I have a 560 Ultra and use a Honda Ridgeline as my primary tow vehicle. I have observed that with my current ball hitch, which does not extend very far from the receiver, I need to be very conservative in terms of how much the trailer can swing left or right before it would hit the corner of the Ridgeline's rear bumper.
I am thinking of adding an 18" hitch extender I have lying around to push the point of articulation farther behind the Ridgeline, but I'm concerned it may put too much strain on the hitch receiver. Does anyone have experience towing with a hitch extender, especially on a Ridgeline? Thanks.
Casey
Good question. I'll chime in as I had a similar question on my Alltrack with a bolt on aftermarket hitch receiver, on the unibody.
Honda Pilots and Ridgelines are unibody so not as burly as old body-on-frame truck construction.
The longer out, the more downward lever action on the vehicle receiver whether bolt-on or integral to frame connection on some compact trucks and SUVs, so its worth thinking about...this can affect handling on smaller tow vehicles, in terms of sway at speed, saggy butt etc.
Shorter makes it easier to back up.
I'm unfamiliar with the Honda Pilot but there are a couple folks towing here- search the archives if you dont get a quick reply. Maybe a Honda Pilot webforum? Reddit?
18" sounds pretty long to me...me personally I'd want the shortest drawbar that works before the trailer frame touches the bumper.
You might be better off just buying a slightly longer draw bar for your receiver. Uhaul has been good about letting me trial and error in parking lot and swap the drawbar for another, pay the difference...easy way to see how much angle you get on bumper that way.
They come in different lengths and rise/drops:
Shop trailer hitch ball mounts at U-Haul. Fixed and adjustable options in multiple sizes and weight ratings to fit your hitch receiver and towing needs.
www.uhaul.com
You could call Cary for a better explanation of how the length of hitch affects the tow vehicle and the CI behind.
He is here as
@Cary Winch on the unofficial forum but pretty busy so he may not catch the reference here as fast as a direct phone call...or email.
Good luck let us know.
I'm sure the answer will help the next person reading here!
