What is the Ground Clearance with the Curt 1-1/4 Inch Hitch # C11000 on a 2011 VW GTI

Question:

Will I lose any ground clearance with this hitch? I heard that the Curt hitch reduces ground clearance by about an inch and Im wondering if this is okay. Thanks

asked by: Stefan K

Expert Reply:

The Class I 1-1/4 Inch Hitch, part # C11000 on your 2011 Volkswagen GTI. It is located right under the rear fascia of your vehicle. It measures so that the top of the ball mount is approximately 8 inches from the ground as you can see on the attached installation video of a similar 2010 model. The ball mounts that are used with these hitches will always have to be used in the rise position.

I am including a link to the Installation instructions of this hitch. The instructions will show a side view of where the hitch is located on your vehicle in reference to the rear fascia. This will give you a good idea of how much ground clearance you will have.

expert reply by: Jeff D

Nicholas G.

12/12/2012

Could you include the picture of that clearance on this q

Patrick B.

12/14/2012

I have included a link to the Curt hitch product page. There is a link on that page to an instruction .pdf file. Within that .pdf there are several pictures of the hitch installed as well as a diagram in the instructions that depicts the profile of the fascia in relation to the hitch.

Andyaz

1/30/2021

@PatrickB This is certainly confusing, but after considerable research on VW forums, I'm certain that the fit of the Draw-Tite 24904 is quite different than the Curt 11000. Note that the 24904 info says "Concealed Cross Tube" and the 11000 says "Visible Cross Tube", which has less ground clearance. Not helpful is that most instruction links (esp. Draw-Tite) are broken.

Jon G.

2/2/2021

@Andyaz While I can see where you're coming from, the point that Jeff was getting at in this answer is that the location of the hitch receiver is in relatively the same place. Yes the installation is a bit different, but when it comes to distance to the ground they are similar. Also, we do have some photos of these products installed. Nicholas and Patrick made their comments a little over 8 years ago and back then we didn't have any pictures of these hitches installed. The instruction linked to the hitch product pages are up and running for me as well if you're wanting to check them out.