Trailer Hitch Installation - 2004 Nissan Pathfinder
How to Install a Trailer Hitch on a 2004 Nissan Pathfinder
Today on this 2004 Nissan Pathfinder we will be installing Hidden Hitch part number 70609. This installation will also apply for Draw-Tite hitch part number 75077. We are underneath the vehicle now and we are taking a look at the outboard side of the passenger side frame rail. As you can see we have got a tow hook mounted here. This is being held in place with these three bolts. We are going to need to remove those three bolts along with the tow hook and that is going to provide three of the attaching points for our trailer hitch on the passenger side. We are also going to be using a fourth weld nut on the outboard side of the frame that is not currently in use located right here. For all four of these weld nuts we are going to be using the new hardware that is provided with the installation kit. Then looking at the driver side frame rail you can see we have got the same tow hook. Again we are going to be removing this and using the same four attaching points for our trailer hitch. On this side you can see we have got our carbon canister in the way. It is going to need to be lowered. 00:55
The first thing we want to do is lower the carbon canister down and also remove both tow hooks off the frame rails. To lower that down we need to remove this one, this one, and this one. Now we are ready to put the hitch up in to position. We are going to be using the new 12 millimeter bolts, along with the conical tooth washers that are provided with our installation kit. Now that we have got all of the bolts in to place we can start torquing them down. We want to verify with the directions the specific torque rating for each of the bolts. With the hitch bolts torqued down we just want to make sure we put our carbon canister back up on the driver side and our installation will be complete. This will conclude the installation of Hidden Hitch part number 70609 on a 2004 Nissan Pathfinder. Now that we have got our trailer hitch installed we will give you a couple of the final installed dimensions. From the top of the receiver tube opening to the ground is going to be 17 inches. From the center of the hitch pin opening to clear the rear edge of the bumper is going to be one inch.
Victor K.
1/16/2021
I am installing this hitch on a 2003 Infiniti QX4. The Spare (a normal sized 245/65 R17 road wheel and tire get in the way. The back side of the receiver hits the tire and prevents the hitch holes from lining up. I am doing this install by myself using a floor jack to raise the passenger side of the hitch up to keep the mounting flanges parallel with the frame. I used one of the original bolts in on the canister side just to hold it and found that the tire prevented me from raising the passenger side up enough to catch a hole on that side. The original bolts have a slightly tapered end and are easier to start than the ones supplied with the hitch. My plan was to replace them after getting the hitch in place and secured with six of the bolts supplied with the hitch. Any thoughts about the tire interference issue?