Draw-Tite, Curt, or Hidden Hitch...

Try the Torklift Central "EcoHitch" site, if you really want the hitch to be tucked in with minimal aero disturbance

 

Protruding? You mean sticking out beyond the bumper or simply being visible below the vehicle?



That is what I installed last year and have been very happy with the choice. It doesn't stick out either, but it's not hidden in any respect.

 

Do you have a picture of what it looks like installed on your Prius? Would be pretty helpful if you could post.

 

From the videos on the net, it appears that the Hidden hitch, Curt, and Draw-tite all install below the plastic trim panel. The EcoHitch installs above the plastic trim panel which should make it much more aerodynamic with little air flow disturbance. The question is, is the $100+ higher price worth it with the gas savings by the aerodynamic improvements by being under the trim panel?

 

I doubt there is any mileage penalty. You've got the rear axle, struts, wheels, etc blocking the airstream. Also the Eco hitch is harder to install and requires cutting of the plastic panel. It's nice though.

 

If the hitch bar resides outside the rear cover panels, there would be a bit of air flow disruption. Probably not an issue at slower speeds. Imagine some degradation would be present at higher speeds. How much? Hard to tell.

 

Curt hitch on 2012 plug-in

 

Hidden Hitch may be tucked up to the bumper a little more. My son and I had Vibes... he put a Curt on his and I eventually got a Hidden Hitch. Turned out that the Hidden Hitch was tucked up a tad more than his Curt. It was a noticeable difference that he pointed out.

 

Yep! I totally agree with you!

 

Wish we could get a Hidden Hitch picture on a Prius to compare and see the differences. Someone's gotta have a Hidden Hitch installed in this Forum, right?

 

Here's a photo with 2 bikes loaded on a Thule rack, to the Curt hitch:

 

Nice Picture John!
For some reason every time I see your post's, I think of silver! not blue go figure.

 

I ordered a Hidden Hitch for mine on Thursday. I bought it online for $114.73 including shipping. Hopefully it will show up next week, and I will get it installed and add some photos of the installation, and the final look.

 

I had order Draw-tite hitch and it was very easy to installed. I had four bikes and still average about 45mpg.

 

I got my Draw-tite hitch from Amazon. Packing was nonexistent so some of the paint got rubbed off and there were a bunch of labels to be removed. However the price was good. I installed it without jacking up the car.

 

I bought a 2014 Prius 4 and I thought the manual said hitches aren't recommended. Is that true? Or is that something new for the 2014's?


iPhone ?

 

Hitches aren't recommended, since that implies TOWING, which isn't something you should do with a Prius.

If all you're going to use the hitch for is carrying cargo on a rack, then it's no big deal. Go for it.