Can Aftermarket Trailer Hitch Be Installed on 2004 Ford F-150 With Factory Hitch

Question:

I need to replace by factory hitch on a 2004 F-150XLT. I am finding conflicting info. on replacing the hitch. Your products all say they will fit with the exception of a factory installed hitch. It appears the bumper may be welded to the hitch from the factory? I found this answer on a Curt product: Fit and Compatibility of Aftermarket Trailer Hitch #C14357 on 2004 Ford F-150 w/Factory Trailer Hitch Question: Will the hitch 14357 work if the factory hitch is removed? Expert Reply: I spoke to my contact at Curt and he informed me that the Curt Class V Trailer Hitch # C14357 would indeed fit for a 2004 Ford F-150 excluding the Heritage Edition if the factory hitch was removed as long as no portion of the frame or bumper beam is removed in the process of removing the factory hitch. I have linked the above mentioned product to this page for your convenience. I was wondering if this if this is still accurate or is there a new unit out there that will fit? Thank you

asked by: Clint

Expert Reply:

I called my contact at Draw-Tite and they told me where the issues are with installing an after market trailer hitch on a Ford truck with a factory hitch.

The bumper bracket on the truck with a factory hitch is part of the hitch. You would need to remove the bumper brackets you have and replace them with stock brackets, and remove the existing hitch. This would essentially make your truck stock with no factory hitch.

You would then be able to install a trailer hitch like part # 41549. This is a round tube Class lll hitch and it has a 2-inch receiver opening.

expert reply by: Jeffrey L