TucsonJim has installed a front hitch recently, he should be along shortly.

Brian

I installed a front hitch on my '17 Ford F-350 DRW in 2019.

The hitch I installed is a DrawTight 65076 https://www.draw-tite.com/product/65...mount-receiver




Some notes from the install:

Step 1 in the instructions says to trim or remove the lower air dam. I removed mine as I didn't want to cut a hole and then find out the measurements in the directions were wrong or I misinterpreted something. I cut the hole in the air dam last, slowly making the hole bigger until it just fit. As is mentioned in multiple reviews on etrailer, Draw-Tite should provide a overlay to finish off the look.

Step 3--I didn't have the skid plates (I think it is part of the FX4 option) so I skipped loosening the outside nuts. I had to install spacers (red # 1 in my picture) since the skid plates were not there.

Step 5--this is red # 2 (bolt and washer+nut) in my picture. Easy enough to install per the instructions.

Step 6--don't do it! Skip to step 7 and install the hitch using the two bolts installed in step 5. Hand tighten the nuts.

Again, if you have the skid plate, you don't need the (smaller) spacer (red # 1 in the picture). I had to install them. What I ended up doing is lining up the spacer between the truck and hitch while feeding the curled end of the fish wire through the hitch, then spacer, then into the truck frame (red # 3 in my pic). I was then able to grab the curled end of the fish wire after feeding it underneath the frame of the truck and then attached a bolt and (larger) spacer to the fish wire.

If that's hard to visualize, think of fishing the curled end of the fish wire from left to right while looking at the picture above through the referenced (red # 3 ) holes.

I could then pull the bolt back through the frame, spacer, and finally the hitch so I could attach the washer and nut. Hand tighten the hardware. Repeat for the second hole, then repeat on the other side of the hitch.

Finish installation by doing steps 8, 9 & 10. (I couldn't fit a torque wrench in the space, so I just gorilla'd the nuts until they were tight.)




Note that with bikes installed they will interfere with the Adaptive Cruise (ACC) if it’s on a feature on your truck.

The bike rack I used with this hitch is a Swagman XC2 bike rack. It folds vertically resulting in a narrow profile. Worked great when I had standard bikes. (Doesn’t work now that the DW has a heavy e-bike.) With the Swagman in the configuration shown below it the ACC worked without a problem.

​






Howard

I did just install one on my 2016 F350, but it will not fit your 2020 F250. An equivalent hitch is Curt 31008 which should go through the plastic dam like mine did. The rating is 5,000 pounds with 500 pound tongue weight. Mine mounted very similar to how Howard's came out.

I use it to carry Ginnie's 60# E bike and my 25# gravel bike.

Jim

I did the Curt front receiver on my 2017 Tahoe and it worked great. It is a bit low and I had to notch out the plastic but ala in all it was a good choice.

​Here it is...

I do not want to be a downer but be sure to monitor your temperatures.....coolant, engine oil and trans temp to build confidence when obstructing airflow to the grill area. AC operation too. Vehicles are SAE certified for towing (Davis Dam and other hot grades) where no such items are attached to the truck when performing these tests.

Jim

Thanks to all for the great info!

Here is a nice alternative which keeps bike on the tongue with far less violence than having bikes on the back of the Imagine and allows optimum cooling to your TV.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/13442548434...f94f886c5a6d54

Jim

I completely agree here and would never put anything in front of my grill on the new diesel. If you are working the truck hard and needing all the airflow that was designed into the engine/trans cooling...this will make a difference. The new diesels have bumped up the power numbers and also the cooling capacities in order to support those numbers. I don't know about the Fords and Dodges, but the GM trucks have added RAM air and much larger engine driven cooling fans for this needed capacity. I would hate to restrict and limit those changes by blocking the front air intake(s). Just something to consider......there are allot of components that are receiving mass amounts of air through the grille and hood intakes.

Mark Ellis

I should have added a bit of context along with the front hitch setup I showed earlier as COReflection has a valid point.

The only time I use the front bike rack is for short trips from the campground to a bike trail. I do not use the front rack when towing. When towing the bikes are on the rear of the camper on a different (RV approved) bike rack. The reason I have the front setup is so I can quickly load up the bikes and go have fun without reconfiguring the bike rack from the camper to the truck.

Also (and I could be mistaken) but I think there are some jurisdictions where the police will have a chat with anyone with a setup on the front of their truck.

howson and Mark Ellis

I mounted my receiver on the front of the truck and I plan on towing with it in that location for our summer travels. I haul the bikes that way three days a week right now. I'll monitor the temps while towing and see if it impedes the airflow. If so, I'll move the rack to the back of the RV until I can come up with another plan. So far, I've driven by several city police and county sheriffs with no questions asked. We'll see how it goes in different states and Canada this year.

Jim

Also check with you local and state laws, as some states have a big issue with blocking turn signals and headlights. Sometimes forgiveness does not work. As you have a TT I would look at and RV rated front (tung) or rear mount (not bumper but receiver type). I say RV rates as most on the market are not. Do a search on bike rack mounts - lots of good information.
Hoping to help
Keith