If your Tesla needs to be towed, it has to go on a flatbed, or on dollies with all four wheels off the ground. It can’t be dragged behind another vehicle with the wheels turning, the way you might flat-tow some other cars.
Why flat towing causes real damage
Tesla’s owner’s manual requires that all four tires stay off the ground whenever the car is moved, and the wheels can’t be allowed to spin freely over any real distance, according to a breakdown of the manual’s towing instructions. The reason comes down to how the drivetrain works: because the wheels connect directly to the electric motors, spinning them while the car is off or in neutral generates electricity with nowhere to go. That can overheat and damage the motors, inverters, and even the high-voltage battery — and it’s not the kind of damage Tesla covers under the new-vehicle warranty. Repairs from an improper tow add up fast.
Flatbed first, dollies as the backup
A flatbed truck is Tesla’s preferred method for every model, since the car never touches the road while it’s being moved. If a flatbed genuinely isn’t available, a tow operator can use wheel lifts and dollies instead, keeping all four wheels off the pavement rather than just two.
What Tow Mode is actually for
Tow Mode releases the parking brake and lets the wheels roll slowly, for a very short distance, so the car can be pushed out of a parking space or guided onto a flatbed. It’s not a way to flat-tow your Tesla behind an RV or another vehicle — it exists to reposition the car by a few feet, not to move it any real distance under its own wheels.
What this means if you actually break down
If you need a tow, say up front that you’re driving a Tesla and that it requires a flatbed or dollies. Not every towing company defaults to this, and a driver who doesn’t know can cause expensive damage in a matter of minutes. Requesting a tow through Tesla’s app is generally the safer bet over calling a random local towing company yourself, since Tesla’s roadside network already knows the requirements.
Photo by Jonathan Reynaga.