Hitches

Moderator: GreenLake

Hitches

Postby kokko » Mon Dec 01, 2014 11:29 am

I originally posted this on the DS3 forum, but thought I would repost it here.

I bought the hitch for my car on the web. It may have been from hitchusa.com. The dealer wanted $700. The local hitch place $500. Bought it online for $175. You can look up the hitches by make, model and year of car. The also post install instructions so you can decide if you are up to the install. The instructions for mine were remove four bolts, put hitch in place, then thread in four bolts. 15 minutes
The front hitch I installed on my in-laws' Tahoe was more complex and I had to remove the front trim panel. Two hours.
The wiring harness from the dealer may be worth paying for. I have had a lot of trouble when my trailer wires were spliced into the tail lights.
DS1 Truelove
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Re: Hitches

Postby GreenLake » Mon Dec 01, 2014 1:14 pm

This is good information.

Related, but since you mention it: wiring harnesses mystify me a bit. For my Ford Explorer, I was able to get a plug that inserts between a plug and socket that's in the rear of the car. However, I couldn't find an obvious way to route the wires from there to the outside other than leading them through the door seal. I also found that I needed to add a separate ground on the vehicle side (and I ran a ground wire to the lights on the trailer). With that, it feels like I get the lights to work about half the time :(.
~ green ~ lake ~ ~
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Re: Hitches

Postby TIM WEBB » Mon Dec 01, 2014 10:09 pm

I've Installed hitches on both my old Sentra and the current PT Cruiser, and both were purchased online. Hitchfinder.com IIRC. Mechanicals were pretty straightforeward on both: frames had the necessary holes/backing nuts to accept the bolts. I think I had to cut away a little bit of bumper trim on the Sentra. Electricals were very easy and straightforeward on the Sentra, and I would just let the plug wire lay over the trunk lid seal. Never had any issues. On the PT, it has the old-timey separate turn signal circuit, so it required the special "adapter box". I let the local hitch shop install that, and it works like a charm!
Tim Webb
1979 DS2 10099 The Red Witch
(I used to be Her "staff", in the way dogs have owners and cats have staff, but alas no longer ... <pout>)
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Re: Hitches

Postby GreenLake » Tue Dec 02, 2014 12:27 am

When I started out, I didn't know that the hitch built into the bumper on the Explorer was supposed to so light duty as to be "decorative". I've been using that ever since and it has held up (to short distance trailering) for many years now.
~ green ~ lake ~ ~
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Re: Hitches

Postby ChrisB » Fri Dec 05, 2014 11:08 am

I've purchased hitches for my Corolla and Pilot from etrailer dot com. As Tim said, the hitches are "bolt up" to existing bumper brackets and tapped holes on the car body. Be wary in your shopping; some manufacturer's hitches are not completely hidden under the bumper when the drawbar is removed and that, at least for me, is a bashed shin waiting to happen. I make sure the hitch I buy will not protrude at all from behind the car when the drawbar is out.

As for the electricals, etrailer also sells the electrical adapter that connects to your wiring harness and brings it out to a standard, flat four wire trailer connection. Many cars now ship from the factory with a connector already installed in the wiring harness (usually near the driver's side rear lamp assembly) to which the trailer harness is connected. This eliminates the need to tap splice the wires. The adapter will also convert a separate stop and turn signal system on the car to the combined stop/turn signal on the trailer. When not towing, the harness lives inside the spare tire well in the trunk (Corolla) or inside the well containing the headrests for the "third row" seating (Pilot). I just lay the wire harness over the trunk lid/tailgate gasket and connect to the trailer.

cpb
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