct vehicle on the lot when you reserve it. For example, reserve a pickup and they try to give you a small SUV or minivan because it’s all they have.

I’ve also heard that some (all?) locations do not allow their trucks to be used for towing, therefore they do not equip them with hitches unless they came from the factory. Uhaul actually advertises their trucks for towing purposes.

I went to a large Uhaul center and had the easiest of experiences every time. Enterprise, on the other hand, has created nightmares for me on multiple occasions renting just plain cars.

[arktos19]

My rowing club started renting trucks from Enterprise commercial this past season to haul our crew boat trailer (which can weight eight to ten thousand pounds fully loaded). Given Texarkana’s experience, it sounds like management of Enterprise outlets varies by location. As designated trailer driver I found our local (WNY) truck rental place very easy to deal with, the trucks were great (loved driving that Ford F350 super duty around the day before the regatta - trainer’s husband was in love with that truck at first sight!) and they were set up for hauling. We did have to provide our own hitch receiver…. I believe the cost was less than $90/day.

[ottb]

It seems that the U-haul truck wouldn’t be suited to pull a trailer that requires brakes on the trailer. The 4 prong light connector can’t be used to control the brakes. There’s probably a reason the truck doesn’t have the 7 prong connector.

[fanfayre]

^ this
Plus, wouldn’t the overall costs of constantly renting a truck far exceed the eventual savings for a truck purchase? (in my experience renting a truck is expensive) In other words, OP, save the $ you would put towards renting a truck for purchasing one of your own that WILL meet or exceed your towing requirements, even if it means you stay at home for this summer, or until you’ve saved enough for a deposit or to qualify for a loan.
Alternatively, maybe you could meet up with someone who has an appropriate truck but no trailer, and you could combine resources…