ATC Buckeye Posted March 29, 2013 Share Posted March 29, 2013 (edited) I installed the Curt 1.25" hitch on my 2013 SE today as I plan to use it for a bike rack. Here are the installation instructions and pictures. Here's the hitch itself: Here's the installation hardware: The install is very straightforward with no drilling or grinding. First, remove the nuts and screws that hold the black plastic cowling behind the painted bumper. Remove cowling and stash it in your garage somewhere. Here are the holes you will use to mount the hitch. Use the included fish wire to fish two bolts and two square bolt spacers into the frame and back out through the mounting holes. There is one hole large enough to fit the spacers through. Bolts and spacers in place: Repeat on other side. Same exact procedure. Lift the hitch into position on one side and finger tighten the mounting nuts Repeat on other side. Use a 3/4" socket wrench and tighten bolts to 110 ft/lbs. My wrench stops at 75 so I went with the "as tight as I could get them" torque setting. Recheck bolts periodically. That's it! Finished pictures. I'm surprised at how good it looks. The mount is completely hidden from view and the receiver itself is tucked away nicely. It's almost totally hidden under there. It was either this or a big Thule roof rack, for me this was a no brainer. I do not want a big roof rack on my sleek new car. Plus I'm totally that guy that will drive into the garage with my bike on the roof. I ordered it from Auto Anything for a very reasonable price. Highly recommended. Edited March 29, 2013 by ATC Buckeye 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neod192 Posted March 29, 2013 Share Posted March 29, 2013 Looks awesome, thanks for taking the time to take pictures and share! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Expedition owner Posted March 29, 2013 Share Posted March 29, 2013 Thanks for the photos and description. Did you replace the black plastic cowling or just leave it off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boogs Posted March 29, 2013 Share Posted March 29, 2013 looks good. I see you're also part of the SE 2.0EB club 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kpeex Posted March 29, 2013 Share Posted March 29, 2013 Double thanks! It sure makes me confident enough to install one by summer. Looks a lot better than I expected. Very subdued. I am right in there with you of the guy who would figure out a way to do $10,000 of damage to a $2,000 bike, a $500 rack, a garage door, and a brand new car! Do you mind sharing the Curt Hitch pricing? I have played around with the AutoAnything phone game for discounts when their coupons won't work on the web site. Did you order a mount with it? They are showing three options with the lowest price (by $1.60) for ordering the standard ball mount rather than the hitch alone. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ticholas Posted March 29, 2013 Share Posted March 29, 2013 Awesome, thanks for the pics and install info! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATC Buckeye Posted March 29, 2013 Author Share Posted March 29, 2013 Leave the black plastic part off. I got no ball mounts or anything. Just receivers. I paid $268 shipped for two hitches, one for my wife's Tribute also. I had a 15 percent off coupon so the Fusion hitch was about $115 I believe. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkan Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 I installed the Curt 1.25" hitch on my 2013 SE today as I plan to use it for a bike rack. Here are the installation instructions and pictures. First, remove the nuts and screws that hold the black plastic cowling behind the painted bumper. Remove cowling and stash it in your garage somewhere. Thanks for the pics and install instructions. Any concern that without that "black plastic cowling" under there holding the bottom of the bumper, that the bumper will "catch air" or debris/snow in winter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galangg Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 Thanks for the pics and install instructions. Any concern that without that "black plastic cowling" under there holding the bottom of the bumper, that the bumper will "catch air" or debris/snow in winter? I was wondering the same thing. From what I understand, the fascia on the MKZ is there for some aerodynamic reason, so removing it would compromise that to a certain extent. Of course, putting a bike rack on a car already changes the air flow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATC Buckeye Posted April 2, 2013 Author Share Posted April 2, 2013 I have no idea. Risk I'm willing to take. Im not doing the roof rack thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluspikez Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Thanks for posting the photos! I too am looking for a better way to carry my bike and am thinking this may be the best option. I'm just sad we don't get something like Dodge has made for the Charger, where you can actually remove the receiver so that when not in use you can't even tell the car has a hitch installed. Here's a link to one on an '11 Charger; my dad has pretty much the same thing on his '09, and that's how I came across it: http://www.chargerforumz.com/showthread.php?t=141056 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATC Buckeye Posted April 3, 2013 Author Share Posted April 3, 2013 That would be nice, but you can barely notice this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluspikez Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 That would be nice, but you can barely notice this one. Yep, it looks quite nice with the mount tucked up under the rear bumper cover like that. It's nice that all you can see is the receiver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATC Buckeye Posted April 20, 2013 Author Share Posted April 20, 2013 Finally had a chance to test this setup out. Definitely the best way to haul a couple bikes with a Fusion. Hitch is rock solid and almost invisible tucked under there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweez Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Finally had a chance to test this setup out. Definitely the best way to haul a couple bikes with a Fusion. Hitch is rock solid and almost invisible tucked under there. Did you end up using the stabilizer strap Curtis says is required for bike rack use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATC Buckeye Posted April 25, 2013 Author Share Posted April 25, 2013 I guess not because I don't know what that is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 I put a hitch on my 2012...same "near invisible look"...but then I ordered a receiver cover when nothing is in the receiver and was able to have a custom photo put on it, so I put a picture of my 1976 Montego front nose emblem on it...looks cool, and people wonder what it is....love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neod192 Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 I put a hitch on my 2012...same "near invisible look"...but then I ordered a receiver cover when nothing is in the receiver and was able to have a custom photo put on it, so I put a picture of my 1976 Montego front nose emblem on it...looks cool, and people wonder what it is....love it! Can you post a pic of that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuxedohybrid Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 You'll have to forgive my "noobiness" with this question ... are the rear bumpers of the SE and the Hybrid SE the same? Would this installation work practically the same with the Hybrid version? I haven't received my FHH yet but am a big cycler, so I'm looking for options to haul my bike around. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neod192 Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 (edited) You'll have to forgive my "noobiness" with this question ... are the rear bumpers of the SE and the Hybrid SE the same? Would this installation work practically the same with the Hybrid version? I haven't received my FHH yet but am a big cycler, so I'm looking for options to haul my bike around. Thanks! The single tip SE (non 2.0 engine) has the same bumper as the Hybrids. It's different than the one pictured in the original post - that shows the dual-integrated pipes that come with the 2.0 engine on SE and Titaniums. Edited April 26, 2013 by neod192 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuxedohybrid Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 The single tip SE (non 2.0 engine) has the same bumper as the Hybrids. It's different than the one pictured in the original post - that shows the dual-integrated pipes that come with the 2.0 engine on SE and Titaniums. Thanks for the clarification. I wouldn't think that the tip would make a difference with this mount then, but I'll have to take a closer look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Can you post a pic of that? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neod192 Posted August 16, 2013 Share Posted August 16, 2013 (edited) FYI, AutoAnything has their semi-annual sale - 15% off with code "EAG1315". I just ordered the hitch with the standard ball mount for $97.91! Edited August 16, 2013 by neod192 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATC Buckeye Posted August 16, 2013 Author Share Posted August 16, 2013 I had to trade in my Fusion and I removed this hitch before I did. I'll make someone a great deal on it if you're close to the Cleveland area because it will be too much of a pain to ship it. let me know if there's any interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmwill Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Very interested. I am south of Detroit. email is rmwill at gmail dot com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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