Installing the Hidden Hitch Model #60963 (Jetta 99 1/2 +)

[BlueGalsGuy]

These instructions are for installing this model trailer hitch in your Volkswagen Jetta. The car pictured is a 2003 Jetta GL 1.8T. A few notes - overall it wasn't a very difficult task. I did most of the install by myself with jack stands and a floor jack. You'll want both as you need to get the car up on the jack stands and have the jack available to "persuade" the hitch to do what you need it to do. It would obviously be helpful to have someone else with you, especially in the early steps where you need to hold the hitch up and bolt it in while it's unsupported.

Also, before starting make sure you have a 1/2" drill bit for metal and a drill capable of driving it. My Makita cordless didn't have quite enough torque, but I managed. Other handy tools not listed include a tape measure, crowbar and mallet.

You can follow along with the instructions provided by Hidden Hitch. I wont retype them in their entirety here, just enough to get the idea and link to the pictures.

1. Remove the rear most muffler hanger. NOTE: Nothing gets attached here, this is strictly to give you enough room to wrench and drill.

2. Insert the nut plate into the tie down bracket small end first with weld nuts upward. NOTE: Mine needed some persuasion to get all the way in there. Crowbar and mallet come in handy here.

3. Hold hitch in position and install rear most hex bolt in passenger side bracket. NOTE: Look closely at the two bolts - one is longer than the other. You want the longer one for this step!

4. Adjust hitch aligning it with rear of vehicle and leaving a 1/2" space between frame bracket and tire well. NOTE: The instructions tell you to use the spacer to check the distance, but I fail to see how you can screw this up. Unless their pipe isn't cut right or something has changed in the Jetta design, the tow hook doesn't move, so you really can't be off. What you do want to do is check the distance between the right and left ends of the pipe and the rear bumper to make the hitch receiver is .

5. Using the three holes in driver side bracket as a drill guide, drill three 1/2" diameter holes through trunk floor and tire well. NOTE: See my steps below.
5a. Pop the trunk, lift up the spare cover, and pull the styrofoam out of your way.
5b. There is no way you're going to get this to just sit flush against the car all nice so you can mark the holes. With only the one bolt in the other end, the forward edge of the hitch will be hanging lower and by now you've realized that there's going to be forceful persuasion involved in getting this thing on. Once you've triple checked your measurements, mark and drill the rearmost hole going up into the trunk.
5c. Now, from inside the trunk, use the reinforcing plate (F) to mark and drill where the other hole should go.
5d. Forget about the horizontal bolt for now. You're not going to be able to line it up just yet.

6. Place reinforcing plates (F & H) inside trunk, install carriage bolts and hardware. NOTE: See my steps below.
6a. The rearmost bolt should be easy to get in, so tighten that one down a bit.
6b. The forward bolt may be tougher if the hitch wont rotate forward enough to get enough thread through the hole in the hitch to get the nut on. I took my jack with a piece of 2x4 on it to push the unattached end of the passenger side plate up.
6c. Now you should be able to get the nut on the forward bolt on the drivers side plate.
6d. Again, forget about the horizontal bolt for now. It's easiest to do this one last.

7-8. The instructions talk about removing the nut plate from the tie down bracket to drill the second hole. Something must have changed since they wrote the instructions, as my Jetta already had this hole there. If you don't have a second hole, then follow the instructions.

9. Reinstall nut plate (see above) and remaining hardware. NOTE: See my steps below.
9a. The forward bolt on the passenger side plate is going to take some persuasion to get on. I actually loosened up all the other bolts/nuts to give the hitch enough play. Then I put my jack on the corner of the plate next to the empty hole to force it to turn enough to get the bolt to connect with the threads in the weld nut on the nut plate. Once you have that bolt connected, you can tighten everything back up.
9b. Now you can install the horizontal bolt in the driver's side plate. With everything else tightened down, it's all lined up for you. First, drill through the bracket.
9c. Now push the bolt through from the trunk. Remember, it's bolt head > reinforcing plate > trunk wall > spacer > hitch > nut. Look at the diagram.
9d. Put the muffler bracket back on.

10. Torque everything down to the specs in the instructions.

Finished pics:
- Driver's side
- Passenger's side
- Receiver
- Receiver - higher view
- Drawbar installed
- Cover installed

And the whole reason for doing this:
- Thule 937 2 Bike Hitching Post Pro

[DREAMGTI]

links are dead

[Tin_Man]

yeah.. all links are bad...
just search for Hidden Hitch Model #60963 or check out:
http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitc...tch/60963.html

just remember.. that's the model for mk4 sedans.. the wagon version is different:
http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitc...eid=2001300782
or
http://www.hitchsource.com/volkswage...i-p-25524.html