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2" trailer hitch for the 2010 available anywhere???

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Accessories and Modifications' started by rrolff, Aug 19, 2009.

  1. LetsGoCamping

    LetsGoCamping New Member

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    We'd really appreciate it if you will let the forum know how it fits and if it was easy for your mechanic to figure out. We haven't gotten one yet as we can take the bikes on our Roadtrek camper; however, would rather drive the Prius to the bike trails and get better gas mileage when we don't need the camper. Thanks.
     
  2. vuduvgn

    vuduvgn Junior Member

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    Two
    I purchased the Quality S hitch today. I'll report back when I get it on. I called them to confirm tongue weight as i'm using it to carry bikes. They said 200# max. I have a Saris Cycle-on. The main two bike kit weighs 45#, the additional 2 bike carrier weighs 40# for a total of 85#. This means I can carry 4 bikes that weigh no more than 28.5# each and stay within the max recommended tongue weight. Should work.
     
  3. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    Please take pics (lots of em) :)
     
  4. LetsGoCamping

    LetsGoCamping New Member

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    Ditto!
     
  5. vuduvgn

    vuduvgn Junior Member

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    I got the hitch, but havn't installed it yet. Drove from Chico, CA to San Luis Obispo, CA over the holiday weekend. I put the roof rack on for the trip because we were taking 3 bikes and a bunch of crap. KILLED the mileage. Average mileage was about 25-30 mpg for the trip, was 25 mpg doing 77mph on I-5. Looking forward to getting the hitch rack on. :/
     

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  6. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    Had my Quality S 2" hitch installed today (I was going to do it - but the general cost meant have someone else do it).

    UHaul quoted $65/hr (it would be far less than an hour) - but when I arrived, they were preoccupied with something the guy said would take 3 hrs (???) - so I Google-mapped trailer hitch, and found another place 2 blocks away. They said $85 over the phone - and I made the decision to just go crazy...

    Install was (as appeared) very simple. He did drop the muffler - but dropping the muffler means nothing more than moving the rubber muffler mounts - which move back when you put it back (no screws/bolts).

    He did remove some metal thing on one side (no pics) - it was in the bolt holes). Left and right bolted in, and the 2" then bolted on. Nothing special, took 20 minutes (due to him staring at the directions that came with it) - also due to other mechanics looking questioningly at a class III hitch being installed on a 10 Prius :cool: I did a few questions on what I planned to haul :rolleyes:

    The pics aren't great for installers - but will give a good idea of what, where and how the thing attaches....

    It's a good solid 2" hitch - and pretty plug and play. The people installing insisted it is very important to torque the bolts - and paid good attention to that (they were implying if I did it, I would not get it tight enough).

    I'd suggest leaving this to a pro ($65 - $90)...

    Now - off to the beach with bikes en tow - but first to clean off the obtrusive stickers.... :D

    EDIT: Of note - there is no need to remove the plastic cover over the drivers rear/center...
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    1 person likes this.
  7. LetsGoCamping

    LetsGoCamping New Member

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    rrolff - thanks for all the pictures and information. Now, let us know how the bikes did on the road and take some pictures of them on the car, if you will. We always took our 2 bikes on the 2005 Prius and they were nice and solid. Thanks.
     
  8. cleavel

    cleavel New Member

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    Hello All,

    Glad to find this thread as I assumed that Coastal eTech would have a 2" receiver hitch for the Gen 3 Prius by now. I will order a Quality S hitch based on what I am seeing in this thread.

    FYI, I also have a Gen 2 Prius (2006) and I installed the Coastal eTech hitch which I use with a Yakima rack. I have used it pretty extensively, including some long trips, without any problems. I had a Yakima roof rack on my Gen 1 Prius (2002) and discovered with that car how much a roof rack will kill fuel mileage. The trailer hitch rack still hurts fuel mileage but not nearly as much as the roof rack.

    Really glad that I found this thread and thanks for all of the good info and photos.
     
  9. vuduvgn

    vuduvgn Junior Member

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    Two
    I put the hitch on Monday. Took me about an hour and wasn't very complicated. I put the Saris CycleOn rack on yesterday, again, easy. The rack, when not in use, almost completely hides behind the rear deck of the car. With two bikes on the rack is very stable. The center of the frames are in complete rear view, so the saddles and handlebars are in the air drag. With a mountain bike the handlebars impede opening of the rear hatch.
    When I had the Saris CycleOn on my former Lexus it would scrape all the time coming out of parking lots. No scraping yet on the Prius.
    I'm driving about 5-6 hours this weekend for a race with two bikes on the car. I'll report back on mileage. I will also post pics.
    Happy so far.
     
  10. vuduvgn

    vuduvgn Junior Member

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    5 hours of freeway, country road and mountain driving with a passenger and race gear and two bikes on the hitch rack netted 39.6 mpg. The best i've seen yet with just me as the driving on freeway, country and mountain roads is about 44-46 mpg for a tank of gas. Therefore, with the bikes on the hitchrack, there is not that much fuel mileage loss.
     
  11. LetsGoCamping

    LetsGoCamping New Member

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    Could you fellas with the Quality S hitch, post some pictures of your Prius with the bikes on? Sounds like it's working great! (Any negatives at all, like too low, etc?) We are about to leave on a 6 week trip out west with our bikes on the Roadtrek, but when we get back we'll probably order this hitch for the Prius. Thanks!
     
  12. vuduvgn

    vuduvgn Junior Member

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    Correction, I got 39.9 mpg on the trip. The best i've gotten so far is about 45 mpg, so not much of a hit with gear and two bikes.
     

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  13. iqbal624

    iqbal624 tree hugger... ;)

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    Thanks for all the info. It seems as if the Quality S hitch sits lower than the 1.25" Curt hitch. can anyone confirm this? I have a really steep driveway and need as much clearance as possible even if that means getting a 1.25" rack...
     
  14. dragonslayer8228

    dragonslayer8228 Junior Member

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    If you go to suspensionconnection.com and look up the Quality S 2" hitch everyone seems so interested in you can look of the manufacturer's specs on the model and see it's rated for exactly the same loads as the Curt 1.25" hitch, 2000 lb towing and 200 lb tongue weight. Maybe the specs on the site are wrong but their installation instructions say the same thing about it and make no mention of meeting Class III specs. Just food for thought, I know some of the members have shown interest in the larger hitch for ease of use and peace of mind reasons but there are a ton of bike racks and the like accessories that can adapt to either 2" or 1.25" receivers.
     
  15. DJ2010

    DJ2010 New Member

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    Check out this new hitch that is now available. It sits up higher than all the others but requires trimming the panel under the car. It comes in eithe 1.25" or 2" versions. Prius Stealth Trailer Hitch They have free shipping to the 48 States.
     
  16. mgb4tim

    mgb4tim Noob

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    $250 for a hitch seems a bit steep, no?
     
  17. DJ2010

    DJ2010 New Member

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    If it means the difference of seeing a hitch stretch across the entire rear end of the car and a hitch that only shows the square receiver end below the back of the car I will pay the extra money. Ordered mine last week. Just my preference to see as little as possible of the hitch.
     
  18. mgb4tim

    mgb4tim Noob

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    I kind of agree, but then don't you also need to hack up the underpanels of the car, too?
     
  19. DJ2010

    DJ2010 New Member

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    Yes. You can always replace the panels. I am sure it will be some extra work but in my opinion it is definitely worth the extra effort. I would also say hacking the panels is not quite what I plan on doing. I will trim the panel carefully... :))
     
  20. chancho

    chancho New Member

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    Hey how did it go on your install? Should I pay someone to do this or can this be done by a single set of hands? Is there any way to get a wirining harness added? Not intending to tow, but I have a Rolla hitch basket with a light kit on it and if I can use it so much the better. Any pictures of your setup please post?

    Of course hows the mileage?

    Thanks