BikingDerek

Inching closer, I will be meeting with Curt to fit the new hitch either tomorrow or Monday.

Even though this process has taken several weeks longer than expected, I am very happy with the way Curt is trying to get this hitch to market and make their customers happy.

This is a total redesign of the hitch from the current sedan design.

Chewbach

That's great, Derek. Keep us posted. I'm hoping to get a hitch installed by the end of June.

mmhouse

Yes Derek, thanks a LOT!

BikingDerek

UPDATE!!!

We have a HITCH!!! Pics and details to follow, at work.

mmhouse

That's great news Derek! I'll be ordering one as soon as they are available providing you give it the thumbs up. Looking forward to pics and details.

BikingDerek

Here are some photos. I am thinking that the hitch needs to be rotated a couple of degrees to bring the end of the receiver down about a 1/2".

mmhouse

The receiver is not horizontal. Is this what you are referring to that the 'rotation' would fix? Is the rotation something you can do when installing or will it require a modification to the design of the hitch? I agree that it should be brought down a bit.

BikingDerek

Now for the details:

Once I let them know that the setup is okay they said that it would take about four weeks to get inventory setup and everything in the system.

I am going to stop by the bike shop tomorrow to see how some racks fit (just to make sure) because of the angle of the hitch. With the hitch at the current angle I am sure it would help prevent the rack from hitting the ground on driveways, etc. The issue that I am not sure about is the possibility of tray style racks hitting the bumper because of the angle.

Let me know if you have any questions.

wbt3

Derek,
Thanks, this looks very tight! I traded with my daughter so I now have her roof mount but still would rather has rear hitch for my wife. It is not easy for her to lift the bike off the roof but she can lift on to a rear mount, no problem.

Are you pleased with the fit of this hitch, mount, ease of Assy... Finish?

Perhaps we will see you in the valley!
Regards, WBT

BikingDerek

The rotation would require a modification to the design of the hitch. That could be done on modifying either the support to cross tube angle or receiver tube to cross tube angle.

wbt3

Derek,
The angle of the hitch, meaning it tips up at the and? Away from the ground?

wbt3

Derek, Did they come to town and mount for you.? Your pictures are good and give a clear representation. I also assume it is a 1 1/4 in correct?

BikingDerek

The fit of the hitch is very nice and tucked up as far as possible. I am not sure on the angle of the receiver tube yet, will be investigating that more in the next couple of days.

The hitch installation was no worse that others that I have done, the only difference was the trimming of the heat shields.

Bear in mind, this hitch was a hand-assembled unit and not one that was done on a production line, as such the finish of the hitch does not have the consistency in the paint as the one that didn't fit.

Depending on the day and time it is very likely that you might see me in the valley. I am there most days after work and on the Weekends.

mmhouse

I will be using mine to tow a small trailer. I don't know if the upward angle of the receiver would cause any problems with that or not.

I suppose that would be a question for Curt....which ball mount do they offer that would work properly with this hitch?

Would appreciate your passing that question along to them.

BikingDerek

Yes the end of the hitch is angled up (away from the ground), one of the people from their Detroit office drove down and we installed the hitch going over the instructions to see if any corrections were necessary. The hitch is 1-1/4".

As far as the ball mount and trailer, I am not sure.

Let me see if I can draw a picture of the angle I am talking about. Please bear in mind it will probably be crude.

mmhouse

The angle of the receiver is pretty clear to me from your photos. From an appearance standpoint I think that's good. I just need to know that Curt has (or will offer) a ball mount that will compensate for the angle and allow for a ball hitch.

BikingDerek

Update for the angle of the receiver. I verified that the production hitches will not have the severe angle that this hitch has. Remember, this was a hand built hitch to verify fitment.

Hopefully this clears up the angle.

mmhouse

Well this is all good news Derek. Now we just wait about a month I guess. Will you get notice from Curt when the production hitch is available and be able to announce in this thread?

Really appreciate your sticking with this.

wbt3

Derek,
I appreciate the time an effort you have take to inform all of us of your progress and the pressure you have put on Curt to provide a product for the Acura market...

Regards, WBT3

kshurgan

Still trying to find a hitch for the wagon. I found a local custom shop that will make one for $800 and acura sells roof rack attachemments that also run $800.

BikingDerek

Right now you will not be able to find one, they do not exist. Curt is in the final stages of producing a hitch for the wagon, it should be available in hopefully a month.

billyt1963

Derek,

Thanks for keeping up with this. When this is available I will be very interested. I have a roll on Yakima, so any experience you have would be great to hear about.

Billy

mmhouse

Anything new from Curt?

BikingDerek

I received a production sample from Curt earlier this week. I hope to have confirmation of correct fitment this weekend.

wbt3

Derek,
Did nice ride this weekend from Mansfield to Belville about 14 miles one way... paved old B&O rail trail...
hope the fitting went well and look forward to your assessment

BikingDerek

Hi everyone, the production sample has the same angle as the prototype. I will be traveling to their offices next Tuesday to get everything corrected so they can finally get a production hitch made for the wagon. I will ask if they can let me know when the production hitch is available to order and will let everyone know.

mmhouse

Thanks for the update Derek.

I'm patiently (okay maybe not so patiently) waiting.

BikingDerek

Made the trip to Michigan today, went over the fit of the production sample in regards to the angle issue. The biggest problem was the hitch side supports were about 1/2" too long and the receiver tube/cross supports and the frame brackets were off a degree or two. Curt is sending the updates to the main office and I HOPE to have another production with the revisions next week.

BikingDerek

Update...

I have not posted anything because I am still trying to work out fitment issues with the hitch. I will not go into details but I just wanted to let everyone know it is not finished yet. PM me if you have any questions.

Cheers,
Derek

mmhouse

Wow, it seems like this is more complicated than it should be. Don't these guys build hitches for a living?

BoomerTX

Just got my TSX wagon. Part of the decision process was the ability to use the rack and the hope that an aftermarket hitch would become available. Good work by Derek to make this happen. So I see that the pictures were of a 1.25" hitch. Do you think that the manufacturer would be able to make one with a 2" receiver. Would love to keep my Thule bike rake with a 2" connection.....

BikingDerek

The TSX is only rated for 1000 lbs towing, you would need to have a hitch custom made if you wanted it to be 2". You could use an adapter.

BikingDerek

Last update on the hitch, fitment has been confirmed and Curt has a hitch available for the wagon finally. The Curt part number is 11085, It is not listed on their site yet if you check fitment. The 11085 hitch is for the new accords as well. This should be available immediately since it is an existing hitch number.

mmhouse

FYI...I just checked and the 11085 hitch now shows up on Curt's site as being the correct hitch for the 2011 Acura sportwagon as well as the Accord sedan.

Chewbach

I purchased the Curt hitch and installed it this weekend. For those that are interested, here’s the installation process in a nut shell:

• Raised the car via a jack.
• Lowered exhaust onto a strap (to help support the weight of the exhaust) by using a small pry bar to slide off 4 rubber isolators (2 per side) that I lubed with WD40.
• Removed 2 heat shields (1 per side).
• Used a rotary tool to enlarge the two “entry” holes (1 per side) that you fish the carriage bolts and spacers through.
• Fished two spacers and two carriage bolts into place using the fish wire included with the hitch.
• Mounted the hitch via the two carriage bolts and one U-bolt via a torque wrench.
• Used aviation shears to trim the heat shields and reinstalled them.
• Raised exhaust by reconnecting the rubber isolators.
• Lowered car and removed the jack.

A few things I learned along the way:

• I was very careful when fishing the spacers & carriage bolts into place. However, when I first attempted to connect them to the hitch, I bumped one of the bolts back into the ‘abyss’. (Thankfully, a telescoping magnet and some patience remedied the problem!)
• I didn’t need to remove/re-install any trim pieces.
• I’m guessing the installation process would have taken no more than an hour to complete, had I not run into the carriage bolt issue.
• I purchased the hitch from Amazon - $121 shipped! (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004NTK2Y8)
• I also purchased an Allen 3-Bike hitch-mount rack from Amazon - $79 shipped! (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001M4KXDM)
• I couldn’t find an installation video for the TSX Wagon. However, I did watch this one for the Accord: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sajblFgDic.

scheißterhöffer

Thanks for the info. I have no experience with hitches or racks and have a question about this, I don't think it's necessarily specific to this rack, but hopefully someone can answer it.

The bikes attach at the top. What's to keep the bottom of the bike from swinging forward, I'm thinking particularly during a hard stop, and hitting the back of the car? Or, in the instance of multiple bikes, from hitting each other?

Thanks for any input.

wbt3

Hello scheißterhöffer, the bikes will be held by the top tube and a corner of the bracket that hold the down tube.. bikes will rub and hit each other or the main tube from the rack... use foam hot water pipe insulation... it is slit on one side... I place it over where the bikes will touch..on one bike.. then use a bungie cord to hold them from swinging..
or you can buy one of these
http://www.thule.com/en/DE/Products/...ic-G6-LED-929#

mmhouse

Thanks Chewbach.

Do you have any photos of your final install? I'm curious about how the angle of your receiver turned out.

Chewbach

Here's a couple pictures I snapped this afternoon....

mmhouse

Thanks Chewbach, that looks good.

Is the hitch receiver parallel to the ground looking from the side?