Hi, any ideas were to find a trailer hitch for my 1963 Country Squire ? Are there any kits available from suppliers maybe , or is there a chance to mount a universal kit available on the market ? Any sources known ? Thanks , Andy
For something that old, you're not going to find any ready-made kits available. You best bet is to go direct to a welding / hitch shop where they will make one up from scratch.
Hm, my problem is - my car is sitting in GERMANY, waiting for my return from Maine/USA...and in Germany I guess, there are no companies that I know, who would be capable to weld and certify a trailer hitch ...if one would weld a hitch by itself, there is quite a lot of examinations and paperwork to do to get a certification by German Vehicle Examination Departments. So my idea was to maybe be able to find a kit , maybe NOS , of dealer installed hitches that I just could attach to my car . That would be easy to accept by the Motor Vehicle Examiner...
The first question is what class of hitch you are looking for. Class I can be bumper mounted on those ancient Fords. The bumper mounting brackets are good and strong. Class II and Class III need to be mounted directly to the frame rails. The first step is to find out the distance between the outside of the frame rails. Hidden Hitch, Draw Tite and E-Z Lift all had no drill Class III hitches for all the different Fords. The length of the cross bar varies, so you need to find one with the correct length. The flanges that go up the outside of the frame rails may need modification so that the holes line up with the bumper mount bolts. With the U.S. DOT cert, there shouldn't be too much trouble certifying the hitch. Check with U-Haul, too. I know that their warehouse in Arkansas has ONE Class III left for the 79 midsize Ford and Mercury frame, and it was based on the 65 Ford full size frame. If the frame ends are widely spaced, check the hitch for the 92 and up Crown Vics. Just do NOT use a Reese. They mount to the bottom of the frame rails, which means drilling holes. Plus, should you get rear ended, your frame is toast. That happened to my 89 Grand Marquis, a one of one 351W/tow package car.
Mike's right, Andy. I used a Reese hitch on my 1979 Fairmont wagon. The guys welded and bolted it to the outside of my frame rails (unibody) and here's what it looks like. I've hauled my utility trailer with almost 3,500 lbs of sand and gravel, as well as all our small household stuff from Mexico to Canada with it. Never failed. Hitch: Trailer: I've got variable rate rear coil heavy duty springs (800 lbs)
This is Reese Hitch's site. If you look at the top header, you'll see all the brands that they make: http://www.reeseprod.com/content/default.aspx The 'Product' menu and the Fit menu might help. Mid-size Fords and Mercuries, including Thunderbirds and Cougars, Baby LTDs from 1978 to 1987 all shared the same frame widths. The Rangers and Bronco trucks might have similar frame widths. This site might have frame specs for yours: http://www.lovefords.com/ This is the Ranger site, with all kinds of tech information and links: http://www.therangerstation.com/
The 78 and 79 Mid-sized model had the same frame as the 2 72 and up. It was 80 that they moved to the Fox platform and unibody. I'm sitting in a 79 right this second. The frame rail width is likely closer in this than the Fox bodies. If it turns out the same, check with U-Haul. As of February this year, they did have one Class III/IV, no drill, hitch in stock, in Arkansas, for the mid-sized Fords. It could likely be modified to fit the 63.
Thanks to all !! With the BIG HELP of a friend from Mansfield, I now have a Bumper Mounted Hitch , there is stamped on Valley / Towrite / LODICAL / 526 Does anybody have documents, installation instruction sheet, data from this type of hitch ? My german motor vehicle inspector asked for any kind of documentation before I will be allowed to install it to my 63 Country Squire ....is it a Class I with max weight of 2000 lbs ??? It looks like the one on the picture below... Thanks Andy
Here's the Valley Hitch website: http://valleytrailerhitch.com/ Do you know what vehicle it came from? I bought one just like that from a Mexican Reese Hitch dealer back in 1999, but I sold it, still in the box, to one of our members here, a few years ago. Its no longer listed on the Reese website anyway. If you know which vehicle it came from, you can download the instructions from the Valley website. The closest one I found is the Mercury Lynx or Ford Escort hitches. This SouthWest site comes from the Valley website page above: http://www.southwestwheel.com/store/c-379-ford-escort.aspx The Instruction sheet is in blue text - right-click and Save As... 58700.pdf Here's a bit more detail about it: http://www.southwestwheel.com/store/p-3538-va58700.aspx
