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Aftermarket hitch and drilling


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All the aftermarket tow hitches for a 2014 SEL I see requires drilling two holes out of six bolt holes required

My wife and I will rent a 5x8 uhaul trailer once In a while.   There will be no camper pulling here, unless it's a tiny tear drop one under 2000 lbs.

Does anyone have a recommendation to prevent rusting where holes are drilled?

I live in upstate NY and, well winter.

Edited by thesavo
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  • 1 month later...

So. I called etrailer.  The model they make for SPORT is not compatible with SEL.

They even added it to the faq.

 

https://www.etrailer.com/question-525555.html?fb=yes

 

 

Now, I did find that Ford offers a oem hitch on the accessories site.   It also claims no drilling and not sport compatible.   So I may have found what I was looking for.

 

https://accessories.ford.com/trailer-hitch-8755.html#2014/Edge

 

I'm looking for install directions.

Part number BT4Z-19D520-A

Edited by thesavo
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  • 10 months later...
  • 3 months later...

Ford's Accessories Store has listings for a 2015-2018 factory trailer hitch that mounts using existing holes, and also a 4-pin trailer lights wiring kit that splices into existing wiring, which also include an installation cost for each item at your local Ford dealer.

 

Ford's online parts site, FordParts.com, also markets factory Accessories, with pricing that may be lower through your local dealership than the above Ford Accessories Store.

 

Ford Accessories Factory Trailer Lights Wiring Module Kit 2.jpg

Ford Accessories Factory Trailer Lights Wiring Module Kit.jpg

Ford Accessories Factory Hitch for MY 2015 - 2018 Edge 2.jpg

 

 

Ford Accessories Factory Hitch for MY 2015 - 2018 Edge 1.jpg

 

Below is a PDF download link to installation instructions for the hitch, to provide you an understanding of what the dealership Service personnel are doing to earn the installation charge, or if you wish to consider installing it yourself...

 

2015-2018 Edge Factory No-Drill Trailer Hitch Installation Instructions 2.pdf

 

We upgraded our 2015 MKX (GEN 1+) to full tow package specs, described with pricing in this past post.

 

Good luck!

 

Edited by Haz
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Hi Haz,  I was able to purchase an oem hitch from a friend at a great price. I got underneath and realized that it sides into the body instead of over like the aftermarket. Now all o have to do is see how brave I am at tackling this myself. 
 

Thanks for the great info. 

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On 6/26/2022 at 8:20 PM, Olwiseone said:

Hi Haz,  I was able to purchase an oem hitch from a friend at a great price. I got underneath and realized that it sides into the body instead of over like the aftermarket. Now all o have to do is see how brave I am at tackling this myself. 
 

Thanks for the great info. 

There's some helpful photos in this thread.

After removing all the bolts from the bumper cover (underneath and in the wheelwells), I started by pulling the cover out at the wheelwells and going up towards the taillights.  Under the taillights, you have to pry all the hooks on the bumper off the body. (The taillights pull straight out the back once the bolt is removed.)

I would get a second person to help you take off and put back on the bumper cover.  I wound up swinging mine into the ground and leaving a small scratch in it.  I cut out the bumper cover with a jigsaw. An oscillating multitool may be better...  Sand the cut edge smooth.  Remove the foot sensors first!  I installed the split sensor made for the hitch.

 

Taking my time with cutting out the notch, I spent about 10 hours start to finish.

 

Unbolt the crash bar.

img_7366.jpg

 

 

Slide in the hitch

img_7368.jpg

 

Tighten the 5 bolts on each side

img_7371.jpg

 

Here's where I installed the harness

img_7372.jpg

Edited by chipdog4
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You're welcome.

It seems like a big job, but it's not bad.  Mostly time consuming.

The small bolts for the wheelwells and I think some under the bumper in the rear use a 5.5mm socket or 7/32".   

 

I would suggest wiring like Haz did. 

I plan on doing finishing the wiring (inside the rear hatch) like the factory with the tow module and and an additional harness.  It costs quite a bit more.

Some of that info is found in this thread.

 

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27 minutes ago, Olwiseone said:

As far as wiring, when watching a few videos, the pros were using either Curt or the tenkonsha wiring harness. They look like they are plug and play. I will read more about forscan and see.

BDA6F8CE-8766-454A-8431-D24B5B4DBF14.jpeg

I can say that the Curt & other units like it aren't plug & play. You do have to wire to a power source, either the battery or the interior fuse panel with an add a fuse/quick fuse. They're not difficult to install, but definitely aren't plug & play. 

 

I used the Curt Class 3 hitch on my 2020 SEL AWD & the Curt T harness wiring. The only downside from the factory hitch is that the hitch sits 3-4 inches lower than the OEM one as it comes from under the bumper instead of through the bumper. The Curt Class 3 hitch probably took me ~2 hours to install by myself. Would have been less if I had help. I also installed Helper Springs to keep it level while towing. 

20220604_101449.jpg

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Regarding our 2015 MKX, I was fortunate that a prior owner had the factory hitch and Ford Accessories trailer wiring kit installed by the dealer, but it's worth noting that the wiring kit did not enable the trailer tow adjustments to AdvanceTrac and the Distance-To-Empty fuel mileage function.

 

I added the Trailer Sway menu item to the Driver Assist gauge cluster dialogue using Forscan, however it doesn't accept a checkmark to enable functionality. The dealer who installed the cooling system upgrade theorized the Trailer Module would likely be necessary to gain the AdvanceTrac & DTE functions.

 

For my purposes, the gain wasn't worth the additional cost and effort, though the above-linked discussion demonstrates that enthusiastic owner installation of the Trailer Module and required harness is possible.

 

For a more accurate towing DTE calculation, I just reset one of the Trip memories at the beginning of my towing travel and it eventually calculates a useful DTE calculation.

 

Looking at the installation instructions for the Ford wiring kit, which are lengthy, I would be inclined to go with a custom aftermarket semi-plug-and-play harness, just for their simplicity of installation.

 

Good luck!

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On 6/30/2022 at 10:06 AM, chipdog4 said:

There's some helpful photos in this thread.

After removing all the bolts from the bumper cover (underneath and in the wheelwells), I started by pulling the cover out at the wheelwells and going up towards the taillights.  Under the taillights, you have to pry all the hooks on the bumper off the body. (The taillights pull straight out the back once the bolt is removed.)

I would get a second person to help you take off and put back on the bumper cover.  I wound up swinging mine into the ground and leaving a small scratch in it.  I cut out the bumper cover with a jigsaw. An oscillating multitool may be better...  Sand the cut edge smooth.  Remove the foot sensors first!  I installed the split sensor made for the hitch.

 

Taking my time with cutting out the notch, I spent about 10 hours start to finish.

 

Unbolt the crash bar.

img_7366.jpg

 

 

Slide in the hitch

img_7368.jpg

 

Tighten the 5 bolts on each side

img_7371.jpg

 

Here's where I installed the harness

img_7372.jpg

I returned from my vacation and am deciding on what day I want to embark on this project. I was thinking about this. Can I reuse the bolts from the bumper bar or do I need new ones?

Thamks again

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On 7/9/2022 at 10:24 AM, Olwiseone said:

I returned from my vacation and am deciding on what day I want to embark on this project. I was thinking about this. Can I reuse the bolts from the bumper bar or do I need new ones?

Thamks again 

There are 8 bolts for the crash bar, you reuse 4 of them on the hitch, and there are an additional 6 larger bolts (M12 possibly?) that do the bulk of securing the hitch to the body.

 

 

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On 7/12/2022 at 7:01 AM, chipdog4 said:

There are 8 bolts for the crash bar, you reuse 4 of them on the hitch, and there are an additional 6 larger bolts (M12 possibly?) that do the bulk of securing the hitch to the body.

 

 

Good to know. I found most of the bolts are M14. I will see if I can get some extras so when I tear in to this, I am prepared. 

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