Okay, before I get to the end of this build, here is the towing setup. I heard of a guy in Texas making a batch of these Class II 1-1/4" receiver type hitches for Minis, and I asked him to make me one. I'm sorry, I can't remember who it was. Does anyone know?
Since the Elf is about ten inches longer in the rear than a Mini, I knew I would have to make some adjustments. I know there is some argument about the proper way to put a hitch on a Mini. This one attaches to both the body and to the subframe, so it should equally piss off both camps. I look at it as adding another structural element to the subframe, tying it into the body at two more points. Anyway, since the receiver sits forward of the rear valance, it's almost invisible when the draw bar is off. I had a trailer shop make me an extended draw bar, and also added a second hole so it has two pins holding it on. I was slightly worried about the extra length causing some kind of weirdness when towing, but the trailer tongue is so short and the trailer follows so close that I've never felt any evidence of the tail trying to wag the dog. It works really well.
As for the wiring, I used a 5 wire trailer harness and tied into the stock Elf lights, plus added the side markers and the headlights into the running lights. I modified a pair of cheap ebay halogen headlight kits to use standard single filament taillight bulbs. I also added a third brake light strip with a blinker module so it pulsates when I hit the brakes. If you ever need to add trailer lights to a car, this module from e-Trailer works really well. https://www.etrailer...sha/119177.html It runs the trailer lights off of an independent fused circuit so they don't pull current from the car lights.
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Edited by Red Riley, 31 August 2021 - 01:15 PM.