what is the towing capacity of the new Fit?

 

From the manual:

"Towing a Trailer
your warranties."

 

You are kidding I hope. The Fit is good for a trailer hitch bike rack, the end.

 

The Fit was not designed to haul anything, but you can buy hitches for them. I have only seen class A hitches, which are rated for 100lb tongue weight. I have towed many motorcycles and a riding lawn mower with my Fit.

 

I remember reading on here the Euro spec Jazz has ~1000 lb towing capacity. Legal reasons are probably behind the US Spec not being rated. Hopefully hitches for the 09 USDM model will be available soon if they are not already.

 

nice avatar! so it seems that the Fit wasn't designed to haul anything, say u're hauling 3-4 passengers, average weight 175lbs each, would u feel or hear the engine working harder? higher revs?

 

ZERO. From a practical standpoint. The stock rear suspension on any Fit is not suitable for towing.
However substituting Monroe AirLifts MA811's for the stock Fit shocks will let you carry a small trailer. A number of Fit owners have performed the changeover since I shared my setup, many with excellent photos. I have towed my Honda lawn tractor on a Tractor Supply trailer three times quite comfortably at grandma normal speeds.
And I met a Fit in Liberty, NC, towing a small trailer. Though it was empty I still was curious if he had converted. Didn't get the chance to find out. Maybe he'll remember the meeting and tell us.
Refer to Suspension and brakes posts for details. And the cost is very reasonable.
good luck.

 

What's funny is that in the Carrying Cargo section of the manual explaining how to read the door placard, it says...

"This figure includes the total weight of all occupants, cargo, and
accessories, and the tongue load if you are towing a trailer."

and

"In addition, the total weight of the vehicle, all occupants, accessories, cargo, and trailer tongue load must not exceed the Gross Vehicle Weight
Rating (GVWR) or the Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR). Both are on
a label on the driver's doorjamb."

I guess that's either carry-over verbiage from another model or maybe the Jazz.

By the way, the Fit/Jazz tow rating in the UK is 1000 kg, not 1000 lbs.

 

1000kg?

The fit can practically tow another fit!

 

The European Fit has very different springs and shocks; DO NOT ASSUME THE USA FIT CAN HANDLE THAT !
And that door plate is a government standardized plate for virtually all vehicles. When you institute the stated trailer load capacity the rating is still zero.

 

We can also see where the numbers lead us...

Honda's stated curb weight of the '09 Sport 5MT non-nav is 2520 pounds. The door sticker says the GVWR is 3512 pounds. That's a 1000 pound difference. Subtract out 60+ pounds for a full tank of gas, various other fluids, and we're close enough to the 850 lb cargo capacity stated for the Fit. So those seem to jive.

From the 2520lb curb weight, Honda claims a 62/38 front/rear weight distribution. That gives us 1562lbs on the front axle and 958lbs on the rear axle. If we assume two passengers totalling 300 pounds and 60 pounds of gas, evenly supported by both axles, we're now up to 1742 pounds on the front axle and 1138 pounds on the rear axle.

The GAWR on the sticker is 1921lbs for the front axle limit and 1619 for the rear axle limit. The rear is really the one in question here, and we've got 1619-1138 = 481 pounds of capacity on the rear axle to stay within Honda's stated weight limits.

Would I put 500 pounds of cargo/hitch weight on the rear? Probably not, even if you could get a class 3 hitch which you can't. Although two people in the back seat and some luggage would get darn close to that. And there's why the 0 trailer rating is bunk. If one argues that the engine/brakes are not up to the task of towing ANY trailer, then how are the engine and brakes capable of handling 850 pounds of passengers and cargo? And if the suspension isn't capable of taking a little extra weight in the rear, how is 100+ pounds of Sam's or Home Depot stuff in the back any different than say 50 pounds on a hitch from a small Harbor Freight trailer (even factoring in the level arm of the hitch ball hanging off the rear)? And why could the rear handle 50+ pounds of bike and rack on a hitch mount but not 50 pounds from a Leesurlite camper (which is towable by a motorcyle, but I guess not the Fit)?

I fully understand that rear suspensions are soft and prone to sag with weight on the rear. I've pulled small cargo trailers and a Fleetwood popup camper thousands of miles in small cars ranging in size from a '78 Accord to old Civic wagons to the largest being a VW Passat Wagon Ironically, that Passat went from a 3600lb US tow rating one year (per the manual, and same as UK) to a "not recommended for towing" US rating the next year, with no design/part # changes. So it's just frustrating that manufacturers feel the need to dumb down vehicle ratings instead of giving people the numbers and letting the actual user make the responsible choice. Although I do undertsand that tow ratings are one of the most difficult for people to understand (GCVWR, GVWR, GAWR, tongue/hitch limit, actual (not base) weights of trailer, etc).

 

Blame the zero tow to 1. lawyers and the US propensity to sue, and 2. the US suspensions are tuned for comfort and not handling.
If you are going to tow you need to upgrade the US Fit rear shocks with Monroe MA811 Air Lifts intended for 82 to 94 Chevy Cavaliers. Not only will ity cure the Fit tail softness it will increase handling limits on track. I presume here that the suspension on 09's has not changed from 08. Didn't look like it anyway but you never know til you measure and we haven't.
We have performed this improvement on dozens of cars since 1984 with not a single negative result. Some were hard and some were easy and this one is easy. No changes in suspension attachments are needed, only a few washers.
See the photos and remarks by the many who have performed this change in the Suspension and Brakes post section.
Good luck.

 

I had seen your writeup/recommendation on those shocks. That's a great find when another application can work. Thanks for researching and finding that. I seem to recall that the 09's have like an extra 1/2" of rear suspension travel. Don't know if that will make a difference or not. I've thought about getting a set of those Monroes to see if they'd work in the '09 as well. I had some Airlift airbags in the rear of the Passat that helped with the sag, but sometimes the bags can leak or tear and need replacing. I'll likely be doing one of those two... preferrably the shocks if they fit.

We'll be selling our current popup, though, due to the Fit. Even with the most liberal tow ratings, the Fit could barely handle the base weight and would be over at the gross weight. I'd be comfortable with one of those motorcycle towable campers (basically a tent on wheels... like 250 pounds) or our small flatbed trailer, but I won't be pushing it.

Thanks again for your contributions on the forum... I'm really not trying to be a pain.