Bringing in your own hitch

[sande005]

My dealer would only install hitches they sold. But they were fine with me bringing my own, and taking the time needed to install it in their lot.

[iproff1]

My dealer took the brackets off my old trailer and installed them on the new trailer. They set the hitch up on our new trailer and installed the sway ball mount on the trailer all at no charge.

Ken

[Jerryr]

Lazy Days Tampa.

When we bought a 2800BH I purchased a BlueOx online and installed it myself in the dealership lot. I brought my own tools and torque wrench and studied installation procedure well in advance.

When we bought our Reflection 5th wheel I was going to buy my Andersen hitch online. When I called their parts department for a price they beat online by a significant margin. Their policy was to discount accessories when you purchased a trailer. I also installed that hitch myself and after it was installed the tech came out and taught me how to get the trailer properly attached.

[Rwriley]

What is the general consensus on bringing your own hitch to the dealer when you pick up a new trailer. I have a hitch from previous trailers that i have kept and want to use it. Did your dealer charge you to set it up? Do you do a rough set up and take it home to do a complete set up? Will a dealer even use your hitch?

I never had a problem until this last TT I bought. There official position is they won't set it up for you, but they will walk you through how to do it. In actual practice the guy said "Don't tell anybody" and set it up for me. When I got it home I re-did it and set it up the correct way

He was a decent guy, but I knew more about the hitch than he did

[jfspry58]

What is the general consensus on bringing your own hitch to the dealer when you pick up a new trailer. I have a hitch from previous trailers that i have kept and want to use it. Did your dealer charge you to set it up? Do you do a rough set up and take it home to do a complete set up? Will a dealer even use your hitch?

When we recently bought our new 5th wheel, we already had our hitch installed in the truck, but we needed our Reese Sidewinder pin box installed on the new trailer. Our dealer said they would gladly install it while we did our PDI. The service manager even called to verify the pin box model and to find out if they needed any additional parts. When we arrived at the dealership, the service guys got the Sidewinder out of my truck to install on the trailer, then hooked it up to the truck so they could adjust the height. As we were finishing the paperwork they pulled the completed truck and trailer out of the shop and into the parking lot. It was all set up and ready to go.

[RustyCas]

We bought a 2600RB in August and after some research I ordered a Husky that hit my sweet spot for price/performance. The original order was canceled with no notification. Ordered another and it arrive with a bar missing. I have a 2500HD with a class 3 receiver so I had no problem picking the trailer up sans WDH. I had never pulled a TT before, but the 90 mile trip home was uneventful. The hitch arrived a couple of days before our first short trip so I just waited until we got to the campground to install it. Again I had no issues pulling it with a stock hitch - hills, freeway, city rush hour traffic, extremely stable. It pulls a little better with the WDH though. My point is, if you have enough truck, you shouldn’t have any problem pulling it home without a WDH, and no need to install it at the dealer, in a parking lot, in the rain, etc.

[orbsah]

It’s interesting how dealers are so different. My dealer would only install a hitch purchased thru them AND charge full labor rates for installing it.

[CharlieB]

What is the general consensus on bringing your own hitch to the dealer when you pick up a new trailer. I have a hitch from previous trailers that i have kept and want to use it. Did your dealer charge you to set it up? Do you do a rough set up and take it home to do a complete set up? Will a dealer even use your hitch?

The first issue with our purchase was the WDH. After negotiating price and add ons, including a Blue Ox hitch, we arrived the following day to pick up, only to find a Curt installed on the trailer. Now told a Blue Ox wasn’t in stock. The Tech Trainee had misplaced the sway bar mount and installed two additional screws. On top of that he mounted the hitch literally on top of the screws. Why, I never figured out. Obviously not going to get the Blue Ox, four hours from home, nasty weather coming in, we took it home. Probably not a bad hitch, but not what we were promised. Price did reflect a full priced Curt. After arriving home installed an Equal-I-zer hitch. I have a Curt 14,000 lb rated hitch for sale, sway bar with extra screws. Love the Trailer, could do without the frustration of purchase.

[PTParker]

What is the general consensus on bringing your own hitch to the dealer when you pick up a new trailer. I have a hitch from previous trailers that i have kept and want to use it. Did your dealer charge you to set it up? Do you do a rough set up and take it home to do a complete set up? Will a dealer even use your hitch?

I bought a Reflection 300rbts in July, I had my hitch from my previous trailer. I ask the dealer about it and they said, sure bring it with you and we will install and set it up for the new trailer. I needed the sway balls installed on the trailer frame and he said he would just throw them in and install them for me. I needed my ladder off in order for it to go in my storage building and they removed it for me and filled the holes with silicone. We bought in Ringgold Georgia, because my local dealer was a pain to deal with! We were very pleased with how we were treated, and I am not an easy one to please by anyone's standards!

[vicsassone]

It depends. If you are having the dealer install a load leveler/sway control system, it might come with the hitch ball assembly and will slide into your hitch receiver. Check with the dealer.