We use a Blue Ox Aventa II tow bar to tow our Honda Odyssey. The Aventa II is a steel tow bar, is rated to tow 10,000 lb, and is very easy to hook up for towing. One important aspect of towbar use is to ensure the towbar is as close to level as possible when in use. Blue Ox recomends the motorhome end be no more than 2" higher than the car end of the towbar, and NEVER lower than the car end. If the car end is higher than the motorhome end, the car could "climb" the towbar in an emergency stop. With a 4" "drop" adapter in place, the motorhome end of our towbar is apx 1" higher than the car end. The first 4" drop we had was distributed by Roadmaster. With it in place, our 10,000 lb towing capacity was reduced to 5,000 lbs. We later bought a Blue Ox 4" drop. The Blue Ox drop is shorter, and maintains the 10,000 lb towing capacity of our hitch and tow bar. Since it is a couple of inches shorter than the Roadmaster "drop," it also is less likely to drag when entering/exiting roadways. (The drop in the pictures on this page is the longer, lower-rated Roadmaster drop).
Our motorhome came with a full-width "mud flap" in place. A little research helped us learn that the presumed protection a full length mud flap provides to a towed
vehicle is highly debatable. In fact, evidence indicates that the closer the mud flap is to the surface of the road while underway, the more damage it will CAUSE as it "sweeps" up gravel & debris from the road surface. Consequently, it is recommended that these mud flaps be at least 4" above the road surface. (The full-length "mud flap" certainly is something we would not pay extra to have, and many owners remove them ...and even throw them away ...when driving the Alaska Highway.) Our's is at or above the recommended height, but we also decided to use a shield of some kind between the motorhome and the "towed." There are a variety of options for shields, from putting 3M film on the front of the towed, to full coverage "bra" on the front of the towed, to an "under-skirt" which attaches to both sides of the motorhome and the towed under the towbar, to shields that mount on top of the tow bar. Each choice has it's own unique pluses and minuses. We decided to go with the shield on top of the tow bar. As attachment of the shields seems to be unique to each brand towbar, since we have a Blue Ox towbar, we got the Blue Ox KarGard shield.
The Blue Ox KarGard comes with brackets which bolt onto the towbar. The KarGard then attaches to the brackets by quick-release pins. It is
constructed of two panels of very durable plastic-type material. Most setups require U-shaped cut-outs to be made in the panels so that the shield will drop a few inches below the towbar when in place. The KarGard is designed to fold in half when not in use so it can be more easily stored. After storing our KarGard in a basement compartment for the first year of use, I decided there was a better solution. The comparable shield from Roadmaster has an optional bracket that can be purchased to store the shied on top of the drawbar on the back of the motorhome when not in use. After seeing a couple of efforts to create similar storage racks for the Blue Ox KarGard, I created my own, using aluminum stock so it would not rust. Here is a picture of the rack as it looks when the KarGard is in use, and a couple of pictures of what it looks like when the KarGard is stored while we are parked in a campground. (Leaving it on the rack while driving the motorhome and not towing is not advisable, as the hot exhaust can warp the plastic panel right behind the exhaust pipe ...the voice of experience speaks!!)
