Will the SS manual shift trailer motorcycle?

[k0jdd]

Originally Posted by Vash

Ok since you necro's rezed this thread then make yourself useful and find out if anyone has a trailer hitch kit for the 5th Gen Automatic Camaro yet.

There is that one picture of a CTF pulling a trailer. I know you can buy the kits for Vette so.

[02b4c]

Thank you KOJDD for the trailer hitch info. should my son see fit to follow thru with his promise, I hope every one will pop a beer at my wake.

[k0jdd]

Clearance is 8". That's the same as the clearance on my 1999 Gen4.

With the ball mount in place, the top of the ball is 16" off the deck, but 18" would be optimum.

In the end this is all about weight. Two adult passengers in the back would be a larger downforce load (assuming you could actually get them in there... )

If you keep the tongue weight low by balancing the load properly it should not be a problem.

FYI - This will be used primarily for mounting a bike rack.

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by k0jdd

Clearance is 8". That's the same as the clearance on my 1999 Gen4.

How does overhang differ? IIRC, the 5th gen has less overhang, so 8" of clearance would be better than it was on the 4th gen.

In the end this is all about weight. Two adult passengers in the back would be a larger downforce load (assuming you could actually get them in there... )

Passengers in the backseat are in front of the rear axle. A trailer hitch bears weight far behind the rear axle. That gives the weight a lot of leverage, and you can't put as much weight on a hitch ball as you can in a backseat or you'll get too little weight on the front and too much weight on the rear.

In practice, I suspect that the 5th gen is no slouch. Being pretty heavy, and probably having a somewhat ballsy rear suspension, should add up to decent capacity.

[calflan]

I would'nt tow 2 bikes. 1 would'nt be a big deal. Why would you be thinking of the 'twisties' with a trailer ? Pulling excessive weight behind what the car is rated for is not a good idea to begin with, but pulling ANY trailer and expecting to get a ride through the twisties is looking for trouble.

Kojdd - that's a real cleana nd good looking install. Thanks your friend for us, I'll be looking into that to pull my cruiser ... but just one.

[Darsh 007]

'grats on the hitch. You should be fine for light loads. My uncle used to tow his glider in a trailer behind his 80-something prelude. I drove it around a coupla times hooked up, and it handled fine. This was in the mountains of PA. Just make sure you give yourself more stopping distance than you anticipate downhill...

[l008com]

I want to get the same thing so I can put a bike rack on mine, when I get it. Problem is, the bike rack sticks straight out of the receiver a good foot or two. If it's that low, it will DEFINITELY scrape, a lot. And when it is scraping, it's going to be transmitting all those forces to the body of the car wherever the hitch is bolted on. I'm going to have to see what the options are when I actually get my car.

[BassGeek]

Hey K0jdd,
Can you give us an update on how your hitch is working out with the bike rack? I don't have my Camaro yet, but I'll want an easy way to bring the bikes once I get it. I have a Thule 954 rack. With the hitch pictured, I am concerned about scraping. Any chance you could post a photo with your bike rack attached?
Thanks much!

[k0jdd]

Originally Posted by BassGeek

Hey K0jdd,
Can you give us an update on how your hitch is working out with the bike rack? I don't have my Camaro yet, but I'll want an easy way to bring the bikes once I get it. I have a Thule 954 rack. With the hitch pictured, I am concerned about scraping. Any chance you could post a photo with your bike rack attached?
Thanks much!

It works out just fine.

I just don't see this as a scraping hazard, at least not where I drive.

If you visualize from the second image the type of incline required to scrape you can postulate that:

- It has to start from flat ground on an immediate incline, almost as if the road were bent up like a sheet of metal.

- The incline needs to exceed approximately 9 degrees (5 inches run for every inch rise) or almost 10%. ( Danger! - i just did some 7th grade math...)

By way of comparison, go measure the clearance on your front air dam and the distance from that to the leading edge of the front tires. I think you will find that its a bigger scraping risk.

If you can scrape your hitch coming down, I think the air dam would also scrape on the way up.

A super big speedbump or a really poorly designed driveway apron might do it, but to me it seems unlikely.

BTW - Curt manufacturing has this hitch's info on their website now. click here

[BassGeek]

Thanks so much for posting these pics. The perspective in that second photo is perfect. being able to see the wheel in relation to the hitch really helps. I can see that it would have to be a really steep speed bump to scrape. And I think you're right that your front end would probably hit first (though I don't have my car to measure yet). My rack doesn't sweep up so nicely like yours, but I can tell from the photo that it will be just fine. I ride a lot and like to bring my bike with me whenever I can, but don't really want to put a trunk rack on. This will be perfect.
Thanks again.

[theholycow]

You could always stick the bike in the trunk. Pop off the front wheel, and if it's still too tight a fit, ten seconds with a Pedro's pedal wrench takes off each pedal.

[BassGeek]

Yea, I will certainly try the trunk, but it is awfully small. And I know what you mean; my pedal wrench is a good friend that I use often. I rented a Camaro 1LT last month and made sure I could fit my practice bass amp in the trunk, and my bass case in the back seat (since it wouldn't fit in the trunk), but I neglected to try any of the bikes. I imagine my road and triathlon bikes would fit okay with the wheels removed, but I think my mountain bike (29er) will be tough. Though that's all without adding the family. Fortunately, I am keeping the Suburban too!
Thanks for the input.
Cheers!

[duder4thgen]

[HDDAN]

Unless you are going to the race track with the motorcycle, why not ride it? It is a motor vehicle, isn't it? I practice what I preach, I just rode my Harley from Boston Ma to Sturgis SD and back last month. I put on 5,000 miles in 12 days.