Bespoke torque lift front hitch

[powerboatr]

My bespoke front hitch arrived today, 5 days to build and 3 to send across country from wa...
in coming days i will post up more pics, but here is a tease
yes the front deploy-able lower part of air dam has to be removed, but i am confident i can modify it to work after the install with a bit of fabrication for a spacer

i went with them becasue of the great fit for the one they made for my 21 super duty

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[hedge]

I'd be interested to see it mounted. I bought the torklift ecohitch for my superduty but never actually got it installed before I sold the truck.

 

[powerboatr]

I'd be interested to see it mounted. I bought the torklift ecohitch for my superduty but never actually got it installed before I sold the truck.

i did to and it was perfect, it popped out in the middle of the hole in the front bumper

this one, has to go through the upper part of the air dam, because there is not enough room to wiggle a 3" tube between bumper and intercooler. if i had a machine shop i could do it, but without the right tools its to costly to have one made up
so this is a compromise of sorts
the lower air dam that moves has to be removed, but i think from the instructions and pics, i can remove a portion then add back in a support on the lower edge to allow it to work. that may take a few weeks to engineer.
but i have to have a front hitch, my street is narrow and its a pita parking the hauler trailer.

 

[powerboatr]

I'd be interested to see it mounted. I bought the torklift ecohitch for my superduty but never actually got it installed before I sold the truck.

this is how it looked in the superduty
i really wanted one for the 150 to mount to similar spot...

 

[powerboatr]

I NEED HELP
i removed the deployable air dam and the instructions say to remove the upper fixed dam with screws and clips
BUT i will darned if i can see any fasteners in the middle of the air dam to unbolt
i found one at each end and one on both sides just about directly to the inside of the frame .
thanks

 

[powerboatr]

after examining and taking tons of pictures with the mirror
i had decided i will cut the upper dam in place. some genius put bolts/nuts under the fog light and the only way to get to them is.....pull the fog lights or remove the bumper.
so once it stops raining today ,,,,,,,,,,, i will put the frame brackets on and then align the snout tube for the hitch and cut the plastic these brackets are 5/16 powder coated stainless ,, heavy as heck
my math and measurements makes it
look like i may be able to put the lower part back on with not as much modifications, but its still early
didnt rain for squat all summer or fall and now i cant buy a dry day the last 6 weeks

 

[Vin]

...some genius put bolts/nuts under the fog light and the only way to get to them is.....pull the fog lights or remove the bumper.

Yup. The "technicians" that installed my level kit cut the fixed and active air dam prior to fitting the tires THEN realized that they didn't need to trim it at all. So I had to remove the cut air dams and replace them with new ones. The active piece is easy but the fixed air dam has "hidden" fasteners that require tiny tools and/or removal of the fog lights andbumper. Took me the better part of a day to get it done. Not impossible, but not fun either.

 

[powerboatr]

Yup. The "technicians" that installed my level kit cut the fixed and active air dam prior to fitting the tires THEN realized that they didn't need to trim it at all. So I had to remove the cut air dams and replace them with new ones. The active piece is easy but the fixed air dam has "hidden" fasteners that require tiny tools and/or removal of the fog lights andbumper. Took me the better part of a day to get it done. Not impossible, but not fun either.

yup
i am not going to remove the fixed portion, just cut the square hole and move on
it looks like only about an 1.5 inches of fixed dam will need removed and a portion of the plastic thing above it.
i was heading out to work on it, had sun
then BOOM over 20mph gusts and more RAIN like cow peeing on a flat rock
i may have to move stuff in the cave and bring it inside

 

[powerboatr]

WHAT A tight freaking fit and very close tolerance on the 8 bolt holes that mount to the frame brackets
took me about 4 hrs and a few rubber hammer events , plus a jack and some drift pins.
still have to cut those ears off on the lower section,
i guess some engineer thinks i will be backing up at 50 mph so i need chains for the trailer hooked up ?
its going to add a bit of protection to the intercooler area for sure
have some clean up to do . blue sharpie turned red
fishing bolts through frame openings was easy...could have done it blindfolded
the hitch is heavy so having a jack to lift it up and put two bolts in to hold it is a requirement
i have to work some math on the deployable air dam part, its tighter than it first looked.

 

[bfastr]

Looks like they use the safety hook plate for some structure as on the top. But I agree, I dont see much need for them on a front hitch. I would have used an angle grinder to remove them prior to install. but still only a 10 minute job in place.

 

[powerboatr]

Looks like they use the safety hook plate for some structure as on the top. But I agree, I dont see much need for them on a front hitch. I would have used an angle grinder to remove them prior to install. but still only a 10 minute job in place.

i really did not give them much thought . until they poked me in the rib cage when i first lifted it up to gauge a cut out. after that i used a floor jack and bottle jack to tweak it.

didnt loose any ground clearance except the area of the hooks
its heavily built where the tube attaches to the cross bar.
i think my rci skid plates i was going to order may need to some trimming to get in.

 

[Buyer2021]

i am not going to remove the fixed portion, just cut the square hole and move on

looking good!

just curious, is the drawbar-pin hole in front or behind the plastic cut-out (can't tell from the pic)?

 

[powerboatr]

looking good!

just curious, is the drawbar-pin hole in front or behind the plastic cut-out (can't tell from the pic)?

its out in front. easy access
i have to fill the back of tube with a rubber pad to stop air and crap from hitting the engine through the tube

 

[notabot]

Kinda frustrating to see setup, figuring out the tricks/traps and final install took a lot more than 4 hours. I would really like a front hitch on mine but intentionally taking on a DIY install that long is a bit of a big ask. Now that you're closer to done, do you think it would be faster to remove the front bumper?

An aside, I'm not scared of installing stuff. I had to replace the rear bumper on my 2020 F250 and that took me many hours, because there are so many pieces and the assembly order is important to a proper looking final product. Just figuring out the proper method of removing and installing the bumper mounted sensors was time consuming. I've also split the engine cases on brand new motorcycles to install speedy bits and I've drilled BIG holes in the hulls of very new boats.

 

[powerboatr]

Kinda frustrating to see setup, figuring out the tricks/traps and final install took a lot more than 4 hours. I would really like a front hitch on mine but intentionally taking on a DIY install that long is a bit of a big ask. Now that you're closer to done, do you think it would be faster to remove the front bumper?

An aside, I'm not scared of installing stuff. I had to replace the rear bumper on my 2020 F250 and that took me many hours, because there are so many pieces and the assembly order is important to a proper looking final product. Just figuring out the proper method of removing and installing the bumper mounted sensors was time consuming. I've also split the engine cases on brand new motorcycles to install speedy bits and I've drilled BIG holes in the hulls of very new boats.

removing the bumper would have had zero impact on ease or speed of install IMO
i took 4hrs because i am not exactly a spring chicken and many of my parts dont like laying on a blanket on cold concrete . basically did it with 1 and 1/2 arms.
ten years ago, i could have put it on in half that time

once i got the bolts fished through the frame , i MAN handled the hitch up to fit against the frame, by laying it on my chest and then pressing it into place, to make sure i was centered so i knew exactly what to cut out of the upper air dam
once it was cut, i used the floor jack to lift and move in place
the directions said i had to remove the upper air dam and cut portions of the lower fascia
i did not need to do that.
a simple math equation and measurements put me exactly what needed to be cut out. the fascia only needed about 1/2 inch of a cut to allow it fold upwards about 3/8 inch
the side brackets are cut to be EXACT within about .032 of inch so its a tight fit and took a bit of adjusting to get the holes to align
i also used some super adhesive to glue 2 1/2 inch thick pieces of hard rubber to the hitch tube , just behind the cut out edges of the air dam so the dam stays in shape and not fold back under wind load.

i thought i could re install the moveable portion of the air dam, but after many measurements and drawings, i decided it can not go back on without severely weakening the lower dam, and or having to install bracing on its back side, which would negate parts of its ability to flex if stuff hit it
so tomorrow i will remove the actuators and cap the connections for elect. not sure if will set light, or not. if it does i guess i will figure out of forscan or a dummy plug will fix the light


i may put my license plate in a position that hides the hitch and hinges up when i need to use the hitch for aesthetics .

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