Has anyone tried towing with their Renegade? If so, how heavy of a trailer have you towed and what engine/transmission combo do you have? How does the Renegade perform while towing?
I read in the owners manual that its only recommended with the 2.4 automatic transmission and is rated to tow 2000lbs...
im curious myself what others might be towing. I thought about getting a hitch myself.
We were thinking about moving from a large travel trailer to one of these: http://www.aliner.com/campers/ranger12/ With options, it's 1500lbs unloaded but once you start putting camping gear in it you'll probably get pretty close to that 2000 lbs. I'd be afraid to be the first one to max out the towing capacity.
We were thinking about moving from a large travel trailer to one of these: http://www.aliner.com/campers/ranger12/ With options, it's 1500lbs unloaded but once you start putting camping gear in it you'll probably get pretty close to that 2000 lbs. I'd be afraid to be the first one to max out the towing capacity.
I urge everyone to go slow when thinking of this vehicle for towing, ESPECIALLY if you don't have the factory tow package. Towing is not it's strong point. Add to this the fact that the 9spd is the only recommended transmission, and a strong transmission is key for towing, along with the short wheelbase, etc, ...the red lights are there people.
If you're remotely thinking of doing any kind of serious towing, consider another vehicle. Anything more than lawnmowers, dirt bikes, wave runners, etc, should NOT be considered.
I did the Renegade Ready install all by myself. Was very apprehensive but I felt there was no other options and I needed the hitch for an upcoming trip.
The install was pretty easy, the hardest part was overcoming my fear of taking a apart a brand new car. The instructions where very good, I even did the wiring no problem. I did the whole thing by myself in just shy of 8 hours. It can be done faster, but I am slow, it was hot and the beers were cold.
I said before in another thread, definitely take the rear tires off, have all the recommended as well as the required tools, if you can source them buy a few extra body retainer clips, you do run the risk of breaking more then they give you extra. I am sure if you called RR, they can provide you with a part number. I was able to buy a trim removal kit and a body clip tool on amazon for cheap -
I had everything else.
I have a small utility trailer, 800 pound max that I use for camping that I plan on using and bikes that I haul regularly. I just did a 1200 mile round trip fully loaded up with luggage and bikes. I averaged about 21mpg. I was expecting worse with the amount of drag I strapped onto the car.
I did the Renegade Ready install all by myself. Was very apprehensive but I felt there was no other options and I needed the hitch for an upcoming trip.
The install was pretty easy, the hardest part was overcoming my fear of taking a apart a brand new car. The instructions where very good, I even did the wiring no problem. I did the whole thing by myself in just shy of 8 hours. It can be done faster, but I am slow, it was hot and the beers were cold.
I said before in another thread, definitely take the rear tires off, have all the recommended as well as the required tools, if you can source them buy a few extra body retainer clips, you do run the risk of breaking more then they give you extra. I am sure if you called RR, they can provide you with a part number. I was able to buy a trim removal kit and a body clip tool on amazon for cheap -
I have a small utility trailer, 800 pound max that I use for camping that I plan on using and bikes that I haul regularly. I just did a 1200 mile round trip fully loaded up with luggage and bikes. I averaged about 21mpg. I was expecting worse with the amount of drag I strapped onto the car.
The one I put on my Amazon link works well, the pivot ball thing is perfect. The only time you need that particular tool is when your are peeling the wheel well trim. The point of contact is under the trim, so you don't necessarily need to worry about small scratches. It is a PITA, and you often break the clips.
The main issue is that the clips pull out of the trim portion much easier then they pull out of the car. You are not supposed to peel the whole trim off because its held on by double sided tape at the opposite end, Peel just enough to get to a few screws, but like I said, the clips pop out of the trim very easily. After they pop off, you need to pull the whole clip out of the car to reinstall, that's when they usually break. The more you mess around under the trim, the more those darn clips pop apart. Before you know it, almost all of them will be detached. If you can get someone to put pressure at about the middle of the trim while you bend it to try to work them out out it would be very helpful. Maybe even some strong painter tape.
I would be worried a plastic pry tool might break, and also not having enough leverage - but you will need plastic trim tools for other parts of the install.
The rack is cheaper then the popular brands. It is very well made, and looks great. I like the low profile.
The one I put on my Amazon link works well, the pivot ball thing is perfect. The only time you need that particular tool is when your are peeling the wheel well trim. The point of contact is under the trim, so you don't necessarily need to worry about small scratches. It is a PITA, and you often break the clips.
The main issue is that the clips pull out of the trim portion much easier then they pull out of the car. You are not supposed to peel the whole trim off because its held on by double sided tape at the opposite end, Peel just enough to get to a few screws, but like I said, the clips pop out of the trim very easily. After they pop off, you need to pull the whole clip out of the car to reinstall, that's when they usually break. The more you mess around under the trim, the more those darn clips pop apart. Before you know it, almost all of them will be detached. If you can get someone to put pressure at about the middle of the trim while you bend it to try to work them out out it would be very helpful. Maybe even some strong painter tape.
I would be worried a plastic pry tool might break, and also not having enough leverage - but you will need plastic trim tools for other parts of the install.
I went ahead and bought the amazon clip tool on your recommendation. I think I'm going to attack it with the help of my brother-in-law on the 29th. I spent all of July moving him out of his house and we'll be using the hitch to move him into a new one, so he owes me. Whole day to deal with it next Saturday, but I'd imagine that it would be pretty quick with 2 people.
When you say peel the trim back to get a few screws, what exactly do you mean? The electrical wiring kit came from RR yesterday, but I haven't gotten a chance to dig into it much yet...
Any other really tricky parts that I should be aware of before I would get started?
When you say peel the trim back to get a few screws, what exactly do you mean? The electrical wiring kit came from RR yesterday, but I haven't gotten a chance to dig into it much yet...
Any other really tricky parts that I should be aware of before I would get started?
The forward most part has double sided tape in addition to the body clips, that is why they instruct you to not pull the whole thing. Underneath the trim there are about 3 screws that you need to unscrew in order to remove various pieces for the install.
Since you cant lift that piece very far without popping tabs, you need something with good leverage because there wont be much room to work so that is why that tool with adjustable fulcrum is perfect. Also for the area I highlighted, have someone put pressure while you try to pop the clips so you can minimize the amount you break. It will make sense once you start that portion.
They give you 10 extra clips, I would guesstimate there are about 10 clips on each side, so you can only break about 5 per side, so be careful..or order more clips.
The cutting is stressful, but can be done with a wall saw. I felt that a finer tooth saw might be easier, and I tried but it didn't work very well and I did the majority of the cutting with the wall saw. I used the finer, skinnier blade for the corners.
Those were the only two parts I had issues with, everything else is pretty basic wrench turning, and the instructions are great.
FYI-the instructions dont include a "put back together" portion, common sense dictates to go in reverse..do that literally by the book-I thought I could wing it and forgot a screw under the trim, luckily I caught it before getting too deep, so I was able to pop it off yet again and get it in there. I got pretty good at removing that stuff.
I am on the opposite coast, otherwise I would roll up and give you a hand. Good luck!
I installed one of the first RenegadeReady hitch kits (somewhere there a thread with much more info). You can see why I wanted the functional trailer lights. That's a Thule bike rack with home made taillight bar added.
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