[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by TxCajun

I have a few more cab rust areas to address in the rear corners and on top of the dash just below the windshield, but I was feeling kind of burned out on all of the stitch welding and grinding for the sheet metal repairs. I decided to take a break from sheet metal, and work on a trailer hitch.

A while back I had found a $15 receiver hitch on Craigslist that I thought I could modify to fit. It was originally from a 90's RAV4.

The first thing I did was modify the "leaning Z" shaped brace that is riveted as part of the frame a few inches from the rear ends of the frame rails. I turned this in to a "C" channel by bending the top flange to 90 degrees, and cutting off the bottom flange, flipping it around, and re-welding it to make the bottom of the "C". This channel is then bolted to the back of the frame to box it in. (I didn't really need to do this to support adding the trailer hitch. The modification is to make way for either a rear gas tank or a rear spare mounted on a cable or chain hoist. Direction is still to be decided.)

I then modified the receiver hitch by reducing the width about 6 inches, and adding a 4 inch wide plate to each side to lower the receiver 4 inches and move it rearward about 3 inches. I also added a 2 inch wide plate to the top of the receiver for bolting to the bottom of the rear bumper. The modified receiver hitch has two bolts per side through existing holes in the frame rails and two bolts through existing holes in the rear bumper.
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Nice. I've been watching C-list for a similar deal. All my earlier trucks utilize hidden hitch set-ups that you can't see from the rear. I want to do a similar hitch for my OBS '99. Maybe not hidden, but out of sight vs. hanging way below the bumper.