I don't think you should exclude the Curt hitch. Butch has one, and likes it a lot.

 

I also installed the curt and am very happy, as far as the size, 2" for sure. I prevoiusly had the 1-1/4" on another vehicle and useing accesories is a pain, I had to buy an adaptor. Also, if you are installing this yourself, I sugest you put in a trailer wireharness before you install the hitch, way easier to do then otherwise the hitch is in the way. Also, unless you have a hoist, you will need to drop at least the part of the muffler. This is easy to do. I also, I droped the carbon canister too, also easy, after that the hitch slips right in, have freind there to put in the bolts as your bench pressing the hitch in place.

 

have freind there to put in the bolts as your bench pressing the hitch in place.

... unless you are well-fed and/or well-alcoholic beveraged... then your personal spare tire can be used as the "hitch stand" while you put the bolts in... that worked for me.

I chose the 2" receiver because of the more widely available accessories and because the 1-1/4" receiver just looks too small to be useful. Just be sure that if you choose the 2" hitch don't buy the accessories that are 1-1/4" and 2" compatible because then you have to deal with the sleeve (adapter) that makes it work for both.

 

I'm using a CURT Class III hitch with the SWAGMAN XTC Cross Country bike rack (2 bike version) I think the bike rack works quite well with my setup. My only issue is the XTC rack wobbles a bit. No rattle though if you tighten down the bolt though. Also, there's no way of locking the rack to the hitch, you have to take it all apart and store it inside the vehicle if your worried about someone stealing it....good luck

 

I chose the Curt Class III hitch as well. Not so much that I'm towing anything, but because I have a cargo carrier tray with a 500 lbs capacity. The draw-tite hitch has a 350 lbs tongue weight, but the Curt has 400 lbs tongue weight capacity, so I went with that one.

I too went with the 2 inch hitch receiver mainly because most of the items I already own plug into a 2 inch hitch.

 

I went for the Curt because it ended up being cheaper... Love it, though.

As for cargo carrier, Most are rated at 500lbs it seems. I bought mine at Advanced Auto Parts and i think it was a little under $100 ($60-80?). Fold-up ones are more expensive, but after a run-in this weekend with someone's non-folding one (literally, I bumped into it while parallel parking because I couldn't see it from the driver's seat), I have grown to like the folding ones more....

Just stick with something that is rated higher than what you need and looks like it wasn't built in shop class (some that I saw were real cheap and flimsy looking with ugly looking welds).

 

HiddenHitch + THULE

I have a 2" HiddenHitch. In the 8 or 9 months I've had it on, I've found it to be superior to one I purchased from U-Haul for another vehicle. The U-Haul hitch was rusting well within the first year to the point I had to scrape off the rust and hit it with some Rustoleum. The Hidden Hitch is only rusting (minor) where the paint has been chipped away at the receiver opening. This can be easily concealed with a hitch cover.

The bike rack I have is of the Thule Roadway series, one or two generations back from the one that's on their website now.

I've had it for about 3.5 years now and I've been very satisfied with it. The build quality is excellent and has only minor rusting at the point that goes into the hitch, which is to be expected. It has held up well after years of regular use/abuse, including a trip all the way down to the Florida Keys.

When I use the rack, I am usually carrying two bikes on it. While mine can hold up to four bikes, it really takes a good amount of work to actually get three or four to fit nicely side-by-side, and that may include needing to take off a seat on one or two bikes.

You have to also be mindful of the frame type of the bicycles you intend on carrying around. Some non-standard frame types don't sit well on the rack, and you may find there's some you can't carry at all.

 

Langsta:

Thank you for the information!

PipeTobacco

 

just a FYI the 500 lb rating on the cargo carrier includes the rack, also I would not put a 500 lb rack on the back of a patriot the hitch will not handle it or the rear frame rails of the truck Tongue weigh has nothing to do with dead weight on a hitch. Bike racks and cargo carriers are the worst things for hitches, they are trailer hitches not load carrying devices, I would never do more than 2 normal bikes on the back of a patriot. Oh and yes I do trailer hitches for a living I make the Mopar one for the Patriot,

 

Thanks for the info. Good to know. What would you suggest to put on the back of a Patriot to accomplish load carrying if not a trailer hitch? The reason I ask is because I don't plan on towing anything. I only either carry bikes or cargo carriers for my needs, so instead of a trailer hitch, do they make cargo carrier hitches? Just curious. I'm not familiar with anything other than your normal standard trailer hitcher, but if there is something out there that is more appropriate....