Which Hitch? Tips to Selecting the Proper Hook Up

Work or play, small fry or heavy duty – if you plan to tow, there are important details you need to know. Proper hitch selection easily tops the list.

Towing newbies can easily feel overwhelmed when navigating a proper hitch setup. And with RV shipments continually hitting record highs, there are a lot of newbies on the road.

The hitch is an essential piece of equipment, connecting a vehicle’s chassis to whatever it is towing. It not only ensures a secure connection, but also allows for necessary articulation and swiveling movements. Essentially, it keeps the whole kit-and-kaboodle safely connected and stable so you can ride highways, climb mountains, and ease around corners without fear of losing your load.

There are many brands and products to choose from when it comes to hitches. And — like most things in life — some are better than others. The question isn’t necessarily which hitch is best, rather which hitch is best for you?

To make your search a little easier, we constructed this short guide to hitch selection with a little help from the experts at Husky Towing and CURT Manufacturing. Just remember: Towing equipment can never increase towing capacity. It can only optimize and safely distribute it. More importantly, your vehicle’s towing capacity is always limited by the lowest-rated towing component.

Mid-size SUV tows Jayco trailer
Jayco

Know Your Towing Capacity

The most important thing to understand before attaching anything to the rear of a vehicle, is exactly what the car or truck can handle. If you haven’t done so yet, spend some time determining exactly what kind of towing you plan to do. Just as a small pop-up camper will place different demands on your tow vehicle than a massive horse trailer, it will also require a different class of hitch.

The same goes for the vehicle you are driving. While automakers like to tout the towing capabilities of SUVs and trucks, compact cars can benefit from hitch installation too. With the proper setup, small rides can maximize storage and utility by towing cargo carriers, bike racks, and water accessories. Knowing your vehicle and its abilities will help you determine hitch class.

Check out our articles on calculating towing capacities and understanding manufacturer’s tow ratings to ensure you have a solid grasp on what your vehicle requires.

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Learn Your Class of Hitch

Yellow Jeep Renegade towing small nuCamp teardrop camper
nuCamp

Trailer hitch receivers are divided into five different classes, with each class designed for a specific trailer weight range. However, it is the towing capacity of your vehicle that largely determines your selection.

For example, a large pickup truck is built for heavier loads like campers and boats, so it can use Class 3, 4, and 5 hitches. By comparison, a sedan or compact crossover may only be capable of towing a bike rack or lightweight teardrop trailer via a Class 1 or 2 hitch.

The chart below can help you get a general idea of hitch classes. Once you narrow down a few suppliers, take advantage of the helpful hitch-finder tools on many of their websites. Simply enter the year, make, and model and you can view a variety of available hitches that match your vehicle.

Most manufacturers offer unique trailer hitches designed to each vehicle’s specifications. “A custom fit ensures easier installation and maximum towing capacity,” say the folks at CURT Manufacturing. The hitch will also simply look better, and it will integrate properly with the spare tire and other design features on your ride.

Hitch Classes

Meet Your Manufacturer

Sometimes, selecting a brand can be just as stressful as selecting a product. There are many great suppliers in the towing space, so you shouldn’t be afraid to shop around. If you’re towing for recreation, consider perusing some RV forums for first-hand knowledge and reviews. RVers are well-known as a friendly group who are often eager to share tips and tricks. If you ask for advice – trust us, they will deliver.

If you’d like to start the shopping process right now, however, we here at The Engine Block have a few go-to brands we’re happy to recommend.

For lightweight towing, such as small trailers, campers, and outdoor accessories, CURT, Husky Towing, and Draw-Tite never let us down. Each manufacturer sports an impressive product lineup that places a premium on quality. CURT and Husky Towing, in particular, cover a number of more unusual applications in the lightweight towing category, including Mini Cooper, Toyota Prius, Dodge Caravan, Hyundai Santa Fe, Lexus GX460, Lincoln Aviator, and Porsche Macan.

CURT hidden tow hitch on KIA Soul
CURT also offers concealed hitches, so the sporty styling of a vehicle isn’t interrupted by a big square hitch. Hiding the hitch up and under the vehicle provides a more factory look and feel. | CURT

For heavy-duty towing, like medium to large campers, horse trailers, and equipment trailers, Reese and CURT offer many Class 4 and 5 hitches, while B&W Trailer Hitches makes many high-quality Class 5 receiver hitches.

For extreme applications, such as towing farm equipment or a massive toy hauler, Torklift International offers the SuperHitch Magnum. Rated for 30,000 lbs pull with weight distribution, this is big-daddy towing equipment. That means, it requires an equally beefy truck.

Discover Your Weight Distribution Needs

While mostly seen on pull-behind camper RVs, weight-distribution (WD) hitches are generally required when towing anything above 5,000 pounds. However, as Gahre Scudder, Product Manager for Husky Towing told us, “Weight distribution hitches should be used to provide a safe and smooth towing experience on just about any trailer. In reality, a WD system is a good option for any trailer with a tongue weight of 400 pounds or greater.”

Tongue Weight (TW) is a measurement of the downward force that a trailer or camper exerts on your vehicle. It’s affected by where you position cargo in the trailer.

A weight distribution hitch does pretty much what its name implies. It distributes the weight of your payload, helping to level the truck and trailer from front to back. When all the force centers where the trailer and vehicle connect, it can cause a tow vehicle to squat in the back and the trailer to nose-dive in the front. A WD hitch fixes that alignment and equalizes the weight, making the trailer easier to pull.

Infographic on importance of weight distribution when towing
Parked in Paradise

“You also gain more control over the truck and trailer, less wear and tear on the components of the hitch and trailer, and better tire wear on all of the tires, as well as cooler tire temperatures since the weight on all tires is engaged equally,” said Scudder.

WD systems are typically sold in tongue weight, so it is important to know this information when selecting a setup.

CURT Manufacturing offers this helpful guide on how to determine tongue weight.

“While it might seem easy just to pick the largest one, this is counterproductive,” advised Scudder. “Choose one too low, and you will bend or break the bars. Choose a rating too high, and the system will not properly ‘load’ the weight onto the bars, and it will not do anything to help. You need to choose the proper range for your trailer.”

Consider Sway Control

Whether or not you opt for a weight distribution hitch, you should certainly consider an anti-sway device. Trailer sway occurs when the unit behind your tow vehicle begins frantically moving side to side. And make no mistake – it can be deadly. Luckily, sway control can be added to any standard A-frame style trailer to help stabilize both the vehicle and towable.

Numerous anti-sway products are available. Most work by using friction devices, much like brake pads, to slow the swaying motion to an eventual stop. “Using either a separate friction surface with a stand-alone system or with a Weight Distribution system, a sway control system keeps the trailer tracking in a straight line behind the vehicle,” explained Scudder. “This way, it does not ‘fish tail’ when a tractor trailer goes by, or when it is windy outside.”

Husky Towing Center Line TS Weight Distribution systems combine both a Weight Distribution system and active Sway Control in one unit.

Remember: Safety First!

Overloading a trailer is dangerous, and many people underestimate the weight of their cargo. Scudder recommends visiting a local weigh station or truck stop that has scales, so you can get an accurate weight of your trailer in its loaded configuration. “Additionally, if the trailer is a utility or dump trailer, it is good to know the unloaded total weight of the truck and trailer, so you can determine how much weight you can load into the trailer,” he said.

It’s also important to remember that a hitch receiver is exactly that – a receiver. It provides a coupling point to hook up a trailer. That means, once you select a proper hitch for your vehicle, you need to purchase a ball mount or other hitch accessory to actually connect your trailer.

Parts of trailer hitch setup
CURT

While we mentioned the importance of weight distribution and sway control, towing accessories like hitch pins, safety chains, and wiring harnesses are also vital to a safe setup.

Additionally, the previously described hitches all refer to traditional bumper pulling where your vehicle drags or pulls its load behind it, attached via a hitch that juts out from the vehicle’s frame at the rear of the vehicle. However, when hauling serious loads – like big fifth-wheel campers, horse trailers, or heavy farm equipment – a powerful coupler is necessary. Many people turn to gooseneck or fifth wheel hitches for extra stability, as they mount inside a truck bed, over the rear axle.

Need some help distinguishing between gooseneck and fifth wheel hitches? We have a complete guide that can help.

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