Hidden Hitch any comments

[teachndad]

HI,

I am interested in purchasing this http://www.jcwhitney.com/webapp/wcs/...0101&langId=-1 for my 2000 Sienna.

Any comments or experience with it. I am going for the 2" size should I need to get a WDH.


Thanks

Rod

[magicalme]

How much weight are you going to pull ? Weight Distribution is on the trailer and receiver not the actual hitch . Hidden is a good brand also Valley makes one with the light plug built in and some places include the T-conector wiring harness for your vehicle . A lot of people here seem to like the Curt , I have read a lot of people having trouble with the Curt not lining up properly and having trouble installing .

[brian_bp]

Hidden Hitch is one of the Cequent Towing brands (the others with hitches are Reese and Draw-Tite), and Cequent appears to be the leader in the hitch field; many Sienna owners use Hidden Hitch products.

To get a better idea of the actual appearance of the hitch (than provided by the generic image at the JCWhitney site), I suggest looking at eTrailer (they usually offer actual photos from multiple angles, and do for the 2000 Sienna), or going to the illustrated installation instructions provided for the specific model by the manufacturer (most of which are linked to from the eTrailer detail page for the product).

[teachndad]

Just an update.

I didn't end up getting the Hidden Hitch, mainly due to the price. I found what I thought was a better deal with a Putnam hitch. Sold by Hitches4less.com. http://hitches4less.com/cliiib5lbs2....FRwpawod_SHWtg

My first question when I saw it was, "Whose Putnam?" I had never heard of them before and thought maybe it was a Chinese brand. Turns out, it was a smaller hitch company that made hitches in the good ole US of A for many years. The economy ended up hurting them and they went belly up. It wasn't a quality issue, they just couldn't compete with the downturn in the economy. Hitches4less.com bought up their entire inventory when they folded.

I just put it on yesterday. It sits real high up just under the bumper. I can only see the 2" hole for the drawbar. The nice thing about it, is that its designed for a WDH, if I ever need it. Some hitches aren't designed for them, from what I have read. Welds are smooth.

All this for $99.99. At the time I ordered it, they were offering it with $20 off for any item over $120. That's no longer available. As you can see, on the link, they are offering it for $119.99. I emailed them and asked them if they would give me the $20 off even though it was only a penny less. They gave it to me! It also included free shipping in a box. Some online hitch stores send you the hitch not in the box and it can get dinged up. Mounting the hitch was very easy. I just propped one end of the hitch on my plastic lunch box cooler and that allowed me to lift the opposite end enough to get the bolts into the holes to mount it. Got them just tight enough and went back to the other end and just lifted it a few inches and mounted that side.

Only problem is minor. The washers on the bolts that come with the hitch are a tad too small in outer diameter. The mounting holes in the hitch are enlarged to offer some flexibility. I need to go out to the hardware store and find some nice washers that are a little bigger in the outer diameter.

Cheers

Rod W

[brian_bp]

Rod, thanks for the information about Putnam and Hitches for Less. Navigating through the selection process, at their site, I notice that only Valley hitches are offered for the Sienna. To find the Putnam hitches (other than by following the direct link), I had to do a general search on the site for "Sienna". I also noticed that they don't have Putnam hitches for the second-generation Sienna... arrived too late for Putnam, I guess.

The way the Putnam hitch tucks up behind the bumper cover is nice, although that's only possible on the first-generation Sienna.

[teachndad]

HI Brian,

I would suggest you email them and see if they have a hitch for the second gen Sienna even though it appears that they don't have it on the site. The person named Jennifer in customer service was very helpful. She also answered the phone when I called.

Never hurts to ask.

Rod

[internetpilot]

You went with a different hitch anyway, but for anyone who finds this in a search, I recommend the Hidden Hitch. I just bought one a week ago and installed it today. Had no problems during the install, and it seems like a nice hitch. I just worked around the exhaust pipe rather than trying to figure out how to unhook that rubber mount and drop the exhaust. I did end up getting the air lift bags after finding out the hitch scrapes when backing down my driveway, but that's something I'd probably need when towing or using a hitchhaul, bike rack, etc., anyway. I just bought the air lift bags today. I also got the wiring harness at the same time as the hitch, and that install was painless as well.

I got the hitch and wiring harness from Etrailer.com, as they had the cheapest price I could find and didn't charge anything for shipping. That Putnam hitch sounds like a deal!