/
Draw-Tite/
Class II/
1-1/4 Inch Hitch/
3500 lbs GTW/
Visible Cross TubeItem # 36523
Retail:$205.85
Our Price: $111.10
You Save: $94.75To see if this custom-fit item will work for you please tell us what vehicle you'll use it with.
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This fully welded, corrosion-resistant vehicle trailer hitch receiver is perfect for your light-duty towing needs. Draw-Tite's Tested Tough guarantee ensures that this hitch exceeds industry standards. Drawbar sold separately.
Features:
Specs:
Draw-Tite's Tested Tough program provides testing standards far superior to those outlined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), the go-to source for engineering professionals.
Each Draw-Tite trailer hitch receiver undergoes extensive fatigue testing and static testing with the ball mount that is either supplied or recommended for use with that particular hitch, thus ensuring results that are applicable to real life use. Fatigue testing is also conducted on hitches rated for use with weight-distribution systems.
In addition, Draw-Tite performs static testing on a simulated automobile, as opposed to the rigid fixture used for SAE testing, resulting in a more true-to-life scenario.
At etrailer.com we're committed to the products we sell, and to our customers. Our experienced and knowledgeable staff are available via both phone and email to address your questions and concerns for the lifetime of your hitch. The technicians at etrailer perform hitch installations on a daily basis, making them a valuable resource for do-it-yourselfers. The one-on-one, personal service you'll receive comes straight from an expert in the towing and automotive field. We've installed it, we've wired it and we've towed with it, so whatever your question, we can answer it.
Installation Details 
2014 - 2018 Subaru Forester
California residents: click here
Video of Draw-Tite Trailer Hitch Receiver - Custom Fit - Class II - 1-1/4"
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
All right, today on this 2015 Subaru Forester, we're going to show you part number 36523 from Draw-Tite. This is a Class II, inch and a quarter receiver hitch. This is what the hitch looks like when it's installed on our Forester. For a soft overall look that does sit below the bumper here, probably about 5 inches below the plugs here on our trunk pan.Take a look at the receiver from the inch and a quarter across, has nice reinforcement collar. On the front, it also has a continuous loop here for your safety chains. A couple other details about our hitch.
This is designed for tongue weight, which is the weight that pulls down on the hitch ball, at 300 pounds. This will carry a 35 hundred pound loaded trailer. Now, you also want to double-check your owner's manual to make sure the vehicle can carry those same amounts.Next, we'll go ahead and give you a couple of measurements that will help you out in selecting some accessories, such as a bicycle rack or a cargo carrier. From the top of the receiver opening down to the ground will be about 13 3/4 inches. From the center of the hitch pin hole to the outside edge of the bumper will be about 6 3/4 inches.
Now, we'll go ahead and show you how the hitch is installed.First thing we're going to do is go ahead and lower our exhaust and get it out of the way. We'll go ahead and unbolt the muffler from the flange right here. We'll be using a 14 mm socket to remove it. On this side of the bolt, we'll need a 14 mm wrench as well. All right.
Next, we'll go ahead and spray down the hanger with some spray lubricant to make it easier to remove the muffler. There's one on the other side located right here. If you didn't want to remove the muffler, you can still lower the exhaust by undoing the rubber hangers like we just did and this third one just by the axle here that gives you more working room as well. But you also want to use a strap to help hold the exhaust while you do your work as well. All right.Next you need to go ahead and remove the heat shield.
There are 4 screws that you have to remove using a 10 mm socket. All right. Next up is the work with the frame. There is a series of rubber plugs that we have to remove. We'll go ahead and use some pliers to go ahead and remove them. That's our passenger side. We'll do the same thing on our driver's side. All right. Next, we need to go ahead and install our hardware into the frame for our hitch. This is one or our carriage bolts that goes in and this is one of the blocks. We are going to use this hole here because we have less to modify when we install the hardware. So, we're going to drill out right next to our hole where it overlaps just a little bit using a 3/8 inch drill bit so we can get our hardware inside the frame. Go ahead and use a file to help clean off the edges and excess. Do a test of the hardware and modify it to where you have enough room to get the hardware in. Okay. All right. That looks good for our passenger side. We'll go ahead and repeat the same thing over on our driver's side.Now we'll go ahead and show you our hardware. As we took a look before, we have this 3 inch long block with a square hole and a 1/2 inch carriage bolt. This will fit inside the frame just like this and help pull it through the frame using a bolt leader. These bolt leaders do come with the kit. They simply thread onto the bolt and they pull them on through. Let's go ahead and install 3 sets of these on the passenger side. To start off, we'll take our bolt leader, run it through the hole we're going to use first and then out our access hole. Make sure you don't pull the bolt leader all the way through. Take our block, thread it through, and push into the frame. Take the bolt, thread it in, push into the frame and pull out the hole. Now you can leave these on and help guide the bolts when you put the hitch up in place or you can take them off. Personal preference.Let's go ahead and continue on with these two other holes here. We'll make sure that our bolts are sitting perfectly vertical. Sometimes these blocks overlap themselves, so maybe twirl them around a little bit to make sure they sit straight. Let's go back to our driver's side and do the same thing.We're almost ready to put the hitch up in place. We'll go ahead and show you the remaining fasteners. This is the conical washer that goes up against the hitch. Also make sure that the teeth in the washer face towards the hitch as well. Then the 1/2 inch nut. This is the same fastener combination on all 6 bolts.Next you need to get an extra set of hands to help hold up the hitch, line up the bolts and install the hardware. When we put our hitch up initially, we'll get one bolt on each side to stabilize it, then we'll install the rest of the fasteners. We'll get the rest of our hardware installed on the passenger side, then one more time on the driver's side.Now, we can go ahead and tighten down our hardware and then we can go ahead and torque down the bolts as specified in the instructions. To do that, we use our 3/4 inch or a 19 mm socket. Now we can go ahead and put our plugs back into the holes we modified. Then you can go ahead and spray down with your favorite protectorant. In this case, I'm using spray undercoat. Now, I've got the option of leaving the heat shield off or modifying it. To modify it, all we got to do is just hold it up in place, try to line it up with the original places where it bolted into place, then we just go ahead and make a few marks where the hitch is at. We'll use some tin snips to cut off the rest. Let's go ahead and put it back into place with the remaining 3 fasteners. Now we can go ahead and put our exhaust muffler back into place. Put some spray on the hangers one more time with some lubricant and put it back together.With that, that'll finish it for our part number 36523 from Draw-Tite. The Class II inch and quarter inch receiver hitch on our 2015 Subaru Forester. .
Average Customer Rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars (90 Customer Reviews)
This fully welded, corrosion-resistant vehicle trailer hitch receiver is perfect for your light-duty towing needs. Draw-Tite's Tested Tough guarantee ensures that this hitch exceeds industry standards. Drawbar sold separately.I received my hitch and lighting kit quickly after ordering; using the standard free shipping. I waited until Saturday to do the installation so I would have plenty of time. In general, the products are high quality and easy to install, and I was very pleased with the result. My advice is to use the videos on the web site instead of using the instructions that come with the products. The instruction for the hitch only differed in how to widen two holes on the car frame. The instructions said drill small adjacent holes and file to get a slot wide enough to slip in the spacer bars. The video showed using a hole widening bit; which I had. Also, watching the video gave me a much more clear insight into the installation as opposed to the brief instructions. The instructions packaged with the lighting kit were just wrong for where to locate the car's lighting plug. I removed much more than I needed to looking for the plug just behind the rear driver's side seat. I grabbed my phone and watched the lighting kit installation online and found the plug was in the driver's side rear side panel of the compartment. With that knowledge the wiring installation only took a couple of minutes. 260279
Wife has a 2017 subaru forester, picked this up for a good price via etrailer. delivery was prompt, packaging was excellent. Came in a big durable cardboard box, with all required parts. The unit is burly for a class2 hitch. installation was straight forward. Though I am disappointed subaru doesn't make it easier to install the mounting bolts. You have to drill into the frame rails to make 1 on each side big enough for the head of the bolt to fit in. I think Drawtite did a good job to make it as easy as possbile to thread all the bolts. It just caused more pain than I thought it should. I have a CRV, and the unit from drawtite just bolts right on. After larger holes drilled out, the installation went pretty smooth. The muffler mounts need to be removed to install the bolts. If you never had to remove the rubber muffler mounts, you know how fun it is to put them back on. The last one nearest the rear of the car was a PIA. But once done, you can breathe easy. 280834
We received the hitch, harness and ball in excellent condition. The packaging was very good. The hitch is very well made, as expected. The wiring harness fit perfectly. The greatest part about this purchase, though, was the video showing the installation of both the harness and the hitch. It was a great timesaver for me and was accurate in all aspects. I did take a chance on using the 2016 hitch listed for our 2017 Forester. There was one glitch with this. It seems that Subaru modified their muffler hanger a bit on the inboard side of the car. The rubber hanger could not be reinstalled due to clearance issues. I am still looking for a good workaround to correct this. All in all, this has been our second great Etrailer experience. 289159
Good hitch, works well, installation was fairly simple. I've pulled a few loaded trailers and use it for a bike rack, no major issues found. Pressed to find something to critique, I'd say there are two possible downsides- it's noisy from the interior and it doesn't come with a plug for the receiver opening. The noise might be solved by a rubber grommet between the rear mounts and the hitch bolt plate, but it really isn't that bad overall. The plug for the opening would just be a nice touch. I don't know why the manufacturers don't just include one with the hitch. Rust isn't generally a good selling point for a product you put your name on. 419802
If you are purchasing this hitch for a 2015 Subaru Forester, look closely at my photos! Dealing with ETrailer was great (I have purchased from them in the past and will again). Installation instructions were clear. Installation was moderately difficult, due to having to drop exhaust and remove & trim heat shield. My reason for giving only three stars is that the hitch does not stick out far enough from under the bumper. The trailer ball in my photo is 1 7/8”. There is barely enough room to get a trailer attached, and it would be very difficult to not scratch your bumper hooking and unhooking a trailer. My primary reason for purchasing the hitch was for a bike rack. The easiest solution, to make this usable for my needs was to purchase an extension that fits between the receiver hitch and the trailer ball. The manufacturer of the extension warns it is not to be used for towing. 635464
In order to tow, youll need a longer drawbar. The longest one we offer thats similar to whats shown in your photo is 36053, which measures 9-34 inches measured from the hitch pin hole to the hole where the ball installs. If this is longer than the one you have, it should work well for you.
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Mike L - 04/27/2019I have installed the hitch but not used it yet. I just wanted to say two things about installing the hitch and the wiring harness. The hitch installation instructions show how to enlarge a hole in the vehicle frame in order to get the mounting plates in, but it misses the fact that the mounting bolt heads are too large to get through the hole as shown. You have to make the holes larger. The Tech Writer should have caught that. The harness connector in the 2014 Forester is not easily found and the instructions give no help. It is up out of reach behind a panel where the tail light assembly is. I was able to pry the panel loose in that area with a screwdriver. 136781
got the hitch and had a local shop install it . Perfect and looks good. They went a step further and drilled holes in the heat shield where the n mounting bolts are and the fit was perfect. Looks factory. they did not cut the heat shield as shown on the video. Also the the ball mount was not in the box when shipped as I had ordered a bike rack and they were put in the same box. with one phone call the problem was taken care of, thanks E trailer great job
-- comment by: Paul H - 06/30/2015etrailer did a great job installing my hitch. I am very happy with this product and their customer service. 720697
Hitch is perfect for my 2017 Subaru Forester. Arrived quickly and the shipping was free ! 718742
Received the hitch for our 2018 Subaru Forester. It was delivered in perfect condition with all the needed hardware to install it as well. This hitch is spot on to solve our issue of hauling our bicycles to the shore,without trying to put bikes on the roof or into the interior and doing damage to either one. Our hitch was also delivered 2 days earlier than the given delivery date ! Sorry there are no pictures but I am not tech savvy at all ! I will gladly purchase here again. 707290
Able to install with no problems. We put our bike rack on and loaded up our heavy bike and could be more happy. Will be a very nice hitch. 697403
I installed the trailer wiring and a friend helped install the hitch. Etrailer website is excellent. I got the right items on time and the fit is better than my wife’s dealer installed hitch. Videos on the etrailer site are clear and correct. One caveat, don’t try installing the hitch without at least one other person and having a way to lift the car(we used ramps) is a great help. The only possible way etrailer could be any more helpful is if they could recruit some local shops that would be willing to do the installation. I especially like having my wiring in the passenger compartment when not in use. It keeps it out of the Salt here in the northeast. 691559
OOPS; I seemed to have given a review for a different product purchased from a different company. Sorry if I confused you. OK; I bought a hitch and wiring from you; this review is for the hitch. I was satisfied with the price, but NOT the dimensions. I had a professional install it. I would have preferred that the hitch receiver tube was a bit longer. I have to get down on the ground and reach under the car to install the hitch extender with ball. That was the piece I mistakenly reviewed when I should have been reviewing the wiring harness. Incidentally; the wiring harness was fine. 688379
My son installed the hitch and said it was relatively easy. My use is for my 4 bike bike rack. 667536
Nice hitch when done but the install was more difficult than it should have been. I had first thought of removing the muffler but when I saw the rust on the muffler bolts with a two-year-old car, I decided not to risk that. Dropping the exhaust system went fine. Removing the heat shield was difficult because of the rust on the screws which resulted in bending up the outboard attachments. Fortunately, they did not break and could be bent back. So far, the problems weren't the fault of the hitch. Then I followed the instructions to enlarge the center mounting hole. Sure the piece with the square hole will go through but the bolt won't. Fortunately, I found that out in time. Apparently, the instructions are written for the class I hitch with smaller bolt heads as the 3/4" hole needs to be enlarged to 7/8" to get these bolt heads through. So I followed the method in the video and used the fourth hole, toward the front, that is already 7/8" diameter and only needed a little filing to work. The hitch went on fine but it unnecessarily blocked attaching the inboard muffler hanger. My hanger attachment may have less clearance than most of these cars but this is still inexcusable. The interference is inboard of the large hole on each side of the hitch and having that metal there serves no purpose. Looking at the other hitches sold by etrailer, this is the only one with metal there. It was difficult to file the hitch in those close quarters but with that and a little trim on the hanger, I got things back together. This is the third etrailer hitch that I've installed and definitely the most difficult. If the instructions were correct and the hitch was made right, the install would have been pretty easy, especially on a new car without rust. Inexcusable. 665881
After watching the YouTube video installation was a piece of cake. 665761
I was pleasantly surprised at how solid this Draw Tite hitch was when I received it. I can tell it is built strong just by the weight of it. My husband installed it in no time since my car already had the bolts in place from the previous owner. All he had to do was lower the exhaust, attach the hitch and then raise the exhaust back up. He didn't have to trim the heat shield. 5 -10 minutes at most. Perfect. It looks great and feels like it will hold forever! Of course, it would have taken longer if he had to fish the bolts into the frame and drill the holes, but we got lucky. 665167
The hitch was advertised that no drilling was necessary, and that was true. There was a fair amount of filing and grinding in the existing hole to get the mounting bolts to pass through to the inside of the frame. The hitch fit great and the installation wasn't too bad, but a little more work than I expected. I have used etrailer products in the past and I have always been satisfied, and I still am. I would continue to use etrailer in the future. 658127
You all have great personnel and product 655959
Good hitch, good price, fits perfectly.install video was spot on 651953
Just installed my new hitch today. Took 40 minutes. The instructional video was most helpful. The most difficult part was reattaching the muffler. The wires they provide to fish the brackets on place were huge time savers. 642861
Hitch and instructions were great, everything fit with no problems works great. 641717
Works fine. No problems. They were fair about the return process after I first purchased the wrong one. 619854
Fast shipping mice peeps Nice doing b usinesses 616192
Good product at a good price. Excellent installation instructions. I'm perfectly happy with the hitch. 607870
Great product Have used it successfully several times. 600002
Great hitch / quality for the price! Etrailer's video installation and supplied instructions made installation very easy. Any "weekend warrior" can install with no issues - 2 out of 10 of difficulty stage. 595148
Third time I have purchased a hitch from etrailer.com Everything arrived on time, after watching installation videos everything went together quickly and easily. Good pricing, prompt delivery, good support. You guys rock! 574759
I received the hitch and wire harness rather quickly I went online and followed the video, that made the install alot easier. 573184
My hitch arrived on time and was easy to install. Now I can hook up my little motorcycle camper tent to my Subi and travel cross country in comfort. It's also great for hauling the utility trailer for dump runs or carrying my tricycle to the Local bike trails. 568694
The trailer hitch has performed well! 560698
I want to thank everyone at etrailer for excellent product and most of all great service I had my local dealership install hitch/wiring harness etc and technician said he was impressed with comprehensive instructions and available videos.. He was able to make a "better looking" cut on the heat shield and was able to route wiring through spare tire well and "hard" mount onto hitch its self with the plug mount provided.. All in all a FIVE star situation Thank you again 538453
Very well made,,,fits under vehicle very neatly,,,doesnt stick out ,and is very unnoticeable... Very happy.. 528701
Hitch for my 2015 Subaru Forester arrived quickly and installed with no problems. 521406
Perfect! Easy install. Watch the video and have this installed in less than an hour. 521180
My order was processed and shipped the same day. George emailed me with updates which was nice. The hitch went on easily and fitment was good. I went with the draw-tite hitch rather than the Curt hitch because the draw-tite sat closer to the bumper for a cleaner look. overall happy with everything! 511461
Heaviest hitch I have ever bought. Great quality ! Delivered in days ! ! 509912
Product arrived really fast and was easy to install. The affiliated youtube video was definitely a big help as well to pair up with the written instructions 504981
So far so good. The hitch seems to be holding up very well. 501941
Good, clear instructions, although the installation is a little challenging on a Subaru. The instructions warn on the hard part. This is the 2nd or 3rd hitch I have bought over the years. Never had an issue. Except I keep getting ads on my google page for trailer after the sale. The ads are annoying. 498105
I received my order yesterday and I must say that it exceeded my expectations. The product looks so well built, very strong. The delivery was on time and everything that I ordered arrived in perfect condition. I also asked questions regarding the hitch that I needed before ordering and I had an answer right away. I would definitely recommend eTrailer. Thanks 495045
We have used our trailer hitch many many times and it has not let us down. Glad my son in law recommended your company.
Anthony - 04/11/2019The hitch has performed super, no complaints! Very good product.
Anthony - 04/11/2019Relatively easy install. Takes 2 people to hold up both ends for installation but I'm very please with the results. 482518
The trailer hitch continues to work well and I have no complaints.
Walt - 03/09/2019Was checking available hitches on various websites. Wanted hitch for a bike rack that wasn't a shin banger when installed or so far under the car it was hard to mount bike rack. etrailer had the best prices but that isn't the thing that sold it. The pictures installed and the how to video to install helped me determine which hitch company,design and ease of install was right for me and my skill set. Great site etrailer! 479686
One year and hitch is performing well. Holds a 80 lb Thule bike rack and 2 ebikes. Paint is still like new even being coated with winter salt.
William - 02/28/2019Works like it should and installed without any problems. 470886
Trailer hitch arrived in just two days with everything in order. Excellent service and prices. 455903
Install went great. Etrailer's videos make installation really easy to follow. There was an issue - I received the wrong hardware set (incorrect plates to fish into the frame), but etrailer's support staff were awesome in resolving the issue with DrawTite and getting me the right parts. 452141
The product was packaged well and in very good shape. Videos were very helpful. Especially since the printed instructions didn't seem to know about the access hole on the Forester. Using the videos as a guide I put this on an XT and everything went fine. Lubricating the exhaust hangars is key. I know it's not etrailer's responsibility but pointing out jack and jack stand points would be very helpful. 449221
Great price and not bad to mount. Only needed about ten min. from a neighbor to help me. Otherwise took me about an hr. to mount it. 449109
One of the better fitting hitches I have ever put on. Great product and service and thanks George on the upgraded shipping 435349
Can be self installed but I had car shop do it for reasonable cost. The hitch is very sturdy and I have had no problems with it. I've used the hitch to pull a utility trailer but most often I use it to carry my bike rack. Great product. Greatly extends the capabilities of the vehicle. 430770
The hitch and the wiring harness works great on my 2016 Subaru Forrester 430550
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