My husband and I are relocating across the country and we are wondering if it is possible to safely install a trailer hitch and to haul a trailer 3000 miles on our 2009 Fit Sport? Any info/suggestions?

 

I have a Curtis hitch on 2012 fit sport. Check your owners manual for towing limit. I would not tow a heavy trailer.

 

I think Honda has officially said, NO... and besides being dangerous, any problems would probably void any warranty you have.

 

Absolutely do not believe the ignorant comments above. Proper use of a trailer is completely safe and will not have any influence on your vehicle warranty as long as you understand the limits of trailer use with a Fit. There are many posts on successful trailer use on Fits if you search the forums.

However, if you do not have any trailering experience at all, it might be best to rent a truck instead. Trailer hitches made for Fits have low load limits for both tongue weight and trailer weight. Many people have towed 4' X 8' U-Haul trailers clear across the U.S. without problems, but, they understood the limits-- proper balance of the load, not much weight on the tongue or trailer axle, and very careful extended braking distance.

Again, trailers work just fine with Fits, but you have to know what you are doing. If you have no trailer experience at all, you should not start to learn with something as small and light as a Fit.

 

I still would not tow a heavy trailer. Your mileage may vary. I could be ignorant though. Use your best judgment...

 

"Ignorant comments?" Thanks..

Page 238 of the owners manual says, quote:

Towing a TrailerYour vehicle is not designed to tow a

trailer. Attempting to do so can void

your warranties. unquote... I guess the people at Honda are all ignorant too

Also, The car is only rated at 850 pounds total, that's all occupants, cargo and trailer tongue weight (if you want to void your warranty)

If you have 4 people in the car at 150 pounds each, that's 600 pounds and you only have 200 pounds left. Maybe a jet ski or a kayak, but not any big loads.

The OP was asking about moving across the country with a trailer.. don't think they will be carrying much with these restrictions. But, just call me ignorant..

 

The amount of weight that you'll likely want to haul will certainly be greater than the amount of weight that is reasonable to haul with the fit.

Better to rent a Uhaul truck with a tow dolly or flat carrier.

 

FWIW, most other markets for the Fit/Jazz list its tow capacity as 1000 lbs. Light loads on a trailer don't concern me; I use a small utility trailer to make runs to Lowes for sheets of plywood and the like.

But even the smallest enclosed UHaul trailer empty weighs 850 lbs. Loaded for a move, you'll be looking at 2-3000lbs of weight. That's a lot.

 

I tow with mine, but the most I would pull is about 300 lbs. I have a tiny trailer and only pull my dirtbike. I have it very lightly balanced to the tongue and increase my following distance accordingly. I understand that the total weight I am towing is less than 2 passengers, but I would rather be safe than sorry.

Any trailer that would be worth while for cross country moving will be far greater than 800 lbs loaded. I do not recommend this.

 

Anyone who does not have a trailer hitch on his Ffit and has never towed a trailer with it is ignorant about towing a trailer with a Fit. And you are welcome- aparently you did not know that.

There are many towing threads with Fits that you also have not bothered to read, but you still give advice anyway. Yes, the Fit is not rated for trailer towing by Honda. Yes, if you tow one anyway without experience and judgement, you may ruin the transmission and Honda would not honor the drive train warranty if the dealer saw your damage along with your trailer hitch.

That did not stop a Fit owner from San Francisco from pulling a U-Haul trailer with his belongings to Chicago with no damage. That did not stop an Easy Coast Fit owner from pulling a trailer with his wife and his belongings to Hayward, CA, in the last six months on the forums.

If you know how to safely tow a trailer (and most people don't) and you know the limitations of the Fit (and most new owners don't), trailer towing is safe and effective. It is unlikely that the OP of this thread has that knowledge, and that I why I advised against learning these things with a Fit.

Why don't you try to give advice on things that you actually know about? Read the forums before you give advice.

 

This is definitely worth a read:

https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/gene...ailer-fit.html

This guy did exactly what you're talking about doing and had no problems other than it getting a little hairy going back down the mountains. Depending on where you're going you may not even have that problem though.

-Dustin

 

That is one of the people mentioned in my third paragraph above, and they guy who moved cross country to Hayward, CA.

The important thing is, he was someone with a lot of trailer experience, and very good knowledge of the Fit's limitations. His trip worked without incident because he did not exceed those limitations.

I don't think that the OP or her husband have the experience or knowledge of kng229.
Worn brakes don't count at all with warranty issues- brakes are not covered by warranty. Trailer towing is very hard on brakes. The major mistakes that might be made in trailer towing will have the worst effects on automatic transmissions, mainly due to overheating the trans.

kng229 was careful with trailer weight and balance, added a trans cooler that turned out to be unnecessary, and planned the best route with the least steep inclines. He did everything exactly right to save brakes and transmission.

 

Gads, Triskelion, your attitude is really condesending and unwarranted.

I actually know that Honda said it will void your warranty, I also actually know that the car is only rated at 850 pounds and I passed that on to the OP. I also said it would probably be dangerous and I still think it would, even if you are familiar with trailer hauling. I'm sure others have done it, but that doesn't change the fact that with any sizable load your braking and handling ability would be severely imparred and that no mater how knowledbale you are about trailer hauling your weight ability is pretty restricted.

But, have it your way.

 

What you refuse to understand is, knowledge and experience with trailer use will give an intelligent person the judgement in only using the trailer size and load weight that is safe for use with a Fit. It is not dangerous if you have driving skill and don't make it dangerous with wrong choices in trailer use. Something has to break for warranty coverage to be any issue at all. If you cause the damage with trailer use, then Gee Whiz, you're just SOL. But if you use a trailer properly, nothing will break. Just read the posts from the people who do it regularly.

What warranty are you talking about? Glass warranty? Paint warranty? Drive train warranty? Brake warranty? Radio warranty? Shift knob warranty? Key fob warranty?

Don't give advice on things with which you have no experience. But I don't expect you to follow that advice.

Oh yeah, watch for a used Progress GE Fit sway bar coming up soon on eBay. You're welcome.

 

I tow with my Fit all the time. I did with my 2008 (given to daughter) and now with my 2012. My usual tow load is my custom built trailer pulling two full size dirt bikes. Total weight of the trailer and Motorcycles is around 925 lbs. Add myself and my son and our riding gear plus 5 gallons of gasoline....well you can figure that out. I've never had any issues of any kind and both my Fits are still running with nothing but oil changes and new shoes. The Fit is a great car and the addition of towing capability makes it that much better. Just yesterday I picked up a sofa and a cocktail table for my wife's office with the trailer. The thought of a $40 fuel bill using my pickup and $8 fuel bill made this an easy decision.

Unfortunately, the aftermarket hitches reduce your ground clearance so I built my own retrofitting and gusseting the existing rear bumper. Also, with a receiver hitch, you can now add a bike rack, luggage rack, etc.

 

yea I'd like a hitch so I can use a hitch cargo carrier....one large suitcase and stroller and the trunk is GONE

who's got pics and recommendations? just wanna make sure the carrier clears the bumper from the hitch etc

 

Good for you. I think there are reasons on both sides of this argument. Just because you are willing to take this on does not mean it is a good idea for most fit drivers. To each his own.

 

Get one of these welded up, and the cargo carrier height problem is solved. Without the custom receiver, most cargo carriers will hit the ground on driveways and high speed dips.

 

I have a Curtis hitch and a 18 x 38 inch tray. No mods and It works great. Only a really steep drive causes it to hit the pavement. Drove it up a steep mountain road up to about 12000 feet with 3 people two tents and hiking gear etc.

 

The tray I bought does have a similar bend to the welded device.