I bought a hitch on from a dude on craigslist for my 2004 Forester XS. I installed it and it technically fits, but the receiver is only like a millimeter below the aluminum bumper beam and is like 90% covered by the bumper plastic. Plus the hangers on the muffler (I guess the steel rod thingys that go into the rubber hangers, really) rub the hitch a little bit.

 

Is this tight of a fitment normal?

 

I'm thinking I might be able to flex the bumper cover up and actually tuck it in between the receiver and the bumper beam, but if not I'll have to cut it. Seems like every hitch install I've seen on these Foresters does not require cutting. Maybe I got a wrong(ish) hitch? If that's the case, I'm actually glad because this gives me absolute max ground clearance at the hitch.

 

Thoughts?

jmoss5723,

 

No, that kind of a close fit is not normal. But if you can work around it with the bumper cover and the tailpipe donut rods, why bother changing it for the correct unit.

 

As long as it is firmly and securely attached to the car, and you don't overload it, you should be good to go.