Ok, I know I am going to take a bunch of crap for doing this, but I'm willing to risk it if it means I get some feedback. I am going to have a trailer hitch put onto my '01 Aniv. I was curious if anyone else out there has done this and where they went, (ie. dealer...U-Haul, how much they paid, and if the car has been decent? Thanks.
-Keith

 

Thats not cool... you should rent a car and tow your maxima behind it

 

Trailer hitch, eh? I read somewhere in the forums that it gives at least 15 fw hp. It'll be more if the trailer hitch ball is chromed out

Sorry this is all the info I can contribute

 

Nooooooooooo...

That wasn't too much crap, was it?

 

I have been doing a little research on this (I got a hitch mount bike rack for Christmas). I am looking at a Draw-Tite hitch. They have a part available for 2001 models, but there is no mention in their fitment guide about an AE. So I went to the Nissan dealership and looked at my AE vs Non AEs. I thought the body kit would cause a problem or have to be notched out to fit the hitch. Everything is pretty similar though and it looks like it will work fine. I ordered the hitch yesterday and will have it installed in about three weeks. It's going to be about $125 + $30 for a wiring harness(I don't need that for a bike rack though).

I also looked at the Hidden Hitches, but their tongue weights were a little low (@100lbs vs 200lbs for the Draw-Tite). The do look better, but my Bike Rack requires a 200lb tongue weight fully loaded.

 

what are you going to tow thats less than 1000lb? the max is only rated @ towing 1000lb

 

Did you read the thread at all? He said it was for a bike rack.

Stereodude

 

that was 'MS 2K1 AE' who said that, not Kelton.

All I know is you better budget in a tranny cooler install if you actually plan on towing *anything*.

 

I will usually only be using the bike rack, but if the Pathfinder is out of service for any reason, I can now use the Max to take the wave runner to the lake. It is no more than 800lbs with the trailer. I thought about a tranny cooler, but I towed it with my 92 Accord for three summers without any problems and my Max is alot more powerful than the Accord.

 

positive feed back here.....

i got a hidden hitch on my max GET IT dont get a draw tite looks like azz with a draw tight you see the whole bar across the back of the car with the hidden hitch all you see is the square recever which is like 1x2 looks really nice with the cover they give you hardly can see it, as for towing i tow my trailer 3x8 plus my 850 lb 500 auto artic cat so probaly about 1000lbs althoughter no problems as of yet even pulling up hill just dont use 5th gear or bye bye trany

Hope that helps

 

I also have a Hidden Hitch(brand name) and I agree that this is the way to go with the Max for esthetic reasons. The only thing is the Hidden Hitch is a deep recessed receiver hitch, so I had to buy an extension to use my bike rack(visible in the first pic).

http://home.cinci.rr.com/thekratzers/Maxima/bikes.jpg
http://home.cinci.rr.com/thekratzers/Maxima/hitch.jpg

 

the second pic would look even better if you have a black car you hardly see it if i get a chance ill snap some pics of mine

 

I agree, the Hidden Hitch looks great. But according to their website, max tongue weight is 100lbs. When I have 2 or 3 bikes, plus the weight of the rack itself (about 60lbs), I will be way over 100lbs. And since there is nothing to distribute the load (ie, trailer axles and wheels), every pound on the rack is added into the tongue weight. I really wanted to go with the HH, but those specs make me nervous. I think it's kind of like the 235/45 tire on our OEM 17s debate. It will probably work, but I don't want to go outside of specs.

I really don't want to make the back of my beautiful Max look bad, but it seems as though the Draw-Tite is the safe bet.

 

got mine installed at U-haul.... something like 125 for the hitch, 30 buck wires, etc.. total it run me like 250 or so... they did a great job doing it... you can hardly see it.... it need pic.. let me know...

 

I believe I have a draw-tite hitch (though I could be mistaken, there is no label on it anywhere) and there is no bar across the back. It is V-shaped and mounts to the front side of the back bumper and the wheel well.

I have a rac'n'lock bike rack with an extension that I made so I can haul three bikes. I didn't have any problems. I am not sure how much the rack weighs (guessing about 50lb) but my bike is 23.5 lbs (alum frame, marzocchi fork, shimano xtr all the way, so its light) my wife's bike is 29 lbs, and the other bike was heavier than hers. So probably about 140 lbs total.

As for towing a trailer, if you have an auto, you probably want a trans cooler. If you have a 5speed, dont worry about it. I would stay under 2000 lbs, and definitely keep the tongue weight under 150 lbs.

I know the max is rated for 1000/100, but that is very conservative (for a standard trans).

 

guess not :/

 

 

the thing is that when I was moving from CA to MI.. I was going to tow a trailer... which is a U-haul trailer... weight about 900 pound... I then start to load about... 600 pound of stuff on it... the back start to sag.. and I am not getting a lot of traction on the front wheel... so I decide to get a truck instead of towing a trailer.... so I think 1000 pound of towinig is about right... don't go over too much

 

I was looking a putting a hitch on my 00 Max for a bike rack. Be very careful, i'm not sure what you got if it is an 1-1/4" than be careful. The U-Haul and Draw-Tite are the same hitch, the under rated 1-1/4" class I hitch will NOT fit a bike rack, the corners are rounded on the inside of the hitch so you can't use a class II tongue in a class I receiver. Don't let them tell you that it will, like I said be careful.

 

The rack I got is specifically designed for a Class 1 hitch. Thanks for the info though, I will take the rack in when I go for the install. I'll test it before they install the hitch to be sure it fits. If it doesn't...no hitch goes on.

 

 

I am not sure of the differences, but they design the bike racks to fit 1 1/4" receivers. The rack I have does fit the hitch I have.

Be warned though: If you leave the plastic cap on, then water that gets in the receiver has no where to go, and the inside WILL rust. Obviously you want the plastic cap on, otherwise the hitch looks pretty horrid on the back view of the car. So what I do before I put the rack in is spray wd40 inside the receiver and spread oil on the part of the rack that goes in. I wont go into detail about how hard it was to get the rack out before I discovered I had to do this...

 

Thanks guys, your posts have been great, I'll be using the hitch to pull my Arctic Cat, and from what I've heard, it sounds pretty good to go...I totally agree though, hidden hitch is the way to go.

 

I had my dealership put one on my 98 Max 5spd. I don't know the brand but it must be close to the hidden hitch style because you can only see the reciever if you look at it when crouching. It doesn't destroy the look at the rear. I'm going to have one put on my wife's 2k2 auto as well. I've towed 1600+ lbs with the 5spd (trailer and 2 motorbikes) with no problem, lots of power easy 140 kph on the highway. A little worse gas mileage of course. I wouldn't think you need a trans cooler for the auto if you stay below 1000 lbs. What do you guys think?