Towing trailer and glider with a honda civic

The Australian VTi Honda Civic is rated
Towing capacity (kg)
trailer with brakes 800
trailer without brakes 500
ball down force 50

That said, I don't recommend using a small car to tow even if it seems
to tow reasonably well.
When things go wrong the trailer overwhelms the car.
In the mid 80s I had to avoid an oncoming car whose driver was dozing.
I got down to about 40KPH as the other car approached and then the
trailer began to jackknife then straighten then roll the car.
Trailer and car a write off, glider was ok, other car snuck past and
disappeared, I got a compressed vertebra.
Ruff

At 05:34 28 February 2018, 2G wrote:
On Tuesday, February 27, 2018 at 3:09:43 PM UTC-8,

wrote=
:
I have a 2016 honda civic. It=E2=80=99s my only car. Has any one
towed
th=
eir glider and trailer using a small sedan like a civic?

I could not find towing capacity listed as a spec in the Civic's Owner's
Ma=
nual. I found a couple of references that say that the Civic is not rated
f=
or towing and doing so voids the warranty, such as:

The owners manual clearly states that the Honda Civic is not rated for
towi=
ng. Put on a trailer hitch and kiss your warranty goodbye.

Go to page 395:

"Your vehicle is not designed to tow a trailer. Attempting to do so can
voi=
d your warranties."

=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

That said, you can buy tow hitches for the Civic. I recommend
contacting
yo=
ur dealer before proceeding.

Tom

A friend of mine has a 2011 Civic and uses it for towing without problems.
This is in the UK.

Chris

At 08:07 28 February 2018, Maxx Ruff wrote:
The Australian VTi Honda Civic is rated
Towing capacity (kg)
trailer with brakes 800
trailer without brakes 500
ball down force 50

That said, I don't recommend using a small car to tow even if it seems
to tow reasonably well.
When things go wrong the trailer overwhelms the car.
In the mid 80s I had to avoid an oncoming car whose driver was dozing.
I got down to about 40KPH as the other car approached and then the
trailer began to jackknife then straighten then roll the car.
Trailer and car a write off, glider was ok, other car snuck past and
disappeared, I got a compressed vertebra.
Ruff

At 05:34 28 February 2018, 2G wrote:
On Tuesday, February 27, 2018 at 3:09:43 PM UTC-8,

wrote=
:
I have a 2016 honda civic. It=E2=80=99s my only car. Has any one
towed
th=
eir glider and trailer using a small sedan like a civic?

I could not find towing capacity listed as a spec in the Civic's Owner's
Ma=
nual. I found a couple of references that say that the Civic is not
rated
f=
or towing and doing so voids the warranty, such as:

The owners manual clearly states that the Honda Civic is not rated for
towi=
ng. Put on a trailer hitch and kiss your warranty goodbye.

Go to page 395:

"Your vehicle is not designed to tow a trailer. Attempting to do so can
voi=
d your warranties."

=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

That said, you can buy tow hitches for the Civic. I recommend
contacting
yo=
ur dealer before proceeding.

Tom

On Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at 2:09:43 AM UTC+3, wrote:
I have a 2016 honda civic. It’s my only car. Has any one towed their glider and trailer using a small sedan like a civic?

Tow ratings are funny things. What appears to be absolutely the same car can have vastly different tow ratings in different countries.

There would be very few cars (that are allowed to tow at all) with an official rating insufficient to tow a modern single-seater in a modern trailer with brakes.

The Cobra site says they can make trailers with a loaded maximum weight of:

- 750 kg for 15m single seaters (426 kg empty)

- 1000 kg for other single seaters up to 23m, including allowance for accesories

- 1300 kg for open class or two seaters (646 to 850 kg empty, depending on options)


A UK site lists towing for 2017 Civic as:

- 800 kg for 1.0 automatic
- 1000 kg for 1.5 automatic
- 1200 kg for 1.0 manual
- 1400 kg for 1.5 manual

http://www.uktow.com/towing%20capaci...a&model1=Civic

So in theory you could tow a Duo Discus or DG1000 or Grob Twin behind a 1.5 manual Civic.

I don't think I'd try that myself! A 15m single seater should be fine.

Engine power is not really a concern. You've got gears, right?

Transmission cooling is a bigger problem for conventional automatics. Manuals and CVTs aren't generally a problem.

I once towed a Grob Twin Astir in an absolutely awful huge boxy brick wall heavy trailer from Auckland to Wellington behind a 2.5l Subaru Legacy with automatic transmission. I needed to go at least 80 km/h with that load in order for the torque converter to lock up 1:1 (and thus stop churning and heating the oil). But the trailer started to get unstable above 80 km/h. Driving just below 80 km/h for more than half an hour or so made some unhappy hot smells and nervous gear changes. By the end of that trip I was highly skilled at quick jabs on the steering wheel to dampen out oscillations at 90 or 100 km/h.

The same car tows a DG1000 in a modern trailer with no problems whatsoever, locking up the torque converter at maybe 65 km/h.

Le mercredi 28 février 2018 00:09:43 UTC+1, a écritÂ*:
I have a 2016 honda civic. It’s my only car. Has any one towed their glider and trailer using a small sedan like a civic?

I towed a Cobra (single axle) trailer with an ASK-21 from Belgium to Gruyère (Switzerland) and back without problems with my 2015 Civic 1600 Diesel. The towing limit is 1400 kg according to the homologation certificate.. Fuel consumption was 6 liter/100 km instead of the usual 5 l/100 km.

On Wednesday, 28 February 2018 01:09:43 UTC+2, wrote:
I have a 2016 honda civic. It’s my only car. Has any one towed their glider and trailer using a small sedan like a civic?

Answer to question depends where you live. Europe: no problem at all. US: mother of god that's dangerous, get massive SUV right away.

I'd like to size my tow car for the worst case. Worst case so far was dry pavement ABS shuddering invoking panic stop from 35 mph to 5 mph when a moose appeared one night. Avionic trailer with surge brake and a 2004 Volvo XC70. Stable deacceleration and no collision.

Since then I stopped towing after dark. My appreciation of the risk at the time was hypothetical. There was a sign warning about moose, so I was driving on a deserted road at 35 mph in a 50 mph zone.

Many years ago, I towed my Jantar 1 in its giant steel and wooden trailer behind a 1.6 liter VW Golf. I did it once!

Lessons I learned:

1) Front-wheel drive vehicles are least suited to towing as they have less rear-end weight and suspension that's not always heavy duty.

2) A tow vehicle that's at least as heavy as the trailer

3) Preferably rear-wheel or all-wheel drive

With the above in mind, the Honda Civic has a curb weight of at least 2,500 pounds and plenty of power and should work if you are careful. I would limit your top speed and avoid the steepest routes. As others have noted, Civics and similar-sized vehicles are used for trailer towing in Europe and other parts of the world.

Mike

On Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at 8:09:16 PM UTC+3, Mike the Strike wrote:
Many years ago, I towed my Jantar 1 in its giant steel and wooden trailer behind a 1.6 liter VW Golf. I did it once!

Lessons I learned:

1) Front-wheel drive vehicles are least suited to towing as they have less rear-end weight and suspension that's not always heavy duty.

2) A tow vehicle that's at least as heavy as the trailer

3) Preferably rear-wheel or all-wheel drive

When I started gliding, most people in NZ seemed to be using Ford Falcons or Holden Commodores (whether sedan, station wagon, or ute) for glider towing.

Sometime in the late 90s to early 2000s it suddenly seemed that a lot of people switched to using Subaru Legacy or Outback, or even Impreza/WRX. These cars tow well and stably on the highway, but also are pretty good at getting in and out of various places that people land out. All while using 2/3 the fuel of the Aussie six cylinder cars.

On Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at 9:32:07 AM UTC-8, Bruce Hoult wrote:
On Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at 8:09:16 PM UTC+3, Mike the Strike wrote:
Many years ago, I towed my Jantar 1 in its giant steel and wooden trailer behind a 1.6 liter VW Golf. I did it once!

Lessons I learned:

1) Front-wheel drive vehicles are least suited to towing as they have less rear-end weight and suspension that's not always heavy duty.

2) A tow vehicle that's at least as heavy as the trailer

3) Preferably rear-wheel or all-wheel drive

When I started gliding, most people in NZ seemed to be using Ford Falcons or Holden Commodores (whether sedan, station wagon, or ute) for glider towing.

Sometime in the late 90s to early 2000s it suddenly seemed that a lot of people switched to using Subaru Legacy or Outback, or even Impreza/WRX. These cars tow well and stably on the highway, but also are pretty good at getting in and out of various places that people land out. All while using 2/3 the fuel of the Aussie six cylinder cars.

Towing a Nimbus 3/25.5 in a Pfeiffer trailer, have used Subaru Outback, Holden Commodore, Chevy Tahoe and Toyota Rav4 (FWD only).
The Subaru was probably the best, followed by the Rav4.
The Chevy needed the V8 just to lug it's own weight around. It did not behave as well in various wind conditions as the others.
Jim

My wife's 3.6 liter (6-cylinder) outback will tow a glider trailer up
the steepest mountains in the US and pass everyone along the way.Â* It
still gets great mileage, though you do notice the difference towing.Â*
As long as weight is properly distributed, it's rock solid.

On 2/28/2018 10:32 AM, Bruce Hoult wrote:
On Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at 8:09:16 PM UTC+3, Mike the Strike wrote:
Many years ago, I towed my Jantar 1 in its giant steel and wooden trailer behind a 1.6 liter VW Golf. I did it once!

Lessons I learned:

1) Front-wheel drive vehicles are least suited to towing as they have less rear-end weight and suspension that's not always heavy duty.

2) A tow vehicle that's at least as heavy as the trailer

3) Preferably rear-wheel or all-wheel drive
When I started gliding, most people in NZ seemed to be using Ford Falcons or Holden Commodores (whether sedan, station wagon, or ute) for glider towing.

Sometime in the late 90s to early 2000s it suddenly seemed that a lot of people switched to using Subaru Legacy or Outback, or even Impreza/WRX. These cars tow well and stably on the highway, but also are pretty good at getting in and out of various places that people land out. All while using 2/3 the fuel of the Aussie six cylinder cars.

--
Dan, 5J