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Zero Wheel Contact, Damage-Free Transport
A flatbed tow truck, also called a rollback or car carrier, loads your entire vehicle onto a hydraulic platform so all four wheels are off the ground. Nothing drags. Nothing scrapes. No drivetrain components spin while being pulled. It is the safest way to move a Tesla, an AWD SUV, a luxury car, a lowered build, or a motorcycle.
Servicio en Tijuana: (664) 801-9382Call (619) 872-5285and tell our bilingual dispatcher your vehicle's make, model, and year. RJ Towing operates multiple flatbed trucks across San Diego County with 15-30 minute average response. Soft-strap loading, zero wheel contact, damage-free transport for every vehicle type. If a standard wheel-lift can handle it safely, we tell you honestly, we do not upsell flatbed service you do not need.
Loading a vehicle onto a flatbed takes more care than hooking a wheel-lift. Here is how our drivers do it, start to finish.
Not every tow requires a flatbed. Standard wheel-lift towing works fine for many front-wheel-drive and rear-wheel-drive cars on short distances. But there are specific situations where a flatbed is not optional, it is the only safe method.
When a wheel-lift truck tows an all-wheel-drive vehicle, two wheels stay on the road and rotate freely. The spinning wheels engage drivetrain components that should not be moving without the engine running. This can destroy the transfer case, center differential, or viscous coupling. Repair cost: $2,000-$6,000. A flatbed avoids this entirely.
Tesla, Rivian, BMW iX, Hyundai Ioniq, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Chevy Bolt, and other EVs have electric motors connected directly to the wheels. Dragging those wheels on pavement, even in "neutral", can generate electricity that feeds back into the battery system and damages the motor controller or battery pack. Every major EV manufacturer explicitly requires flatbed towing in their owner's manual. We follow those requirements without exception.
Lowered cars, cars with body kits, wide-body builds, and sports cars with minimal ground clearance risk scraping or catching on the tilt mechanism during wheel-lift loading. A flatbed's platform lowers flush to the ground, so there is no ramp angle to worry about. Even a Lamborghini with 4 inches of ground clearance loads safely onto our flatbeds.
If your vehicle was in a collision, the wheels, suspension, or steering may be compromised. Towing a damaged vehicle on its wheels can cause secondary damage, bent control arms, further axle damage, or tire blowouts during transport. A flatbed carries the vehicle as-is with no additional stress on damaged components.
If your vehicle is on this list, tell our dispatcher when you call and we will send a flatbed automatically.
If your vehicle is over 25 years old, a show car, a restoration project, or has collector plates, we treat it like a museum piece, soft straps only, no metal contact. Cars with aftermarket coilovers, air suspension set to low, body kits, or custom exhausts hanging below the standard ride height also require flatbed. All motorcycles ride on a flatbed with motorcycle-specific wheel chocks and soft tie-down straps.
Tesla 12V auxiliary batteries fail without warning. The car goes completely unresponsive, no screen, no door handles from outside, no ability to shift into neutral. Our flatbed driver knows how to manually release a Tesla's parking brake and engage transport mode.
We load from downtown parking garages regularly, the flatbed fits in most standard-clearance garages.
The I-8 climb from Mission Valley into La Mesa and El Cajon stresses transmissions hard, especially on hot days. Pulling over and calling for a flatbed prevents a $4,000 repair from becoming a $7,000 one.
We dispatch to the I-8 corridor in 15-20 minutes.
You found a 1972 Chevelle SS at an estate sale in Carlsbad. It runs, but it has not been registered in years and you are not about to drive it 30 miles on unfamiliar tires.
We load it onto a flatbed in Carlsbad and deliver it to your garage, your mechanic, or a restoration shop anywhere in the county.
Pacific Beach streets are not kind to lowered cars, potholes, uneven pavement, and driveway aprons pop tires and bend wheels. If you do not have enough clearance for a jack, we load the whole car on a flatbed and bring it to your tire shop.
No scraping, no bumper damage.
Torrey Pines Road between La Jolla and Del Mar winds along coastal cliffs with no real shoulder. Pulling into one of the small turnouts and calling (619) 872-5285 is the right move.
Delivery to the Porsche dealer on Miramar Road, an independent shop, or your home garage.
Your project car has been sitting in a storage unit in Otay Mesa for two years. Tires are flat, battery is dead, brakes are seized.
A flatbed winches it on and delivers it wherever you need it, no running engine required.
We quote your total price before the truck arrives. Mileage is calculated from pickup to drop-off. No hidden fees and no surprise charges. Long-distance flatbed tows, SD to LA, Phoenix, or Vegas, are custom quoted.
| Service | Starting Price |
|---|---|
Flatbed tow (standard vehicle) AWD, EV, luxury, lowered, the most common flatbed call | $75 + $45 premium + $8/mile |
Flatbed tow (motorcycle) Soft straps, foam padding, wheel chock included | $95 base + mileage |
Flatbed tow (medium-duty) Quoted at dispatch based on vehicle size | From $175 |
Long-distance flatbed (50+ miles) SD to LA, Phoenix, Vegas, or Baja | Custom quote |
After-hours / holiday surcharge Same rate 24/7/365 | None |
Our flatbed trucks are commercial-grade rollback carriers with hydraulic tilt platforms. Here is what we use and how we work.
Flatbed tows often involve higher-value vehicles, which makes the wait feel more stressful. Here is how to protect yourself and your vehicle.
Leaving a high-value vehicle unattended on a surface street or freeway shoulder invites attention. If you must leave, lock the vehicle and take photos of its condition and location before you go.
Take photos and a short video showing all four sides, the dashboard lights, and any existing damage. This protects you against any dispute about pre-existing conditions and gives our driver a reference when they arrive.
AWD vehicles in park resist being pushed. EVs with dead 12V batteries may have the parking brake electronically locked. Let our driver handle disengagement with the proper tools and knowledge.
For EVs, put the vehicle in park and leave it. Do not attempt to engage "transport mode" yourself unless you know the exact procedure, incorrect activation can set fault codes.
A flatbed needs space to set up, roughly 50 feet of clear space behind your vehicle for the tilt bed and winch approach. The farther you are from traffic, the safer the loading process.
If your vehicle is all-wheel-drive, electric, lowered, a motorcycle, or a classic/luxury car, it needs a flatbed. Standard front-wheel-drive and rear-wheel-drive vehicles in working condition can typically be towed safely with a wheel-lift on short distances. When you call (619) 872-5285, tell us your vehicle's make, model, and year, and we will tell you honestly which method is appropriate.
No. Our flatbed platforms lower to a very shallow angle using a hydraulic tilt system. Vehicles with 3-4 inches of ground clearance load without scraping. For extremely low vehicles (under 3 inches), our drivers use approach techniques and loading speeds that avoid any contact.
Yes. Non-running vehicles are loaded using our electric winch and soft strap. The winch pulls the vehicle onto the bed without needing the engine, steering, or brakes to function. Dead batteries, seized brakes, locked steering columns, flat tires, none of these prevent flatbed loading.
Anywhere. Local tows across San Diego County are our most common request, but we also handle long-distance flatbed transport: San Diego to Los Angeles, Palm Springs, Phoenix, and into Baja California via our cross-border service. See our long-distance towing page for more information.
Yes, there is a $45 flatbed premium on top of the standard hook rate because of the specialized equipment and longer loading time. Considering that wheel-lift towing an AWD vehicle can cause $2,000-$6,000 in drivetrain damage, the premium is inexpensive insurance.
Yes. All motorcycles ride on our flatbed using a bolted wheel chock and soft tie-down straps with foam padding. The bike remains upright and fully secured during transport. We handle Harleys, sport bikes, adventure bikes, scooters, and trikes. See our motorcycle towing page.
Yes. If you need a vehicle moved to a car show at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, a Bring a Trailer pickup, or a dealership auction, we transport it door-to-door on a flatbed with full protection. This is scheduled service, call (619) 872-5285 in advance so we can reserve a truck.
Check your owner's manual, look for a badge on the rear of the vehicle (AWD, 4MATIC, Quattro, xDrive, 4WD, 4x4), or tell our dispatcher your make, model, and year, we maintain reference data on drivetrain types and will confirm whether a flatbed is required. When in doubt, we default to flatbed.
One call to RJ Towing covers more than a single service. If your situation includes any of these, we handle it on the same dispatch.
24/7 urgent tow dispatch anywhere in San Diego County. 15-30 minute response.
Learn MoreSpecialized soft-strap flatbed transport for cruisers, sport bikes, and Harleys.
Learn MoreBox trucks, RVs, shuttle vans, and commercial vehicles up to 26,000 lbs GVWR.
Learn MoreFlatbed transport from San Diego to LA, Phoenix, Vegas, and Baja California.
Learn MoreCompassionate post-collision recovery with insurance documentation and coordination.
Learn MoreFast, affordable towing for standard FWD/RWD vehicles and tight-space extractions.
Learn MoreBinational towing between San Diego and Tijuana with dedicated (664) line and border logistics.
Learn MoreRJ Towing dispatches flatbed trucks to every neighborhood in San Diego County. Response times below are from our base at 2881 G St.
Freeways We Cover Daily
I-5 · I-8 · I-15 · I-805 · SR-163 · SR-94 · SR-52 · SR-54 · SR-125 · SR-75 · SR-56 · SR-905
Cross-Border Service, The Only One in San Diego
Tijuana Direct Line: (664) 801-9382
You call (619) 872-5285. Our dispatcher confirms your vehicle type and sends the right flatbed truck. You get a specific ETA. The driver arrives, lowers the platform, and loads your vehicle with soft straps, zero chains, zero wheel contact with the road. Your car, truck, motorcycle, or classic rides securely to wherever you need it delivered.
Our flatbed drivers have loaded Teslas in downtown parking garages, Porsches on Torrey Pines Road, project cars out of Otay Mesa storage units, and motorcycles off I-5 shoulders. If it has wheels and needs to move without touching the road, we handle it.
Zero chains. Zero wheel contact. Zero surprises.
¿Necesitas grúa plana? Llámanos al (619) 872-5285 , servicio completamente bilingüe. Para servicio en Tijuana: (664) 801-9382.
Servicio en Tijuana: (664) 801-9382