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Full transcript: https://www.etrailer.com/tvinstalld...
Hello, neighbors, it's Brad here at etrailer. And today, we're taking a look and installing the DrawTite trailer hitch receiver on a 2023 Jeep Gladiator. Now, this is what the hitch looks like when it's installed, and this is a exposed cross tube, meaning you can see a good majority of the hitch, or at least the beam that attaches up to the frame. And normally, that's something that I I'm not exactly a huge fan on passenger vehicles, but it generally does give you a higher weight capacity, and that's definitely the case in this one. And on a Jeep, I think as a utilitarian look, it actually looks pretty cool on here. So I don't think it takes away from the looks at all.

And now, this one is a two inch by two inch receiver tube opening, which means you're gonna have tons of options when it comes to bike racks, cargo carriers, or ball mounts. All of your accessories are gonna stay in place with a five eighths pin and clip. Now, this is not included with the hitch. A lot of times when you pick up accessories they'll have those included. But if they don't, or you wanna pick up something separate that doesn't include those, you can always get a locking version here at etrailer, which is really nice, especially if you plan on leaving in the accessories on your Jeep for extended period.

You can lock that in place, and know that no one's gonna be able to walk away with whatever you've loaded up. (metal clangs) If you plan on towing a trailer, you're gonna need to hook up your safety chains. And, this is a plate style safety chain loop. It's got a nice oval here, making it super easy for a standard S hook to go on there. Even a larger Clevis style will go on fairly easily as well.

Now, speaking of towing, I mentioned earlier that this was gonna have a higher weight capacity, because it's exposed, and this is a pretty serious hitch. Your gross trailer weight rating, which is gonna be the weight of the trailer, plus the accessories loaded up, is gonna be 7,500 pounds. And, that's a pretty hefty number. As far as tongue weight goes, which is gonna be, generally, some of your suspended accessories, like your cargo carriers, your bike racks, it's 1,125 pounds. So you can load up a four bike bike rack, a cargo carrier, and as long as you're not overloading the accessory with other stuff, you're gonna have a really hard time ever maxing out that tongue weight.

Now, this can be used with a weight distribution hitch, so if you do need to get a little bit of extra carrying capacity with that hitch, it's gonna bump it up to 8,000 pounds. That is a pretty serious towing number. Your tongue weight does slightly go up as well. That's gonna go up to 1,200 pounds. Now, keep in mind, just because you have those weight capacities, doesn't mean you can just hook up and tow. You need to make sure the vehicle's capable of towing that and also any of the accessories that you may be loading in here. Your ball mount for instance, make sure that the the shank, ball mount, as well as the ball, it's all rated for those numbers. You're gonna wanna take the lowest of those, that way you stay safe while towing. Now, a few quick measurements. Normally, we'll measure from the center of the hitch pin out to the furthest point of the rear fascia, but this sits right about even with the rear bumper, and that's gonna be important for some of your folding accessories. A lot of times in the stowed position it can make contact with the rear fascia. That's not the case here. You're gonna be fine there. Now, keep in mind, depending on what accessory you have in a stowed position, you might not be able to open up the tailgate on your Gladiator. So just kind of keep that in mind, when you have things loaded up. Now, when choosing a ball mount, you do need to determine if you need a rise or a drop. And, our ground clearance here is coming in at a solid 20 inches here. You're gonna wanna measure the coupler of your trailer at a even height, and then take that 20 inch measurement, and then check to make sure you're nice and even there by getting a proper rise or drop to account for that. Now, Jeeps are highly customizable, and it's hard to find stock ones it seems. Everyone adds their own flavor, and a lot of that's gonna be larger tires, and larger suspension. So keep that in mind. Those measurements will be skewed, if you do have either of those. So definitely measure your individual Jeep if you have those aftermarket accessories. As far as installation goes, this is actually a very easy hitch to get in place. And also, with the ground clearance that you already have, you don't