A pickup may be able to tow a car, but that isn’t a blanket yes. The exact truck, car, equipment, configuration, and route all matter. If both vehicle manuals don’t clearly support the planned setup, don’t attempt it.
Check both vehicle manuals first
Start with the manuals for the exact pickup and disabled car. Online advice can’t replace the instructions written for those vehicles. Even advice about a similar model may not apply to yours.
Look for the towing sections in the pickup’s manual. Record every limit and condition that applies to its exact configuration. Don’t substitute a figure remembered from an advertisement, forum, or different trim. If the manual refers to another label or manufacturer document, check that source too.
Then read the disabled car’s manual. Search its index for towing, transport, roadside emergencies, and recreational towing. The correct section should address whether that exact vehicle may be moved in the setup you’re considering. It may also direct you to a specific transport method. Follow the current manual instead of general towing advice.
Don’t fill missing information with a guess. A statement like “my truck should handle it” doesn’t confirm the proposed combination. Neither does seeing another driver use a similar-looking pickup.
If a manual is missing, obtain the correct version from the manufacturer or dealer. Use the model year and exact vehicle information when searching. If the wording is unclear, ask the manufacturer or an authorized service department to explain it.
The same caution applies when people search for how to tow a car with a tow truck. That equipment is operated by licensed towing professionals in Texas. A short article can’t replace vehicle-specific instructions, operator training, or an on-scene assessment.
Texas requires towing operators and towing companies working over public roadways to hold the applicable licenses. You can check a professional through the TDLR license search.
Identify the car’s drivetrain and condition
The disabled car’s exact identity matters as much as the pickup. Write down its year, make, model, and configuration before deciding anything. Use its manual to determine which transport methods the manufacturer allows.
Don’t infer the answer from the car’s appearance. Two cars with similar bodies may have different instructions. The car’s own manual is the controlling source for manufacturer guidance.
Its present condition matters too. “Won’t start” doesn’t explain why it stopped or whether it can be moved in the proposed way. A car that was involved in a crash presents a different decision from one with a dead battery. A car sitting normally in a parking space differs from one off the pavement or blocking a travel lane.
Don’t publish your own diagnosis from the driver’s seat. Note what happened, what warning messages appeared, and whether the vehicle is positioned normally. Share those details with the operator or repair facility. Let the appropriate professional decide what the symptoms mean.
If the car is stranded in a travel lane, focus on getting people away from moving traffic. On covered El Paso highways, the TxDOT HERO program can move stranded or abandoned vehicles from travel lanes or shoulders. HERO also provides certain roadside services, but it isn’t a tow to a repair shop.
The phrase “tow car with another car” covers many different situations. It doesn’t establish that the vehicles are compatible. Before any movement, the exact manuals must authorize the intended configuration. If the documents don’t give a clear answer, use emergency towing instead of experimenting beside traffic.
Confirm the equipment and vehicle limits
Don’t begin by choosing equipment from a general video or checklist. Begin with the requirements stated in the manuals for both exact vehicles. The allowed setup, limits, and necessary components must come from those sources.
Write down every applicable figure exactly as shown. Confirm that each figure belongs to your pickup’s model year and configuration. Then compare the proposed setup with every stated limit and condition. A single headline number isn’t enough to settle the decision.
Avoid borrowed or improvised equipment unless the relevant manufacturers expressly approve it for the planned use. Labels, manuals, and instructions need to be readable. If you can’t identify an item or confirm its limits, don’t treat it as suitable.
This article intentionally doesn’t provide hookup steps. Instructions that ignore the exact vehicles and equipment could send a reader toward the wrong setup. The pickup manual, car manual, and equipment manufacturer’s instructions must agree.
No towing capacity or equipment limit could be confirmed for your particular vehicles from the information available here. Check the current manuals and labels. If anything conflicts, stop and ask the vehicle manufacturer, equipment manufacturer, or a licensed towing operator.
Quick Tow EP doesn’t supply towing equipment or perform the tow. We connect callers with independent, separately licensed local tow operators. The driver deals with and pays that operator directly.
For a consent tow, meaning one the driver requests, no nonconsent cap table sets the price. The operator prices the job. Confirm the proposed charge with that operator before the vehicle is hooked up. Quick Tow EP doesn’t set prices or quote totals.
Consider the route and stopping needs
A setup that appears acceptable on paper still needs a route-specific review. Use the exact manuals to identify every route condition they require you to consider. Don’t rely on a general assumption about what the pickup can manage.
El Paso routes aren’t interchangeable. A trip near Mesa Street on the Westside isn’t the same route as one near Horizon Boulevard. I-10, Loop 375, US-54, Montana Avenue, Alameda Avenue, and North Loop Drive each place a driver in different road surroundings.
North Loop Drive is FM 76. The TxDOT study corridor runs between Horizon Boulevard and Alameda Avenue in Fabens. Most of that corridor is a two-lane, two-way rural road with four-foot shoulders. That local context deserves more thought than a generic towing video can provide.
Weather changes the decision too. El Paso’s July normal high is 96.1°F. Monsoon season from July through September brings short, intense storms and flash flooding. Spring dust and wind can reduce visibility on I-10.
Those conditions don’t create a universal towing rule. They create reasons to pause and recheck the route, manuals, and current surroundings. Don’t attempt to move through floodwater. About 12 inches of moving water can carry a small car.
Location also changes which towing rules apply. El Paso city limits, outlying Texas communities, and the New Mexico side aren’t one jurisdiction. Sunland Park, Santa Teresa, Chaparral, and Anthony, New Mexico, aren’t governed by Texas towing rules.
No DIY towing rule for your exact situation could be confirmed from the approved sources for this page. Before using public roads, check current requirements with the agency responsible for that jurisdiction. A licensed operator can also explain how the proposed professional tow would be handled.
Know when an independent operator may fit
Professional help may fit when either manual is unclear, the approved setup can’t be confirmed, or the car isn’t positioned normally. It also makes sense after a crash or when traffic, weather, or location leaves little room for uncertainty.
Tell the operator where the car is and what happened. Give the exact year, make, and model of both vehicles if you’re discussing a pickup-based plan. Mention warning messages, visible damage, and whether the car is on pavement. Don’t claim a diagnosis you haven’t confirmed.
Ask what transport method the operator proposes for that exact vehicle. You can also ask the operator for an arrival estimate, but availability and timing can’t be promised. The referral line may go to voicemail when nobody is free.
Texas has three towing operator license categories: incident management, private property, and consent towing. Consumers can search by operator name, license number, city, county, ZIP code, or license type through TDLR. That gives you an official place to verify licensing rather than relying on a truck decal or online claim.
If police ordered a tow inside El Paso, use the El Paso Police Department vehicle-towing page for current retrieval information. That process differs from arranging a consent tow for your own disabled car.
Quick Tow EP is a referral line, not a tow company. It owns no trucks, employs no drivers, and operates no storage yard. The independent operator handles the towing decision, service, and payment directly with you.
When to call us
Call when the manuals don’t clearly authorize your plan, the equipment can’t be verified, or the car needs professional handling. Call us at (915) 615-5465 and we’ll connect you with an independent licensed operator who handles this work. If nobody picks up, leave a voicemail.