EcoHitch Stealth Trailer Hitch Receiver - Custom Fit - Class III - 2"

The hitch arrived fast but had multiple spots on it showing bare metal . Kinda felt that for $[XX], painting this shouldn’t have been my job. Install was easy.1694813

Click to Enlarge

Brooke M.

11/21/2023

I agree! I will have our customer service team reach out to you about this.

Videos and accompanying "pull wire" made this hitch very easy to install. Love the hidden look when receiver is out and the perfect spacing when using hitch with my bike rack!1651369

Click to Enlarge

Mounted up very easy, I did it by myself with a box and a pillow. I knocked one of the bolts into the frame but was able to fish it back out with a magnet. Took about an hour. 10/101753811

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

Box arrived damaged and paint was scratched. Product appears to have previously been installed. I wasn’t aware I was getting a used item. More paint blemishes discovered upon further examination. Also photos appear to not upload properly and because I took them from the website they were never saved to my phone, so now I have no evidence of how damaged the box was when it arrived. The box seemed to be resealed and there is strong evidence that this was a used product. It appears that previous owner attempted to install only to realize improper fitment and returned the product.1706244

Jenny N.

12/29/2023

Our hitches are new however it sounds like this hitch had a rough trip in the box. I will have our Customer Service team reach out to you. We can replace the hitch for you.

Seems nice shipped really fast but for the money you would think it be packaged better its scratch up but id like to use it this weekend so..1765333

Jenny N.

4/13/2024

Sometimes it happens that the hitches are scratched in shipping either on its way to you or to us from the manufacturer. I will have our Customer Service team reach out to you. We can send out a paint kit to touch up the hitch.

The hitch was just as expected. Super easy to remove and once removed you wouldn't know the car had a hitch. The video installation doesn't show how to install the bolts but the instruction booklet that comes with the hitch explains it well. There is no cutting or filing required for a 2018 Subaru Crosstrek. It literally took me 45 minutes to install alone.

I had a problem with missing washers as UPS must have damaged the box and the washer bag was split open. Etrailer.com sent new hardware quickly. Very good customer service - they made things right.571503

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

Here is my 2019 Subaru Crosstrek with the Ecohitch Stealth Hitch installed.775868

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

by: Roy A08/10/2019

I like the option I get to take off insert in case I need that extra clearance. However I NVR Had to take off and like option of stealth look. I use it on my crosstrek to pull a light weight kayak trailer.683291

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

Fits perfectly on my 2023 crosstrek, pretty simple to install, only takes about an hour. I would recommend finding a friend or an extra set of hands when mounting however, just for ease of lining up the bolts & not having them get shoved back inside the unibody while trying to align them with the holes in the hitch frame. Great product & recommended if you can afford the extra cost for the ability to remove the receiver when not in use.1559459

When the hitch was finally installed, I was very happy with it. The removable receptacle makes the hitch truly hidden. The hitch is very solid. I plan to use it for bike racks and a basket carrier. The installation process for me took about 4 hours. Despite warnings one of the four bolts got knocked up inside frame. By putting super glue on my finger I managed the move the bolt near the hole and then used needle nose pliers to get it back in position. It would really help to have two people but I was solo. A second problem was that two on the bolts kept turning while trying to tighten them. Solved this my attaching a vice grip pliers to the end of the bolt. This allowed me finally tighten the nut so the bolt wouldn’t turn. The company was very prompt and kept me notified during the shipping process. The videos on the product page were also very helpful. I thought the cost of this hitch was rather high compared to the non-hidden one, but I do like the final look and function.1513219

by: John 11/07/2023

See previous 1690448

I love how easy it is to install by yourself. It's amazingly low profile when you remove the adapter.1545073

What I said on the wiring kit pertains to this as well.1536423

I received the hitch and proceeded with the installation, carefully reading the instructions. First, the instructions are written very poorly. In addition, the plate washers have a hole whose diameter is too small to fit the bolt attached to the fish tape they supplied. After opening a larger hole and installing the hitch. I am not able to tighten the bolts because the plate washers are loose inside the channel and as a result, the bolts cannot be tightened to the recommended torque indicated. I called etrailer and spoke to a Steve who did not know much about installing a hitch. He told me to call Eco Hitch. They apologized and, by the way, they are fully aware of the problem but yet they keep sending the hitches out with the defective parts. I will likely be sending the hole thing back (if I can remove it with the free wheeling bolts). I do not recommend this product.564924

Mike L.

9/14/2018

According to the engineering folks at EcoHitch, the best solution to this would be to use an impact wrench to run the bolts down. An impact wrench will spin the nuts more quickly than the bolts, allowing the nut and bolt to tighten up. Once the connection is snugged up, you can then torque the bolt as called for in the instructions.

by: Caleb. D09/27/2020

I love this hitch. The only piece you can see is the actual hitch receiver - the rest is hidden. You can even remove the receiver if you want to maintain a clean look when its not needed. The hitch is very sturdy...I regularly use a heavy duty "One-up" bike carrier with 3 adult bikes - its stable and handles the load no problem. The only gripe I have (which appears to be a problem with every hitch I've ever owned) is that after one winter season, rust starts to form on the receiver. I combat this with lithium grease, but it just seems like they would have a better paint process to ensure that doesn't happen. The only other gripe I have is the installation was tricky...you need to thread some bolts into the chassis using a wire tool (provided). I made a mistake during the process and a piece fell off before i could thread it. With about an hour of trying different ways to recover, my 13 year old daughter was ultimately able to save me. That the price you pay for wanting a very low-profile hitch that isnt ugly.893475

by: Chase05/29/2019

Hitch was pretty easy to install, under 2 hours, but I would recommend having a second pair of hands. Test-fit all the bolts and washers before threading it through with the wire, because once you start, it might be near impossible to get them back out. I screwed the nut on each bolt just a little after I threaded each one just because I was worried about losing them. I could have done it solo, but a second pair of hands really helped with aligning the bolts without knocking them out of place.

When tightening the nuts, I had to use a crescent wrench and pull a bit on the bolt with some gloves on to get it to grip enough to tighten it the last bit without it freely spinning.

I only have used it with bike hitches and have had no problems with it. 649138

Product works perfect on my Crosstrek for my bike rack. Shipping was fast, I would order the hitch again from etrailer.1357850

GET A PRO TO INSTALL. Not a do-at-home project! For one, the hitch is heavy, and to hold it up and be able to delicately align it with bolts is difficult, and should have a prop to allow you to gently move it into position. Second the bolts are a one-chance to install and if you accidentally push into the supporting frame you are out of luck, and not likely to be able to fish them out to try again. I now have three sets of bolts ringing round in my frame. Third, the muffler is a bear to remove and has FIVE mounts in the 2019 Subaru crosstrek, not three. And it too needs to be supported while you and the three other guys helping you hold up the rest.

But once installed, it’s a good hitch. Whew. 664910

Really high quality and I like the fact that I can take off the bottom and keep slick look of not having a tow hitch.
I had it installed, but they said it was straight forward and easy to do for them.
Highly recommend.1357965

Great product. Took me a couple of hours to install by myself, mostly due to some hickups along with way.

One critical installation note omitted from the instructions: file the paint out of the holes in the large rectangular washers, otherwise the bolts will not fit through. I figured this out after I'd threaded the first bolt and washer up into the frame - it was not fun getting the washer back out of the frame! The bolts need to slide easily through the washers before installation.

Another tip, for those doing solo installs. Use bricks or boards or something to get the hitch close to the mounting position (my vehicle has 8 or 9 inches of clearance, so I didn't jack it up first). Then do what you must to get it into position and _omit_ the lower washers at first - just screw the bolts in by hand. Once all the bolts are in and the hitch is fixed to your vehicle's frame, back out the bolts one-by-one and reinstall them with the washers. This just makes the lift/screw in step much easier, as your hands may be full with everything else.556883

Great product! But I don’t have the luxury of having a second hand to help so single person install is a huge PITA. luckily having the proper tools to help w install speeds things up.

Several things i did to make the hitch install drama free:
0) used a dremel to clear out the powdercoat in the black brackets so the bolts could slide through.
1) putting the car on ramps give u more room to work.
2) use an exhaust hanger removal tool. makes getting the hangers off a cinch.
3) once the bolts are installed, tied fishing line to them. i had paranoia that i would push the bolts into the frame by accident. this was a surefire backup plan in case that happened.
4) removed a panel from the rear bottom of the bumper to get more access/make it easier to lift the hitch into position.
5) being just me, im a tiny guy, so i used a floor jack on one side and a jack stand on the other side; rested under the car and in bench pressing motion, moved the hitch so the left side rested on the floorjack, and the right side rested on the jack stand. letting the hitch rest on those two things allowed me to easily lift the right side into position and temporarily install nuts to keep it in place.
6) having a impact wrench or impact driver is a must! theres no way to get the nuts tightened enough that it can withstand endlessily twisting, specially torquing it to its 75ftlb spec.

overall time of installation: 3hrs. most of the time was spent double checking things and trying to figure out how to lift the hitch into position with one person. the hitch is pretty heavy.

aside from the PITA install, the hitch itself is awesome! u cant really tell its there. things im glad i had for the install were my exhaust hanger tool and my trusty impact wrench. if u plan to install this, have some creative plan to lift it into position ny yourself, otherwise, get a second person.746591

It has the look, or actually the lack of look that I wanted. Looking at the item, appears to well made and finished nicely. I had read previous reviews so I knew the challenges. I drove the car (2021 Crosstrek) on standard car ramps. Toughest to me was removing the exhaust system hangars and putting them back. Fishing was not much of a challenge as I had done that on another vehicle. I used a plastic storage bin as my assistant plus some pieces of lumber. I got the hitch onto the top of the bin and leveled it with wood as needed. I was then able to lever up one side and get a nut on. Moved to other side and got another nut on. After that worked on nut at a time with the washers and torqued them down. Do I recommend doing it yourself, no. But if you are 75, reasonably fit and lack common sense, go for it. An expansive military vocabulary helps when it gets tough.1139020

I have to say if it weren't for the installation video on the etrailer web site the installation could very easily have been a disaster. The illustrations for the install left a bit to be desired.
The product itself is fantastic I really like the fact that in just a few minutes the lower portion of the hitch can be removed and you would never know there was a hitch on the car.770036

by: Steve 07/07/2020

2018 Subaru XV Crosstrek

Very well built hitch. Installed on my 2018 Subaru Crosstrek. Easy to install after watching a YouTube video and reading the instructions. I really like how it is hidden behind the bumper when I’m not using it. I would definitely recommend this hitch. 829351

Package arrived on the day they said it would. I did a quick inventory of the content of the box, yep everything I ordered was there. When I went to install the wiring harnesses I first watched the install video. It was even easier then the video. It only took maybe 5 minutes to install as the plug was easy to find and just plugs into the harness. Then I watched a couple videos on hitch install, first lowering the exhaust by removing the hangers, and had the bolts fed through the frame holes with the greatest of ease with the special tool included in the hardware bag. Without that tool it would have been impossible to complete the installation. So as I always try to do, I fit all the parts together before I get started, and wouldn’t you know, one of the frame plates was smaller than the other ones. And I had to drill out that one plate. Not a large problem, as I have the shop to do it. With that problem solved, I had my best girl help hold the hitch up while I got the nuts installed. 548561