Project: Trailer Hitch Install

One of the best accessories to any family vehicle is a trailer hitch. Aside from the obvious ability of towing a trailer, a hitch has many more benefits, which are listed after the jump. It’s a cheap and easy way of putting more U into your SUV.*

Just about all modern vehicles are designed with a trailer hitch in mind. If it needs to be, the trim under the bumper can be easily cut or removed. Mounting holes are already pre-drilled and threaded and even the connection to the wiring harness is there from the factory, making it purely a plug-and-pray® affair. While OEM hitches maybe pricey, places such as ebay offer many choices of after-market units. However, before you buy however, know what you are getting:

• Compare the max tongue weight and class of hitch to that of the OEM version.
• See if it bolts up in the same place with the same amount of bolts.
• Makes sure it comes with hardware and instructions.
• Know exactly what you’re getting. Some places will sell you nothing but hitch, while others will include ball, ball mount, wiring adapter, and/or other crap.
• Be aware of potentially high shipping costs if ordering from Ebay and other such places.
• Keep in mind that most hitch bike racks are designed for a 2″ receiver. If a 2″ receiver is not available for your vehicle, there are 1.25″ to 2″ adapters; however they are not designed for towing.

Example of an installation, on a 2005 Acura MDX goes as follows:

• Remove the factory tow hook.
• Remove exhaust from hangers.
• Break the factory lower bumper trim, since you can’t properly remove it.
• Run the hitch bolts through the threaded holes in the frame, just to be sure.
• With a friend, proceed to move 50lb hitch into place.
• Realize that you need to drop the exhaust even lower.
• Drop the 50lb hitch on your face as you’re wrestling the exhaust, bumper cover, and hitch.
• Stop the bleeding, clean off the cut, apply band aid.
• Remove the entire exhaust from all the hangers, all the way back to the cat.
• With the hitch going smoothly into place now, bolt it up.
• Once all the bolts are in, make sure to torque them to manufacturer’s spec.
• Reinstall the exhaust.
• Have a beer and an aspirin.
• Put the tools away.
• Clean off the blood and dirt from the bathroom sink before wife sees it.

Benefits of a trailer hitch:

• Ability to tow a trailer. (duh)
• Various hitch mounted bike racks carry from 2 to 8 bikes.
• Dirt bike carriers.
• Cargo carriers.
• There are even BBQ grills that you slap on there.
• Extra protection from a rear-end accident.
• People won’t be so quick to tap your bumper when you’re parallel parked in the city.
• A small cheap utility trailer will keep that mulch you have just purchased for your wife’s vegetable garden off of the heated leather trunk lining of your overpriced UV.

Cons of a trailer hitch:

• Occasional scraped leg while loading the trunk.
• Bump and cut on your forehead from when you were installing the hitch.
• Your vehicle is extra 50lbs heavier.
• Once a year you may want to scrape off the surface rust and clean the harness.

While we’re at it, few things about the MDX:

• Forget any kind of off-roading. I knew this was a minivan in disguise, but it really shows once you’re under it:
  • The transmission case is about 5″ off the ground.
  • As are the rear A/C lines.
• The driveshaft has a safety loop on it, so it won’t drag in the ground when the weak little rear u-joint snaps.
• All spent gases from a 3.5L V6 go into one 2.25″ OD exhaust pipe, which then splits into two mufflers finished off with big square tips. Ugh. I’ll bet 10whp can be found if you’d just ran dual 2.5″ pipes (with an X-pipe) from the cats, through two proper dynamax mufflers, finished off with the OEM tips. Now that would be SWEET!!! Stock looks, more noise and power!! Hell yea!!
• The above sounds like a brilliant idea for another project. 

* There is absolutly no Sport in just about any Sport Utility Vehicle

DISCLAIMER:

Use common sense, if you don’t know what you’re doing then consider hiring a professional, obviously don’t drop the hitch on your head, don’t be stupid, use proper tools, if you mess up it’s your own fault, follow manufacturer’s directions and not something you find on the internet, you are fully responsible for your own installation.