Can you tow an all-wheel-drive or electric car?

Yes, we tow all-wheel-drive and electric vehicles all the time, but they have to ride on a flatbed. You don't want an AWD car or an EV towed with two wheels down on the road. On the wrong kind of truck, it can mean an expensive repair on top of whatever was already wrong.

With all-wheel-drive and four-wheel-drive vehicles, all four wheels are tied into the drivetrain. Drag two of them down the road and you're spinning parts that aren't meant to spin while the engine's off. That can cook the transfer case or the transmission. The safe move is a flatbed, where every wheel is up off the pavement and nothing's turning. Same goes for many front-wheel-drive cars over any real distance. When in doubt, it goes on the flatbed, and that's the truck we bring by default. It's the same reason we cover flatbeds in our flatbed vs. wheel-lift rundown.

Electric cars have their own quirks. A lot of EVs can't be put in a true neutral that lets the wheels roll freely, and their motors can act like generators when the wheels turn, which is not something you want happening on a tow. The battery pack also makes them heavy and low, so they need careful loading. A Tesla, a Rivian, a Mustang Mach-E, whatever it is, we load it on the flatbed and secure it the right way. We tow EVs regularly, so it's not a problem, just a different setup than a gas sedan.

If your AWD or electric car is down, the type of truck genuinely matters, so it's worth asking. When you call, tell us the year, make, and model, and we'll confirm we're bringing a flatbed and load it safely. For a breakdown that's our standard towing and emergency towing. If you're shipping a car a long distance instead of a quick tow, that's auto and vehicle transport, and it rides on a carrier the same careful way.

Call (843) 813-6335 with the details and we'll get your car moving without hurting it.