Draw-Tite Trailer hitch installed (pics)

[cohocarl]

I installed a Draw-Tite trailer hitch today. It's very easy to do. I ordered the hitch from Etrailer.com (if you can't see from the name on the box, and they put a sticker on the hitch itself before they ship it to you.) (Maybe we should check with Etrailer to see if we could get a "group purchase" for members here on the forum)The only tools you'll need is a 3/4 inch socket wrench. It says to torque the 6 bolts down to 92 ft./lbs. which I did. If you don't have a torque wrench, 92 ft./lbs. is very tight. The hitch comes with the 6 bolts & washers needed. The "frame" of the car has the 6 holes, along with nuts already welded in from above, and the washer is concave, and has a few "ribs" on the side that faces the frame of the hitch, not the bolt.I don't have the time to tackle the wiring yet, but hope to do so soon. Sorry for all the pics....hope you have broadband access...... Later,Carl

[NSimkins]

Thanks for the post Carl! Pics of an install always make the post more valuable.VibeInTx also installed the same hitch you have. Glad to see these go in rather easily.quote:Sorry for all the pics....hope you have broadband access...... The pics are worth the wait, no matter that type of access we have. Thanks again!

[ullbergm]

great post.we need a howto section of the website where people can post howtos..like the CAI, horns, etc.

[NSimkins]

quote:we need a howto section of the website where people can post howtos..like the CAI, horns, etc.Something like this: http://www.j-body.org/library/

[ullbergm]

exactly.i was thinking of something where users can submit howtos and after they are approved by admin they'd be posted. that way you can keep the quality of the howtos high

[Frosty]

quote:I don't have the time to tackle the wiring yet, but hope to do so soon.Carl:Could you find a wiring kit or does it have to be hardwired off the lights? http://www.etrailer.com doesn't seem to have a kit. Thanks.

[cohocarl]

quote:Could you find a wiring kit or does it have to be hardwired off the lights? Thanks. I haven't had time to look at the wiring yet. I wired up my last 3 vehicles by simply splicing into the tail light wires, but the Vibe's looks a little different. Will post when I have time to check it out. May be a while though....wife is getting a little concerned I won't have all the stuff done around the house for our son's first b-day party next week. (9-11) Later,Carl

[sharky]

Check around for a plug, my last trailer hitch I put on I used a wiring harness that plugged into the brake line. No splicing and it took about 5 mins to hook up..plus its all water tight. I got mine at a local autozone and i think it was under $20.The only problem is they dont go with UHAUL, but then again only uhaul goes with uhaul.

[DVDvibe]

Looks good, anyone interested in trying to get one of these, if so I will talk to them and see if we can get a group buy so that hopefully we can get them a little cheaper. Also, cohocarl, do you have the specs of towing compacity of our vibes handy?

[NSimkins]

1500 lbs. max.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=336

[DVDvibe]

Thanks, guess I should have looked through the search. Anyone interested in getting the group buy together, let me know and I will contact them. I would like to get one pretty soon so if anyone else does too, let me know pretty quick.Thanks

[DVDvibe]

If you are really interested, maybe I could get it shipped to my house and then ship it over to you...would that be cheaper?
[Modified by DVDvibe, 2:04 PM 9/5/2002]

[DVDvibe]

I have contacted etrailer and they are going to get back with me either this afternoon or Monday and let me know how many orders we will need for a group buy. I also asked them to price 2 of them with shipping included in case nobody else wants to get in on it. I will post back here when I hear something from them.

[MPankau]

I'd get one with the group if the price was right. Count me in.MP

[DVDvibe]

Well, I just heard back from Etrailer and here is what they said. All that are interested, let me know for sure by September 13th."We offer discounts starting with a quantity of 3. Usually ranging in a discount from 5-7 % depending on group source, on-line exposure, etc."-- Greg @ Etrailer.com
[Modified by DVDvibe, 3:14 PM 9/6/2002]

[yank dini]

SEE YA ON INTERSTATE 75The Batmobile2003 Abyss18 inch Enkei wheels with 40-ZR NITTO TiresPortable Playstation consoleSony AM-FM-XM CD CD-R CD-RW receiver4-way Infinity speaker system2 MTX Thunder 6000 subwoofersMTX class D 700-watt amplifier

[Bdaz1]

Thanks DVDvibe, cohocarl and others. I'm a new Vibe owner and saw the posts on the Draw-Tite hitch. I liked what I saw and, even though I was a little late, I emailed Greg at ETrailer and referenced the Forum. They honored the discount on my order! Thanks to all. Can't wait to get it installed. I also picked up a "Cargo Buddy". Should be a nice addition to the hitch until I find a good utility trailer. Thanks Again.

[Bdaz1]

FYI cohocarl,Got my hitch Friday and installed it yesterday. It took all of 15 minutes to do. It actually took longer to find my torque wrench than it took to install the hitch! Also, you're right cohocarl, 92 foot-pounds IS tight! Along with my hitch, I picked up a "CargoBuddy" from etrailer.com which slides right into the receiver, holds about 200lbs. It stores in the back of the Vibe when not being used! It's a nice item to transport & keep the "dirty stuff" out of the car (like bags of mulch, plants, etc) when a full trailer is not required. Have you done your hitch wiring yet? I'd like to see some pictures or get some info on doing this (never done before). I've included some pictures below. [Modified by Bdaz1, 2:53 PM 9/29/2002]

[ullbergm]

Bdaz1, you have a problem with your images..the url you used were:file:///C:/TEMP1/VIBE/Hitch%26Buddypost1.jpgand that will work fine on your computer but not on anyone elses.. you need a website to host the pictures for you. if you dont have one i'd be happy to host them for you.let me know if you need any help.

[cohocarl]

quote:I picked up a "CargoBuddy" from etrailer.com which slides right into the receiver, holds about 200lbs. It stores in the back of the Vibe when not being used! It's a nice item to transport & keep the "dirty stuff" out of the car (like bags of mulch, plants, etc) when a full trailer is not required.I was thinking about picking up one of those also. It looks like it would be handy.quote:Have you done your hitch wiring yet? I'd like to see some pictures or get some info on doing this (never done before). I've included some pictures below. No, I haven't done my wiring yet. The only other vehicles I've wired didn't require an adapter which it looks like this one will need. Any one else wired up their Vibe yet?P.S. Your images aren't showing up on my end either. (edit- they are now though!!!)Thanks,Carl
[Modified by cohocarl, 6:10 PM 9/29/2002]

[cohocarl]

Here's a link on my wiring install:http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=1139

[Frosty]

I ordered a draw-tite today for $133 canadian ($88 U.S.) plus $15 shipping from a local dealer. They matched http://www.hitchwarehouse.com , an Alberta Canada outfit after some negotiations .

[cohocarl]

quote:($88 U.S.) plus $15 shipping from a local dealer. Good price! I hope to be using mine alot this summer. Sellers accepted our P.A. on a new house last week, so if everything goes well, the Vibe will be making alot of trips pulling my trailer loaded with our stuff up to the new house.