Recommendations for Safely Towing a Travel Trailer With a 2016 Honda Pilot

Question:

I am purchasing a 21 ft. Travel trailer with a GVW of 3880 lbs. My pilot has no factory installed towing components. We will be traveling long distances cross country for an extended amount of time...8 months or so. I will be traveling alone with my 3 children. What are the best, safest and easiest to manage alone, components for towing with my vehicle? Please recommend every necessary and just upgraded components you recommend....like upgraded tires, towing system components, air suspension system, ATF, blind spot camera, rear trailer camera, security system, tire pressure monitors, anti theft components....whatever you recommend if you were sending your wife and children off across country towing a travel trailer fir 8 months. Thanks for your help!

asked by: Lasinda M

Expert Reply:

There are a number of components I recommend for you, starting with a hitch, the etrailer # e98840 which has a max trailer weight capacity of 6,000 lbs and tongue weight capacity of 900 lbs. You are also going to need a ball mount, hitch ball, and pin and clip; but in order to choose the correct ball mount (also called a drawbar) you will need to take a couple quick measurements first.

With your Pilot parked on level ground, measure from the top of the receiver opening to the ground; your trailer should also be parked on level ground, and you'll need to measure from the bottom of the coupler to the ground. If the height of your hitch is greater, you'll need a ball mount with that amount of drop. Should the height of your coupler be greater, you will need a ball mount with that amount of rise. I've added a link to our page with each of our ball mounts, as well as a help article on ball mounts for you to take a look at.

You will also want a brake controller installed, and to do that you'd need a 4-way connector # 118760 along with the Universal Installation Kit for Trailer Brake Controller # ETBC7. For the brake controller itself, I strongly recommend the Prodigy P3 # 90195.

I also recommend a transmission cooler, the Derale Series 8000 # D13503, which is a confirmed fit for a 2016 Honda Pilot with a 3.5L V6 engine. This will help prevent your transmission from overheating and potentially failing; it is extremely highly rated by our customers who use it, with over 300 reviews giving it a nearly 5-star rating.

Finally, I strongly recommend the use of a weight distribution system with sway control. In order to choose the best weight distribution system, you will first need to know your total tongue weight (TW), which is the tongue weight of your fully loaded and ready to go trailer plus the weight of any cargo behind the rear axle of your 2016 Honda Pilot.

To determine TW you can use a scale such as the etrailer or by using one of the methods outlined in the help article on determining TW I've linked for you. The ideal system would be one in which your TW would fall somewhere in the middle of the weight distribution system's tongue weight capacity.

For example, since you have a trailer with a weight of nearly 4,000 lbs, an educated guess would put your TW somewhere in the area of 400 lbs, give or take. A great system for this would be the Equal-i-zer # EQ37060ET, which is for TW between 200 lbs and 600 lbs and offers 4-point sway control to keep your trailer from unwanted side-to-side movement.

I've added a link to our page with each of our weight distribution systems for you, as well as links to reviews and installs of the products I've mentioned.