Will the Tongue Weight Capacity of a 2007 Honda Odyssey Increase with a Higher Rated Hitch

Question:

Hello! I am trying to assist my parents in modifying their 2007 Honda Odyssey to be able to use a trailer with a lift for a powerchair. As I understand it, the chair is ~320 pounds, and the lift is ~100 pounds. The folks at the VA indicated that the Odyssey does not have enough tongue weight to be able to manage such a thing. My mother seems to think that she needs a new vehicle, but from what Ive read from your website and other points online it seems to me that instead she just needs a Class III Weight Distributing Hitch that will put her over the ~420 pound tongue weight, yes? Am I correct that we could purchase the correct hitch, have someone install it as a WD hitch which I assume would require some welding rather than simply bolting it on because of the WD, and that would meet the requirements? Hopefully that makes sense, and hopefully you can tell me whether Ive got it correct or all wrong! Thank you!

asked by: Eric H

Expert Reply:

Whenever you are towing, the weight capacity of your towing setup is limited by the lowest rated component. When I looked up the towing weight capacity of your 2007 Honda Odyssey it looks like the max trailer weight it could tow (with just one passenger in the vehicle) is 3,500 lbs. Since vehicle manufacturers typically state that the tongue weight (TW) of the trailer needs to be 10% of the weight of the trailer; that means your TW rating is 350 lbs.

Trailer hitch manufacturers rate their hitches separate from the vehicles that they fit. Even though the Draw-Tite # 75270 has a TW capacity of 675 lbs, your Odyssey has a lower TW rating you are limited to the 350 lb TW even if you were to use a weight distribution system.

If you are towing a trailer then you should be good to go but it sounds like you are using more of a cargo carrier type of setup which puts all of the weight on the tongue. If this is the case then the people at the VA are most likely correct and you will be overloading your vehicle. You can double check the TW rating of your Odyssey in your owner's manual or by checking with your local Honda dealer using your VIN.

expert reply by: Jon G