A different trailer hitch option

[slushboxgt]

the audm one does not mount to the tow hook you can see in picture 15.

 

but i'm pretty sure mine didn't have those holes on the rear frame rails mine has threads that the curtis hitch i have just bolted to 05 sedan and 05 wagon.

 

my curtis hitch i cut and raised it up almost 2 inches. it would bottom out on everything.

and for some reason i hate the 1-1/4" receiver type.

 

In post 15 I was showing how the Aussie hitch is mounted quite a bit higher than the tow loop Frank, click on the pic and you can see where I circled the loop.

As I mentioned that hitch is too high for me on my sedan.

The limiting design factor for you will definitely not be the strength your hitch, nor really the attachment points, it's more that you simply would not really want to tow something much beyond 3000lbs with a car of this size and weight anyway right?

Here is a pick of a Reese/Hidden Hitch/Draw-Tite, class III rating with a 2" receiver, and held with the four frame bolts and also at the tow loop.

I would bet that the tow loop point gets almost no X axis stress, probably just some downward Y axis tongue pressure due to the triangular design of the hitch with the receiver so far out behind of the four mounting bolts.

 

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=146723&d=1364623647

 

Paul

[nhltfour]

subscribed. meeting with a custom fab guy hopefully in the next few weeks to get something sketched out for my 08 lgt. Would like the hitch to sit higher than my exhaust for clearance reasons. and definitely going 2" so I can put one of these bike racks on there.

 

http://northshoreracks.com/NSR%202-bike.htm

 

cheers

[frank_ster]

^ what hitch do you currently have ?

[nhltfour]

^ what hitch do you currently have ?

 

currently dont have any hitch so i'm open to any and all suggestions.

[frank_ster]

i can make you one !, and it would sit above the tow hook.

[nhltfour]

have you put together any installation instructions or the process you have to go through to cut the rear bumper? Do you remove the tow hook with your hitch?

[frank_ster]

remove bumper cover, drop exhaust , drop heat shields, bolt on hitch. reverse order.

 

there will only be a 2" x 4" cut in the bumper for the reciever.

 

and the tow hook is left in place and will be bolted to.

 

also please keep in mind the first of the photograps on page one was a hand made hitch.

 

the new one will be laser cut parts and a few refinements.

[nhltfour]

very interested. will pm you right now

 

cheers

[slushboxgt]

and the tow hook is left in place and will be bolted to.

 

If you bolt to the tow hook Frank, how will you get it higher than the Resse version ?

Hope you haven't lost your car at a table in Vegas?

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=146723&d=1364623647

 

Paul

[BAC5.2]

Look at his sketch. The receiver will be above the tow hook, the Reese and all others has the tow hook above the receiver.

 

Frank - When you get home, can you snap some pics of the rear with the bumper off? Preferably without the exhaust.

 

My one complaint with the way your hitch is built in the first post, is how the receiver mounts to the cross-bar. I would MUCH rather have the receiver pierce the cross-bar. You'd have to drop the cross-bar down ~2" to allow that (or V-down the cross-bar), but it'd be a much more stout setup.

 

I know Paul might not want a hitch so high up, but I do think the AUDM version of the hitch is a much more ideal solution. In the USDM configuration, tongue weight puts the mounting bolts under considerable tension. I have no fear that the bolts will fail but heavy loads will dynamically increase tongue weight, and I read one report on this site by Westy66 that the captive nuts actually pulled out of the frame!

[frank_ster]

^ yes i totally agree with you bac on the reciever mounting.

 

but i think that is a very good location any higher then it may start looking like a tahoe!

 

how about a few gussets to tie it in better ?

[BAC5.2]

You could gusset it, but best practice is to pierce the cross-bar.

 

But no matter what, you are limited by the captive nuts in the frame.

[frank_ster]

^ well ok i'll look into putting some threaded plates in the frame rails.

 

the cross bar will only be 2x2 there will be some twist but the tow hook, should help with that.

[frank_ster]

Just thought about this but i can also make the complete hitch out of stainless steel.

so for those of you who live in northern climates who have corrosion in mind this should satisfy you!

[oldskoolbiker]

i can make you one !, and it would sit above the tow hook.

 

I see you are looking to make 2" hitches, what about 1 1/4?

 

I have an '08 Outback and I've got a hitch like the one in post #26 except it's a 1 1/4". It is so ugly, I hate it. All I want is a hitch for putting a bike rack for 2 bikes. I don't tow anything.

 

Could you make something that would work for me and not be so ugly? I like the idea of it being above the tow hook and not having any visible bars.

[GTEASER]

Subscribed. Any possibility of something that will fit a 5th?

[BAC5.2]

Just thought about this but i can also make the complete hitch out of stainless steel.

so for those of you who live in northern climates who have corrosion in mind this should satisfy you!

 

That would cost a fortune, and it would still likely corrode at the welds. It's not terribly easy to weld such thick SS without doing so in an argon chamber.

[frank_ster]

we get stainless lasercut parts often and there not much more expensive.

and i currently tig weld stainless on a weekly basis. i would just need to check for the price of stainless 2x2 inside square tube.

 

i know another guy who made a stainless hitch and even 5 years later still looked flawless.

[frank_ster]

I see you are looking to make 2" hitches, what about 1 1/4?

 

I have an '08 Outback and I've got a hitch like the one in post #26 except it's a 1 1/4". It is so ugly, I hate it. All I want is a hitch for putting a bike rack for 2 bikes. I don't tow anything.

 

Could you make something that would work for me and not be so ugly? I like the idea of it being above the tow hook and not having any visible bars.

 

yes i could do that easily. it would be the same price.

[frank_ster]

Subscribed. Any possibility of something that will fit a 5th?

 

possibly, maybe i should get a rental car i could take apart and measure

[frank_ster]

any one have any insight on shipping costs on such a thing ?

i could make it so the side plates are bolt on so the box size would be much smaller.

[Claw]

If you made one like the Aussie one I'd be interested too... though I'll bet delivery to Canadaland won't be cheap.

[thefultonhow]

Semi-interested. I've been looking at some of those cargo-carrier things that have the hitch as their only attachment point. Using them on a 1 1/4" hitch makes me nervous.

[frank_ster]

If you made one like the Aussie one I'd be interested too... though I'll bet delivery to Canadaland won't be cheap.

 

i'm in canada

 

you would like the receiver part way up your bumper?

[frank_ster]

Semi-interested. I've been looking at some of those cargo-carrier things that have the hitch as their only attachment point. Using them on a 1 1/4" hitch makes me nervous.

 

yes agreed i much prefer the 2x2"