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Torklift Ecohitch finished product

99K views 211 replies 87 participants last post by  MasterAviator 
A great big thanks to all that have contributed to this thread!! It is much appreciated and helped tremendously with my Ecohitch installation this morning.

I received my hitch yesterday and got to work early this morning. It took about 3 hours with some help from a friend. The included instructions were insufficient and it would have taken a lot longer if I did not find this thread. The good news is that the hitch fit the studs perfectly without any stud bending needed so Ecohitch has fixed the issue that affected early adopters.

The hitch still looks pretty low to me especially compared to my previous SUV's and there is no way I would want to go with anything lower. I am very glad I passed on the factory hitch and other aftermarket options. This hitch is well worth the effort and, in my opinion, the only way to go. When our other Sienna arrives in a couple of weeks I expect to be able to install this hitch in less than 2 hours. The factory wiring harness is a tad on the short side but will work.

For those folks that do not have a spare tire the wiring harness installation from the inside can be a pain in the keister. I depended on a YouTube video for that one and it took about 45 minutes to get it installed. After completing that task I discovered an access panel that becomes exposed once the bumper cover is removed.
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Man, that’s gonna irk me if that’s the case. Loosing functionality of the foot activated lift gate because of a poorly thought out and tacky tow hitch, not even a 2” one at that; also stupid expensive.
No option to not get it on the woodland either.
100% agreed. It sure looks like Toyota assumed that no one buying a Sienna might actually want to tow something with it. It seems fairly obvious that they assigned the task to the most inexperienced person they could find and gave him 2 hours to come up with something.
 
Thank you for showing the access to the wiring harness. I am going to take it to a local shop to have the Torklft hitch and wiring harness installed. Just to clarify so I can communicate to the shop, for the sienna without the spare tire, I can access the connection to the wiring harness from that compartment behind the bumper without having to remove any of the interior trim?
That is correct provided you are using the factory wiring harness. Some after market options require running a lead to the battery which is not accessible through the access point pictured above.

No, you’ll need to pull the trim off, but it’s rather simple. Just a few clips. Whole panel will slide out.
The trim does not need to be removed as the mounting location for the wiring harness is accessible from the outside after the bumper cover is removed via a vent as pictured in post #86.

It took me over a half our to get the trim panes off but about 3 seconds to open the vent. I can tell you which option I will choose when I install another one in a few months.
 
Thank you for the clarification. I ordered the eTrailer T-one vehicle wiring harness item # TK69FR which looks like it needs to be connected to the battery. Where did you purchase the OEM wiring harness? I will return the etrailer one and get OEM to simplify the install.
I ordered from Bam Wholesale parts. The harness is 2 parts and it is not nearly as inexpensive as the aftermarket options. Total price was $195. Running a wire to the battery might be worth the savings.

PK960-08B03 Trailer Hitch Adapter $140.40
PK960-08B05 Trailer Wiring Adapter $48.60
 
Just curious but would the Ecohitch be strong enough to hold up 2 ebikes on the Hollywood Sports Rack bike trailer? It'll be a few hundred pounds pushing down on the hitch. I'm not familiar with hitch ratings or anything like that, my previous vehicle was a sequoia that came with a hitch so I wasn't too worried. I've never done an aftermarket hitch receiver before.
When you see how it is mounted you would not be the slightest bit worried. I wouldn't hesitate to put 4 ebikes on it.
 
Wow, what a thread! I'm picking up my 2023 Sienna next week, and still trying to decide if I want a trailer hitch or not. Does the Ecohitch have the same towing capacity as the hitches that hook to the frame from the bottom? Thanks all!
The Ecohitch has support brackets along the bottom to go with the ones connected on the back for a total of 8 attachment points. Its rated capacity exceeds the 3500 pound limit of the Sienna.
 
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