Towing



Towing refers to an ability in Grand Theft Auto games to tow or pull an object, specifically a trailer or vehicle, using another vehicle. The feature is first made possible in Grand Theft Auto 2, when semi-trailer trucks possess the ability to pull trailers. The feature is also present in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto V.

Description
Attachments with trailers simply require the player reverse their vehicle into the front of a trailer until the camera readjusts itself to center on both the hauler and the trailer, confirming the coupling is complete. When pulling a trailer, the vehicle will possess poorer performance due to the need to pull extra weight, especially with regards to steering as the vehicle is now longer. Players have the option of detaching trailers after attachment.

GTA 2
All in all, GTA 2 features three forms of trailers, one of which is somewhat useful in actual gameplay. The Truck Cab and the Truck Cab SX represent the game's only two semi-trailer trucks, and are also the only vehicles in GTA 2 capable of attaching to and pulling trailers. Players may detach a trailer using the attack key or button.

Trailers sustain damage like other vehicles, and also emit fire the same way when heavily damaged, even exploding when destroyed, posing a danger to the player if they are pulling a trailer that is in bad condition. This danger is very likely to happen in certain missions: Benson Burner!, Operation Z! and Grand Theft Auto!, all of which require the player to tow a car across town.

GTA San Andreas


GTA San Andreas is the first game after GTA 2 to reintroduce the ability to pull loads. The game mechanics of attaching to and pulling a trailer is roughly the same as in GTA 2, but trailers may decouple from a vehicle using a specific command or if physical force (i.e. jackknifing, dislodging due to rough terrains or jumps, excessive speed, etc.) is subjected to the trailer. However, there is no single button to detach the trailers. There is a glitch in the PS2 version where taking a picture of the attachment will detach the trailers but the glitch is fixed in subsequent versions.

Along with the game's three semi-trailer trucks (the Linerunner, Tanker and Roadtrain), the game also introduces a different range of vehicles with roughly the same capability, including:


 * The Tow Truck, which employs an adjustable boom at the back to pull any large vehicle.
 * The Tractor, which uses an adjustable tow hitch to pull smaller hauls or large vehicles.
 * The Utility Van and Baggage, which feature a stationary tow hitch to pull smaller hauls.

The trailers themselves consist of a more varied range of items, some of which are not available unless they are spawned using a third-party trainer. In total, GTA San Andreas features eight types of trailers: Four semi-trailers and four specialized trailers.

All trailers in general are capable of exploding entirely if severely damaged or flipped over, but specialized trailers have several other peculiarities, including functional headlights and taillights that light up at night or in a dark location, and the ability to emit smoke if sufficiently damaged (Including those that would never burn, much less explode). This is because all trailers are classified as vehicles, although they are defined with a different classification to other road vehicles.

Truck trailers are prominently used in the Trucking side missions.

GTA Chinatown Wars
In GTA Chinatown Wars, there is a Tanker. There are also a couple of missions that require either pulling up or detaching a Hellenbach or another object, either with a Recovery or a Reefer.

GTA V
The ability to tow trailers returns in GTA V, with mechanics almost identical to those in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Any semi with a hitch in the back can be reversed into most trailers, which will then automatically attach themselves. The player can unhook the trailer at any time, even while moving, which can offer a performance boost if needed or aid a getaway if executed properly. On highways, most often outside of Los Santos, semi trucks hauling various forms of cargo can be seen in traffic. Beyond commercial hauling, the Tow Truck returns, with the ability to move vehicles. Pick-up trucks have the ability to tow small to mid-size trailers. Sadler and Bison pick-ups are equipped with a tow hitch. Some trailers present in the game are boat trailers and a portable electricity generator. If a boat trailer with a boat is reversed into water, the boat starts to float and becomes usable.

Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V includes several trailers, along with unusable objects that simulate a trailer. However, there are 14 interactive trailers:

While 14 interactive trailers are normally seen in the game, there are 5 Special trailers, which only appears in some missions and cannot be found anywhere.

Trivia

 * In Online, other players can ride on top of certain trailer types. This can be used to transport more than two people while driving a semi, but low structures, and crashing can sometimes knock players off while on the trailers.
 * In the beta version of GTA San Andreas, there used to be a shorter, green colored 'artict3' trailer. The name of this trailer in gta3.img is 'rdtraint', suggesting that this trailer is used to be pulled by a Roadtrain.
 * In GTA V, the Car Carrier can be seen hauling cars. The cars can be taken off, only if the trailer is rolled over. Cargobobs cannot be use due to the fact the Cargobob will rip the tires off a car and render the car useless.
 * Known pickup trucks that can tow small-midsized trailers in GTA V are the Bobcat, Bison, and Sadler.
 * In the Beta, the Tanker Trailer has red scheme instead of RON scheme. However, they can still be found in the game, but they cannot be towed.
 * Any trailer will disappear when the player leaves far away. This is since trailers are considered as second vehicles (likely as second cars towed by Tow trucks).
 * If carried by a Cargobob at the night, lights will turn on.
 * The trailer featured in Driller is actually a designed trailer with a fake Cutter; unlike the Minisub variant, which the Submersible can be detached from the trailer with a Cargobob.
 * San Andreas is the only location in the 3D and HD universes to feature the ability to tow trailiers or other vehicles.
 * If you are driving a Semi with an attached trailer then switched to another character and then back to the same character that you have used to steal a semi(for example, stealing a semi with an attached trailer while playing as Trevor then switching to Franklin or Michael and back to Trevor), the trailer will instantly disappear. This possibly implies that the trailer may have already been detached off-screen by that protagonist. This is much more possible if the character that you have switched to is not wasted or busted, and if the character that you used to steal a semi with a trailer is on the Driver's seat at the time that the player switches characters. The semi, minus the trailer will be parked nearby during or after the switching cutscene on various locations replacing the character's default vehicle, or will be parked on the driveways of the character's respective safehouses.
 * In GTA San Andreas, the player can store up to two semi-trucks with an attached trailer in the Hangar in the Verdant Meadows Safehouse. If the player attempts to store a third truck with an attached trailer, a message that does not allow the player to store additional vehicles will appear much like when attempting to store a fifth vehicle in a garage that can only store four. This possibly implies that the semi and the attached trailer counts as two vehicles.