My Trailer Hitch Doesn't Fit

Had the same problem with the Curt hitch. Next time, I'll measure the distance between the bolt holes before I try to install.

I took my hitch to a mechanic to be installed because my rav4 mounting holes was rusted and needed to be rethreaded. The mechanic rethreaded them but then informed me of the bent hitch not lining up. He didn't have tools to try and fix it. I requested a return and ship new one. When i got home i told my neighbor about my misfortune. We attempted the 2x4 and scissor jack method. It was dicy because things move under pressure and a few times the mechanism jolted out. Not quite a safe way BUT it did shaped the flange enough so with both of is on the garage floor and positioning the hitch we could make the bolts catch the nuts in the car frame and slowly tightened with rotating from bolt to bolt little by little. Not ideal story. ETrailer should improve on this. but the remedy worked

Message to the welding shop employees at etrailer: it seems that the two pieces that attach to the frame may get bent during shipping. Wouldn’t it be easy to stop that problem by having a final step in manufacturing be to cut a 2x4 to the inside distance between the two plates that get bolted to the frame, and use a lag screw through a hole in each plate and deep into the end of the 2x4. David P.

Similar story to others on here, I spent a day prepping the vehicle, getting the bolts in place and wrestling the hitch into position only to find out it would not fit because the outer tangs were too close together and will not fit over the vehicle mounting beams. Now I have to wrestle it out and try to figure out a way to bend it into hopefully a size that will fit. The correct clearance dimensions of the relevant pieces should be included in the instructions so the hitch can be measured BEFORE going through this ordeal. This is apparently a common problem and it is inexcusable that the installation instructions do not address this. DO BETTER!

I spent three hours lying on the ground under my RAV4 trying to install this receiver, supporting it with my knees and belly. It just would not fit. I pulled it out, took a closer look and realized that one end had been bent inward over an inch from UPS mishandling. Apparently it was dropped from a height in the thin box it was loosely shipped in. I called and was told that this is normal and I can fix it with vice grips . . . "Whoah! Vice grips?! No. He helpfully sent me this page to help fix the problem. (Nothing about vice grips here) I was able to wedge it into a utility trailer frame and brute force it into shape. Now I'll go back out and try again. Meanwhile, I'll recommend that you pack things better. A plank of wood bolted across the wings might hep. Also some warning that this is a regular thing to expect so your customers don't waste time and sweat. You could post the measurement of wingtip to wingtip and state that if this measurement is not right, it needs to be fixed. I went with Etrailer because in the past you've been very informative and helpful. (I could have gotten it at Amazon 3 days earlier). You just lost a couple stars on my rating list because of this. I'll update this afternoon after trying again. (96 degrees in Florida)