Curt 1 1/4" Trailer Hitch Received

[iso100]

The mountain biking season is kicking back in shortly and I badly need to get out there and ride. I don't like the idea of permanently mounted roof racks mainly due to appearance and wind drag (as well as the fact that they attach to the edges of the roof) so I have been using a Sea Sucker Talon roof rack that uses industrial strength suction cups to hold the bike to the roof of the car.

It works perfectly but requires a clean, wet mating surface for best results and to avoid paint damage. Additionally, it requires the removal of the front wheel.

I finally broke down and ordered the Fiesta Curt Hitch from Amazon for about $115. It just arrived minutes ago and HOLY HELL IS IT HEAVY! There goes the 24# I saved by going with lighter aftermarket wheels.

Next step is to spray over the gloss black on the exposed portions with flat black to minimize visibility.

I will be installing this while it's on the lift getting my MBRP exhaust installed (that should show up tomorrow).

I plan to use a hitch-mounted bike rack that allows me to put the bike on the back without removing any wheels and without having to use bungee cords to keep things from moving around. This is the one I'm planning to order:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001VO1YY...UTF8&colid=USP9VHGY4J8R&coliid=I10RON6DU8GVDT

 

[sikedsyko]

Let me know if you have any clearance issues with the MBRP exhaust. The stock exhaust bangs on the receiver pretty bad and all the time. I ended up buying some hangers that lower the exhaust about an 1" to reduce the tapping to an acceptable level. I've been thinking about going with an exhaust that deletes the rear chamber, but haven't been able to justify the ridiculous prices of catbacks for these cars just yet.

 

[lildevilx]

I plan to use a hitch-mounted bike rack that allows me to put the bike on the back without removing any wheels and without having to use bungee cords to keep things from moving around. This is the one I'm planning to order:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001VO1YY...UTF8&colid=USP9VHGY4J8R&coliid=I10RON6DU8GVDT

Hey just be careful of that one
i've read reviews saying during long trip the bike may roll off the mount @_@;;
i would suggest you use something to tie down the wheels to the mount, that should fix that problem

Good luck and looking forward to see the results!

 

[iso100]

Let me know if you have any clearance issues with the MBRP exhaust. The stock exhaust bangs on the receiver pretty bad and all the time. I ended up buying some hangers that lower the exhaust about an 1" to reduce the tapping to an acceptable level. I've been thinking about going with an exhaust that deletes the rear chamber, but haven't been able to justify the ridiculous prices of catbacks for these cars just yet.

Luckily the MBRP has no rear chamber so hopefully I'll be good there. I install it tomorrow at 5pm (friend works at a shop with a lift and all the tools, so I'll be doing the exhaust AND the hitch at the same time) and will report my findings and take lots of photos.

Hey just be careful of that one
i've read reviews saying during long trip the bike may roll off the mount @_@;;
i would suggest you use something to tie down the wheels to the mount, that should fix that problem

Good luck and looking forward to see the results!

Aw, crap! Seriously!? That would suck massively.

I have some of those bungies with the balls that lock together. Perhaps I'll use those for an added level of security.

 

[lildevilx]

Aw, crap! Seriously!? That would suck massively.

I have some of those bungies with the balls that lock together. Perhaps I'll use those for an added level of security.

Yeah it does indeed!
I would suggest getting the one higher model or just diy your own straps and it should be fine

 

[iso100]

Yeah it does indeed!
I would suggest getting the one higher model or just diy your own straps and it should be fine

Too late. It arrives today. They dropped the price to $130 and I didn't want it to go back up so I jumped on it.

 

[spoolinst]

Anyone have a pic of a hitch mounted on the st? I have a kuat sherpa id love to keep using as long as the hitch doesn't look horrible

 

[lildevilx]

Anyone have a pic of a hitch mounted on the st? I have a kuat sherpa id love to keep using as long as the hitch doesn't look horrible

check this post out
http://www.fiestastforum.com/forum/...pears-to-work-with-Curt-hitch?highlight=hitch
not too bad in my opinion =]

would of went with it but my brother convinced me to go with a roof rack...

 

[spoolinst]

Thanks for the link! I got an inno rack and a Yakima high roller ready to bolt on and my kuat just sitting there. I may go rack since I already have it laying around

 

[lildevilx]

Rhino rack?
If so let me how it goes!

I read a few people complaining that the rack's screw gets loss really easily @_@

Edit: sorry i just did some research to find its not what i thought it was =P

 

[spoolinst]

Lol never heard of rhino. I had this inno on my fit before and it was great. Should fit the st no prob since they are similar size and shape

 

[RAAMaudio]

24#, why I built my own hitches for my fun projects if needed. I built one for my C6 Vette that weighed 6 lbs then took it to a custom fab shop with decades of highly regarded history and the boss asked me if I wanted a job when he looked at it

If you look it over you can probably trim off a few lbs with no loss in strength and then if not loading it heavily take even more off.

 

[iso100]

I sprayed it flat black where it will be visible from behind. And removed the sticker.

It will be installed tomorrow night so I'll post photos of it next to the MBRP exhaust tips.

 

[iso100]

Installed!

That wire fish idea is genius. As I mentioned before I sprayed the exposed areas of metal with flat black paint to make it less visible.

I ended up not having to trim the heat shield and instead just smooshed it out of the way to get the bolt holes centered.

Almost invisible:

 

[lildevilx]

Looks great man!
No problem with the exhaust I assume?

 

[iso100]

Looks great man!
No problem with the exhaust I assume?

None at all. Here it is with my bike mounted:

 

[lildevilx]

Awesome! Looks great :-D
Hope it works great!

Im sstill waiting to pick up my rack in my company's USA office lol