Will The Swagman Trailhead Work Well On My 2018 Honda Ridgeline?  

Question:

Helpful Expert Reply:

The Swagman Trailhead 2 Bike Rack for 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Tilting # S63360 will certainly fit your 2018 Honda Ridgeline RTL-T as long as you have either a 1-1/4" or 2" trailer hitch receiver installed. It comes with an anti-rattle hitch pin to reduce wobble, but it does not lock; you can add Swagman 1/2" Locking Anti-Wobble Threaded Hitch Pin # S64029 to lock the carrier to your hitch receiver.

The Trailhead bike rack does have a tilt mechanism, but keep in mind it likely will not tilt enough to gain full access to the tailgate; you can see in the attached photo that another truck was tested with this bike rack and the tailgate was only able to partially open. To get around this you can add a hitch extender such as Trailer Hitch Extender for 2" Hitch Receivers - 8" Long # e88YR for 2" receivers or Curt Hitch Extender 7" Long # D189 for 1-1/4" receivers. The only downside to using an extender is that it will reduce your hitch's overall capacity by 50%.

Your last option is to use a different bike rack that will clear your dropped tailgate without the need for an extender. For this, your best rack is the RockyMounts BackStage 2 Bike Platform Rack - 2" Hitches - Swinging - Wheel Mount # RKY10002. This has a really nice swing-away feature to clear the tailgate or trunk on vehicles; it only fits 2" receivers. Keep in mind, this may not clear your swinging tailgate, but it will clear your folded down tailgate. I attached several demonstration videos for you.

expert reply by: Andrew N

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Swagman Trailhead Tilt Mechanism
(click to enlarge)