Clean up area around the trailer hitch

[PaidEMS]

That’s nice, saved you $22
Be prepared for some slight blood pressure increase doing the mod

Mine was paid with Ford points

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[TAngeli]

I found the easiest way to make the cutouts was to use a utility knife and a small combination square. Removing the bumper cover bolts and shimming it open helps to slide it in place.

 

[Don806]

I found the easiest way to make the cutouts was to use a utility knife and a small combination square. Removing the bumper cover bolts and shimming it open helps to slide it in place.

Looks great! Just wish there was another 1/4” between the chain hooks and the hitch, lol

 

[AMCfoxbody]

Has anyone put a cover around the bigger wiring harness like this one?

@MikeyG Did you ever solve this problem of the hitch cover with the larger PIN connector?

 

[MikeyG]

@MikeyG Did you ever solve this problem of the hitch cover with the larger PIN connector?

Not yet. I have the cover but it’s been freezing cold so I haven’t been able to. Hopefully in the next week or two.

 

[OB1e]

$27 shipped inc tax from Ford OEM parts online, best price I could find for a piece of plastic. Makes the bumper and hitch look 400x better.

 

[Mymaverick2021]

See where the bumper is cut out.i think if you dont get a hitch that whole area,including what you dont see on the other side of the hitch,would have a plastic piece to cover the hole where the hitch would have come through.i want too fill that in,cut out for the hitch,just to clean it up.maybe i can get a cover in parts and just use that,which is fine.

You mean like this, I cut off the factory D-rings and then welded a D-ring from Home Depot gor $13 bucks and installing the filler pice

 

[Mymaverick2021]

You mean like this, I cut off the factory D-rings and then welded a D-ring from Home Depot gor $13 bucks and installing the filler pice

 

[MikeyG]

@MikeyG Did you ever solve this problem of the hitch cover with the larger PIN connector?

Here ya go. It was pain to get it on and I even took off the bolts on the bottom of the bumper that a few people recommended so I chewed up some of the top of it. I also had to re trim around the connector because it was hitting when I went to open it so I just trimmed it in place so it doesn’t look as good as it first did. I was thinking about getting another one and redoing it but it don’t look that bad until your right up on it.

 

[AMCfoxbody]

Here ya go. It was pain to get it on and I even took off the bolts on the bottom of the bumper that a few people recommended so I chewed up some of the top of it. I also had to re trim around the connector because it was hitting when I went to open it so I just trimmed it in place so it doesn’t look as good as it first did. I was thinking about getting another one and redoing it but it don’t look that bad until your right up on it.

Awesome, thank you! Any tips, tricks, short-cuts that you learned during the process? I ordered my piece end of last week so hope to receive it soon. Seems that everyone describes this project as a pain in the a-- but, besides the actual cutting of the piece makes installing it into the cut-out so difficult?

 

[Don806]

Awesome, thank you! Any tips, tricks, short-cuts that you learned during the process? I ordered my piece end of last week so hope to receive it soon. Seems that everyone describes this project as a pain in the a-- but, besides the actual cutting of the piece makes installing it into the cut-out so difficult?

cutting is pretty easy, especially with a dremel, the PIA part is the space between the chain hooks and the hitch, enough room for the plastic you can see, but not enough room for the plastic part (lip) that you can't see, it's hard to explain, but you see it.

 

[MikeyG]

Awesome, thank you! Any tips, tricks, short-cuts that you learned during the process? I ordered my piece end of last week so hope to receive it soon. Seems that everyone describes this project as a pain in the a-- but, besides the actual cutting of the piece makes installing it into the cut-out so difficult?

it’s really not that hard to do. I just measured a bunch of times and wrote it all down on paper. Then got a piece of cardboard paper traced that to the factory cap piece that I ordered then from there I measured out all my measurements and cut them out on the cardboard paper. After that I tried it out and everything looked good. I used a oscillating tool with the blade that looks like a half circle and that worked great. I’ll post a pic of the piece of cardboard paper I used. The pain was trying to get the cap in between the d hooks and the metal behind that. I even took the screws off of the bottom of the bumper to give more room and you can also pop out the electrical connector with the tab from behind it. Let me know if you need anything else

 

[AMCfoxbody]

it’s really not that hard to do. I just measured a bunch of times and wrote it all down on paper. Then got a piece of cardboard paper traced that to the factory cap piece that I ordered then from there I measured out all my measurements and cut them out on the cardboard paper. After that I tried it out and everything looked good. I used a oscillating tool with the blade that looks like a half circle and that worked great. I’ll post a pic of the piece of cardboard paper I used. The pain was trying to get the cap in between the d hooks and the metal behind that. I even took the screws off of the bottom of the bumper to give more room and you can also pop out the electrical connector with the tan from behind it. Let me know if you need anything else

Very helpful - I appreciate the detail and the picture of your template!

 

[DCP]

Apparently AutoNation has to pay way more for their parts because I stopped by my local AN Ford parts department to see about ordering it. They said they could get it in a week or so and it would be $64. I said no thanks. Another dealer in a nearby town ordered it for me for $26 (I used my points for the purchase) and had it in a couple of days. I understand a mark up, but there is no reason to get greedy.

 

[Grayghost17]

My $.02 is to actually remove the 7 pin connector before you even attempt to install it. Then use a Dremel as previously mentioned and cut out a little bit at a time. I actually went a little too far on the bottom left corner of mine, but it's not very noticeable.

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