2011 Limited aftermarket TOW

Does anyone have pics of the Draw-tite or Curtis hitch installed on their 5th GEN EX?

I have the DrawTite. It looks exactly like this:

http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/Ford/Explorer/2011/75710.html?vehicleid=2011304889

Are you happy with it? Any drawbacks so far with attaching say a Thule bike rack?

Gablesdad said:

Are you happy with it? Any drawbacks so far with attaching say a Thule bike rack?

Click to expand...

Very happy. I use it with a bike rack, hitch-hauler, and a utility trailer ( 4 X 8 ).

On my current Ex, I have the OEM tow. But I did have a Draw Tite on my previous vehicle, Toyota Highlander, for many years that worked well without issue. I used it mainly for a Thule T2 bike rack. Never a problem and the rack was very secure.

If you're shopping for bicycle hitch racks, I recommend the 1up rack (made in the USA). Everyone raves about their quality (all metal) and you almost never see one for sale used.
https://www.1upusa.com/bicycleracks.html. If my T2 wears out, this is the one I would replace it with.

Not much can go wrong with a hitch receiver if you're only going to use it for a bike rack. Only thing I can think of is the reduced ground clearance on your tail end especially if you have the trunk loaded up plus a couple or more bikes on the rack. That would be true with any brand of aftermarket hitch receiver though.

My wife's Limited has the OEM receiver but we have a Curt on our minivan. We have taken it on many road trips totaling thousands of miles with our hitch mounted cargo box filled to the max capacity of 150 lbs and a trunk full of luggage. Never have had a problem with the receiver.