Educate me on trailer hitches

Ok, I've been towing for more years than I'd like to admit and almost always I've installed a class IV hitch on the tow vehicle.

I had to do a quick, lightweight, tow a few weeks ago with the Tahoe so I just mounted a bumper ball to it since I hadnt ordered a hitch yet.

I went online to look for a class IV for the Tahoe in preparation for our trip to get the Wartburg and its ratings are exacly the same as the bumper ratings on the Tahoe (5000 load/500 tounge)

So is there any reason a Class IV is better than the bumper in this instance?

Now I'm not trying to be a cheapskate and I have no problem adding the hitch, I've always done it in the past, just trying to figure out what Im gaining here.

I'm no expert, but have done a bit of towing. I just like a solid hitch mounted to a frame for towing a load. But, I do two a small camping trailer on a bumper hitch (<1,000 lbs). That's mainly because I had trouble finding the proper hitch for my Nissan truck.

i dunno, but have you been to etrailer.com yet? omg sweet.

spitfirebill wrote: I'm no expert, but have done a bit of towing. I just like a solid hitch mounted to a frame for towing a load.

But the bumper is solidly mounted to the frame, more solidly than most hitches I've seen to be honest.

I'm still going with the hitch, I just find it all to be a curiosity now :)

Not all truck bumpers have a hitch rating, but the bumper mounts straight to the frame, just like a hitch, so I'd assume that if the bumper is rated as a hitch, it is double function.

I think that the adjustable hight with a hitch would be better than hooking up to a relativly fixed bumper hight.

The main advantage is the removable insert provided by a hitch. This allows you to plug in a ball, cycle rack, cargo box, etc. You can also lower or raise the ball height with accessories.

If the bumper height matches your trailer and it is rated, then it is fine.

If you pull anything relatively heavy without trailer brakes, you are going to lift the rear of the Tahoe enough to make its brakes ineffective and jackknife prone. Trailer tongue should be near level, and if I remember correctly the Tahoe bumper is pretty high off the ground.

If it doesn't have the 2" square mount you loose the flexibility to use height adjustable hitches, ride levelers etc, of that isn't important it appears the max weight is the same.

to get the adjustability of drop ball mounts you could get the receiver that bolts to the step bumper since your bumper is rated the same as most hitches.

the only thing i see is the bumper mount puts the weight out farther back by a foot or more than a regular frame mounted hitch since the frame mount hitch mounts closer to the front of the vehicle than the bumper hanging straight off the back of the frame.

scottgib wrote: if I remember correctly the Tahoe bumper is pretty high off the ground.

Normally that would be the case but this is a Z56 2wd (police package) so it sits lower than the average Tahoe.

I ordered a hitch anyway. Patgizz makes a good point about moving the weight out to the rear more by using the bumper. The flexibility options are nice too.

Most bumpers are not strong enough for any heavy towing no matter how well it is mounted. I've seen some horrible examples with the bumper twisted all out of shape. Go with the hitch, trailer towing is what it is designed for.

If its small, like a single axle snowmobile trailer, I'd have no problem using a bumper hitch. But, otherwise, I'd go class IV. Blame that bias on towing manly things, like Bobcats.

If you go with a class 4 the biggest advantage is the adjustable ball height that allows you to set the trailer level. Also, depending on the weight of the trailer if you go to a set up with spring bars, it will help a whole lot with the steering feel. You also add the option to add sway control if you find you need it.

JThw8 wrote: So is there any reason a Class IV is better than the bumper in this instance?

Maybe not. It does depend on the bumper. Some are extremely robust, others...

Biggest thing I get that I like with a receiver hitch is a usefull square hole. I can drop the hitch itself up and down, and stick racks and bike carriers and other silly things in that hole.

iceracer wrote: Most bumpers are not strong enough for any heavy towing no matter how well it is mounted. I've seen some horrible examples with the bumper twisted all out of shape. Go with the hitch, trailer towing is what it is designed for.

In the owner's manual and on the bumper of my '96 Ford it says "Class IV"

I hauled a 18' tandem axle and many other trailers with it and no problems at all.

That square receiver is a very handy thing to have. Lots of stuff that isn' a trailer hitch can be mounted there as well.

A vice on a hitch tube is very handy to have in your race hauler.

Shawn

JThw8 wrote: So is there any reason a Class IV is better than the bumper in this instance?

I had the same thought a while ago. While hooking up my tow dolly one day my nose was inches away from the bumper of my Tacoma. My eyes focused and printed right there next to the hole for a tow ball were the specs. They were identical to the specs on the Class III tow hitch already mounted on my truck.

I would have to guess that the bumper mount has to be as robust as the specs written on the bumper, or the safety nazi lawyers would have a fit...

Shawn, what kind of truck ('96 Ford what??) I'm curious because that's a pretty darned beefy bumper if it's class IV. Generally most bumpers are only rated for around 1500lbs and 200-300 tongue weight - good enough for a small utility trailer.

Class III hitches are good for 5000lbs and 500lbs of tongue weight.

Class IV is good for 10000lbs and 1000lbs of tongue weight.

Yep. Now to get a full Class IV rating you need also to have a truck that can handle the 1000lbs tongue weight and 10000 towing limit. Most 1/2 tons or SUV's cant handle that much. So you are really above 5000 and below 10k. Fine for most trailers. Also to get to 10k you need a weight distributing hitch. When I towed my 944 on a open trailer I used the factory class IV hitch with simple ball mount. Trailer is probably 1500-2000lbs and the car was $2500lbs. Fully load with tires and such I was probalby right around 5k to maybe 6k max. No big deal for a 2500 pickup.

I just went to an eclosed trailer and that is rated at 7k. With car and gear it right at 7k fully loaded. So I when with a weight distributing hitch to go with my Class IV reciever hitch. Now I can tow 1000lbs tongue load and upt ot 9990lbs as is rated on the truck. So good to go.

Actually the receiver would put the trailer weight farther to the rear since theball is farther rearward. This gives the trailer a longer lever on the rear suspenion and tires.

It is usefull in other ways though, for all the reasons mentioned.

I just read a towing guide in my brothers 4 wheel drive type magazine and it specifically said to never ever tow a trailer over 1000 lbs on a bumper hitch regardless of stated capacity and it had a bunch of reasons that as I read them I was like "ohh, thats a good reason" but I'm drawing a blank. I'll see if its still at his house tonight.

My bad, just went and looked at the bumper.

It's not class IV, it's class III.

It's a 1996 F-150 with the towing package. Full swaybars, overload springs and a 3.54:1 rear axle.

I've added a set of pacbrake air springs as well and they make a huge difference in the amount of sway I get with a camper onboard.

Shawn

I looked through the magazines but couldn't find it.

But basically they were saying how even though the area where the ball mount goes is thick steel, its not that thick the whole way through, and the torsional load that a moderately heavy trailer puts on the ball during heavy braking or other forward and backward motion puts HUGE stresses on the generally large flat ball mount surface of the bumper. The mounting points for the bumper are spread pretty far apart, so you have the potential for a general twisting of the ball mount area. Once it twists the slightest bit it loses its rigidity and apparently its not unheard for the ball to simply rip right out of the ball mount, and the trailer to come crashing into the rear of the vehicle or worse.
The receiver hitch uses thick square tubing with 2 big crossmemers closely spaced going directly to the frame to resist the bending.

And as most of us personally can vouch, if you back an f150 into a pole with the stock bumper/ball mount, you are looking at a dented bumper. If you back an F150 with a receiver hitch into a pole, you are looking at an uprooted pole, generally speaking. So if there is a question of strength, receiver hitch clearly wins.

I dunno. When you start looking at your average utility trailer that might weigh between 1000 and 2500 lbs even unloaded with no brakes, and you think of how that entire trailer is funneling all its inertia into a tiny ball during heavy (think ABS activiating) braking, its got to amount a multiplier of thousands and thousands of pounds. Push the trailer weight up above that and it must get rediculous fast. You wouldn't think of exerting that kind of force on any other stamped mild steel piece in single sheer, but somehow people don't think twice about it towing trailers... IMO, hope for the best but plan for the worst. Hope you won't crash into something and your trailer fly through the tailgate and through the back of the cab, but plan on keeping that from happening, just in case.