Installation of Curt Hitch 13357 on 2005 Ford F-150 with Factory Hitch

Updated 06/04/2019 | Published 06/01/2019

Question:

I am looking at buying this Hitch to install but the factory one is still there and seems to have the bumper attached to it. What is the recommendation for installing this new hitch. I was able to look under there and see that the bracket is attached to the frame/hitch and I see one part can come off but how will that work once I have it off. Am I going to have to buy new brackets to keep the bumper attached. In pic one you can see where I marked, my best guess is that is going to need be torched so the bumper can stay attached to the truck/frame. This will leaves about 31 inchs between that cut for your hitch to fit in. Picture 2 is showing the main bracket that I know will have to come out and it should just unbolt if not torch bolts and move on. I would like to buy this as soon as I can as we got trips planned ahaha. thanks in advance for the advice and if you need more pics let me know. Side note: it would only let me upload one pic.

asked by: Shawn S

Expert Reply:

Curt hitch # 13357 and the others made for the 2005 Ford F-150 that are shown on the linked page are intended for the trucks that do not have the factory hitch.

As you have already found out, the bumper and bumper brackets are integrated with the factory hitch. To install Curt # 13357 you will need to find an OEM bumper and OEM bumper brackets from a similar truck that did not have the factory hitch. This is the advice provided by my tech contact at Curt who is very familiar with the challenges of installing an aftermarket hitch on this vehicle. He was not able to offer other guidance for alternate installation methods that include cutting away parts of the factory hitch.

expert reply by: Adam R