Trailer Hitches

hockeyfan27 · 07-05-2012, 11:30 AM

Just bought a '08 Honda Odyssey minivan

to accommodate the growing family, we are expecting our 3rd child by summer's end. I'm excited about the kid, not so much about the minivan.
The good news is: I won't be stuck driving it too much AND my wife agrees the BMW should stick around as a summer car and I'll winter beat our Subaru

I need to get a Class 3 trailer hitch, ATF cooler, & brake controller installed on the van so I'm looking for your recommendations as to where. Preferably located between North York & Ajax area.

U-Haul@warden put the hitch on my Outback and butchered it. (ripped trunk weather stripping, cracked tail light, wrong sized ball -icing on cake)

Action Van World put the hitch on my Brothers SUV, also butchered. (looks like they blindly sawzalled the bumper)

So any other suggestions would be appreciated!

Axxe · 07-09-2012, 08:05 PM

Most places will hack it up. Go to a trusted independant mechanic, if they will even touch it due to liability, or your only option to get it done correctly may be at the dealer.

marek · 07-09-2012, 10:18 PM

Get the Honda one and put it on yourself, it's not that hard.

blastedM3 · 07-10-2012, 01:48 AM

i bought one and put it in myself. took me about 10 min. the wiring took about 20 min. nice and clean.

very easy to install

Dinanstu · 07-10-2012, 07:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeyfan27

Just bought a '08 Honda Odyssey minivan

to accommodate the growing family, we are expecting our 3rd child by summer's end. I'm excited about the kid, not so much about the minivan.
The good news is: I won't be stuck driving it too much AND my wife agrees the BMW should stick around as a summer car and I'll winter beat our Subaru

I need to get a Class 3 trailer hitch, ATF cooler, & brake controller installed on the van so I'm looking for your recommendations as to where. Preferably located between North York & Ajax area.

U-Haul@warden put the hitch on my Outback and butchered it. (ripped trunk weather stripping, cracked tail light, wrong sized ball -icing on cake)

Action Van World put the hitch on my Brothers SUV, also butchered. (looks like they blindly sawzalled the bumper)

So any other suggestions would be appreciated!

First of all , there is nothing wrong with a minivan! The kids will love it and you will find it convenient.

Second, I went to hitch city on Warden (just south of Uhaul) no problems.

You want the proper tow package that hides away, so when the ball and shaft is out, you dont see it.

Third, what are you hauling that requries the ATF cooler, brake package...sounds like a lot of weight for a front wheel drive mini-van...

BigD · 07-10-2012, 07:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dinanstu

Third, what are you hauling that requries the ATF cooler, brake package...sounds like a lot of weight for a front wheel drive mini-van...

+1 How much do you plan to tow? I wouldn't do more than 3000lbs gross and you don't need a trans cooler or trailer brakes for that.

sb_600 · 07-10-2012, 01:33 PM

If you're towing anything over 1000lbs, legally you need a brake controller.

Dinanstu · 07-10-2012, 01:45 PM

I thought ontario was 3000lbs.

Here...

http://www.brakebuddy.com/Towing-Laws

Not saying that a brake controller is a bad idea, depends on the weight and the ability of the vehicle to stop in a safe distance.

BigD · 07-10-2012, 02:10 PM

Not only do you not need a brake controller for 1000 lbs, you don't need one for 3000 either. Uhaul trailers for instance, have surge brakes. Like Dinanstu, I'm not saying you shouldn't get one but it's by no means a requirement, plus unless you get a reasonably nice trailer, it won't have electric brakes anyway.

I'd be more concerned with the ability to strap a proper load bearing hitch to a unibody. The typical hitch you'll be able to get is only good for about 300lbs tongue weight, so that's about a 3000lb trailer+load.

hockeyfan27 · 07-10-2012, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blastedM3

i bought one and put it in myself. took me about 10 min. the wiring took about 20 min. nice and clean.

very easy to install

BlastedM3, What vehicle was if for?

I was considering installing it myself but the, "exhaust must be temporarily removed" portion of the instructions has me weighing my options. I hate getting into a job like this then stripping a bolt or tearing a gasket and it becomes a big hassle.

Most of my towing is a utility trailer, 2 seadoos, or 2 snowmobiles & I know a tranny cooler isn't really necessary for those. However, on occasion I plan to tow a 21' boat, a 14' enclosed trailer or a 17' travel trailer, all of which hover around the van's capacity of 3000#. I figure for $300-$500 an ATF cooler is good insurance, especially if I'm going a good distance with the travel trailer. The 14' and 17' both have brakes and it's safer to utilize them.

BigD · 07-10-2012, 02:18 PM

Right on, great plan then. I was just worried by the heavy-duty concerns that you're planning to tow an enclosed car hauler or large camper or something... the Odyssey is a great minivan but towtruck it is not

The trans cooler may generally be a great idea for that car. My dad has a gen1 V6 Odyssey and it ate a transmission by 50k.

hockeyfan27 · 07-10-2012, 02:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigD

...I'd be more concerned with the ability to strap a proper load bearing hitch to a unibody. The typical hitch you'll be able to get is only good for about 300lbs tongue weight, so that's about a 3000lb trailer+load.

If you have a few mins to kill, check out http://www.canamrv.ca/towing/ These guys custom make load distributing hitches and slap them on STUPID small cars.

If the big trailers were mine then I may have leaned towards a Suburban or other full sized SUV instead of the van, but I just borrow them a few times a year. Everything I've read on the Odyssey says they've addresed the tranny issue but I was paranoid enough to get the extended warranty from Honda up to 200K (and it was a contributing factor to the ATF cooler thought).

sb_600 · 07-10-2012, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dinanstu

I thought ontario was 3000lbs.

Here...

http://www.brakebuddy.com/Towing-Laws

Not saying that a brake controller is a bad idea, depends on the weight and the ability of the vehicle to stop in a safe distance.

You're right! My bad - you need trailer brakes on a trailer than weighs more than 3000lbs - be it electric or surge.

http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/saf.../trailer.shtml

MrRWD · 07-10-2012, 07:26 PM

A trans oil cooler is cheap insurance.

We all know how Chrysler had major issues with their transmissions.
My neighbour has been buying these vans since the 80's, and always slaps on a oil cooler; he tows constantly, and has never dropped a transmission yet.

calegrant · 07-10-2012, 11:59 PM

Someone else chime in here please because this dudes ignorance is going to cause a lot of headache or worse.

If a vehicle is rated for 3000 pounds, that's max...no exception. It's also likely that that figure was determined with a small load in the vehicle already, which you likely won't have if you're going to the lake. So factor in hundreds of pounds of gear in the van with several hundred more in the boat with coolers/fuel. You're now well over your limit, but you for some reason think your corpse carrier is a hauling vehicle....no, **** no.

If you already KNOW you'll encounter 6 different types of trailers you'll be hauling for gods sake man get a proper vehicle, that is a lot of variety which most people don't have and even they justify a truck for what they want to tow. The honda may be adaquate for the once a year tent trailer trip, but you're trying to avoid the fact that your lifestyle necessitates a gas guzzling truck or suv. Those loads repeatedly being behind your van is going to tear the ever loving shit out of your drivetrain, or potentially put your and your family in a situation where you wish you didn't have several thousand pounds pushing you into harms way.

/rant