The Honda Fit is a fantastic car with decent build quality. It boasts active handling; it’s easy to park, is a fantastic city car, and has excellent gas mileage. Because the Honda Fit is so popular, it’s crucial to understand how to care for it and what it can and can’t accomplish.
A question remains if this car can tow trailers like kayaks, poop up campers, small horse trailers or not. Well, first of all, the fit is not built for towing. Still, if you want to tow, you obviously have to be sincere and maintain the right protocols about the weight distribution hitch. Read the article properly to understand everything about Honda Fit’s towing capacity and which trailer could be towed.
Is it safe to tow with a Honda fit?
It’s not safe to tow a Honda fit as recommended by the company. But still, some unofficial sources claim that Honda fit has a towing capacity of 2200 pounds in braked towing and an unbraked towing capacity of 992 pounds.
Honda fit’s weight is around 2568Ibs so it can tow some very light weighted trailers and other things. It’s always better for your vehicle to not put excess weight, which can hamper your vehicle as well as it can create an accident.
So, it’s better not to tow with your Honda fit, and if you want to tow in any case, please make sure that the trailer is less than 2200 pounds and your weight distribution hitch is properly maintained. We repeat, it’s not official and if any problems happen the company won’t give any warranty for it.
Towing capacity by different Honda fit models or Years
Knowing the towing capacity of your vehicle is essential. As Honda fit is not made for towing purposes, but still we can get some basic ideas on how to tow this car lightly even if it is not made for towing. Before understanding the towing capacities, let’s define all the Honda fit models into three segments.
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The first generation 2001-2006
In the first generation, Honda fit has 1.5-liter i-DSI or 1.5-liter VTEC engines with four cylinders are available. The L-series engine family underpins all four engines. Towing Capacity Unbraked (lbs.) 992 and Towing Capacity Braked (lbs.) 2200. Transmission 5-speed manual 5-speed automatic CVT.
The second-generation 2007-2012
In the second-generation Fit, two engines with four cylinders were available. At 6,000 rpm, a 1.3-litre i-VTEC engine develops 100 PS and 127 Nm at 4,800 rpm. A 1.5-litre i-VTEC engine with a maximum output of 120 PS at 6,600 rpm was also available.
Towing Capacity Unbraked (lbs.) 992 and Towing Capacity Braked (lbs.) 2200. Transmission 6-speed manual 6-speed automated manual CVT. The third generation 2013- present: It has a 1.5-litre four-cylinder i-VTEC engine with 117 horsepower. Towing Capacity Unbraked (lbs.) 992 and Towing Capacity Braked (lbs.) 2200. Transmission 6-speed manual 6-speed automated CVT.
| Models | Engine type | Cylinders | Towing capacity unbraked (Ibs) | Towing capacity braked (Ibs) | Transmission | Official Recommendation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-2006 | 1.5-liter VTEC engines | 4 | 992 | 2200 | 5-speed manual 5-speed automatic CVT | Not officially recommended |
| 2007-2012 | 1.3-litre i-VTEC engine | 4 | 992 | 2200 | 6-speed manual 6-speed automated manual CVT | Not officially recommended |
| 2013- Present | 1.5-liter i-VTEC engines | 4 | 992 | 2200 | 6-speed manual 6-speed automated CVT | Not officially recommended |
Honda Fit is a light vehicle with a low weight carrying capacity. As it’s not officially recommended for towing, you can tow it a bit paradoxically by reducing its payload capacity. You need a vast knowledge about weight distribution, install a perfect weighted hitch ball and follow the right steps to install the trailer. Its recommended that you only check these limits if necessary in an emergency. Towing a trailer with this vehicle regularly may cause harm to the engine and void the warranty.
Also read: How to Setup a Weight Distribution Hitch? (Step by Step)
What’s the capacity to tow a Trailer, Boat, and Jet Ski with a Honda fit?
If we want to know that is it possible to tow a trailer, boat, or jet ski with Honda fit, then first we have to know about the towing capacity of this car which we have already mentioned above. The Honda fits maximum towing capacity is around 2200 Ibs braked. So, now we have to look for those trailers which are less than 2200 pounds. Then you can understand if you can tow it or not.
| Trailer type | Loaded weight | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Car trailer | 9000 | Not recommended |
| Jet ski trailer | 1800 | Yes, it can tow |
| Fishing boat trailer | 3300 | Not recommended |
| Pop up camper | 3400 | Not recommended |
| Kayak trailer | 400 | Yes, it can tow |
| Motorcycle trailer | 2400 | Not recommended |
| Small horse trailer | 7200 | Not recommended |
| Bike rack | 188 | Yes, it can tow |
| 5th wheeler | 18700 | Not recommended |
| Gooseneck trailer | 23200 | Not recommended |
Here we can see a large weighted trailer like a car trailer, fish boat trailer, motorcycle trailer, and small horse trailer is not acceptable to tow with Honda fit. And the 5th wheel, the gooseneck not even in our dreams as it is very heavy. Honda fit can tow light-weighted trailers like a bike rack, kayak trailer, jet ski, and others less than 2200 pounds. Or some trailers which are not recommended in the above chart have an equal or less weight than 2200 pounds; when it’s not loaded, you can tow those trailers. Let’s define some of them.
Also read: How to install Gooseneck Hitch? (8 simple steps)
Jetski Trailer: The average weight of a jet ski trailer is 170-300 pounds, and it can carry a load of up to 1,800 pounds. Finally, the jet ski and trailer weigh between 500 and 1500 pounds, depending on the type. We can see it’s less than 2200 pounds so that you can tow this trailer.
Kayak trailer: A kayak trailer’s weight capacity without any accessories is 145. It can take a load of around 300-400 pounds, so the ultimately overall weight will come to around 400-550 pounds, which a Honda fit can easily fit tow under its capacity.
Read: Best Truck Bed Hitch Extender for Kayak
Bike rack: You can install a small bike rack on the back of your Honda fit. Depending on the model and type, a bike rack’s average weight capacity ranges from 17kg to 85kg (37 pounds to 188 lbs), depending on the combination of bikes. So, we can put at least four bikes easily on this rack, and Honda fit can tow 2200 pounds; these racks are far less than 2200 pounds. So, we can say that we can put a bike rack on this vehicle.
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Car trailer: The car trailer’s weight when it’s loaded is 9000 pounds. But when it’s empty, it is around 1900 pounds. So, with Honda Fit, you can tow a car trailer if it is empty or if you can manage the load equal to or less than 2200 pounds.
Fishing boat trailer: A fishing boat trailer without any load is around 600 pounds. So, you can tow this with your Honda fit when it is empty. If you can manage it with the load in between 2200 pounds, you can tow it with your fit otherwise, it’s risky to tow this trailer which can create a disbalance while you’re driving.
Motorcycle trailer: A motorcycle trailer with an empty weight of around 500 pounds. But when it is loaded, it comes around 2400 pounds. So, you can carry an empty motorcycle trailer with your Honda fit.
But you can reduce the motorcycle weight paradoxically by towing a lightweight motorcycle. If the motorcycle weight is around 600 pounds and the trailer weight is 500, then the overall weight stands for 1100 pounds. So, by putting a light-weighted single motorcycle, you can tow a motorcycle trailer with your Honda fit.
Conclusion
Honda Fit is a small and well-organized car that gives utmost pleasure driving. As mentioned it was not built for towing; that’s why it can not tow much weight. So, if any problem happens while towing, the Honda company will not be liable.
But it can tow some light weighted trailers. So, trailers like kayaks and jet skis with less weight than 2200 pounds included loads could be towed with Honda fit. The less number it is, the more beneficial it will be for your engine as it will put less pressure on your engine.
And yes, too much weight carrying can hamper your car while driving. So yes, you can tow some light trailers by maintaining proper weight distribution and proper steps.
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