Towing a trailer with a Honda Pilot or a motor home?

[Cayuga]

Hi,

I recently got a BX23S. I don't have a trailer for it yet, but I'm thinking I'll want a 16ft tandem axle trailer with brakes.

If I do that, I'm really flirting with the 3,500-4,500lb towing capacity of the Honda Pilot (especially since there are some long steep hills between here and the nearest dealer). So, I' wondering about towing the trailer/tractor behind a 25' motor home with an 8,000lb towing capacity....is this stupid? Have other people done it? Would you do it again?

Thanks in advance for any advice/criticism.

 

[85Hokie]

I have always heard that towing with a front wheel drive vehicle was not a good idea......
I am sure there is some physics involved that I never gave a second to think about.......

The Motor home sound crazy too - but my thinking would be the better option - since it is larger, weighs more and will have better brakes all the way around. Motor homes often have a small car behind them, seen that often so that would seem to work as the best option IMO

How many "trips" is this going to be? Like rolling the dice - if once a year, I can see doing it and being careful about it - but if something like several times a year ..... might find a better solution.

The 16' trailer is the perfect solution - I have a 14' and it work fine, I just have to curl the hoe to keep from hitting the tailgate.

 

[Fordtech86]

Of the two choices, pulling it with the motorhome would be the better of the two, neither would be truly ideal

 

[SAR Tracker]

Sure you may be able to tow with the Honda. But will you be able to stop?

 

[NCL4701]

Tow it with the motor home.

Downside to the motor home is it’s not a “work vehicle” so taking it to a job site hauling tools and supplies is impossible or just crazy. It’s not fuel efficient. There are 1001 places it doesn’t fit even without a trailer. Unless it’s pretty unusual, it would get stuck about 3’ into a muddy worksite. Doesn’t sound like any of that has any ramifications for just hauling to the dealer and back.

Upside to the camper is it likely has substantial weight by itself so a tail wagging the dog scenario is less likely. It also is well within its tow capacity. Folks tow cars on trailers, light trucks on trailers, camper trailers, race car trailers, etc. behind motor homes routinely. It just isn’t popular with tractors because activities requiring a motor home and activities requiring a tractor are generally incongruent, not due to motor homes being incapable.

Downside to the Pilot is your pushing the tow capacity. That’s pushing the suspension and entire driveline. Unless you do something to stiffen the suspension and tires the chances it will handle solid v being wiggly are slim but you won’t know until you try. The physics of towing with front wheel drive is not entirely prohibitive but is less than ideal. Trailer brakes properly adjusted certainly help with that but when you just let off the throttle without hitting the brakes, having the axle retarding the forward motion at the very front of the rig with the hitch way behind it is far from ideal as it creates a much longer lever arm between the hitch and retarding axle. If you don’t believe that, give it a go. Be sure to have and know how to use the trailer brake override to straighten it out if/when you let off the throttle and it gets squirrelly.

The upside to towing with the Pilot… Sorry, not coming up with anything.

if the choices are a Honda Pilot or 8K tow capacity motor home, use the motor home. You might get some funny looks, but you’ll get that towing with a Pilot, too. Don’t worry about looking funny; drive the vehicle that’s most capable of the job. Just my opinion.

 

[Fordtech86]

just hauling to the dealer and back.

I reread again and thats what I got. I would question wether you even need a trailer or not. I didn’t see where you mentioned new or used, but a 23s is a current model (back to 2018?). How often do you expect to be hauling it to the dealer? I would see what their pickup/delivery fee before buying a trailer just for that.

With a small amount of mechanical ability you can get a ton of help here to take care of most issues and routine maintenance I would guess.

Also once family/friends/coworkers know you have a tractor and a trailer they become much more “friendly”. If thats a factor or you need to frequently haul it to another property, then you need to get the proper vehicle for the job (at least 1/2 ton truck)

 

[dirtydeed]

Does your Pilot even have a brake controller? I would think that your tractor would be real close to 3K fully decked out. Many steel 16 foot tandem trailers should be around 1600-1800#. Simple math should tell you if you can legally pull it (once you know what your max tow is). The only alternative to that would be an aluminum trailer. That should save you approx 500 lbs. Maybe even incorporate a weight distributing hitch to put some more weight on your front (drive axles) and the trailer?

 

[Poohbear]

Tongue weight of the loaded trailer is probably the real issue of the Pilot.
As said allready, just pay the dealer or friend to haul it. What a new or used trailer will cost will pay for a bunch of trips. Plus no license renewal, tires, personal property tax etc etc etc

 

[Cayuga]

Thank you everyone for the helpful, thoughtful replies.

I think that for now, I'll pass on a trailer and pay someone to tow it if/when I need to. With luck (and help from OTT, I may not need to for a long time .

Thanks again!

 

[GreensvilleJay]

I got curious and there's a huge range of 'towing capacity' for a Honda Pilot, based on year, 2wd or 2wd, # of passengers. If your's is one with 4500-5000# then 'technically' it would pull a trailer and BX23S. If a customsteel trailer was built(narrower than 80"), you can shave 100s of #s of the trailer weight. Remember this is a DEDICATED BX23S hauler NOT a general purpose car hauler,but how often would you use it ? 1-2 times a year ? Say it costs $2000 for the trailer and you use it for 5 years, x2 thats $200 per use. Odds are real good you can have dealer haul for less.
If you used the motorhome, it'd haul any tandem trailer, bit tricky ,but doable. The Pilot ,easier to drive, but ONLY for ocassional use ( 1-2 x a year ?) WITH a custom trailer.
Your last reply is the best, pass and then deal with transport when (IF) needed.
I sold both my tandems this year, seldom used and ,yeesh BIG to store. neighbour says I can borrow his anytime,which really is nice !

 

[michigander]

I towed a wide body 24' cargo for years behind our 27' class c . Key is the extended frame on MH I shopped for what i have. Boxed sheet metal frame was left a dealer. I probably towed close to 60000 miles with the combo.

I did tow a 18' landscape trailer that was ok but hard to see in mirrors to back up.

 

[jimh406]

I think the motorhome won’t have an issue. The biggest concern is the braking, but even still, the motorhome shoudn’t have much of an issue. Sure, if you had something like my F450, it would haul it better, but if the motorhome is rated for 8000 lbs, you should be fine.

Another thought is that at most Home Depots, you can rent a truck. Assuming they have a trailer hitch, they could easily pull your tractor for around $20 a day plus miles.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Up here you cannot rent a pickup (or car) with a trailer hitch. NONE have them..probably a 'liability' issue.
Braking a trailer is never a problem IF it has brakes, best of BOTH axles have them.

 

[David Page]

Once saw a guy hook up to a 32' travel trailer camper with a Pilot. He was then going to get on the Interstate with Trailer Trucks passing him. Looked like the tail would wag the dog. Scary.

 

[Ikc1990]

U can rent a uhaul car trailer for like 30 bucks day, And tow behind your motor home if you get In a pinch too. Or rent there pickup another 20 AAA's. Day plus milage and fuel.

 

[lugbolt]

towed for many many years, 24' enclosed trailer, drag car inside, total weight about 7100lb....behind a 26' ford chassis motorhome. Criss crossed the country going to this race track and that one. Man I've been everywhere. Except Michigan, wisconsin, alaska, and hawaii. Tows fine for the most part. Hills, it slows down. The old 460 tows fine, uses a lot of fuel, and is a little weak on the bigger hills. Other than using a ton of gas, I was tickled with it.

I would try it with the Honda. They aren't designed for towing. Most manufacturers put a "tow rating" on stuff for marketing purposes only. Just because they say it can tow 4000 lbs doesn't mean it will do it safely....speaking from experience, it will be a white knuckle drive!

so the question is, should i or shouldn't i? Well ask yourself....if i am towing somewhere behind the pilot, and it gets away from u, or someone pulls out in front of u and it won't stop and U ram the other car, will you question your decision to tow the load with it?