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This fully welded trailer hitch receiver bolts onto your vehicle's frame with no welding required. Matte black, powder coated steel is durable and corrosion resistant and creates a rugged look.
Features:
Specs:
The sturdy steel construction is protected with a matte black finish for added durability. This unique powder coating gives etrailer hitches a carbide-like appearance and a rugged look that sets them apart from traditional glossy hitches. In addition to being rust and corrosion resistant, the tough matte coating hides dirt, scuffs, and dings better than a glossy finish.
At etrailer we're committed to the products we sell, and to our customers. Our experienced and knowledgeable staff are available via both phone and email to address your questions and concerns for the lifetime of your hitch. The technicians at etrailer perform hitch installations on a daily basis, making them a valuable resource for do-it-yourselfers. The one-on-one, personal service you'll receive comes straight from an expert in the towing and automotive field. We've installed it, we've wired it and we've towed with it, so whatever your question, we can answer it.
Average Customer Rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars (1325 Customer Reviews)
This fully welded trailer hitch receiver bolts onto your vehicle's frame with no welding required. Matte black, powder coated steel is durable and corrosion resistant and creates a rugged look.Bought this for a 2012 Rav4 so my daughter can mount a receiver style bike rack. We completed the install in less than 20 mins. and it fit like a glove! Perfect alignment and no ugly surprises. This thing is rock-solid and fabrication quality is great. Fit and finish is perfect. Received confirmation the day after ordering that the item shipped, and we received it a day earlier than expected. Highly recommend this product and retailer.
Watched the install video. Cleaned bolt holes day before. Backed up on 2 2x6's on each side to give me a little more room underneath. Loosened muffler holder Positioned receiver under car and lifted one side up to start the 2 bolts. The slightly oval shaped, oversized holes made it easy. Lifted the other side up and got the other 2 bolts started and then tightened up. VERY EASY!! for one person. Thank you etrailer
A well made hitch, and super easy to install.
Only one small problem - the car frame rails were about 3mm further apart than the mounting holes on the hitch. I elongated the holes on the hitch and then everything fit fine.
Etrailer fits perfectly! I'm an 80 yo man and had no problem installing the hitch receiver. Only took about 15 minutes or less. Quick delivery. Used the live chat before placing order and was very pleased with the assistance I received. Very happy with etrailer.
We are pleased with the trailer hitch. Some of the other reviews were helpful in that they said the holes for installation did not completely line up with the automobile it was being installed on. I relayed this to the installer and he found it to be helpful (because it was a little off). But with a little maneuvering, it fits fine and we have used it for our ebike rack.. We like that it folds up and it's very rugged. WE are very satisfied and would recommend to others to get this trailer hitch through the mail from Etrailer.
Installed fairly easily by myself in the driveway. Torqued to specifications. After a year it's still a secure fit and paint is holding up. This would be the second time I used etrailer hitches on my vehicles and both have performed exactly as expected.
I would love to give this hitch a 5 star review but I can't because I found the installation to be more difficult than necessary. The hitch has slots for the mounting bolts to pass through to make installation easy. However, I found that the outer ends of the slots were exactly where the nuts were on the car. Literally, I think I has 1/64" or less of free play to line up the slots. I was considering dropping the hitch after getting 3 bolts installed so that I could use a sledge hammer on the wing/ear of the hitch to open it width by 1/4" to make the holes alignment better.
Very happy with the construction of the hitch, unfortunately the right bracket was bent on arrival. I will attempt to straighten it with help from email sent to me. I wish the packaging would be better so this problem wouldn’t exist. Hopefully I can straighten it and it will work.
Jenny N.
9/12/2023
Sometimes the hitch side brackets do get knocked out of alignment in transit to you or to us from the manufacturer. I am hopeful the FAQ link we sent will help. If not please let us know.
Helpful Links
I’m rating the product 5 stars because it’s very well made and looks nice too.
I rate UPS 0 stars for damaging the product. Fortunately I was able to straighten it out so the hole would line up.
Needed to run a tap through vehicles nuts due to rust and paint.
I was going to order bike rack through e trailer.com but I’m not going to risk that getting damaged in shipping too.
The etrailer e98864 class 3 hitch installed "without a hitch" on the 2010 RAV4 today; with no issues. I took the time with scrap plywood and 2x4 stock to make a cradle for the hitch, using a floor jack to raise it into place. I always try to buy USA made products; and etrailer reasserts that choice with great products, instructions/videos and outstanding value!
Andrew D.
9/2/2023
Absolutely no issues with the hitch and harness: smooth move from New England to southern state came off without a hitch!
The hitch arrived promptly and was built even sturdier than expected! I was able to bolt it in place in less than a half hour and am thrilled with it! I did have to use the Toyota bolts I removed from the tow bar because it was such a close fit but it looks great and I'm sure it will easily handle any load this little RAv 4 can handle! Very pleased that it looks so custom and discreet!
strong - beefy product.
easy to install ( my mechanic - installed in half an hour ).
now I can take take my Trek to the beach trails.
good product. i already recommended to 5 friends!
Excellent quality except for one small problem. The distance between the attachment flanges was about 1/4" narrower at the rear of the flanges than at the front (car front) of the flanges. This made getting all four bolts installed more interesting than it should have been.
Easy installation with great instructions. One "Fin" was slightly bent making lining up the bolt holes a little challenging but we got it installed and it works perfectly.
I think it could have been packaged more securely. It is exactly what we need here; and despite breaking through the box in transit; it arrived undamaged.
It's on the car, I like it, and I'm not sending it back. That's the good part. The not so good? Like so many people say, the holes didn't line up, and I had to work through it. etrailer says if it's bent, and the holes don't match, you can bend it to fit. I needed only about 4mm. I was willing to try. I started with boards and a jack. Sure enough, I could push the arms apart pretty easily. But as soon as I relaxed the jack, they went back to their un-fitting shape. I tried again, pushing further. Still the same. That steel is dang strong. Next I tried the angled-boards-and-sledge technique. Same result: I could spread the arms, but they wouldn't stay spread. I tried wedging in an open stairway, but quickly realized the hitch was stronger than the stairs. I tried prying it under the car, but my pry bar couldn't find anything solid to push against. The gas tank? Not on your Nelly. I tried other things, trying to stay patient, no success.
So how did I get it on? If I couldn't move the hitch to make it the right shape, I needed to move the holes. Chainsaw round-file to the rescue. It took only about 10 minutes to make each of the two rear-most holes a few millimeters longer. Then under the car once more and -click- onto the frame. Done. Only three hours. Success... I guess.
Note: once I started filing I realized the back two holes are farther from the edge of the steel than the front two holes. 10mm vs 7mm to be precise. When I finished filing, they were more like 8mm vs 7mm. That made all the difference. I assume etrailer has a reason for spacing the holes this way but in my case it would have been better if they had just made all four holes 7mm from the edge.
It's done. I ain't complaining. Just glad I had round files and my brain didn't take more than a couple hours to figure out a workable solution.
Sierra K.
7/21/2022
I really enjoyed reading your review. I am sorry that you went through so much trouble for what is called, flexed hitch. Here is a whole help article about it:
Helpful Links
Easy to install with good instructions. Once in place, just needed to shift assembly around till the holes aligned and bolts went in with no issues.
Install was quick, hitch didn’t line up well had to drill out a couple of holes , then still gorilla it into place but after installation i like it
Jim
12/2/2023
Works as intended for a bicycle rack . No issues
Product is great. I had hard time installing because of rust in my car so l had to buy a tap die wrench to make sure that installation will be completed. Probably will help if you include a kit along with the bolts for these cases rust.
Other than that product is fantastic.
Fatos
8/27/2023
After one year it looks very good. I strongly recommend etrailer hitches.
Excellent product. I am a 68 year old woman with no jack and I installed the hitch by myself. So don't be scared, you can do this. Took me a few minutes, blocked it up and then installed with a torque wrench and also installed the bracket for the wiring connector. The wiring was pretty easy also. I did watch videos. They were great.
Debby
6/2/2022
Great quality and price
Decided to get a platform bike rack that uses a trailer hitch rather than have all of those straps that the old rack used. Only problem was our car didn’t have the hitch we needed. This purchase from etrailer was easy, quick, and the best price we could find. Everything lined up and once we got the bolt holes cleaned out, installation was pretty simple. We are very happy with the entire process!
Very satisfied. Nice finish. Came undamaged. Perfect fit for my 2011 RAV4. Good instructions. No cutting or alterations required, other than unbolting and removing left rear tow hook, which is to be replaced by left mounting point of receiver. Was able to do alone, with help of a cooler to support opposite side as I secured first bolt. Be sure you have an 8” plus extension for your socket to give room for ratchet and torque wrench. Also, a ratchet strap should be used to support exhaust, which must be slipped off of hanger to gain access to right side bolts.
David
9/22/2021
Hitch still works great. The finish still looks good after one year in Minnesota.
Hitch receiver arrived a little banged up (I think they need a better shipping company), but etrailer responded quickly to the issue and I'm satisfied with the result.
As noted on the website, the hitch receiver needed a bit of an adjustment to get it to fit properly on my vehicle. I had to spread the forks about 1/8 of an inch to get it to fit, but that was pretty easy to accomplish using my car jack and a 2 x 4 of the appropriate length. It would have been helpful if the instructions had listed the required spread between the mounting holes so that I didn't have to guess how much additional spread was required (avoiding the trial and error). Otherwise, the installation went smoothly without having to jack up the rear end of the vehicle. (It's a bit awkward for one person, but I propped up one side of the hitch receiver to get the first bolt in the opposite side. After that, no problem.)
This bike rack is great. It allows me to carry two bikes and have the ability to still get into the back of my SUV. I do dog powered sports and several friends have commented on how nice this rack system is. I highly recommend. Thanks for checking in.
I'm 5'1" and semi-strong but I was worried about lifting my 60 lb. e-bike onto the rack. Now I have it down pat, 1) tilt the platform, 2) put the front tire in the holder, 3) clamp it snug but not too tight, 4) lift the rear tire into the channel, 5) ratchet the tire tight making sure it doesn't touch the spokes, 5) check the front tire clamp and retighten on the tire if needed, 6) lock the cable. Then I'm off, I love it. The locks are a bit tight & tricky. My driveway is 700 ft of gravel so I'm a bit concerned that dust could make the lower lock difficult. Suggestion anyone?
Heather A.
7/9/2020
Thank you for your review. It is common for the Thule locks to be sticky when they are new. lightly tap the key all the way into place in the lock core the very first time you use it so that it seats fully. You can use a rubber mallet or small hammer to gently coax the key into its fully-ed position. That usually loosens it up. Please let me know if you need more help.
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Wayne
12/17/2023
Great! Have used it while pulling trailer on several occasions with no problems.