Quote:
Originally Posted by elhigh
Here's a situation where I don't think the "buy a trailer instead" suggestion is going to work. The Dakota is just starting to feel the load by the time a trailer-equipped Civic is at the outer edge of its capacity.
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I completely agree. Probably 75% of folks don't actually need a truck, which is why you see so many "family haulers with open-air trunks" as I like to call them, i.e. crew cab trucks with dinky little beds.
For me, trying to tow anything with the Civic is absurd. Like I said, it's a great car and for 75% of my personal driving (to and from work, long drives to visit relatives, etc.) it does the job exceptionally well - I can get around at 40+ MPG. Trying to hook a trailer to it to move hay, tractor implements, or lumber? I've never seen any tow ratings for this generation of Civics and nobody makes a trailer hitch for them, either. The clutch and a lot of other components certainly weren't designed for much weight.
Having the 2000 pound payload capacity of the Dakota means I don't have to mess with a trailer at all at this point. I'd be hesitant to pull any more than 500 pounds with the Civic - once you deduct the weight of even a very small HF trailer, you're not left with much of anything.