Looking to add a hitch for a bike rack to either a 2012 or 2013 Base Fit. The installation videos for one of the most common hitches out there for the Fit shows the installer trimming away a portion of the plastic wheel well assembly. The part trimmed includes a mounting point and nowhere in the remainder of the video do they address reattaching the wheel well. Anyone know if this is OK? Am I missing something? Which hitch is recommended by Fit owners / forum regulars?

Thanks in advance!

 

It is no big deal. You are just trimming away some of the wheel well plastic that lays underneath the mounting bracket of the hitch frame. With the plastic removed, the hitch bracket can fit snugly against the steel rail formed into the floor pan of the rear of the car, and the mounting bolts can be fully tightened with all metal contact areas intimate and flat. It's like a piece of gum stuck to your shoe. Remove the gum, and your shoe hits the ground flat, with no interference and no lump in the way. I used the "Hidden Hitch" brand, but they are all the same.

 

Thanks. So the wheel well doesn't flap or hang loose without that mounting point?

 

This Curt model is a different design and doesn't require wheel well trimming. Kind of seems like a stronger geometry too:
http://www.thehitchstore.com/class-i...64-p-1985.html
I've installed several hitches but never a Curt so no idea if they are quality. Guessing most are similar.

 

No it does not.

 

I don't believe that the picture shows the actual hitch for GE Fits. It looks like a generic drawing. The Hidden Hitch design has four mounting points on the frame rails and appears to be MUCH sturdier than the one in your ad. You seem to be overly worried about a very minor step in the installation. Removing a tiny piece of plastic to make room for a bolt is the very least of your concerns.

 

I agree with your observation that I am likely being overly worried...just hate little things that flap, rattle! Getting solid connections is critical. FWIW, the hitch pictured IS for a Fit - the install guide shows the detail at:
http://www.thehitchstore.com/images/...-11064-INS.pdf

Thanks again for your discussion!

 

Okay, for a better impression of Draw Tite and Hidden Hitch products (identical), look at the installation video on Trailer hitch, hitches and bike rack (800)298-8924. The Curt version of the hitch is rated at 6 out of 10 for installation difficulty, where the other two are rated lower in difficulty. I am just guessing here, but I think that the "tail" piece on the Curt hitch needs to have holes drilled in the bottom of the spare tire well for a bolt or bolts to anchor that tail piece. After almost four years of use with the Hidden Hitch, I have to tell you that the Curt tail piece is completely unnecessary. Watch the etrailer install video.

 

Okay, the Hidden Hitch and Draw Tite hitches are easier to install. NO DRILLING at all. I would recommend either of those brands over the Curt. For the same price range you are buying more trouble with the Curt.

 

looking to get a hidden hitch as well as there's no drilling required.

 

^^^
Good choice IMO. If you can find a better price on the Draw Tite brand, it is exactly the same as the Hidden Hitch.

To the OP, I am not saying the the Curt hitch is bad in any way, just very odd with more work than the other two. I personally like the way that the Hidden Hitch surrounds the muffler, and I did not have to unfasten the muffler for the install as the video shows. It is easy enough to do (pop off the rubber hanger), I just didn't have to do it.

 

^^
what's the difference between the Hidden Hitch and Draw Tite? I know both require no drilling. Anything else other than price?
And how long was the installation?
I'm from Toronto, so it'd make more sense for me to drive down to buffalo, buy and install it, then head back over. Cheaper than buying anywhere else. Shipping and brokerage fees are insane.

 

on a side note, have you ever checked out the Hidden hitch and Draw tite site, and compared them side-to-side? They're exactly the same! odd....

 

That is exactly what I told you in post #11.