2009 TDI towing

After reading Robenne's experiences, I went out and took a look at my hitch, which I haven't tried hooking anything up to yet. I put in the drawbar and stepped on it, and the hitch sagged, and it looked like the hanger mounts might have bent some. I'm very disappointed -- there's no way I can trust my trailer to this hitch. The last thing I need it to be towing and have some pothole or railroad crossing tear my exhaust system off.

So now I'll be taking the Curt hitch off and looking for something stronger. I'm anxious to hear other's experiences with the draw-tite. Also interested in whether folks are able to return their Curt hitches, although I've thrown the box away, so it would be difficult to ship back.

Although the Curt hitch will not serve my purpose (towing a fairly heavy trailer), I do think it would be useful for someone towing something lighter. Anyway, my installed-once-but-never-used Curt hitch is for sale. I can't ship it, but someone in Austin or San Antonio might be interested. If you can come by my place in South Austin, I'll even install it for free -- take about an hour, max.
Anyway, price is $100 (was $160 new).

Hello All,

I got the Draw-tite hitch installed today on my 09 TDI Wagon and it is night & day compared to the Curt hitch! For those of you that bought a Curt, give them a call and let them know you're not happy. They are going to refund me my $$ for the original hitch I bought and the other one is being sent back free of charge.

Although Curt hitches are not designed very well for our 09 VW Jettas, their Customer Service is great!

robenne said:

Although Curt hitches are not designed very well for our 09 VW Jettas, their Customer Service is great!

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That's great to hear because they will be hearing from me later today. Did you speak with tech support or customer service? Do you still have the number?

Thanks!

-darren

darrenf said:

That's great to hear because they will be hearing from me later today. Did you speak with tech support or customer service? Do you still have the number?

Thanks!

-darren

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Yesterday I spoke with Nicole in Tech Support @ 1.800.798.0813

Good luck.

bosal hitch install on 2006 mk V

I just posted 2 pics of my new hitch; had a draw-tight that bottomed on even moderate curb-sidewalk-road transitions (probably a name for that, but it doesn't occur). I had it replaced with a bosal hitch for the mk V. Much tighter to the bottom of the car. 50mm ball. Top of the ball went from 14.75" to over 18", and I gained about 3" in departure angle.
http://pics.tdiclub.com/showphoto.php?photo=51446&size=big&cat=&ppuser=65039 hitch

dandywriter said:

I just posted 2 pics of my new hitch; had a draw-tight that bottomed on even moderate curb-sidewalk-road transitions (probably a name for that, but it doesn't occur). I had it replaced with a bosal hitch for the mk V. Much tighter to the bottom of the car. 50mm ball. Top of the ball went from 14.75" to over 18", and I gained about 3" in departure angle.

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That looks very good. Can you take a photo of the bumper with the hitch removed? Also, do you use chains and if so, where do they hook up?

Thanks!!

-darren

I spoke with Keith in tech support at Curt. He said that the new model, 11072 is redesigned and stronger than the 11084 I have, and that the place I bought from should be able to do an exchange. I don't want to do an exchange, I'd like to return the Curt hitch and buy a Bosal or Westfalia, but I guess I'll have to work that out with the place I bought it from (they don't carry Bosal or Westfalia).

Looking at the "redesigned" 11072 hitch, I see that they have added a bar to the drivers side that bolts through an existing hole in the spare tire well and keeps the hitch from rotating on that side and stops the flexing we've been seeing. If the install instructions are anything to go by, the two rivnuts that the muffler hanger is bolted to are actually in the frame, so should be pretty solid.

I sure would like to get one of the heavy duty hitches, but I might give the redesigned hitch a try. Whichever I do, I'll keep everyone posted.

If the install instructions are anything to go by, the two rivnuts that the muffler hanger is bolted to are actually in the frame

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Hmm. After looking at the install instructions for both the Curt and DrawTite hitches, I think that the muffler hanger is bolted into the bumper, which is bolted to the frame.

Very good information. I'll be definitely blacklisting Curt.

Hitches should not sag if you step on them.

photos - hitch out

Darren, a good series of pics is at:
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=60842

I didn't get an attachment thing like is shown on the left side (separate piece). On the left side of the hitch, there is a hole that chains can attach to - pic to follow by e-mail. I'm not wild about pulling the receiver and grovelling under the car in slush, as you might imagine; I see you're not on e-mail availability. I will try to post it to the general photo section.

http://pics.tdiclub.com/showphoto.php?photo=51451&size=big&cat=516

OK, first photo only - I'm not great at using this. You can see the ring; I imagine I'll use a quick-link to attach the chains.

Dan

robenne said:

Yesterday I spoke with Nicole in Tech Support @ 1.800.798.0813

Good luck.

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Thanks for the tip. Nicole was indeed very helpful. She took my number then called eTrailer to arrange for the refund. She issued a pickup tag to retrieve the hitch. The tag should arrive Tuesday via UPS. When Curt gets the receiver and hardware back, she will notify eTrailer to issue the credit.

That's a better resolution than I expected or hoped for so a thumbs up to Curt for their customer service!

karltinsly said:

Hmm. After looking at the install instructions for both the Curt and DrawTite hitches, I think that the muffler hanger is bolted into the bumper, which is bolted to the frame.

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What part are you describing as the bumper? The part that is removed when installing the European hitch is the closest thing I can find to a bumper (other than the plastic covering) and the exhaust hanger is forward of that by a foot or two. It is possible that it bolts right to the frame, though -- my memory is that it sits just under the driver's side frame rail -- but if so, perhaps the bolts are flexing a bit (eek).

dandywriter said:

Darren, a good series of pics is at:
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=60842

I didn't get an attachment thing like is shown on the left side (separate piece). On the left side of the hitch, there is a hole that chains can attach to - pic to follow by e-mail. I'm not wild about pulling the receiver and grovelling under the car in slush, as you might imagine; I see you're not on e-mail availability. I will try to post it to the general photo section.

http://pics.tdiclub.com/showphoto.ph...ze=big&cat=516

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-Dan,

The second link you posted -- is that your car? The bumper cut looks different than in the other photos you posted.

The ring you see in that first photo is for holding the Euro-style wiring connector. It's not strong enough to act as a chain hook-point anyway so you're not missing anything. I do see the smaller ring welded to the side of the receiver that looks like a chain link -- that answers my question.

I like your idea about using a quick-link. I think I'll do the same as I similarly have just one loop to connect to and it's inside the bumper a bit.

Thanks for the photos. I'll try to get the e-mail thing fixed in my profile.

-darren

Quick question.

I am hopefully going to have my hands on 2009 JSW TDI in the near future, and I have a bike rack that I use to carry my mountain bikes.

I am going to throw a hitch on there, but the problem is my mountain bike rack has a 2inch receiver on it.

They sell adapters to take 1 1/4inch to 2 inches...do you see this causing any problems on a class 1 hitch? All of the adapters are "Class 2 only."

The rack will be holding no more than 80 lbs, the problem is that these adapters usually add about 6-7 inches of more length. Should I be alright?

Finally pulled the trigger and ordered the Bosal from tdiparts. Don't know yet if I'll get a refund from the place I ordered the Curt, but I should at the least get a credit.

I intend to keep my JSW for a good long time -- I wanted a solid hitch that will last as long as the rest of the car.

What part are you describing as the bumper?

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I think you're right -- it's some frame member. I thought it was the bumper because it ran perpendicular to the longitudinal frame rails.

-Dan,

The second link you posted -- is that your car? The bumper cut looks different than in the other photos you posted.
Busted... same hitch, but an angle I wasn't willing to grovel in the slush for... by feel, same as mine. Also, I think it's part of the casting, not welded on - can't see welds, anyway. The other photos were in a previous post, not mine, however, I bought based on them, and everything was the same in my kit.
The ring you see in that first photo is for holding the Euro-style wiring connector. It's not strong enough to act as a chain hook-point anyway so you're not missing anything. I do see the smaller ring welded to the side of the receiver that looks like a chain link -- that answers my question.

I like your idea about using a quick-link. I think I'll do the same as I similarly have just one loop to connect to and it's inside the bumper a bit.
Just have to get one with a high enough weight rating. I'm loving driving around and not bottoming out on curbs!
Thanks for the photos. I'll try to get the e-mail thing fixed in my profile.

-darren[/quote]

y0bailey said:

Quick question.

I am hopefully going to have my hands on 2009 JSW TDI in the near future, and I have a bike rack that I use to carry my mountain bikes.

I am going to throw a hitch on there, but the problem is my mountain bike rack has a 2inch receiver on it.

They sell adapters to take 1 1/4inch to 2 inches...do you see this causing any problems on a class 1 hitch? All of the adapters are "Class 2 only."

The rack will be holding no more than 80 lbs, the problem is that these adapters usually add about 6-7 inches of more length. Should I be alright?

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I've thought about this since I also have a 2" receiver bike rack. I am worried about oscillations and flexing, especially with the Curt hitch described in this thread. Maybe the Draw-tite has a strong enough attachment. Using an adapter will increase the lever arm and could cause BIG problems with 80 lbs hanging from it.

I just ordered a draw-tite hitch and the adapter to use my 2inch bike rack...I will update on how it goes.

Just installed the hitch last night.

Did everyone have to remove and leave off a whole piece of body paneling on the rear right side of the car? Are there any consequences/downsides to leaving this piece completely off?

I was thinking of buying a piece of lexan and custom cutting it to fit back into the place of the original plastic, because I don't want to ruin the original plastic.

Thoughts?

The Curt hitch instructions require you to cut that piece of plastic -- which I did. Since I removed the Curt hitch a few days later and installed the Bosal, I now have an unnecessarily-modified panel, though it's really not much of a problem -- you'd have to crawl under the car to see it. I don't know what the consequences would be of leaving the panel off -- increased road noise, maybe?

y0bailey said:

Just installed the hitch last night.

Did everyone have to remove and leave off a whole piece of body paneling on the rear right side of the car? Are there any consequences/downsides to leaving this piece completely off?

I was thinking of buying a piece of lexan and custom cutting it to fit back into the place of the original plastic, because I don't want to ruin the original plastic.

Thoughts?

Click to expand...

Can you post any impressions on how does the draw-tite behave? Have you tried the 2'' adapter and the bike rack on it? Is there any noticeable flex? Do you have any pictures of the hitch installed on the car?

I'm in much of the same situation, I want to use a bike rack to carry two mountain bikes (downhill mountain bikes, which are pretty heavy, one is about 40 lb an the other about 32 lb). I intend to use one of these racks http://www.northshoreracks.com/NSR%202-bike.htm. After reading about the issues people had with the Curt hitch I've been thinking of getting a custom hitch made at a local hitch shop, although it's about twice as expensive. However, somebody mentioned on this thread that draw-tite are way better than curt, so I'm very interested in knowing what are your impressions.

No go on using my 2inch bike rack with the adapter.

I think the draw-tite would be strong enough to support everything, but the ground clearance is almost nothing (the bikes would hit every 2 seconds). There is just enough play in the adapter and the 2inch hitch to cause some sag (not of the hitch however), and 2inch hitch bike racks are not built with any "lift" to account for being low to the ground in a car.

I went out and bought an appropriate 1 1/4inch bike rack and have two 35+lb bikes on it with no sag or problems.

Would recommend the draw-tite for sure.

There is some trimming of one of the panels required like in the Curt instruction manual...but no actual body panels (just under car panel).

I've been just checking the etrailer web site, they also list now the draw-tite and hidden-hitch as compatible with 2009 JSW: http://www.etrailer.com/hitch-2009_Volkswagen_Jetta+SportWagen.htm

The draw-tite model 24752 and the hidden-hitch model 60811 look identical to me, even the installation instructions are the same. Does anybody know if there is any difference between the two?

An update:

I had my Curt hitch installed last Dec, but didn't tow anything until this weekend. I pulled an 800lb camping trailer this weekend, probably a tongue weight under 100lbs. And the hitch bent. It sagged on the right (passenger) side, so you could see the receiver was pointing slightly downward. I took it back to the hitch shop this morning, and we could see where the metal bracket on that side had bent, it was no longer square.

The good news is that the redesigned Curt hitch appears to be much stronger in that area, and my shop should be putting it on tomorrow morning. It's going to be treated as a warranty issue, and the shop guys were very nice about it.

The bad news is that the underbody panel is going to need to be cut in a 2nd location, so I'll have an empty slot in it. Probably create a little bit of wind noise, but the hitch is already disrupting the airflow down there a bit.

So just as a quick summery, I should be able to use a one rail motorcycle trailer with a 640 lb BMW say around 1100 lbs total, utilizing my automatic 09 TDI Jetta? Especially if I watch the temp guage and resolve the lighting issue then all should be well?

My friend that would present a challenge to your vehicle about something like a grizzly bear going through a tent looking for food.

Put it this way, using my Mark IV PD (very weak compared to my dads 09 jsw tdi) I towed TWO sportbikes on an open 64" wide x 12 foot aluminum trailer from Toronto to Alabama and back on 4 separate trips doing pedal to the floor many times up and down the rolling hillls south of michigan onwards. Two people in the car, a/c on never slower than 120 km/hr. Powertrain runs like a rolex watch after 6 trips to alabama and back. Last two trips were done with full enclosed trailer and one bike only. Plus multiple other trips towing the same load to closer distances but still day drives.

The response from VW was written by their legal department and not by someone who knows anything about the cars capabilities.

What about an automatic transmission with a 09 tdi jetta?

I got a Valley hitch for my 06 sedan from Uhaul. They are about to install it. I hope they don't mangle my bumper too much or whatever else they can mess up. I'll let you know how it goes.

For those of you who have a Draw-Tite or Hidden Hitch, do you find that your JSW drags or scrapes often? I know it's going to scrape on some steep inclines, but does it do it so often that it's not worth installing?

I've got a hidden hitch, and was towing some fairly heavy landscaping materials with my TDI JSW over the weekend. I figure around 1800 lbs. The hitch didn't drag, and the car seemed to handle it OK. My only concern is that the rear suspension dropped quite a bit when loaded, so that the safety chains were dragging.

Anybody using an Airlift load assist or other method to lift the rear up a bit on a Mk 5 when towing?

Someone else linked to this thread ... time for a thread-bump. Here is my trailer.



I can have either one bike in the middle (shown) or one on each side, and I've towed two bikes to and from North Carolina (many times), Shannonville (many times), Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama (once). No problem.