Troubleshooting Bike Rack Squeaking When Installed In Curt Trailer Hitch Receiver C13409

Question:

I just had this hitch installed on my new 2021 Forester. I put my Thule bike rack and bike on the back and took it to the beach. Every bounce of the rack made a squeaking plastic noise. Any thoughts as to why this would be happening?

asked by: Maureen

Expert Reply:

There are a few things that could cause a squeaking noise when carrying your loaded bike rack on the Curt Trailer Hitch Receiver # C13409.

First if your Thule bike rack does not have an anti-rattle hitch pin the bike rack will move in the receiver which can cause a noise. You can eliminate this by installing the etrailer Anti-Rattle Hitch Stabilizer for 2" Hitches # e99007 which will secure the bike rack to the receiver.

Second is to make sure that all of the straps used to secure the bike rack are tight so the bike cannot move around which could lead to a squeaking noise.

With the rack installed grab the bottom of the rack and shake it to try and replicate the noise. This will tell you exactly which part is causing the squeaking.

Let me know what you find and we can go over additional components to eliminate the noise if these two options did not fix the issue.

expert reply by: Samuel C