Trailer Hitch Receiver and Towing Compatibility for 2018 Honda Accord

Published 09/20/2018

Question:

Copy that. Understand you cannot as a matter of liability recommend exceeding Mfr guidelines. Thought you might be able to explain the nature of the limitation, as i cannot see one. If I did it anyway, what might go wrong? Secondary question: runni g that line from trunk area to battery is said as if it were like plugging in a lamp in my house. It is not at all clear how one would do that on this car. Any pointers?? Are there any 12 v hot circuits back there that might be used?? Doing a proper job of that likely involves tearing out panels and carpet - - ugh.

asked by: Kelly F

Expert Reply:

Your 2018 Honda Accord has a max towing capacity of 1,000 lbs as you stated, so it is not able to flat tow your VW Beetle weighing 1,800 lbs. The engine and transmission are the biggest deciding factors in towing capacity but the frame, suspension, and brakes are also determining factors. We cannot recommend towing anything above that 1,000 lb capacity. The manufacturer sets the restrictions for their warranty purposes and it is likely a conservative rating to protect the manufacturer from any issues but I cannot recommend you exceed it.

Trailer hitch receivers like the Curt # C11525 which is confirmed to fit your vehicle is rated for 2,000 lbs but it is tested independently of your vehicle. So the hitch can handle that weight, but the vehicle cannot. It is very common for the trailer hitch receiver to be rated much higher than the vehicle capacity. If you don't have the trailer wiring, I recommend the Tekonsha T-One wiring harness # 118776 to give you a 4-way trailer connector. This harness connects to your factory harness behind each tail light and a power wire is run directly to your battery to power the harness. This protects your vehicle wiring from overdraw preventing electronic failures.

expert reply by: Jason S

Kelly

9/20/2018

Jason S.

9/20/2018

The basic limitation you will have is the possibility to burning out your transmission. The vehicle is not rated to pull that weight, so your transmission could be overworked and fail. Regarding the trailer wiring, the harness will require a 12V power wire from the battery. This is specifically so you don't overload your current wiring and cause any issue. I don't recommend tapping into another 12V power line, but technically you could do that if you can confirm that won't overdraw your circuit. Some people have tapped into a 12V accessory port but each vehicle is different in how they run that circuit so you would need to test compatibility and see what else is on that circuit. If it is overloaded that circuit will lose power and you will lose the wiring to all the trailer functions, so it is not recommended.