baj Posted August 28, 2006 Share Posted August 28, 2006 I just got an '06 wagon (2.5i SE, manual) over the weekend. It's my first Subaru. I want to add a hitch receiver for a bike rack. I have searched around here a bit and see that some people use the Subaru hitch designed for the Outback; I'm sure it works fine but it's not in my Type-A nature to do that. etrailer.com lists 4 different hitches: Curt, Hidden Hitch, Draw-Tite, and Valley. Any particular reason to pick one over another? The Draw-Tite one looks like an unusual design, with the cross piece in a "V" shape, which I thought might make it less visually obtrusive: http://www.etrailer.com/images/DT/hitch/36334_o.jpg (etrailer claims that it is a photo of the actual hitch, but Draw-Tite's site has a different photo). I know the exhaust has to be moved to install the hitch. This doesn't sound too bad, any gotchas I should worry about with the install? Thanks for your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
froggert Posted August 28, 2006 Share Posted August 28, 2006 i have a draw-tite that i'd sell for cheep. removed it for a subaru hitch since it sits slightly higher and my car is very low in the back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 28, 2006 Author Share Posted August 28, 2006 Froggert, does your Draw-Tite look like the linked photo (V-shaped)? Is your car lowered? I wonder if there is any height variation from brand to brand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
froggert Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 yup, mine's v-shaped and square tubed. it should be fine on a stock height car. my car is lowered to the point that i can't fit a finger in between the rear tire and fender. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vimy101 Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 I want to add a hitch receiver for a bike rack. I have searched around here a bit and see that some people use the Subaru hitch designed for the Outback; I'm sure it works fine but it's not in my Type-A nature to do that. Congrats on the new car but what is "Type-A"? A spendthrift or someone who likes to do things the hard way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottmcphee Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 Congrats on the new car but what is "Type-A"? A spendthrift or someone who likes to do things the hard way? Type A is to research everything and come up with the positively best answer. I need a hitch for exactly same car that started this thread... thinking a Subaru hitch does the trick - any downside? Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
froggert Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 thinking a Subaru hitch does the trick - any downside? price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 29, 2006 Author Share Posted August 29, 2006 Congrats on the new car but what is "Type-A"? A spendthrift or someone who likes to do things the hard way? What I really ment is that I'm too anal retentive to use the Subaru hitch since Subaru specifically says it's not for use with the Legacy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzymt Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 Yea, the Subaru hitch is overpriced & I've heard is identical to the old Hidden Hitch design anyway. I have a Hidden Hitch. I like their stuff. I had one of their hitches on my last Outback & liked it quite a bit. This one doesn't tuck up as well as the last one, but it's a different car, so oh well. I didn't have to remove the exhaust pipes for the install though - just the hangers & was able to nudge it in. I dunno if it's harder/different on the Legacy though. I know there's a walkthru here on the forum... http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12576 This is my walkthru... http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2812 It's definitely an easy driveway install, even for the novice. [CENTER][URL="http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18504"]Subaru Plug & Play Aux-in Mod[/URL][/CENTER] [CENTER][URL="http://www.jazzyengineering.com"]www.jazzyengineering.com[/URL][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 29, 2006 Author Share Posted August 29, 2006 If any of you have photos of your Legacy wagons with different kinds of hitches installed I'd love to see them! Edit: Thanks for the great write-up jazzymt! I hadn't seen it before I posted the plea for photos. But I'd still be interested in seeing others. I thought the Hidden Hitch had a full-width straight tube running under the bumper (based on photos on etrailer but I guess those are generic) but the actual design is much more discrete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 29, 2006 Author Share Posted August 29, 2006 So here's a dumb question: it looks like all hitches for this car mount to the rear tow hook. Are the safety chain loops strong enough to be used in place of the tow hook if I ever need to be pulled out of a ditch or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzymt Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 So here's a dumb question: it looks like all hitches for this car mount to the rear tow hook. Are the safety chain loops strong enough to be used in place of the tow hook if I ever need to be pulled out of a ditch or something?Good question. The tow hook holes are made in what looks like about 1/4" plate, maybe 5/16. Assuming it's 1/4" & about 1/2" of material to pull through between the hole & edge of the plate... In double shear, that's about 1/4 in sq. Assuming you dangled your car from one hook on one side, that's ~3800lb = 15,200 psi. Assuming it's mild steel, you've got a safety factor of at least 2:1. So, yea...it's plenty strong enough to pull you out of a ditch, especially if you use two hooks. As a class II hitch, it's rated to haul 3000 or so lbs... maybe 3500? I can't remember, but it's definitely sufficient. Anchored directly into the frame in 4 places, in all likelyhood it's much stronger than the factory tow hook. I'll also add that I can tell you that the Hidden Hitch is extremely well fabricated. I can tell from the shape that the welds are very high heat input MIG welds, which provide extremely good fusion for thick steel like this unlike a lot of the globby stick welding I usually see on steel parts. My bet is even with heavy use, the hitch will outlast the car in every way. [CENTER][URL="http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18504"]Subaru Plug & Play Aux-in Mod[/URL][/CENTER] [CENTER][URL="http://www.jazzyengineering.com"]www.jazzyengineering.com[/URL][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 29, 2006 Author Share Posted August 29, 2006 One more question: the posts that mention the hidden hitch model number are 90756, but this has been discontinued. The one etrailer has now is 90138. Does anyone know if there's a significant difference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dammitjim Posted August 29, 2006 Share Posted August 29, 2006 I believe the current Hidden Hitch is a rebadged Draw-tite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 29, 2006 Author Share Posted August 29, 2006 I believe the current Hidden Hitch is a rebadged Draw-tite Yes, I think you're right. Anybody know if this can be mounted on top of the tow hook like the old Hidden Hitch design? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baj Posted August 30, 2006 Author Share Posted August 30, 2006 I ordered a 90756 from a local Hidden Hitch dealer this morning. He says there are only 2 of them left from HH. But there are still some new ones available on ebay (and maybe other online sources, don't know). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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