Gooseneck Trailer Hitch Installation - 2005 GMC Sierra

Installation of a Gooseneck Trailer Hitch on a 2005 GMC Sierra

Today we are going to install part number 9465 our gooseneck head assembly. We will also be installing a rail kit which is part number 4434 for our 2005 GMC Sierra pickup 3500. The first step involved would be to make room for the install kit and rails. What happens is this heat shield needs to be removed. We are going to take it out from this section to this beam here. To make it easier maybe go all the way this far back. But for necessity purposes we need from here to here for the rails. We cut out our heat shield and left an inch or so hanging off. We took a rubber mallet and beat it back and keep it away from the sharp edges as much as possible. Our next step will be to loosen the bed so we can slide the rails underneath the truck. There are 2 options on how you will do this part.

You can either loosen up the bed on one side like we are going to do here. Or there is option number 2 which is you can make a nice little notch on the side of the truck then slide the rails in that way also. This way you do not have to worry about cutting into your vehicle. It is a little bit of a pain but you do not have to worry about the metal rusting later on. Now that the bed is loose we are going to go ahead and push the bed up and stick a 2x4 in between the bed and the frame. What we need to go ahead and do is get the rails ready. What we have to do is put the 5/8 bolts into the slots. Then we will put some nuts on the back of it to keep them from falling out. Also take a few minutes to run a bolt in and out of here because sometimes paint gets in there and messes it up. It is much easier to fix it now then after it has been put in the truck.

Take the rail and slide it in between the truck bed and the frame rails until it gets to the other side. This side we can go ahead and put our side brackets on. We still have the bed up but at least we can get them hung up then we can bring it back down. We will repeat for the other side. Next we are going to install our U bolt. We are going to prop this up for now and then put the U bolt up and over the top. We are just going to leave everything loose. Next we are going to install this bolt from the inside out. The spacer will go between the frame and the hitch bracket. Again leave it loose and repeat for the other side. We have our brackets installed and everything is still loose. Make sure that the angle brackets are both crossed and facing with the flat side going to the bed. Once we have that situated we can go ahead and tighten down our bed bolts that we took out earlier.

Now we are going to mark the bed for the holes we are suppose to drill out. First we need to find out per instructions what the measurements need to be since they differ from truck to truck. So what you will do is measure from the edge of the bed it self it looks like here it is 51-1/2. So then you want to find the center of the bed you can even count the rivets to do that or go in between the fender wells to find that out as well. Ours are about 50 inches so 25 will be in the center once you find that go ahead and mark it. Once you have your mark made we are going to go ahead and make a dimple in the bed before we go all the way through. That way we can prevent drilling a hole in the bed for no reason. Now we are going to drill a pilot hole. We will then follow that with a 4 inch drill bit. This also comes with trim rings that we can install right now to cover up the gap here. We have the head assembly partially in there then make sure our bolts come in the correct holes. We actually had the bend this heat shield down to work it over in there. Then we can put it back up there when we are finished. Once we are finished we have someone on the top side go ahead and put the ball down through the bed. We will have them pull it up so we can snug down the bolts. Once you have the head assembly set up the way you want it go ahead and give them their final torque.

The next thing we need to do is torque down our side brackets. Start with the bolt towards the back and then move on to the U bolt. The next thing we can do is go ahead and install our handle. It simply slides in and you can line up the holes and use a cotter pin that holds it into place. What we need to do next is mark our holes for the safety chain loops. What is going to happen is we need to mark our holes with a hole punch here. Make a mark and look for them on top. Once you see them on top we will compare them to the U bolts to make sure they are square. What we are going to do is go ahead and flatten them back down and start a little divot back down for our drill bit. Once you have your holes marked go ahead and push them back down we will just double check the U-bolts here and we will see if we have to make any adjustments. Next we are going to drill the holes over sized anyway because they do not have to match exactly. Now follow up with our 9/16 bolt. Then what we want to do is install our springs. That keeps some tension and then put on a flat washer and finally a nut. This is a lock nut so it can go on with a ratchet. When you tighten these up you only want to run them 1 or 2 threads past the nut so that you have plenty of free play for the U-bolt to go up and down. Our install is now complete, so I will demonstrate how it works. It is pretty easy, just pull out the lever to unlock it, the ball in, and then pull the lever back and let it go back in and it locks in place. It can not go anywhere. These are your chain loops, you can put you safety hooks in there or they stay down when not needed. That covers the installation of part number 4434 gooseneck rail kit for the 2005 GMC Sierra 3500, and also the Hide-A-Goose head assembly, part number 9465.