Is the Under-Bed or Above-Bed Mount Kit Better for the Demco Hijacker Autoslide

Question:

I have a 2006 Ford f-150 xlt 4x4 5.4 liter with a 6 1/2 foot bed I want to put in the demco auto slide 5th wheel hitch dm8550034 18,000lbs I also found the BandW semi- custom 5th wheel installation kit BWRVR3201-00 I wanted to know if both parts were compatible with each other. And to make sure that both of them will work for my truck and if I needed anything else. And which is better above the bed or under the bed. Also to see if the above the bed is the best option and the difficulty of the installation of either. I do have 30 years of experience as a autotech but I have never installed either. All of your advice and input would help. From what I have read on all of the reviews both seem easy to do. Thanks for your time

asked by: Roy C

Expert Reply:

Yes, the B&W Semi-Custom 5th Wheel Installation Kit part # BWRVR3201-00 which is a fit for your 2006 Ford F-150 with the 6-1/2' bed will work with the Demco Hijacker Autoslide 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch w/ Slider part # DM8550034. If you wanted to go with an under bed mount system then you will need to use the Demco Hijacker Autoslide 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch w/ Slider part # DM8550022 with the Underbed Rail and Installation Kit part # DM8550022.

The under-bed mount kit will take a bit more work to install than the above-bed mount kit but will also provide uninterrupted bed access with the hitch removed. The above-bed mount kit will take less work to install than the under-bed mount kit but will leave you with rails in the truck bed with the hitch removed. The cost of the under-bed mount kit will also be more than that of the above-bed mount kit. I personally like the under-bed mount kit because of the uninterrupted bed access with the hitch removed but please note that this under-bed mount kit is specific to the Demco Hijacker so you can't swap out the hitch for something different like you could for the above-bed mount kit.

The only other thing you may need is an in-bed wiring harness for which I recommend the Demco 5th Wheel/Gooseneck 90-Degree Wiring Harness part # DM8555002.