Installing the etrailer Trailer Hitch Receiver on a 2025 Subaru Forester

Click for more info and reviews of this etrailer Trailer Hitch:
https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitc...
Check out some similar Trailer Hitch options:
https://www.etrailer.com/fitguide.htm

Search for other popular Subaru Forester parts and accessories:
https://www.etrailer.com/vehicle/2025...

https://www.etrailer.com
Don’t forget to subscribe!
   / etrailertv  

Full transcript: https://www.etrailer.com/tv-install-e...
Hi, this is Scott with etrailer. Today we're taking a look at and installing our etrailer Class III Hitch for 2025 Subaru Forester. Our etrailer hitch we have on our Subaru today is gonna have a flat black powder coat finish, and this finish is gonna hold up really well to scratches, any kind of chips you get in it. It's also gonna help protect from corrosion. And this is a really nice coating, and I really like the way this one looks, the way it matches up with the color of our rear bumper on the back of our Subaru. This hitch is gonna be more of the visible cross tube style.

So you are gonna see some of the cross tube, but the nice thing about this one is it is tucked up in, so you're not gonna really see it all the time unless you're from really far back. Another thing I like about this one is your receiver portion doesn't stick out really far. So when you walk by the back of your bumper, you're not gonna be hitting your shin or your knee on the back of your receiver, because it's tucked up underneath a little bit. This hitch is gonna have your five eight pin opening, so that's gonna accommodate putting on any of your accessories and holding those in place. This hitch will not come with a pin, so you may want to pick one up while you're here shopping at etrailer, or a lot of your accessories may come with a pin, so keep that in mind.

Another nice option for these are the locking pins that go to these. That way, say you're out on the bike trail and you have your bike rack on the back while you're down the trail, you can have your accessory locked on with that lock so nobody can take it off while you're gone. It's also gonna have our welded on safety chain loops, and that will accommodate either your S style hook or your clevis style hook. So either one of those will be set up good for your trailer pulling. As far as measurements go, from the center of the pin hole out to the edge of the bumper, we're looking at right around three and a quarter inches.

And with that measurement, that's gonna help you figure out if any of your accessories that fold up will make any contact with the back of your vehicle. Now from the top of our tube to the ground, we're looking at 14 and a half inches. And with that number, that number's gonna help you figure out if you need any rise of the shank of say your bike carriers or any of your cargo carriers, so you don't make any contract with the ground so they'll help you figure out your clearance. As far as our weights, we're gonna have a tongue weight rating of 525 pounds. And that's going to be the weight of your bike carrier and all your bikes on the back, or say your cargo carrier and everything that you have on that.

As far as a gross trailer weight rating, we're gonna have a tow rating of 3,500 pounds, and that is gonna be the weight of your trailer and everything you have on that. Now keep in mind you do want to take a look at your owner's manual, and stay on the lowest number between the two. As far as installation goes, it's pretty straightforward. You are gonna have to trim a little bit of your heat shield underneath. Other than that, it pretty much just bolts on. If it's something you really don't have time to do yourself, you could take a look at our dealer locator and have something set up where you get it installed locally for you. Or if you feel like installing it yourself, stick around, watch our video and we'll help you get it installed. To start our installation, we're gonna need to get our exhaust to dropped down a little bit. So we got a cam bugle strap hung up here, so that's gonna hold our exhaust when we remove our three isolators. We're gonna have an isolator here on the back of our exhaust, another one hidden up in here on the side, and then the one right over here. So what I did is just get a little soapy water, a little dish soap and some water, and just spray your isolators. Get 'em all sprayed. Now to remove your isolators, you can either do it by hand if they feel like they're gonna come off easy enough for you. Or you can use a crowbar. You could use a large screwdriver or even a isolator removal pliers. But what I'm gonna do is just pry 'em off. I got that one off of there. I'll get the one on the side. Sometimes these can be a little tricky to get at, but just work with them and you'