tnrv'er wrote:
Last train, do you have WD hitch ?
Apologies for missing your question, TN. Had another camping trip up around the Tyler, TX area since this thread unfolded, and the stuff of life just got in the way.
The answer is "no," we do not use a WD hitch with our Ridgeline.
This was another considered decision that came out of research on the truck and TT. And this is discussed back and forth among Ridgeline owners who tow travel trailers on the ridgelineownersforum.com. The discussion pivots around: (1) the direct admonition in the Ridgeline owner's manual that advises
against the use of a WD hitch - with the statement that an incorrectly adjusted WD hitch can have adverse affects on the truck's handling and braking characteristics, etc. (this is not an exact quote 'cause I'm too lazy to go to the garage and get the manual out of the truck!, but it's close); (2) available engineering analysis from internal Honda sources that certifies that the truck was designed and engineered to function very well without a WD hitch - as long as you stayed within its stated limits. (Lots of reasons for this that I could post in an already too long response, but PM me if you want an actual document that discusses the points.)
So on the one hand you could say that Honda's cautionary statement is full of "CYA." If nothing else, we all know that you can get good professional assistance in correctly setting up a good WD hitch system - even though many may "wing it" and therefore not get the thing set up correctly. Regardless, Honda doesn't want to get sued any more than anyone else.
On the other hand, and this is where we landed, I took the overall evidence from the Ridgeline owners who reported that their trucks and TT rigs behaved very well without a WD hitch installed. And further, I examined every discoverable shred of Ridgeline towing analysis I could find to gain a level of comfort in going on without one. And I trusted what Gary Flint's design team (I misspelled his last name with a "y" in an earlier post) had done in creating the Ridgeline. As I understand it, they wanted to create a sort of "Swiss Army knife" truck that already possessed multiple capabilities engineered and built into the vehicle - without requiring the owner/user to option out a bunch of other gear to equip it for various tasks.
That approach created some penalties, because there are lots of other trucks out there that excel in certain areas more so than the Ridgeline. But they also may not be able to do the number of things the Ridgeline can do quite well - though maybe not exceptionally. The Gen 1 Ridgeline deserves criticism for less than best MPG, only 247 lb/ft of torque in a 250 hp engine and its infamously weird appearance (to many people). But it does so many things very well, including towing without a WD hitch. (The newly released Gen 2, 2017 model Ridgeline successfully addresses all the things mentioned above - and more.)
We do use a friction sway bar, and that has contributed to our solid towing experience. The weight distribution on the truck is 58% - 42% front to rear as it is sitting in our garage at the moment (I'm stating from memory so somebody don't shoot me if I'm off a digit - but I do think I'm correct). So when we hitch up our 192 RBS with the tongue weights I've noted above (480-520 or so) the rear bumper drops at the most 2". But again, the truck is natively designed to function well with these kind of loads. It is designed to act like this. And I'm not feeling light on the front axle for steering/handling, for instance. And we live in Texas where winds are an export crop, and we've towed in winds from all directions of the compass without any issues whatsoever.
But with all of this said, there is no way in the world that I would suddenly feel full of "truck testosterone" and hitch up a 6,000 lb trailer with 700 lb tongue weight (to make up a silly example) to this Ridgeline and set out on a trip. The truck is just not designed to do that. But for what we've got, it's hitch and go. In fact, getting ready soon to head over to Bastrop State Park for a few days. Should be lots of fun and an easy tow . . . but then, there are always those winds to knock our mileage down!
