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Old 10-31-2013, 01:33 PM   #61
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I have to object to the comments on warranty work. A bay making some money is better than an empty bay costing them money (overhead such as electricity, heat, water, taxes, etc). Just the other day my manager griped that a warranty repair (on a specific job) paid better than customer pay. You'd be surprised how many tire and oil changes are money losers to get customers in the door, for dealers and lube shops alike.

Now most mechanics would prefer customer pay as warranty pays poorly, but the bills still have to be paid and warranty work is better than no work.

Old school dealers tried to get out of warranty like the examples given, for the reasons already stated. But with more competition from independent shops and lubes shops expanding their range of services, dealers are learning (slowly) that they can't be as picky about what work they accept. The "plum jobs" have already been picked and they are stuck fixing the scraps.

And class 2 is a 1 1/4 receiver. You don't get 2" until class 3. Of course there are always some odd balls like a manufacturer that puts a 2" but limits tow rating.

Jason
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Old 10-31-2013, 01:40 PM   #62
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Originally Posted by Carol H View Post
Why would the comments of someone who installs hitches for a living and simple because few of his customers have reported to them they had their warranty claims rejected rest your concerns.

I have a hunch most people would be like me and not bother to say anything to the hitch installer because I was the idiot who paid them to do it knowing full well what I was doing & no doubt signed off on the service contract to do the job.

What would the point in wasting any more time or money of possible a long distant call to cry over it with the guy who installed the hitch?
The author speaks of 1,000's of sedans and crossovers that he has set up and there has been no reports of denied warranty claims. Not all of those 1,000's would share your view.
I, like many other of his customers have an interest in the science of towing, and continue to provide feedback to him. I would not hesitate to let him know about any negatives toward vehicle warranty work.
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Old 10-31-2013, 01:43 PM   #63
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And class 2 is a 1 1/4 receiver. You don't get 2" until class 3. Of course there are always some odd balls like a manufacturer that puts a 2" but limits tow rating.

Jason
No problem with your objections, so hope you dont mind my objecting to the above comment.


From Etrailers:" There are a few Class II hitches that have 2" x 2" receiver openings, but this is not common."

I became aware of the above through a local speciality hitch shop, due to a bike rake issue I had - but you are correct it does not change a Class II hitches weight rating - simple the receiver opening size.
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Old 10-31-2013, 01:50 PM   #64
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This post #13 puts my concerns to rest. http://www.airforums.com/forums/f238/new-old-tow-vehicle-109037.html[/QUOTE]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mr. Ponzi was also put a lot of his customers mind to rest, until his money making scheme went south,.

I too can't imagine why the word of someone who has a vested ($$$)interst in convincing what he is doing could be taken as gospel.

As all atty's will tell you, a verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on, same goes for someones opinion.

I hope that form of "certification" won't fly in Canada, I know it won't in the USofA

Better Bet:

1. Go to the car builder and get a letter in writing, signed by someone authorized to do so, that states that what you want to do won't void your warrantee.

2. Contact your insurance company and get a letter in writing, again signed by someone authorized to do so, that states that towing in excess of the manufacturers stated specifications, won't have any effect on any of your insurance coverage.

As mentioned earlier, in Pasadena, CA, a truck driver was just sent to jail for driving an overloaded vehicle when that condition led to an accident that cause a death. He will be a guest of the state for about 5 years,



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Old 10-31-2013, 01:56 PM   #65
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Why did I buy a Honda CRV?

I rarely go to Honda for service and never expect to during the warranty period. Actually with our 6 Hondas I've never had a warranty repair. On our present Honda CRV the air conditioner failed at 60,000 miles well out of warranty. I wrote a letter to Honda and to the Honda dealer saying I thought this was an early failure and would they do something. Within days I got a letter from Honda and one from the dealer accepting the entire repair cost, $1,100.

I am not a relative of the dealer or know no one at Honda.
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Old 10-31-2013, 02:01 PM   #66
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Air and warranty issue

Norm... we too had an air conditioning issue with our Infiniti. It was within the warranty time frame. They installed an EC (engineering change) that completely replaced the original air conditioning parts. They showed me the invoice which was over $1,500. No charge to me.

Like you we have had no drive train issues in or outside of the warranty period.
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Old 10-31-2013, 02:10 PM   #67
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Funny enough during ownership of 4 different cars by the same manufacture have only had two minor warranty issues. One was a leaking window seal and the other the tire pressure monitoring system - seems the car wasnt set at the factory to deal with really cold weather.

Both looked after and covered under warranty.
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Old 10-31-2013, 02:24 PM   #68
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Well, certainly if your a/c goes out or a window seal starts leaking, overweight towing will have no effect on that part of the vehicle warrantee.

But, if the automatic transmission gives up or something in the suspension bites the dust, that may be a different story.

My Sonoma had 150,000 miles on it when sold and the only warrantee problem was a bad wiper interval timer at about 15,000 miles. But I only towed within specifications.....



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Old 10-31-2013, 02:47 PM   #69
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No problem with your objections, so hope you dont mind my objecting to the above comment. From Etrailers:" There are a few Class II hitches that have 2" x 2" receiver openings, but this is not common." I became aware of the above through a local speciality hitch shop, due to a bike rake issue I had - but you are correct it does not change a Class II hitches weight rating - simple the receiver opening size.
I found the info I was looking for when I originally posted. SAE J684 defines class 1 up to 2000lbs and 1 1/4, class 2 up to 3500lbs and 1 1/4, class 3 up to 5000 and 2, class 4 up to 10,000lbs and 2.
http://standards.sae.org/j684_200507/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/tow_hitch

The wiki article quotes the SAE specification, but to read the full text on SAE's web site it costs over $60.

I do realize that some hitch makers and OEMs will make a 2" receiver for a vehicle designed for class 2, but the intended purpose is to allow use with a greater availability of accessories. As some people have commented bike carriers are more stable on a 2" receiver. Jason
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Old 10-31-2013, 02:55 PM   #70
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I do realize that some hitch makers and OEMs will make a 2" receiver for a vehicle designed for class 2, but the intended purpose is to allow use with a greater availability of accessories. As some people have commented bike carriers are more stable on a 2" receiver. Jason
Very true which is why I mentioned it. No suggestion that it upped the anti on the weight capacity of the hitch or the car for that matter
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Old 10-31-2013, 03:02 PM   #71
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I found the info I was looking for when I originally posted. SAE J684 defines class 1 up to 2000lbs and 1 1/4,

Hmm... My nephew's Class 1 looked more like a solid bar that was ~1.5" wide by 0.5" tall. It had a smaller hole for the ball, so could only accommodate a 1-7/8 ball. It didn't seem removable.
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Old 10-31-2013, 03:41 PM   #72
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Small update - class 1 receivers typically have no reinforcing ring around the end of the tube. Also they have a tab in the tube to prevent using class 2 ball mounts and accessories.

The old style class 1 used to be a flat bar, but I can honestly say I haven't seen one of those in decades. Here is a link to reference that lists the old style http://www.sizes.com/home/trailer_hitches.htm

Now class 1 and 2 look too much alike, in my opinion.

Jason
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Old 10-31-2013, 03:48 PM   #73
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Now class 1 and 2 look too much alike, in my opinion.

Jason
Yes and no - if you only look at the receiver then yes they are hard to tell apart. But if you look at the hitch itself you can normally see the difference in the tubing size etc. Class II hitch will normally look more substantial than a Class I when side by side.
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Old 10-31-2013, 08:52 PM   #74
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Yes and no - if you only look at the receiver then yes they are hard to tell apart. But if you look at the hitch itself you can normally see the difference in the tubing size etc. Class II hitch will normally look more substantial than a Class I when side by side.
True, very true. Alas the general public is not usually astute enough to notice those differences, from my experience. Some might, a few more will if you put them side by side, but a lot won't know the difference even when it is pointed out.

Jason
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Old 11-01-2013, 06:33 AM   #75
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HA.... We didn't need no stinkin' Class anything hitches

Back (like in the 50's) when my family would rent a 12' trailer for vacations, they just clamped a trailer hitch onto the bumper and off you went. In at least 5 years of these vacations we never had a permanent hitch on any of out vehicles including a 1947 Oldsmobile and a 1951 Pontiac. Somewhere I have a horrible pic of what that looked like.

"The Long, Long Trailer" had nothing on us.....



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Old 11-21-2013, 09:04 PM   #76
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Carol H View Post
Nope no dry weights (which as we all know dont mean much) but a loaded one on the Trailer Weights in the Real World thread has one weigh in at 1974lbs. That trailer *may* have been loaded pretty light as there is also a 13' Trillium on the list that weighed in only 135lbs less. Have a camping buddy that had a 4500 Trillium and they indicated theirs weight in at about 2200-2300lbs loaded for camping but with no water.
I weigh my 1980 Trillium 4500 each time we travel into southern Alberta where the weigh scales are free and easily accessible, including a trip about a month ago. It usually comes in at 820Kg, which is 1804 pounds. That does not include our hitch weight. With two propane tanks, a battery and two jacks on the front, our hitch weight adds about 175 pounds, for a total weight just under 2000 pounds. That includes our permanently mounted solar panel, 2 – 5 gallons of water, a tool box weighing probably 25 pounds, an 8 inch thick memory foam double bed mattress, portable barbeque and grill plate and all usual living stuff in the trailer. We have a front dinette and no bathroom, but have all the usual appliances and a box of setup stuff. With the sturdy double wall construction of much of the trailer, yours probably won’t get much lighter, but it shouldn’t be much heavier unless you carry something really heavy.

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Old 11-22-2013, 11:02 AM   #77
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We pack our 4500 with all the stuff that 5 kids, and two adults require. The van is full of people, so the trailer is full of all the luggage, and water toys, camping gear, food, ..... It gets heavy. That is why we have a 3500 lb axle, and a 2" ball.
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