Tow hitch

Removable ball mounts are offered with a varying rise or drop to accommodate variations in the height of the vehicle and trailer to provide for level towing.

In North America, there are a few common trailer hitch classes (I, II, III, and IV) that are defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).

Trailer hitch receiver tubes may be bolted, welded, or integral to the vehicle chassis, and come in various sizes depending on the load they are designed to carry and the country of operation.

Front trailer hitches are also used on pickup trucks, full-size SUVs, and RVs for multiple purposes.

[6] A front-mounted hitch can accommodate additional truck equipment such as front mount bike carriers, fishing/hunting gear, winches, step plates, and snowplows.

Across Europe around 25% of vehicles have tow balls fitted—but there are distinct regional variations, being more common in Benelux and Scandinavia.

[11] In the United Kingdom the popularity of caravans is responsible for a large proportion of four-wheel drive (SUV) vehicles being fitted with tow hitches.

[citation needed] A lunette ring is a type of trailer hitch that works in combination with a pintle hook on the tow vehicle.

A pintle hook and lunette ring make a more secure coupling, desirable on rough terrain, compared to ball-type trailer hitches.

[citation needed] The clearance between the lunette and pintle allows for more relative motion between the trailer and tow vehicle than a ball coupling does.

An advantage of the gooseneck hitch is its tighter turning radius, which helps when towing a big flatbed or car hauler.

An offroad hitch is able to swivel 360 degrees in pitch and roll, as to accommodate extreme angles between the tow vehicle and trailer encountered when rock crawling or mudding.

In 1932, Franz Knöbel, of Westfalia-Werke developed the trailer hitch with a ball head and socket joint.

A tow ball mounted on the rear of a vehicle
A screw-on tow hook mounted at the front of a vehicle
Under bumper class III receiver hitch with 7-pin blade trailer connector
Class IV receiver for up to 10,000-pound (4.5 t) towing capacity with wiring connector on the left side
Operation of tow ball with trailer hitch mounted
Heavy trailer mounted on a gooseneck hitch inside pickup truck bed
Coupling ball of Class A . (Tow ball 50 mm [1.97 in]). Dimension according to regulation No 55 of the Economic Commission for Europe of the United Nations (UNECE) — Uniform provisions concerning the approval of mechanical coupling components of combinations of vehicles [2018/862], ANNEX 5, Figure 2. [ 7 ]
Trailer coupled (i.e., "hooked") onto a ball-type tow hitch and electrical connector plugged in
Tow hook mounted on the rear of a vehicle