Eckharts Trailer Hitch & Welding

Jerry knows all about hitches and does not hesitate to guide you in the right direction if you waffle. Initially I was unsure about this but I went along and was not disappointed. He had given me a reasonable quote over the phone and stuck to that. Taxes extra. He offered and I accepted a $ 19 lifetime warranty on accidental damage to the hitch I got on my Toyota Highlander 2008, which covers any damage to hitch as a result of rear-​ending or say, backing into a wall.
They weld the hitch under your car instead of bolting it.
He and his helper are very quick and efficient. I was out of there in less than an hour.
I will go back to them for any future hitch I get.

On the morning of my daughter’s big move, we got to Uhaul Trailer and the right blinkers weren’t working on the trailer. They suggested we go to Eckhart’s to have them look at it. Being on a tight schedule, we were concerned this was going to delay the move. When we got to Eckhart’s, the owner personally helped us out and quickly fixed the problem. We were back on our way in no time. Plus, the owner was very hunorous and made our time there very pleasant. We highly recommend you go there.

Yesterday I had a 2″ receiver installed on my Honda Accord so I can carry my mountain bike on a hitch-​mount bike carrier rather than a trunk-​mount bike carrier (which scratched the paint of the trunk lid & bumper of my car).
The guys at Eckharts in T.O. did a good job explaining everything & even took the time to put my new bike rack together & show me how to operate it. Jerry said it was his «helpful Honda moment».
Thanks for going the extra mile guys, as I had no one else to help me with this. Now I can take my bike with me to the Trinity Alps in nor-​Cal next week for some fun and relaxation!

I have been using Eckharts welding for years and it seems that every passing year their customer service gets worse, moreover the owner, not the employees.
After getting my «basic «lights working, not my running lights or my backup lights. They charged me the full amount. Then the lights only worked intermittently when I got home.
They wanted to charge me $ 65.00 for a part they had in stock, I found it at Pep Boys for $ 16.00.

In my experience, U-​Haul does a better job of installing a hitch for a bike rack. Eckhart set the hitch too far back on the car, and machined the bolt holes near the outer end of the hitch where the bike rack barely goes in, instead of deeper into the hitch where the bike rack would be able to be pushed all the way in. The result is that the bike rack sticks way out behind the car, much further than it did when U-​Haul did the job on my previous car and much more than necessary. I asked Eckhart to cut new bolt holes further in on the hitch to accommodate pushing the bike rack all the way in, which is unfortunately only an inch further, but it’d be better than how far it sticks out now. He refused to do it just to save an inch. I’ll go back to U-​Haul for future cars and make my life easier when parallel parking, and to spare myself the odd look of the rack seeming to be suspended in mid-​air.

Update: trouble shooting some bike rack woes. Was expecting to need some welding. The manager worked out a solution that involved zero money for his business, with a smile on his face. That’s good business

I purchased a bolt-​on trailer hitch for my Subaru Crosstrek from an online retailer, but the shipment was missing some key hardware. I was in a pinch and needed two spacers immediately. The guys down at Eckharts often replace bolt-​on trailer hitches with welded applications. Therefore, they had some spare hardware from bolt-​on hitches that they gave to me free of charge. I should have avoided the online retailer and went with Eckharts in the first place.

I’ve been into riding bicycles my entire life. I have managed bike shops and have done a lot of other things in my life and there is no other substitute for quality and reliability. Eckharts has been around a long long time and there is a reason. Quality, friendly knowledgeable staff and a local business.
Uhaul does hitches but there is NO comparison. I would not trust anyone else especially hauling something from a bike to a boat. Just ask any bike, motorcycle, or boat shop who does great work. Jerry is the manager and just a great guy from the moment you walk in.
Highly recommend!!! Thanks guys for the recent hitch– Danny

I’ve seen this store on T.O. Blvd since I was a kid. I finally needed their services for my 2013 Highlander. Smoothest transaction ever. These guys know their stuff. They went over all the options in depth until we landed on the hitch I needed.
Thanks!

Two stories here:
Today I had a tow hitch put on my Prius. Yes, I said Prius. Those little cars that a lot of people like to joke about. It can’t tow much but I don’t need much capacity.
Jerry knew how to do it for my car. Fast and a little pricey but what isn’t today.
The second story is I have an 87 El Camino. They put a hitch on it about 15 years ago. We had a problem and Jerry said it was how the alarm company patched into my electrical system. I didn’t feel that was the case. As it turns out, he was correct.
These guys are iron workers so don’t expect hugs and kisses.
I would recommend This location.

Perfect experience. Master class work. Down to earth Jerry Pickle at the helm.

We have a 2011 GMC Yukon XL with a hitch rated at 5000lbs, 500lbs max tongue weight. GMC states that we can tow up to 7900 lbs with a weight distributing hitch, and we needed close to this rating. I’d tried this before without a weight distributing hitch on a 2004 GMC Yukon XL with self-​leveling and it toasted the airshocks after 3 years. Jerry recommended an EAZ lift for our car and also outfitted the trailer with a surge-​roller system so the surge brakes on the trailer would still function perfectly after transferring the weight to front of car, as well as corrected braking issues with the trailer. Eckhart’s crew did a great job, was very patient during my research, and I have a much safer setup than before. Measurements I took *before* GMC’s auto-​leveling shocks kicked in:
Stock: Front Fender = 35″ off ground, Rear Fender = 37″ off ground
Stock with boat: Front Fender = 36″ off ground, Rear Fender = 35″ off ground
Stock with EAZ: Front Fender = 35″ off ground, Rear Fender = 36.25″ off ground
Sway is gone, level is perfect, trailer stops very quickly, and reverse brake-​lock problem is 100% fixed. Thanks guys.

Eckhart’s is great. If you own a car, this is the only place you can go in Thousand Oaks to get a hitch welded to your frame. You can go to Uhaul but they will install a super-​ugly 1 ¼th inch hitch and not a 2″.
These guys are straight shooters and do, as far as I can tell, great work. Maybe it’s not perfect, but you don’t technically need to weld the hitch to the frame – U-​haul just bolts it.
Anyway, I’m happy. My hitch is low-​profile too.

Had a trailer hitch installed on my Windstar here. Jerry Pirkle helped me in an efficient and courteous manner. They had the hitch installed on my van fairly quickly. It’s a clean install, and nicely tucked under the bumper (so you only see the hitch peeking below the bumper, unlike the unsightly U-​Haul hitches). They welded the hitch directly to the frame. Welds are kinda ugly looking, but they seem to work well.