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Class II receiver hitch

Troybilt

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Here’s a picture of a Ford bumper with 3 holes in the bumper for hitch balls to go into. And here’s a picture of a Gladiator bumper. As you can see there’s no holes in the bumper to put a hitch ball into. I wonder if they would have a totally different bumper that would have holes in them for a ball to go into and they would call that a class II hitch.
Is there not a receiver right under the bumper? No need for a bumper hole.
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5JeepsAz

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Yes I had posted that one about the bed power plug only being available when you get a Sport S or higher trim level. But I got an email from a guy with Jeep telling me that the trail rail system would be available on all trim levels, includes the base Sport level. And yes I know, this is not what the build site shows. Really need to see if this turns out to be correct once dealers can actually order the trucks.
You were all over it. Now I see. This is pretty large difference. Interested to see what's what
 
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After taking another look at the feature availability sheet and after looking at the build site for all models I think it’s fairly safe to bet that they may have a totally different bumper for trucks that don’t get the $800 tow option from the factory and that bumper just has a hole in it to put a ball into it. After all in this feature availability sheet they call it a “receiver” hitch that’s part of a “P” for “package” and they call it a standard “bumper” hitch. And check out the video “A Closer Look” in which Mark Allen from Jeep refers to one particular bumper as a “composite bumper” that comes with just one rear tow hook. So they obviously have different rear bumpers. We probably will not see one of these bumpers until they arrive at dealerships without the $800 factory receiver hitch as every Gladiator shown so far has been Overland or Rubicons all equipped with a receiver hitch under the bumper. They really are not showing off Sport and Sport S models or any trucks without a receiver hitch.
 
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5JeepsAz

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So you really think some might have the old hole in the bumper. Somehow that is a surprise, but I've never shopped it. I definitely want the receiver I can plug whatever into.

Yes, we need to see a sport w cloth. If it's the same cloth type that was on my 97 Sahara I'm getting that, over ah-leather. The leather is good for dog hair, look and feel, but I worry about sun bake problems. I loved the fabric in my wrangler, that'd be a pleasant surprise.
 
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Jake

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I am like you and everyone else, ain’t got no clue what their class II “bumper” hitch could possibly look like. I can only just bet it’s nothing more than a hole in the bumper to insert a ball into. Oh and surprise surprise: that’s listed as the standard class II hitch and wiring for all trim levels, even for the Rubicon’s. Will just have to sit back and see if I am right or wrong once they start rolling into dealerships. Time will tell.
 

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Jake

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Years ago I once owned a Ford Expedition. And it came with a bumper hitch. Needed a much big hitch so I put an under the bumper class IV receiver hitch on it with a 2” ball. I also put a smaller 1 and 7/8” ball on the bumper itself for when I towed a smaller trailer. The white Expedition shown has a bumper hitch and a receiver hitch below that. The blue Ford Explorer shown has a bumper hitch hole covered with a plug and has a receiver hitch below the bumper. The Gladiator shown has a factory receiver hitch below the bumper and has the 4 pin and 7 pin wiring in the bumper.

When you get a Gladiator without the $800 tow package (with a receiver below the bumper) then I think you will get a similar looking bumper as with the Ford with just a hole in the bumper and the 4 and 7 pin wiring. Then go to a local hitch company and get them to put on a class III or IV hitch(will not get you the max towing capacity as with the $800 factory tow package but will save you about $600).

And once you have done this I do not think that you will then also be able to put another hitch through the bumper hole as there’s just not enough room between under the bumper and the top of the receiver hitch for the shank and nut to the hitch ball as shown in the Gobi bumper.

But hey it’s nice that it will come with a hole in the bumper for a ball plus the wiring. Wiring alone would cost you about $200
 

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FYI, The Wrangler JL comes with a Class II hitch that is a 2" square receiver. I would bet that would be the same on the Gladiator.
 

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Jeep charges $800 for a class IV hitch for a normal Wrangler so I guess that they will change about the same for their towing package which is a class IV hitch on a Gladiator. A local hitch company told me they would charge $150 for a class IV hitch on a Wrangler and $200 for the wiring so perhaps it would be about the same for a Gladiator.

So if anyone gets a base Sport or sees one then please post pictures of this hitch and wiring pins. Thanks much.
There is no Class IV hitch for the Wrangler. The factory hitch, nor any aftermarket hitches, are rated class IV on the Wrangler JL or JK. I can attest to that fact as I've installed hitches on both models.

As far as the towing package for JL Wrangler goes, that package includes other equipment such as upgraded alternator, auxiliary switches in the cabin, 4/7 pin wiring pre-installed, etc. It's not just a hitch only. (However I still believe it's very over-priced).

I always get my stuff from e-trailer.com and install myself in the driveway.
 

ZEN357

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I think if you needed something bigger, you may be towing more than you should with the Jeep.
 

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There is no Class IV hitch for the Wrangler. The factory hitch, nor any aftermarket hitches, are rated class IV on the Wrangler JL or JK. I can attest to that fact as I've installed hitches on both models.

As far as the towing package for JL Wrangler goes, that package includes other equipment such as upgraded alternator, auxiliary switches in the cabin, 4/7 pin wiring pre-installed, etc. It's not just a hitch only. (However I still believe it's very over-priced).

I always get my stuff from e-trailer.com and install myself in the driveway.
For my Grand Cherokee, I got the factory tow because of the tranny/engine cooling upgrades because I knew I'd be towing at max capacity.

For our Cherokee and Volvo XC60, I also got aftermarket hitch and wiring from e-trailer.com (not doing heavy towing with those vehicles).

I think if you needed something bigger, you may be towing more than you should with the Jeep.
Class II can be 1.25" or 2", but is only rated to 3500 lb. So if you are fine with 3500 lb towing, the Class II is fine.

Just because you have a Class IV hitch, doesn't mean you can tow at full Class IV loads. Max will still be vehicle dependent (i.e. 7650 lb on Sport/Sport S, 7000 lb on Rubi).

To get max tow with Sport/Sport S or even 7k with Rubicon, you need the Tow Package (Code ABR on Rubi build), which will give you the Class IV hitch, upgraded alternator, engine/tranny cooling, and trailer hitch zoom. Think the latter will be be handy since I find the backup camera very useful for lining up the trailer to the receiver, and if you can zoom in it can be even more useful. Definitely want the added cooling if you are towing at the upper limit, and that's a harder aftermarket mod.
 

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Jake

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After seeing the new video posted by Wizzard005 I feel fairly certain that the Class II hitch that Jeep will offer will be nothing more than a hole in the bumper to drop a trailer hitch ball into. See the attached pictures. Notice the little cut out in the bottom of the bumper cover, just below the hitch. Ya gotta wonder what that cut out is there for. And inside that cut out area you will see a round hole. What could that be for? I think that hole is there to drop a hitch ball through. And there is plenty of room there for the large nut. And take a look at the top area of the bumper that I circled. I think that they just have a different center top section that has a hole in it for trucks equipped with the class II hitch. And they use the same remaining bumper shell cover for most all other Gladiator bumpers. I may be wrong here but the 2 plus 2 seems to equal 4 here to my logic. Like I said before either way is ok with me as I will haul a small trailer. Just thought y’all might be interested in my theory. We shall see if we can ever get a look at the top center of a Gladiator bumper that does not have a under the bumper hitch. There were no shots of that in the video that Wizzard005 posted.
 

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All the photos I have seen seem to be bumper hitches and not the class 4 Hitch. I think the key to the class 4 is it connects to the frame in multipol locations to balance out the tow weight.

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12BNNT

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After seeing the new video posted by Wizzard005 I feel fairly certain that the Class II hitch that Jeep will offer will be nothing more than a hole in the bumper to drop a trailer hitch ball into. See the attached pictures. Notice the little cut out in the bottom of the bumper cover, just below the hitch. Ya gotta wonder what that cut out is there for. And inside that cut out area you will see a round hole. What could that be for? I think that hole is there to drop a hitch ball through. And there is plenty of room there for the large nut. And take a look at the top area of the bumper that I circled. I think that they just have a different center top section that has a hole in it for trucks equipped with the class II hitch. And they use the same remaining bumper shell cover for most all other Gladiator bumpers. I may be wrong here but the 2 plus 2 seems to equal 4 here to my logic. Like I said before either way is ok with me as I will haul a small trailer. Just thought y’all might be interested in my theory. We shall see if we can ever get a look at the top center of a Gladiator bumper that does not have a under the bumper hitch. There were no shots of that in the video that Wizzard005 posted.
NAILED IT!! my thought as well.... all the bumpers are the same (Except composite/steel cover differences per model) in that they ALL have a hole in the main bumper frame for "class II bumper hitch" ball mount. If you DONT buy tow package you get a plastic step top trim with a hole or punch out in it but if you order the tow package or Max tow, you get a receiver mount and a solid top cover to hide the hole. at least thats what it seems like to me and makes sense from a manufacturing perspective.
 

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Ok it is hard to see here, but just like the plywood I think you guys are all upset about nothing. I can’t tell 100% from the pics but I really think the bolts you think hold the reciever are actually just holding the black trim piece over the bummer.

Follow the lines in the picture, the trim (outlined in red) is held on with the small bolts, the reciever is the yellow and mounted to the frame outside of the picture, I think a good part of the reciever is hide by the trim and also outside of the picture frame.

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homerun

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Want to be up in arms about something? Its not the plywood and its not the hitch, its that stupid soft top that rides around up in the wind looking goofy and taking abuse of 60-80 mph winds on the fabric. For the few times I need the extra 6-12 inches in my bed I would put the top up. There now you having something that is a real design issue to talk about, probably should have started another thread.
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