etrailer | EcoHitch Hidden Trailer Hitch Installation - 2016 Volkswagen GTI

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Full transcript: https://www.etrailer.com/tv-install-e...
Rob: Hey, everybody, Rob here at etrailer.com. And today we're going to take a look at the EcoHitch with a two-inch receiver tube on our 2016 Volkswagen GTI.Now, I really like our EcoHitch because it does provide us with that two-inch by two-inch receiver tube opening. And it is going to be the only one that gives us those options. And since we have that two-inch opening, the accessories that we can mount up are going to be a lot easier to find and have more variety. Whether we need to tow a trailer, put a bike rack back here, or a cargo carrier, the accessories do open up a lot wider when you have a two-inch receiver tube opening. But regardless of what you're going to be using your hitch for, all the accessories are going to mount to the hitch pin hole here on the side.Now the hitch is going to accept a standard 5/8ths pin and clip.

Now, these aren't going to come with the hitch, but you can find them here etrailer.com, along with some locking devices to keep your accessories secure and anti-rattle devices to cut down on that annoying rattling sound coming from the receiver tube. Now, obviously, if you are towing a trailer, maybe you have some light duty towing you need to do, if you're going to the hardware store, maybe you're going down to the lake pulling a jet ski, you've got to hook up your safety chains.Now, we have a loop style welded to the bottom of the receiver tube, and you can see, we have plenty of room to get most size normal hooks on and take them off. And even if you have those large oversized hooks, we still have enough room to get them engaged and remove them without having to worry about interference with the hitch pin hole. Because it is slightly offset, which does help out quite a bit. So we don't have to worry about interfering with the pin and clip or the locking device.Now, if you're looking for a hitch for your GTI, you obviously have something in mind.

You want to make sure it's going to be up to the task you put it to. Well, our hitch is going to have a 300 pound tongue weight. That's going to be the maximum downward force at the end of the receiver tube, along with a 2000 pound gross trailer rating. That's how much the hitch can pull, but that does include the trailer and the load we have on it. I like to give you key measurements and these are going to help you whenever you're looking for accessories.From the center of the hitch pin hole to the outermost edge of the bumper, it's going to be right about five and a half inches.

Now that measurement is going to help you when you're looking at folding accessories, to make sure you have enough room to put them in the upright stored position and not make contact with the rear bumper. From the ground to the inside top edge of the receiver tube opening is going to be right about 11-inches. Now at that height, I definitely recommend a bike rack or a cargo carrier with a raised shank. That way we get a little bit more ground clearance out of it and not have to worry as much about bottoming out. But that measurement is also going to help you when you're looking at a ball mount, so you can find the appropriate rise or drop to match up to your trailer.Now, again, I really like the EcoHitch on our GTI here because it is a really clean look.

And since the cross tube is completely hidden behind the bumper, it definitely helps out with ground clearance. Now the downside is, is the installation is a little bit more involved because we are going to have to remove the rear fascia and trim out so we can have the receiver tube sticking out. But there aren't any tools required. It's definitely something you can do at home in your garage or in your driveway. In fact, let's go ahead and bring our GTI into the shop and we can go through the process together, so you can have the competence to do it at home.To begin our installation, we want to come to the back of our GTI. And if we come just to the outside of the exhaust right behind the tire, we'll see our wheel well liner. If we look at the very bottom, we're going to have a screw holding it in place. I'm going to grab a T25 Torx bit and we're going to pull that screw out. Now, we're going to have one on the opposite side on the passenger side, so we're going to pull that one out as well.Now, directly behind that screw, we're going to have another one. It's going to be a different style, but we want to grab a T15 Torx bit. And we're going to pull that center of the bolt out. Now, when you're unscrewing these, you kind of want to use light pressure because that is a push-pin style. We want to pull out that ce