CAWjr

I opted to not have the dealer install a hitch on my GX simply based on cost alone. And since the GX comes pre-wired and is bolt-on ready for a hitch, I figured I coudl do it myself.

I ordered the hitch & hitch step from Amazon. They were $93 & $98 respectively:


Hitch -
Hitch Step -

I first took the hitch & the hardware out of the box. If I was a patient man, I would have taken the time to spray paint the bolts & washers black to match the truck & the hitch, but I figured they are on the bottom, so no need to bother. In hindsight, I wish I had done it because I notice it, even though no one else will. I test fit the hitch by hand to make sure everything aligned as expected. It did, so I took it all off & got to mounting.

One thing to note is that the plastic bumper is not flush with the mounting bracket and the hitch pushes it up by about an eighth of an inch. It's not that bad. I debated buying 4 more washers to use as spacers, but I felt that not having the hitch against the mounting bracket could cause issues if I ever decide to tow something heavy, so I just pushed it up a bit to install it.

The instructions do not cal for it, but because I do not have a torque wrench, and was installing this by hand, I decided to put some threadlocker on the bolts. I have a bottle of red 271 laying around, which is exactly what this application calls for. I hand tightened all the bolts as much as I could & was happy with the result. The hitch sits nearly flush with the rear bumper when looking directly down.

The hitch step is the same one I have had on my 4Runner since I bought it. It has saved me in two rear end collisions where it took the brunt of the hit & countless bumps backing into a wall or something. Plus, with the way the rear glass swings open, it is awesome to be able to step up and grab something without having to open the barn door.

Below are pictures of the installation process.

BornDriver

Nice, hitch looks much better than OEM.

GoHuskers

Thanks for sharing. This hitch looks much better than the OEM, eventhough it's rated for 5000 lbs Max towing.

Same as the hitch for the 4th Gen 4Runner V6 is MUCH better looking than the V8 version.

CAWjr

I don't expect to tow anything heavier than my bike rack with this, so it's total overkill. If I had a boat, trailer, etc, I would have spent the money on either the OEM, or had one professionally installed.

And different strokes for different folks, but I love the look of the hitch on my V8 4th gen 4Runner better than the bolt on look of the V6.

kvtram

I have a '17 RX350 FSport and wanted to confirm that the Curt#13272 hitch fits as the etrailer.com says exclude F-Sport but I have read through this entire thread and seems like folks have successfully installed it.

I wanted to confirm that's the case and also if the F-sport with the tow package has the hitch wiring pre-installed and there is nothing else to purchase. Does anyone have a picture of the wiring harness as this is will my first hitch install but seems very straight forward? Thanks.