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I wrote the below blog post back in 2020, but a lot has changed since then. Please take a look at my latest blog about A-Frames HERE.

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Travelling the country in a motorhome is great, but it's so much more enjoyable when you can take your Jimny with you!

I've had this great wee A-Frame made for my Jimny to ensure we're never stuck at a campground with nothing to do.

Why an A-Frame?

I went and saw a reputable trailer builder here in Christchurch and asked them to build a car dolly trailer so I could safely tow my Jimny behind the motorhome. The engineer said "sure, I can build you one, but I have a safer and far more affordable option for you".  He suggested an A-Frame. 

Pros:

• Cost - it's about a quarter the cost of a dolly trailer. 
• Cheaper - a dolly trailer needs to be registered, warranted and stored somewhere safe.
• Avoids damage - the engineeer explained that if using a dolly, when turning too sharp, the dolly wheel goes under the Jimny and can damage the trailer guard and/or the Jimny sill.

Cons

• Braking - a dolly will have brakes, but A-Framing a car doesn't unless you buy a very expensive electronic brake controller. 
• Tyre wear - people say an A-Frame is tough on the front tyres, but I haven't noticed any wear after towing my Jimny about 3,000km. Also, tyres are cheap!

The Engineering

This was built by a trailer engineer, to the same standard that he builds trailers. It's galvanised steel and sprayed with anti-rust paint at the welds. It's really strong, but light enough to put in the back of the motorhome easily.

 

The A-Frame mounts needed to be out of the way enough that I can still go 4wding as much as I like without doing any damage to the mounts. As an added bonus, the mounts make for great front recovery points!  Only some minor adjustments are required for the mounts to fit nicely under the front bumper.

Wiring

On top of the mechanical requirements, I wanted the rear lights on the Jimny to work with the motorhome lights, so I've had the Jimny wired for the A-frame. As you can see in the pictures, the A-frame has a short lead attached, that plugs in under the engine bay. I've had the local auto-electrician here wire up the plug into the engine bay and he's made sure to include diodes so that if the lights are turned on in the Jimny, it's not going to feed that power back to the motorhome.

UPDATE!  (22/07/2021)

We're now producing an 'off the shelf' kit, very similar to what I've done in this post, but stronger and a lot better looking. After A-framing my Jimny around the country for about a year, I would love to help other Jimny owners tow their Jimny's.  More info on the product page HERE, but also make sure to read this page, to help you consider alternative options.