DIY 958 (Aftermarket) Trailer Hitch Receiver Installation
 

For those who purchase a 958 without the tow package, and would like to add the ability to tow or throw miscellaneous attachments on, fear not! It's easy to do! (Additional Bike carrier thoughts at the end)

No drilling or welding required.

I ordered a Draw-Tite hitch receiver from etrailer.com. They also offer a Curt, both at pretty good prices so far as I could tell, and both install the same way. Also, I cheated and screenshot some of the photos from an installation video I found on YouTube (will link it in the bottom)

What you will need:
- 958 Cayenne (duh)
- Hitch Receiver of your chosing (also, duh)
- T25 Torx bit (I used a T20 & T27 on mine, as my T25 went missing)
- 18mm socket, 1/2" ratchet, 4"-ish extension, and a jack handle for leverage couldn't hurt
- An extra set of hands can prove VERY useful in this. Highly recommended.

What To Do:

1. Remove your outboard tail lights by pressing in on the side of the black cover thingy towards the front of the car. Undo two screws holding them in, unclip the wiring and set them somewhere safe.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...260762a23c.png

2. There's 4 screws on the bottom of the middle panel. Remove those.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...88d762b27a.jpg

3. Remove two screws (per side) from under & inside the bumper cover.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...dfe4096296.png

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...22fe1144ca.png

4. Remove two screws (per side) securing the wheel well liner.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...6e085fa71b.png

5. Carefully pop the wheel arch trim outwards (only need to do about halfway around) and remove the 3 screws (per side) holding the bumper on.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...50bedcddee.png

6. Remove one screw (per side) in that black bulbous bit inside the hatch opening, with the black bulbous bit.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...497b58274d.png

7. Remove the bumper by pulling the sides by the rear wheel well outwards on both sides and bringing the whole things straight back. This is part A where it will be helpful to have a second set of hands. (Watching the video will be more helpful than photos if needed) If you have the parking sensors, those connect with one harness clip similar to the tail lamp wiring connection at the driver's side of the car. The joint of the two attaches inside the bumper and pops out pretty easily.

8. Remove the 4 18mm bolts (per side) and remove the bumper bar.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...b117544e9a.jpg

9. Replace with hitch receiver of your choice. This is where it will be VERY helpful to have a second set of hands, and tighten down the 4 bolts per side.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...dd4d50e33a.jpg

10. Installation is reverse of removal. At no point did I come across any hiccups, or can think of any tricks aside from having multiple little containers to hold the screws nearby where they came out, and pushing forward on the bumper cover while tightening the 3 screws that hold it on. All said and done this took me about an hour and a half working at a leisurely pace.

11. Sit back and be proud of your handiwork. Consider purchasing a boat for a little bit, then remember that you own a premium German SUV, and that will likely cost you as much as operating costs of a boat. Think of all the practical things you can do, but probably won't, then throw a bike rack on it (and a bike) and go hit your favorite trails, knowing that you won't be making a filthy mess of your interior, or trashing panels with tire marks ever again.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...726c872258.jpg

Curt Hitch Install Video:
For those who may be interested, I picked up a Kuat Sherpa 2.0 rack to carry my bike. This was the main reason for the hitch install. I went with this because I decided I wanted a platform-type carrier, rather than a hanging type. The Sherpa is one of the lighter ones of it's type out there, at only 31lbs, making it VERY easy to remove and install. It's also small enough when folded up to fit in the trunk, should you ever want to for whatever reason. The easy of use, and the fact that I can tilt it backwards to be able to access my trunk with the bike on were pretty big factors in my choice. I also think it's one of the most aesthetically pleasing bike carriers on the market.


https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...042163ff4e.jpg

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...2e57b880ec.jpg

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...8d49cdb7a1.jpg

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...19414d051a.jpg

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...a29e3206ee.jpg

VERY nicely done. It's been copied to the Cayenne DIY forum: https://rennlist.com/forums/cayenne-...tallation.html

Thanks for a great DIY with great photos!

Awesome, thank you! We can thank the YouTube video for half the photos, haha. It was either use my photos, add the arrows and such and be using pics of a car with almost 100k worth of filth, or screenshots with arrows already in with a clean car.

Well done, did you or are you going to install the wiring as well?

Nice job! Fun working on your buggy, isn't it?

Trailer hitch was the first "mod" I did to my Cayenne. Followed the YouTube vids from Curt and it went well. IIRC, they recommended a torque wrench for the bolts from hitch to chassis--can't remember exact settings. I thought about installing wiring but my objective was the same as yours--attachment point for bike rack. Since then, I've done minor stuff like transfer case fluid change, engine and cabin air filters, spark plugs, etc. Like that Porsche makes it "relatively" easy to work on vehicle, in contrast to the Mercedes I had before this that I couldn't even change the air filters myself.

My only glitch when doing install was that my exhaust tips are painted flat black and the paint was pretty flimsy. When I took the bumper cover off, some of the paint rubbed off and there were bare metal spots that were pretty obvious (as you say, a second pair of hands would've been nice). After poking around various forums, I found out it wasn't that big a deal to remove exhaust tips and PlastiDip them. Big aesthetic improvement. Initially a little worried that PlastiDip might not stand up to exhaust temps and wear but after about a year, they're doing well.

Note that the factory hitch CAN be retrofitted (albeit substantially more expensive.)

Advantage of the factory system is that you get an extra module (computer) which does alter, at the very least, shift points when a trailer is connected. I know on my old GMC (and pretty much every full-size pickup I've ever driven) they include a "Tow/Haul" mode which updates the shift program - usually bumping line pressures, changing shift points, firmer shifts, less shift busy-ness, etc. Keeps the vehicle from lugging, tearing up the taller gears, hunting around for the right gear, etc. I assume that's likely what happens in the CD when you connect a trailer automatically (no need for a T/H button).

Personally, my opinion, if I planned to actually TOW, I would only go with a factory retrofit. For bicycle racks (like the OP here) I'm sure it's fine.

Lord help the guy that has to foot the bill for a new 8sp transmission because it got burned up pulling a trailer.

Thank you. I plan to eventually. Right now, any actual towing isn't in the foreseeable future, so it can be a backburner project when I get around to it. If nobody else does by then I'll be sure to post a DIY on that.

They're definitely not terrible to work on, though I have yet to dig into the engine bay.

As far as torque spec, I don't know either. This not being mechanically critical, or something likely to back out I didn't deem it as required, and tightened to about where the factory bolts were. (The last time I trusted a torque wrench over my "precision-calibrated" arm, it ended rather poorly for me. I also had the wrench set wrong, like a dummy. )

For the factory receiver bar alone, without any wiring or modules being about 10x more (from what I saw, at least) than this receiver, and how little (if ever) I'll do any heavy towing with this, I didn't consider the cost as worth it.

As far as towing without the module, if I just add wiring for lights and I'm ever doing any heavy towing I can just keep it in manual-shift mode to keep the transmission from over-shifting and cooking itself.

Installed the factory hitch last week on my 2015. Actually was a pretty easy job. Took 2 hour with a helper. 79 dollars at porsche to code the module. Towed the snowmobile trailer home friday, everything worked as it should. On a side note porsche quoted me 1500 dollars for the install and said it would take all day. I will do it for you for 500!


https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...cc0ea93e56.png

Nice write up! Does anyone have the part # and good source for the wiring & module? My CS came with a (aftermarket) hitch, but no wiring.

Thank you! This I would also like to know, as I only have the hitch right now haha.

This is the module with part number shown tonise. You should be able to use the same wiring harness as the T1 touaregs. I’ll know soon when I pull mine from my treg to swap it over to my 958 I just picked up.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...a5b5d0f7b1.png

I was planning on adding a CURT Trailer Hitch this weekend, then do the electrical down the road. For now and the foreseeable future, I just need it for bikes and small-ish tow basket.

However, the Trailer Hitch showed up today looking like this:
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...e59cb7b949.jpg

Am I just being a perfectionist and wondering why Curt would ship the trailer hitch virtually unpackaged?

I understand that almost all of those scratches/damage will be hidden behind the bumper, but is this acceptable?

That is admittedly pretty banged up, but structurally OK. Perhaps they can compensate you a little bit with a partial refund. I'd then sand down the rough spots and apply some undercoating spray to it, and move on - it'll be fine.

I wouldn't install that. That's a rust party invitation.