Hitch mounted cargo carriers?

There's always the V. Stay in the Prius family

 

Ok. I saw the trade in part and assumed it was in the cards. I have a Yakima rack for hauling my kayaks around. It kills the mileage, but a 'cheap' alternative. I gotta setup on etrailers.com I think it was $160 with free shipping. That was the towers, clips and bars. I am putting a hitch on it soon so I can tow around a hot dog cart in building.

 

I got the 2" receiver hitch ($149 now) from coastaltech for my 2004 soon after I got the car figuring I would need extra cargo capability. It uses the same bolts that hold the tie down brackets on the car (replacing the brackets) and comes in 2 parts. One is a bracket for the left side of the car ( you need to temporarily remove some plastic under the car). I leave that one bolted in. The rest is the right side bracket and the receiver bar which bolts to the left bracket. I take that one off because we don't want to be hauling unnecessary weight now do we?? I went with 2" since you can always knock down to 1 1/4 but I wouldn't put a 2" 'accessory' in a 1 1/4" receiver. Plus, I figured a 2" would be a stronger overall structure.

I got the Masterbuilt 45" wide cargo carrier - $106 now. It has a 'step up' receiver bar which easily clears the rear bumper, no worries dragging the back of it on the road if you turn up a driveway. At 45" it is not as wide as the car so there is no drag. I also don't know now much it weighs but it is NOT light. I put some red and white reflectors on the tray so people would notice it at night. Don't know if that was necessary. I also got an expandable rooftop bag so I could keep things clean and dry on the tray.

I've only needed to use it once in 8 years You can get a LOT in a Prius when you plan and pack carefully It was a 3 hour trip, 3 people in the car on the way there so I didn't need the tray, it traveled in the hatch with the rest of our stuff and stayed there while the car was parked at the train station for 5 days. 4 people on the way back. I don't know how much weight was in it but certainly no where near the 300# capacity, probably not even 100#. I needed volume, not more weight. Car handled fine, got 50 MPG both ways so the extra person (90 pounds) and her stuff and the tray out back didn't affect the MPG. Just needed to remember I was longer than usual. Remember that the cargo AND people capacity of the car is 850#.

Personally, I'd rather have something bolted to the frame out back than strapped to the roof. Seems like it would be more securely attached, no lifting overhead while balancing on the door sill, little to no MPG hit and you can get to your stuff more easily at a rest area.

 

Curious, how did it work out? I am thinking of similar set up for my 2012 Three. I was concerned tongue weight was too little (200#). Do they even make 2" receivers for the Prius? Thanks.

 

I don't know if they do but, you can alway weld a 2" square tube to whatever size receiver you get and "step up" the size by doing that. It will make the hitch a little longer but, it will work.

 

Perhaps I shouldn't say this out loud (so I'll just type it, instead) . . . You could rent a minivan, station wagon or even a SUV (that was a whisper) for the weekend. It certainly would be cheaper than replacing one Prius with a less efficient car you really only need a couple of times each year (yet have to pay for all the time).

 

Torklift does, for the entire Prius line. Others have made them for both generations of the Liftback as well.

 

I think I for you it was the right choice but I personally love everything about my Prius III. I know could get away with it (hitch, cargo carrier etc.) but for now I am going to delay my decision. My car cost me way too much $$ to take a chance. Time and necessity may change my mind down the road...

 

Thank you for sharing the whole thought process and experience on PC. It has helped me approach our pending purchase. We need to replace our 2005 Sienna (someday), and we had been unable to pull the trigger on a second Prius mainly because of the size constraints. Now that the Prius v is available, we'll take another look. It has a huge increase in cargo space over the Prius Hatchback, the back seat is wider (and adjustable, including reclining seats), and the seats are much more comfortable than the regular Prius (though I've not had an issue with the front seats of our 2010).

My question: If buying new now were "in the cards," would you believe the Prius v could do the job for you? Or would you be inclined to keep the money for other things and stick with the slightly used Volvo wagon (or a new Volvo)? I've really enjoyed the highway driving of the Volvo sport wagons, the seats are nice, and the space is good, so I understand the attraction. In terms of size, the only really significant difference in space is the seating width in the second seat. Otherwise, the two cars have very similar cargo capacity. Again, width seems to be the factor in measuring space (the Volvo is more than 8 inches longer, but the wheelbases are similar). It is tough for me to ignore the fuel economy difference.

 

Thanks, Brick. Excellent reminder of the other "costs" associated with vehicle maintenance and use.

I do very minimal car work anymore. With my older VW and Honda, I did all of the routine stuff. Now, I do hardly anything, so reliability has tremendous extra value for me. Age also brings a different way of looking at seat comfort! Volvos have always had comfortable (not soft) seating, so I suspect the V70 would have it over the Prius v in that department. Whether it is enough to overcome the added maintenance costs expected from the Volvo is a matter of personal judgment (and taste, I suppose).

For me, the Gen II was just fine in terms of long-distance and regular driving, but the Gen III was a real step up. The Prius v seating seemed even better to me, but that is only sitting in a showroom car. I'll need to test drive to really get a better idea. If it passes there, then it must pass my wife's test driving and, finally, the kids' back seat analyses. (Getting pretty off-track for hitch-mounted carriers, but I am evaluating other cars with that in mind, also.)

 

$2,000 is a pretty good stash of cheese. If all other things are equal, it's a no-brainer. If you prefer the drive/comfort/space of the Volvo and get a $2,000 advantage, then you've freed up a Prius v for someone whose been very eager to buy one and given yourself a financial break.

 

Wow, that's quite a lot of weight!

As a point of comparison, my teardrop trailer's tongue weight is closer to 75 lbs. That much weight does make the ride a little more bumpy, but the handling is still manageable. I'm not driving much faster than 60 mph, especially in the curves, but I'm never worried that the car is going to leave the road.

Time to upgrade the rear suspension...

 

Read my post two above yours. I have a 2" receiver from CoastalTech.