Tow Rope or Towing Service?

The most important rules

• Hazard lights: both vehicles must have their hazard lights on (§ 15a para. 3 StVO).
• Distance: the rope must not be longer than about five metres and should be marked in the middle with a red cloth.
• Motorway: a vehicle that has broken down on the motorway must be towed off at the next exit (§ 15a para. 1 StVO).
• Motorcycles: motorcycles may not be towed (§ 15a para. 4 StVO).
• Speed: drive slowly. About 40 km/h is a common guideline.

What makes towing difficult

With the engine off, power steering and brake assist don't work. The stranded vehicle then needs significantly more force to steer and brake. The rope must always stay taut, otherwise jerks and collisions can happen. Anyone unfamiliar with this easily underestimates it. And whoever sits in the back has no control over what's happening at the front.

When you shouldn't use a rope

• Electric and hybrid cars: regenerative braking can cause damage, see Towing an electric car.
• Automatic transmission: many models can only be towed without the engine running under restrictions, see Towing an automatic car.
• A locked wheel: a wheel that doesn't turn drags across the road surface. See Handbrake won't release.
• Accident damage: damaged axles, steering or brakes make towing with a rope dangerous.
• Heavy traffic, motorways, mountains: a towing service is safer here.

Tow bar or rope?

A tow bar keeps the vehicles at a fixed distance and makes braking easier, because the towed vehicle can't run into the back of the towing vehicle. It must fit the vehicle and be attached to the designated towing eyes.

If you do it yourself anyway: the process

1. Secure both vehicles: hazard lights on, wear a hi-vis vest.
2. Find the towing eye or designated attachment points on both vehicles (owner's manual).
3. Tighten the rope as the towing vehicle pulls away, but not abruptly.
4. Switch on the ignition in the towed vehicle so the steering doesn't lock.
5. Short distance, low speed, brake well in advance.
6. At the destination, only release the rope once both vehicles have stopped.

The advantage of a towing service

A towing service loads the vehicle onto a flatbed. This spares the transmission, drivetrain and electronics, and the vehicle doesn't need to steer or brake at all. And you don't have to sit behind the wheel of a vehicle you probably shouldn't be driving anyway. Whether damage from towing your own car privately is covered by insurance is also often unclear.