Trailer Hitch Installation - 2001 Jeep Cherokee

Installation of a Trailer Hitch on a 2001 Jeep Cherokee

Today on this 2001 Jeep Cherokee we are going to be installing Curt hitch part number 13084. Before we get started with the hitch installation we are going to show you a couple of final installed dimensions that are going to help make choosing your hitch accessories a little bit easier. From the top of the receiver tube opening to the ground is going to measure 15 inches and from the center of the pin hole to clear the rear edge of the bumper is going to be about five inches. Now we will move on to our installation. 00:24

We are underneath the vehicle and we want to take a look at the frame rails to show you where the hitch is going to mount to the Cherokee and the first thing I want to note is that the Jeep Cherokees have a couple of different frame options. Whether it be weld nuts on the one side or just open holes, so you might want to take a look at your frame first to determine which type you have and check with the directions to make sure you have the appropriate hardware. Looking at this particular model, starting over on the passenger side of the vehicle you can see here at the end of the frame rail we have got three existing exposed weld nuts and those are going to provide our three rear most attaching points for our hitch. 00:59

If we follow forward there is an existing bolt in the frame that is holding the exhaust bracket to the frame and that is going to provide our fourth attaching point. Move over to the driver side and you can see there are no weld nuts in the frame, we have got just regular existing holes that we are going to be using to attach the hitch to the frame. We are going to be using the two rear most ones here, the larger oblong hole one here, and finally the fourth hole here. At this point I am going to start putting our hardware into position and over here on the driver side with the holes we are actually going to be fishing a carriage bolt and block assembly inside the frame down into position for the three forward most holes. We are going to start with the forward most attaching hole and what we are going to do is take the threaded end of the bolt leader, slide it in the bottom of the frame through the attaching hole, we are going to to feed it through the opening at the end of the frame rail just like so. We will next take the block and slide it onto the bolt leader and then we will take the carriage bolt and we will be wrapping the threads of the bolt leader around the threads of the carriage bolt. Then we will them one at a time inside the frame and pull them down into position. 02:07

We are going to continue doing that for the next two holes and for the rear most attaching hole on the driver side we are going to be using a little bit different set up. We will be using the smaller block and then a regular hex head bolt. Moving over to the passenger side of the vehicle we are going to need to remove the rear most bolt. We are also going to need to clean the exposed weld nuts here at the end of the frame rail. To do that we are going to be using a spray lubricant like a WD-40 and a wire brush. Depending on the age of your vehicle you may need to do this several times. The more winters a vehicle has seen the more rust and road grime that you are going to have built up inside these weld nuts. Take the 12 millimeter bolts that we are going to be using to attach the hitch to the vehicle and try to start it a few times to see how much resistance you are getting. Once you have got those thoroughly cleaned we can remove the fourth existing bolt. You may have noticed that the weld nuts at the 3/ 8 rear most attaching points have pushed up and that is because all of these weld nuts are on a single plate inside the frame when we remove that bolt that allowed it to flex back upwards. So when we go to put the hitch up it is going to be a good idea to try to attach to the forward most attaching point first. 03:25

With all of that stated we are going to put the hitch up in position. One more thing I want to note over on the passenger side is that the arm of the hitch is going to slide in between the exhaust bracket and the heat shield up into the frame. For the three forward most attaching points on the passenger side we are going to be using the 12 millimeter bolt with the lock washer however for the rear most attaching point we will be using the 12 millimeter bolt with the lock washer and the flat washer as well. Into the carriage bolts on the driver side we are going to be attaching with the flange hex nuts and now that we have got the hitch up in position and tightened down we want to go back through now and torque each one of our bolts down. You want to verify with the directions the specific torque rating for each of the bolts. Then with all of he bolts torqued down our installation is complete. This will conclude the installation of Curt hitch part number 13084 on a 2001 Jeep Cherokee.