Spotted your post a few days ago decided to read it today, perfect timing to your successful completion. Maybe Honda will change it's policy of no towing with a Fit, ok for a Jazz to a 1000 pounds. Enjoyed your posts, good reading and info. especially since the hitch I installed for a bike rack but nice to know it can be used to actually tow a trailer to the extreme limits you encountered.

 

No, it did not have brakes. With U-Haul, you have to get a much larger 6x12 trailer to get brakes. Hence my concern about speeding and steep declines!

I finally turned in the trailer. I had a horribly unbalanced load of IKEA furniture plus a full mattress back there, but made it to the bay area and back without incident. I'm going to do a full write-up soon..

 

Glad to hear the trip was successful and without major incident. Now that it is over, do you feel you really needed the transmission cooler? Are you going to remove the trailer hitch so your local honda dealer doesn't see it?

 

By the way, just curious and I don't think you've mentioned anything about your ride height/level with a loaded trailer in tow. Were you back-heavy? How were the headlights? Were they pointed to the tree-tops? Thanks!

 

Congrats on making across the country safely and answering all of our questions about being able to tow with the Fit. I know I was wondering about it for when I have to move out of my apartment next year.

I was wondering about their 4 & 6 piston setups myself

 

The cooler is something I have no way of knowing if I needed or not - there's no temp gauge in the car. Considering it's minor cost, I'd say better safe than sorry if you are going to be towing in the mountains. If you are towing over terrain with only minor grades, the cooler would be a waste because the car didn't have to downshift except on steeper grades.

Neither Honda dealer (here or in Virginia) seemed to care about the hitch. The one here in California mentioned the transmission cooler, though. A note on the warranty - Honda can't just automatically decline your warranty because you have modified something. They have to make the reasonable case that whatever you did lead to the problem.

Nah, I didn't seem to notice that at all, but I had loaded the trailer very well so the weight was distributed evenly with a little more towards the front of the trailer.

 

Alright, my closing thoughts. Bottom line - with adequate precautions, I don't see why you can't tow with the Fit for short trips or across flat terrain. If feasible, another method should be considered for trips across mountains.

1) If I had the choice, I would make the trip again. It was surprisingly uneventful and saved a boatload of money versus driving a UHaul truck. Although this was just me in the car, I'd be hesitant going through steep mountains with my family just in case something went wrong.

2) Stick to the interstates. By law they are limited to 6% max grades without a special waiver. The one time I jumped off the interstate onto US40 I encountered a 9.5% downgrade which overheated my brakes.

3) The car did not have any issues on grades up to ~4%. Above that, I would lose speed unless I downshifted to second gear. On very steep hills, up or down, I found I needed to downshift out of D3 into 2nd. On steep declines above 4%, the car kept picking up speed even in D3. On steep inclines, D3 mode does not allow you to hold the RPMs steady - it starts revving higher an higher.

4) Coming eastward, you'll encounter more steep inclines and gradual declines. Coming westward, you'll encounter steep declines and gradual inclines. One the steep declines around Donner Pass and coming into Salt Lake, it was especially important to descend in 2nd to keep from accelerating uncontrollably.

5) The Fit arrived in California in perfect health - no degradation of transmission fluid, expected degradation of oil for a 3000mi drive, brakes and suspension inspected OK. My recipe for success - stop every 3 hours to let things cool down and fuel up, check all the fluids, inspect tires and the hitch, and then check for drips before getting back in the car.

6) Keep it at 55-60, especially in graded areas, and leave plenty of distance to stop in traffic or at intersections. The car just seems to run a lot easier below 60. Out of the primary systems stressed by towing, brakes were the ones I was most concerned about. If you go slow, you can go for hours without using them! And the Fit is just not designed to stop that much weight quickly - you'll either not stop in time if you need to or burn your brakes.

7) Average gas mileage was around 28mpg for the trip. Exceeded 30 in flat areas, was lower when in mountains or facing headwinds.

8) Wind is just as much your enemy as steep grades. The most grueling part of the journey was actually in Wyoming. I drove into sustained 25-30mph headwinds for most of the state, with gusts 35-50mph. The car then had to downshift even on modest inclines, and gas mileage fell to 25mpg.

9) No issues with trailer sway to report. The trailer did amplify bumps in the road, but with a balanced load it was no big deal. And fortunately, the 4'x8' trailer has a pretty low profile about equal to the fit.

10) Keep the load light. I was shocked at how quickly the boxes added up, even though nothing was particularly heavy. And you will noticed the difference in load - when I dropped 500 lbs. to my family in Ohio, the car drove noticeably easier.

11) This method was far, far cheaper than a truck. The trailer with insurance cost $460. The truck with an auto trailer would have cost ~$2800, and an estimated $1200 more in gas.

So that's it! If anyone has any questions now or in the future, feel free to post in here and I'll try to log in and give a response.

 

Some photos from the trip:

Fits right in.


Freedom Rock - Iowa


My "last meal" in Truckee, CA before attempting the Donner Pass


My IKEA purchase - four carts, $2500 - all fit in the Fit and trailer.

 

very nice!

 

KNG, this was a good thread. I found it interesting. Glad everything went well for you. Using the Uhaul one last time to get your new furniture at Ikea was a smart move. I'm in my early 60's and retired. I live in MA and in a year or two I may move to FL. If I do move I'll do just what you did. My furniture is older so I would give it away. So it would be moving household stuff. I have a 2012 Auto Sport so I'd have a little more leeway on the gears to choose. Good luck on your new job...

 

Holy hell, that's a nice little haul there!

 

Good wrap up kng. Glad to know your brakes and suspension held up... That looks like a Reuben by the way... Good luck! Enjoy those hills of SF!

 

Once you get on I-95 you will have a flat run, but watch out for the 'gators' tire carcasses on edge don't fit under the bumper, hard to steer around and impossible with a tow at speed.

 

I doubt Honda would change the policy for the fit, and probably for good reason. I caveated everything that you should use extreme caution doing this, following posted speeds and checking things out frequently. But idiots like the guy doing 70+ towing the trailer will wipe out and sue (or their estate will sue) Honda if they say the Fit can tow. Sadly, they ruin it for us all

Thanks! Yes UHaul gave me 11 days to pack and move (the attendant threw in a couple extra days for free just because I asked) so I had no financial incentive to turn it in early. Just watch out for the crazies on I-95 in northern Virginia!

It was a reuben burger.. and it was absolutely delicious It was a place called Burger Me, featured on Diner's, Drive-ins, and Dives.

 

[/QUOTE] It was a reuben burger.. and it was absolutely delicious It was a place called Burger Me, featured on Diner's, Drive-ins, and Dives.[/QUOTE]

There was a reuben? All I could see was the anchor steam beer.

 

The garmin nuvi 1490t is compatable with the garmin 010-11380-10. The garmin 11380 plugs into OBD-II port on the Honda fit. The 11380 communicates with the Garmin Nuvi via blue-tooth. It lets you see the workings of the Fit oil pressure, oil temp, coolant temp and on and on. I have not tried this set up, but have read about it. Martha

 

This whole thread brought back memories of my NJ->CA 3000 mile move in 1972...in a VW SuperBeetle fully loaded to the ceiling in back, with 2 mounted snowtires on the roofrack. Also a successful move...I had given away or sold every possession I had that I didn't cram into the car...which only had about 5k miles when I started.

I drove virtually flat out the whole way, which due to the grades meant often at redline in 3rd gear, as it wouldn't hold speeds between headwinds and grades in 4th. Wished I had a brick to put on top of the gas pedal, my right foot got pretty sore.

Thanks for the write-up, makes me think I might add a hitch onto my 2012 base AT Fit.

Paul H

 

A bit off topic, but I had a 1971 Super Beetle around that same time: probably my favorite car, or maybe it was just the times. Anyway, although my 2012 Fit is far more sophisticated mechanically and electronically, I still feel like I'm channeling my old VW when I'm driving it, especially in high winds, passing or being passed by large trucks, and going over tall bridges. And it's a good feeling!

 

I have a fit sport 5mt and tow my atv on a 5x8 trailer all over the east coast.. no issues whatsoever.

 

Your trip reminds me of my first cross country move. From Cincinnati to Phoenix pulling a heavily loaded 5x8 U-Haul enclosed trailer with my 1979 Ford Pinto. That car had only 80 hp and would sometimes slip the clutch to get moving but did make it without issue. I took the southern route through New Orleans and then west on I-10 to minimize hills.

I also use my Fit for towing very frequently. It's it my truck, cargo van, commuter and economy travel car all rolled into one. You see from my Fuelly mpg signature the mileage takes a big hit when towing but what mpg does a SUV or truck pulling a trailer get? About 15 mpg if they're lucky.

I use a very lightweight Harbor Freight trailer and try to keep combined trailer and load weight under 1,200 lbs but have pulled much more for short distances. Rock solid, safe and no issues whatsoever. I haul dirtbikes also and often have to pull the trailer on rough dirt, gravel and muddy access roads to get to the trailhead.

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