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Old 05-10-2015, 01:01 AM   #851
gilbertmd
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LostWind you can get a dirt cheap bicycle hitch rack off ebay, I did. It's not super high quality, broke a reflector before even installing it, but works just fine if that's your purpose
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Old 05-10-2015, 01:03 AM   #852
gilbertmd
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One simple question: I've got all my wiring right except they won't work unless the headlights are on.
Obviously I have my battery wire hooked to my headlight wire but does anyone know which wire in the tail lights is the battery for an 04 wrx?
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Old 05-10-2015, 06:00 AM   #853
soloz2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LostWind View Post
I am thinking of changing out from a roof rack on my 14 wry Hatch to a hitch. Its my DD and having roof rack on kills the mileage so i have to take it on and off. Any suggestions on one? I would prefer to avoid having to drill.
I haven't picked up a hitch yet myself, but I did do some research and Curt seems to be the best bang/buck but does require you to cut the rear diffuser.

Ecohitch installs without any modifications and is basically invisible when not in use.
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Old 05-10-2015, 11:56 PM   #854
scrplyr10
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JBP

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very cool to see the interesting things people are towing.
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Old 05-16-2015, 12:51 AM   #855
victork
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I have a 02 wrx sedan with invidia dp and megan catback. What hitch will clear my muffler?
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Old 05-16-2015, 10:20 PM   #856
ZoeShreds
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2004 Impreza 2.5TS
Silver

Question

Quote:
Originally Posted by dubkid26 View Post
custom 2-inch receiver so i can get my dirt bike around
could you Please fill me in a little more about your hitch? I just bought my 2.5TS and need to Carry a SoftRide 4 bike rack and to be able to move my KTM 200 XC-W around preferably without a trailer....If you have the design for the hitch id love to get my hand on it and try and fab one myself
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Old 09-23-2015, 01:14 AM   #857
smidge112
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Hey guys i have a 2005 wrx wagon and i plan on pulling a 14" aluminum boat. Just wondering what kind of trailer hitch i should get?
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Old 09-29-2015, 09:54 PM   #858
BugeyeMe
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Old 09-30-2015, 12:53 AM   #859
P43
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Really liking the matching wheels on the trailer^

Edit: and the stretched ruckus also
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Old 02-22-2016, 07:27 AM   #860
Vlad
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I need some information about towing, so I figured to ask here.

I have an old Mercedes, which has a good towing capacity, it can do around 3500 lb total (there is a very long explanation for the word "around", which I am going to skip for now).

I can buy the original towing accessory used form ebay Germany, for less than $200, shipped.

If I do that, I skip the US per class regulations.

I am not sure what that will do to the size of the ball of the hitch, so here is the question:

-Does the US classification system, by the class 1, 2, 3 etc, where the bar is coded with a certain opening, in which only the particular hook-ball of the class fits, change the size of the ball from one class to another?

In other words, class 1, the bar has a rectangular opening and the hitch/ball for class 1 fits in that and the ball for class 1 has a 1" diameter, then the class 2 is a diamond opening in the bar and the ball is what, 1" or 1.5" diameter? (all fictional examples). Are all tow ball same diameter, or no?


-Where is the class enforced? Meaning, does anybody care what you do with your own car? What if you buy a class 3 for a Hyunday sedan and attach your F150 on a trailer, just for fun?
Do you have to prove to the DMV what you have to tow the trailer with, when you register the trailer, or where do they review the situation?

I am looking to use the entire towing capacity of the Mercedes, using the hitch they designed for it, but not sure they originally sold it in US.
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Old 02-22-2016, 08:57 AM   #861
kumquat
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Outback Sport

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I'm no expert, but my understanding is that Class I and Class II both have the same 1.25" receiver, while Class III uses 2". You can't buy a Class III hitch for a little Hyundai; no one makes them, since the vehicle can't tow that much.

Also, I don't think anyone cares specifically what you do, but you are legally liable for anything that happens if you exceed your car's towing capacity. Stopping power is a big deal. If you try to tow 5000 lbs with your Hyundai Accent, and kill some passengers in a car in front of you because you couldn't stop and rear-ended them, you are probably going to jail. Certainly no one cares what size receiver you have on your car, though.

There are also different ball sizes. The ball you need depends on the receiver on the thing you're towing. Balls are pretty easy to swap out, though.

Last edited by kumquat; 02-22-2016 at 09:11 AM.
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Old 04-26-2016, 09:02 PM   #862
Brian82
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2002 Subaru wrx wag
WRB

Default Little Help Choosing and question about my rear lower spoilers

Hello All,
Love this thread!!!

Looking at the two trailer hitches I am not sure which one is best for me?

I like the Draw-tite look better but nervous it will hit my big magnaflow muffler. lol
I am leaning towards the Curt as I think it looks to have the most clearance.
Now mind you my muffler kinda hanging low in this picture but I can fix that. I just broke a exhaust hanger and replaced with a longer one.

my question is will the hitch interfere with my black back lower skirt ?
I will cut a notch out for the receiver but wonder if the rest would be fine.
I did not see anyone else with this type of setup to know...

I plan to tow my small 4x8 trailer with my 230lb dirtbike on it thats all and maybe a bike rack.
Will post pics once installed.

Any tips on choice and if I will have fitment issues I am all ears.
thank you

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Old 05-24-2016, 12:32 AM   #863
Brian82
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WRB

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Well I asked here and no luck so I bought the Curt hitch because it looked like it could clear a larger exhaust. I am glad I did! I had to shave a few pieces off my rear spoilers but it is all good still on strong and so hidden!

Using currently to trailer my enduro on far trips where I don't want to drive on it for a long way.
It feels like nothing is behind me and makes my trek home more comfortable.
got a lot of thumbs up with bike on trailer and on road.
Some comments from friends of friends saying bad ass bike towed by a bad ass dream car.








All road ready.




hitch very easy to install, I trust it for this light load nothing more.
I have a dirtbike carrier but I would never use it on this hitch.
only 200lb tongue weight.
I took the scales out and loaded the bike and myself on trailer and checked my tongue weight. without me on trailer the weight at the tongue was 80lb so thats cool! / good to know.. bike weights 220lb not sure how much trailer weighs.
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Old 01-21-2017, 04:48 PM   #864
8pack
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2011 STI hatch

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Quote:
Originally Posted by 05-rsx View Post
****ty photos from the Bro of his new ride , and our trailer



Does anybody know who builds the strongest hitch that will fit on a 2011 STI hatchback?
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Old 01-26-2017, 02:12 PM   #865
RC Pilot
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For what it is worth, I always go with a Curt hitch if one is available for my vehicle. Put one on my 13 2.0i limited recently.
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Old 02-02-2017, 09:51 PM   #866
NVAKeith
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 8pack View Post
Does anybody know who builds the strongest hitch that will fit on a 2011 STI hatchback?
Call Torklift. Their website lists two ratings for their hitch: 200/2,000 and 350/3,500. I assume its the lesser.

http://torkliftcentral.com/rving-and-towing/ecohitch/subaru/wrx-sti/2008-2014-subaru-wrx-and-wrx-sti-ecohitch-stealth
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Old 02-03-2017, 08:31 AM   #867
goob_os101
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Old 02-14-2017, 07:30 PM   #868
bji
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Default Ecoohitch Invisi for 2016 Impreza

Hi there, I am going to get an Ecohitch Invisi for my 2016 Impreza Hatchback:

http://torkliftcentral.com/rving-and...cohitch-invisi

I called one of the "authorized installers" and they have quoted me $580 for the hitch + install.

Since the hitch itself is $250, that means that their install is $330. That feels excessive to me, but I don't know as I've never had a hitch installed before.

I watched a video of someone installing the Ecohitch themselves. They said it takes two hours or so for someone doing it outside of a shop (i.e. without access to all of the cool gadgets that a shop has like a hydraulic lift).

Has anyone installed one themselves? Watching the video, I feel like I could do it ... and saving $330 sounds nice ...

By the way, I am well aware of the low towing limit of the Impreza, I'm just going to install a hitch-mounted bike rack, nothing heavy.
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Old 02-22-2017, 10:05 PM   #869
bji
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bji View Post
Has anyone installed one themselves? Watching the video, I feel like I could do it ... and saving $330 sounds nice ...
Well apparently no one has ... or else it's a big secret ...

Anyway, I decided to just order the Ecohitch from Torklift; despite their warning that it could take 5 - 10 business days just to ship the order, it came in like 4 days. So I guess I'll be finding out how practical it is to install the thing myself this weekend ...
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Old 02-25-2017, 06:24 PM   #870
bji
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Default Success!

I am here to say that it is 100% possible for a single person to install the Ecohitch Invisi on a Subaru Impreza 2016 hatchback. Probably any Subaru Impreza 2012-2016, and certainly a Crosstrek for which the installation process is a little easier due to the 3 inches of extra ground clearance.

I did a few things differently than the instructions, and I think they were all better than the instructions:

1. I only enlarged one hole (the MIDDLE hole) in the spare tire well. It is easy to fish the line up through that center hole from both of the bottom outer holes. You DO NOT need to enlarge more than the middle hole. I had a very weak drill and a very weak hole drilling bit and doing just that middle hole was pretty traumatic so I am glad that it was not necessary to do more.

2. I used tape to hold the bolts in place from the bottom while I positioned the hitch. I think this is important because you DO NOT want the bolts to push back up into the frame as you will never get them out again (until you remove the rear bumper that is). Once the hitch was in place and the bolts were through the hitch and positioned, I lightly screwed the nuts on so that the bolts could not go back up into the holes, and then removed the tape. In this way there was no way for me to lose the bolts, which was my worst fear (removing the tape was a pain in the a** though because I used too much and too strong tape, so be careful there).

3. Here is the big one: when you remove your spare wheel as part of the installation process, you will have one spare tire jack at the ready as a result. Borrow another spare tire jack (from another car of yours or whatever; I borrowed from my mother in law's car), and use them to crank the hitch up into place (see attached photos). This was ESSENTIAL to me getting the job done, as it would have been EXTREMELY DIFFICULT for me to get the hitch in place without this technique. I used tape on the jacks to soften them so they didn't scratch the hitch, and then I taped the hitch to the jacks so that they were secure. Then I was able to slide the hitch + jacks underneath the car, position them, and crank them up bit by bit, all the while moving them as necessary to clear the bumper and muffler. Whereas everyone else says that getting the hitch in place is the hardest part, it was actually the EASIEST part for me to do by myself because of this approach. I would recommend it even if you had two people doing the install.

4. You do not need to remove the muffler. It's easy to get the hitch around the muffler if you just lower it as per the instructions (which basically means just sliding the pins out of the rubber holders - quite difficult, but doable, WD40 is essential) - and letting it rest gently on something, which gives it enough free movement to allow you to move the hitch around it. You don't need to drop the muffler far, maybe two inches at most.

And, a word of warning:

- The rear bumper material around the "butt plug" hole, and the "butt plug" itself, are made of the most extremely soft plastic imagineable. It is very easy to scratch them as I found out. So be extra careful - when you get the plug out, put it somewhere soft and safe and secure. And cover the hole with tape as you use a cutter to cut out the plastic insert. I did not do this and my fumbling with my inadequate drill + cutting tool meant that I put some small nicks/gashes in the edge of the butt plug hole. Which is really irritating because the whole point of the Ecohitch Invisi is that it doesn't even look like you have a hitch installed -- but now I have a "butt plug" that looks like someone's installed a hitch inside anyway (actually it's not that bad, you have to look pretty close to notice the scrapes). Oh well.

All in all, while it was difficult, it was 100% doable by a single person.








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Old 03-19-2017, 07:40 PM   #871
TERMIN8TED3148
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Anyone with the torklift hitch have any issues long term? Rear of the car sagging or anything like that?
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Old 04-12-2017, 09:40 AM   #872
gettinscurvy
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PSM

Default 02 WRX wiring

Does anyone know if the existing connector exists in the 02 WRX? I hear about people having the connector in their outbacks and foresters, but I can't seem to find it in my WRX.
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Old 04-28-2017, 03:22 PM   #873
fubeca12
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Blue

Default Long-distance tow

My first post is a big thank you for this thread and the posts giving me confidence to slap a hitch on my first Subaru ever and go big.

Colorado Springs to SF Bay area and back towing my 1967 Beetle to the Kelley Park VW Show.

No issues, full freeway speeds without any lagging or lugging of the engine or need to up shift beyond 5th to 4th a few times. I hit epic rain/wind and falling snow in WY, CO, UT and Tahoe coming and going. I was flat towing the bug with all 4 wheels on the ground with it in neutral using a standard VW towbar.

I'm really liking this little car. I have a pic to share but haven't figured out the upload method yet.
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Old 06-20-2017, 01:09 AM   #874
brotheronwheel
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Default 2017 wrx sti and eco hitch

Im wondering if i can install a eco hitch torklift(invisi hitch) on the sti withoit having future problems if i decided to modify my exhaust say the nameless performance?
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Old 08-03-2018, 02:31 PM   #875
wrxnh
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/// WRx ///

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It's been awhile since I came here but...I just installed the Curt hitch (class 1 of course) with 5'x8' utility trailer from Lowe's. 2013 WRX sedan. Mostly for doing dump runs, picking up free stuff and haven't really exceeded the 1,500 lbs limit (trailer is around 600 lbs). I think the most I hauled was 100 lbs. Mainly got this to haul sheet goods but the 8' is just a hair tight so will be extending it by like an inch or so once I have the time to weld.

If anyone wants more info let me know; I've been thinking about doing a video since it seems like there aren't a lot of info out there (ya ya it's not allowed etc etc). Most of my driving has been local and very short highway. So far so good. The wiring kit is pretty easy to install other than routing the power which I ended up going through the side grommet near the fuse box and up inside the driver side fender.
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