Potential Disaster

[dwco5051]

Getting ready to haul some equipment next week and was getting ready to switch to my 2 5/16 hitch and gave the receiver a quick look over while I was down there. Saw a real ugly looking bunch of rust and pushed on it with my thumb and ended up with this. New hitch should be here tomorrow and should be installed before dark now the old one is off and all the crud and rust has fallen in my hair and down my shirt.

 

[MTboatguy]

Do you live close to the coast, all the years I have been around hitches I have never seen one rot out like that!

 

[Scott Danforth]

looks like a hitch that has seen plenty of salt in winters.... my guess mid-west, or somewhere in the rust belt

 

[dwco5051]

17 Winters in the hills of North Central Pennsylvania.

 

[dingbat]

17 Winters in the hills of North Central Pennsylvania.

That would explain it....

 

[wahlejim]

Did you do snow removal too? hitch mounted salt spreader would do that in no time.

 

[Scott Danforth]

pick up some boeshield T9 and hose the new one down once a year and you wont have that problem anymore.

 

[gtochris]

Looks like your typical early/ mid '00's GM Full size truck/ suv hitch. They were known for failure and bending.
Check out your frame also, if your hitch rusted that bad, your frame might not be far behind.

 

[dwco5051]

Checked that out before I ordered the new hitch. Everything was still solid. All the bolts came out easy and the four weld nuts even were solid. I dropped the old hitch before I started any thing else. Even dropped the spare and the hoist worked perfect but the under side of the wheel was a bit rusty so a few minutes of wire brushing and some spray paint and it looked like new (almost). If this one lasts as long as the old one I will be almost a hundred years old when it needs replaced and may have to pay someone to do the job.