Recommendations for trailer hitch?

Cleantrx · Dec 21, 2022

Tbh I don’t plan on towing anything but After seeing @bconnolly post about how some idiot drunk driver rear ended made me want to get a heavy duty hitch to help protect my truck..any ideas? Preferably nothing chrome or shiny I hate that shit

Jakerx · Dec 21, 2022

Tow & Stow Adjustable Ball Mount | B&W Trailer Hitches

The Tow & Stow adjustable ball mount trailer hitch gives you the versatility to swap ball sizes, adjust the height in seconds, and stow it under your vehicle when you're not towing.

www.bwtrailerhitches.com

Best I’ve ever owned. I own two of them. One for my wife’s SUV and one from my old Tundra I plan to use again with the TRX.

Brodad · Dec 21, 2022

BulletProof Hitches Strongest Durable Adjustable Drop Hitches

BulletProof Hitches offers heavy duty adjustable trailer hitches. We have 2" (Class 4) 2.5" (Class 5) & 3" shank available with drops/rise 2-16" in length. Hitches start from $219 and are solid steel and adjustable. Proudly Made In America with a lifetime warranty!

www.bulletproofhitches.com

I purchased a drop hitch from them for my lifted F250 and the quality is top-notch.

TRXNUT · Dec 21, 2022

I second the above^^^ hitch.

Ziggy · Dec 21, 2022

Jakerx said:
Tow & Stow Adjustable Ball Mount | B&W Trailer Hitches

The Tow & Stow adjustable ball mount trailer hitch gives you the versatility to swap ball sizes, adjust the height in seconds, and stow it under your vehicle when you're not towing.

www.bwtrailerhitches.com

Best I’ve ever owned. I own two of them. One for my wife’s SUV and one from my old Tundra I plan to use again with the TRX.

I agree and have bought several over the years. But its more expensive than what the OP is wanting to use it for. You can get a basic hitch from Walmart that will protrude out and create a buffer from someone's front end for a lot less.

TCAT · Dec 21, 2022

Here is my suggestion from Rhino

260onthego · Dec 21, 2022

This is what I use on my limited. It's heavy and expensive but I keep it on for the same reason you're contemplating it

Freeagent4224 · Dec 21, 2022

Another vote for Bulletproof

timinnd · Dec 21, 2022

https://www.costco.com/trailer-valet-blackout-8%2c000-lb--10%2c000-lb-capacity-adjustable-aluminum-drop-hitch%2c-0-6-inch-drop%2c-2-inch-and-2-516-inch-ball.product.100836382.html

https://www.costco.com/trailer-valet-blackout-14%2c000-lbs-capacity-adjustable-steel-drop-hitch%2c-0-6%22-drop%2c-2%22-and-2-516%22-ball.product.100836117.html

Steel or Aluminum? The aluminum is normally $65 more. Only reason steel got some bad reviews is they sent some with missing pins.

MyWifeLetMe · Dec 21, 2022

I bought one of these from northern tool. Not the prettiest, but it sticks out enough that a car or truck will hit it long before your bumper. https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200738938_200738938

timinnd · Dec 21, 2022

I see that everyone has locking pins in the hitch under bumper. I could see criminals thinking "oh...yeah? Think you''re smarter than me? Well I can't steal the entire thing, but I'll pull what pins and I take what I can and just throw it in the ditch just to piss the owner off"

Daniel J · Dec 21, 2022

Any of those recommendations are good IMHO. I would only caution one thing: If you do not actually need to pull anything, and you just leave the hitch on your truck all the time, then you may draw a "dick move" card. I know more than one person who has accidentally damaged their front end while maneuvering in a tight parking lot, because they did not / could not see the hitch sticking out another 18" from the back of a truck.

Much like you, I had the concern about getting rear ended. Since I don't own a trailer, I bought a triangle-shaped steel step that slides into my receiver, and left it on there. After the 4th person I knew gave me the dick move story, I pulled it back off.

OnTheReel · Dec 21, 2022

I’ll take my chances getting rear ended. I’ve knee-capped myself one too many times on those things when I’ve left them in. Plus it looks stupid.

Roweski · Dec 21, 2022

The first thing that pops in my head when I see a huge hitch sticking out from the back of truck in a parking lot is "someone is gonna bash their shin on that and key that truck".

I firmly believe that most people are a-holes, so I tend to assume the worst.

gbon · Dec 21, 2022

Had the same thoughts as you OP. Was going to order a ADD rear bumper, did a quick marketplace search and found it for $500 locally. Steel bumper might be the best choice for max protection in a rear end situation.

Cleantrx · Dec 21, 2022

Thanks for the feedback guys I actually did some more research on the topic and apparently by having a hitch it does protect your truck more but causes more damage to the passengers because the transfer of energy from the crash goes to the main part of the vehicle where passengers are instead of just the rear end..also makes it harder to get anything from insurance because the vehicle looks untouched because your hitch protects it but the passengers have a much higher chance of getting whiplash. There is a trailer hitch that is made specifically for the purpose of getting rear ended and has rubber built in to the hitch so the energy doesn’t transfer to the structure of the vehicle but it’s big and ugly

mntrx · Dec 21, 2022

I personal like this one over many! https://rhrswag.com/product/gen-y-rebel-lightweight-adjustable-drop-ball-mount-hitch/

timinnd · Dec 21, 2022

Roweski said:
The first thing that pops in my head when I see a huge hitch sticking out from the back of truck in a parking lot is "someone is gonna bash their shin on that and key that truck".

I firmly believe that most people are a-holes, so I tend to assume the worst.

This ^

Two · Dec 21, 2022

Cleantrx said:
Thanks for the feedback guys I actually did some more research on the topic and apparently by having a hitch it does protect your truck more but causes more damage to the passengers because the transfer of energy from the crash goes to the main part of the vehicle where passengers are instead of just the rear end..

They all come with a receiver hitch, and whether you put a ballmount or something else in it won't matter much.

Both the receiver and the bumper are mounted to the same frame. If the collision is violent enough to "cause damage to the passengers", having something in the receiver won't make a bit of difference, really.