Looking to put on a decent aftermarket class II receiver hitch. Any recommendations?
Want to be able to plug a good assortment of accessories into the receiver i.e. bike rake, cargo platform etc. etc.

Lovin this new ride!

-Hal

Class II is still 1 & 1/4", like a Class I. You sure you're not asking about Class III (2")?

Edit: I might be mistaken, it appears that MOST Class II hitches on the market are 1 & 1/4", but there might be some Class II rated hitches that have 2" receivers.

-brendan

I don't know much about hitches. Do most of the hitch accessories use 2" or 1 1/4"?

Hello

Most of the nifty receiver tube fillers are 2" variety. Go to UHaul for the hitch. Order the wiring harness from a honda dealer on line here.. Follow the instructions as posted on this forum for install.

Go to Sports Rack and talk to Ryan. Tell him you're on elementownersclub.com and he'll hook you up with Class II with a 2" receiver for a discounted price.

http://www2.sportsrack.com/

Thanks for the info I'll check em both out

-Hal

I don't know if this helps anyone but I just saw in the new yakima catalog that they have a 1 1/4" to 2" adapter piece that would probably work on a lot of hitch mounted accessories

i would like to get a receiver, 2", and a bike rack. i've read some frames require drilling or don't fit right. can anyone recommend a hitch that's easy to install and doesnt need drilling, and a bike rack.

I just bought the class II/III hitch from Uhaul with 2" receiver (made by Valley and Valley calls it a class II). It went on pretty easily. You do have to either grind the bolts/square washer or expand the frame hole slightly.
If you have a Mills Fleet Farm in the area they sell a nice 4 bike rack that fits the 2" receiver for just under $100. I'm planning on buying one soon.
I also plan to get the "truck extender" I saw somewhere on the Internet that helps to support a canoe. It goes in the 2" receiver too.

thanks ill look into it. i want a 2" 2-bike post. Uhaul only has 3-4 bike posts. i was thinking if it's better to get both hitch and post from them, but they don't even have any hitch/price info online for E, and told me to talk to local Uhaul place about ordering and pricing without installation.
how do you expand the holes in the frame?

Bob-

overstock.com has a 2" receiver fold-down 4-bike rack and cheap shipping. Mine came last week, looks real solid!

I know that's more positions than you want, but the arms can be removed with the pull of a pull pin and stowed for when you're not carrying the bikes.

http://images.overstock.com/f/102/3117/8h/www.overstock.com/images/products/L944454.jpg

http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2.cgi?PAGE=PROFRAME&PROD_ID=653334

-brendan

PS - mine came delivered with the plastic pull pin handle smashed. Contacted softride and they're sending me a replacement handle for free (after verifying I could unscrew the brass handle post off).

I'm having second thoughts about hitches. if i could get this hatch rack on the E, and remove it when not in use, its even better than a hitch rack. i'm worried about bikes swaying and touching the car. it seems simple and cheaper and less hussle than a hitch rack. Has anyone tried this type of trunk/hatch rack? Any good/ bad experience?

http://www.thuleracks.com/thule/product.asp?dept_id=8&sku=961

while i don't have any experience with that rack in particular, i have used several different similar racks.

i just don't trust them! the bikes sway a lot, and i worry that the rack will come loose. in fact, i have had the racks slip. they require periodic re-tightening of the load straps. i wouldn't put 5-10k of bikes on that.

i can fit five bikes inside with both rear seats out. or two inside with one seat folded up and one backseat passenger. when i have more than two and two passengers, i put them on my top yakima rack.

i've been on pretty bad 4wd roads with them both on top and inside, and they are secure.

I've used a trunk style carrier, but on the hood of a pickup. Even with a metal bumper, it took some fiddling to figure out where to rest the lower pads (I shaped some custom wood blocks), and how to attach the strap ends. I glanced at the produce manual. It mentioned looking up your vehicle in the 'fit tips'. Without seeing those it is hard to say how it would work on the Element.

There is a good edge at the top, but I'd worry about rubbing as the straps pass over the top tailgate edge. Fit for the side straps might be a bit tight. I don't know where the bottom straps would attach. The lower tailgate panel is plastic, so would not be a good attachment surface. I don't know if the lower pads can rest on the bumper top. Alternatively it might be attached to the upper tailgate with nothing resting on the lower gate.

I did see, on one of these forums, pictures of a custom tailgate mount of this general style. Try searching on the .org site for bike racks.

Compared to a hitch rack, this style has more potential of rubbing paint or denting plastic panels, and has to be totally removed to open the tailgate. With a hitch rack there is the potential of opening the upper tailgate with the bikes in place, and even opening the lower gate with a swing away type.

paulj

[quote:7e0f18e781=" "]PS - mine came delivered with the plastic pull pin handle smashed. Contacted softride and they're sending me a replacement handle for free (after verifying I could unscrew the brass handle post off).[/quote:7e0f18e781]

Forgot to mention: the new handle arrived via USPS two days later at their expense. Works like a champ!

-brendan

i've desided to go with the hitch. are there any online dealers, other than UHAUL, where i can get the Valley hitch? UHAUL tells me not avaialable online, must call tall free number and pick up in store. Went to local UHAUL. they checked and gave me part number to call UHAUL...blah blah UHAUL can't tell me anything and promised to call back...... next year.

I just went through part of the ordering process for the Hidden Hitch. Shipping was nearly $20. Store pickup without added shipping could be a good deal.

paulj

i've seen that one, but didnt like it, and it's cheaper. uhaul is $136. local pick up only.

I paid $106 at my local Uhaul. 2" receiver.

i just got off the phone with 800-go-uhaul, and with a $50 deposit they can reserve install date for me, $136 with installation. but when i tell them i want price without install, suddenly they get confused, and hitch department is closed, and i should call some other time. :)))) CS advised i should deal with local store, and local tells me to call CS. tomorrow i'll be calling regional manager.

$102 sounds like a good deal

i mean 106

http://sportsrack.com (a site sponsor, mention you are a member) has the valley hitch. I called there first, got pricing, then called around a few local u-hauls. None had it in stock, all were going to charge a few bucks more than sportsrack. As mentioned elsewhere the u-haul hitch price is different in different regions. If you're near a big city (or perhaps farther from wherever Valley ships from), u-haul may be as expensive, if not more, than sportsrack. On the other hand, LMNOP got his from u-haul substantially cheaper than I could find it in the DC area, and his install price was nearly half what I was quoted.

-brendan

I called a UHaul dealer here in Tucson with the UHaul hitch number 78258. He didn't have it but looked it up on his computer and said two dealers in town did. I called one of those, confirmed they had it, went over with the intent of buying it and installing it myself, but since the installer was just standing around giving out free advice, I decided to let him install it.

Hitch: $111 plus tax
Install: $22 + $5 tip for doing a good job (SWMBO said I was a sucker)

Also bought hitch wiring harness there, although I later saw a nice 7 connector plug at Wally World that I liked better than the silver metal one I got at UHaul and will be painting black. :cry:

Prices from UHaul in the DC area are about $25 more for the hitch, and $10-$12 more for the install.

-brendan

sportsrack.com --- HiddenHitch $149, Valley class 1 (1 1/4") $79. the guy in Denver store told me class 1 not recommended for bikes/racks. Valley class 2 (2") $140 is recommended for 1-3 bikes. No EOC member discount. :(

i thought there's only one Valley model for E, which is class 3 UHAUL with 2" receiver, but now he tells me there's another class 1. how could class 1 hitch rated 2000lbs not be sufficient for 1-3 bikes + rack. now i'm confused.

Maybe that $79 class 1 is a relabeled drawtite/reese hitch.

I don't think the problem with the 1 1/4" hitch is the weight, but rather the lateral stability. All the bouncing and twisting of the bikes gets focused on the receiver box. A 2" receiver has a larger cross section for resisting those motions. A bike hitch using a 1 1/4" receiver may exhibit more wobble than one using a 2" receiver.

I'd also be more comfortable putting this kind of load on a hitch that mounts to the widely spaced frame rails than the drawtite one which just bolts to the bottom of the spare tire pan. A lot of the vertical load on these hitches is taken up by the towloop, but the other mounting points add stability.

paulj

[quote:c0e1417154=" "]sportsrack.com --- HiddenHitch $149, Valley class 1 (1 1/4") $79. the guy in Denver store told me class 1 not recommended for bikes/racks. Valley class 2 (2") $140 is recommended for 1-3 bikes. No EOC member discount. :(

i thought there's only one Valley model for E, which is class 3 UHAUL with 2" receiver, but now he tells me there's another class 1. how could class 1 hitch rated 2000lbs not be sufficient for 1-3 bikes + rack. now i'm confused.[/quote:c0e1417154]

Huh. When you called did you say "EOC" or "Element Owners Club" when asking for the discount (I said the latter)? I think I got my Valley "heavy class II" (uhaul sometimes calls this same one their "class 3" hitch) for $132-$133 delivered a couple of weeks ago.

Maybe they've stopped offering a discount? In which case, U-haul will definitely be the best bet.

There are two valley hitches, you don't want the class i hitch. Or rather, I don't want it, and I'm not sure you'd be happy with it in the long run.

-brendan

i said 'element owners club'. he only oferred AAA discount, which i have, but at this point i dont care about discount. just want to get the hitch, and i dont want UHAUL morons touching my E. i just went to Valley site, got email for all dealers, and emailed them all at once with price/availability info.