hydronaut

Is it just me or does anybody else find the JK rugged ridge hitch a piece of garbage?

Powdercoat is soft, weld are ugly, and the fit is sloppy. There is almost a 1/2 inch gap before the bolts are tightened.

Was thinking of cutting my losses and buying a us made Curt. Does anybody here use one and if so what do they do to hide your wiring since there is no clip?

I also realized that both the RR and even the mopar hitch are only class II hitches whereas the Curt is a III.

rob_engineer

They are lower class because the jeep is only rated for 3500 pounds. Mopar won't put 5000 pound class iii label on it because they don't spec the vehicle for that much. The best hitch out there if you tow heavy loads is the smittibilt XRC bumper/ hitch combo. It is rated for 5000 pounds. I have it on my JKU and have used it to tow a 5000 pound toy hauler using a weight distribution hitch. It made a tremendous improvement over the stock mopar receiver.

hydronaut

From what read on the mopar stock hitch is only a class 2 and rated for 2000 lbs without weight distribution. The Curt is 3500 without.

rob_engineer

The factory hitch on jkus are rated to 3500 pounds because that's what the jeeps are rated for. 2dr jeeps are only rated for 2000 pounds. The hitches/receivers are the exact same. What is different is the rating of the vehicle they are bolted to.

hydronaut

This is from the Mopar site for the factory hitch:

Production 3,500-lb tow rating, 350 lb tongue weight rating with weight distributing equipment trailer hitch with 2 opening; otherwise 2000-lb tow rating, 200-lb tongue weight rating.

Unless I am reading this wrong without weight distribution on the trailer side it is only rated to 2000 lbs.

rob_engineer

LIABILITY. If anything, a weight distribution hitch is actually more stressful on a receiver because it imparts a significant twisting action. With this statement they are just covering their A55. Many aftermarket bumpers are available with integral receivers. Most will only say they can carry a bike rack because they expose themselves to liability if they publish a tow rating. Something similar must be going on with the Mopar statement.

hydronaut

Most likely the case. Ordered a Curt hitch, I am in Canada and the quadratec one would be too much to ship. Primary reason for the Curt is that is it made in north america and I am a big proponent of purchasing Canadian or US made products when possible.

rob_engineer

I had a Curt weight dist hitch. Was very happy with it.

Ryan0260

Check Craigslist for a used Mopar hitch. I picked up one for my last JK for $35. They are good quality.