Ball Mount/Draw Bar

[Paul P]

For years, I have been removing my trailer hitch ball mount when not trailing. Is there any law about leaving it in place when not trailering? In a quest to make life simpler, I was considering leaving it in for the season. I was wondering if others leave the draw bar in place when not in use.



Thanks



Paul

 

[Bob G.]

I don't think there are any laws about leaving the drawbar in, but I remove my "shin knocker" every time I'm not towing.



Bob G.

 

[Al Greco]

Paul, I leave it in all the time. I don't see any problem leaving it in, besides it keeps the tailgater's from kreeping up to close especially when you stop. I don't use my truck for my main transportation but when I did I never hit my leg on the ball after the first few times. do whatever works for you. Once the receiver stays in for a while they are very hard to remove. I don't think I could remove mine if I wanted too.

 

[Staci Matheis]

I don't even have a boat right now and mine's still in there.

 

[JEFF WHITE]

i leave it in due to the fact it is rusted in place now.no slop in it,solid as a rock.



and besides it keeps the cars off my tail when they see it coming for there hood/radiator area!

 

[Mike Tosello]

Paul,



I was rearended a few months ago and was happy that mine was still left in... The girl that hit me did $1000 damage to her car and my rear bumper was no even touched.



Mike

 

[Jim B]

I take is out it only takes a few seconds. In Mass it is illegal to leave it in and it may be in other states too. I have a buddy who is a cop and he showed me the law, its a $100 fine should the officer want to enforce it. If you leave it it it will rust in and removing it will be very hard. I also dont think that leaving it in offers any extra protection in an accident. I got rear ended years ago with my bar in and the damage caused to the frame was very costly to fix. It was so bad the ins company almost totalled my blazer. I got hit my a full framed car going less then 10mph. The hitch is bolted directly to the frame and if you have a drop bar it puts a lot of leverage on the frame should you be hit. A bimper is designed to take the hit and a bumper is cheaper to fix then frame damage.

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

I've been rear ended 3 times in my jeep with the bar left in. The most damage I had was bent bumperetts on the rear...$178 for both. Yeah, I leave mine in all the time.



TOXIC

 

[Paul P]

Jim B,



Thanks for the Mass legal info. Based on that, I think I will continue to take it out when not trailing since I also live in Mass.



Paul

 

[TrepMan]

Guys, I used to leave mine in, then my mom in a multi-car accident got pushed into the Isuzu Rodeo in front of her with the draw bar/ball on. It rammed right thru my radiator and totaled the car. Had it not been there it might have only done minimal damage bumper-to-bumper.



So, while it won't hurt your vehicle, it will the one behind you. Also if you leave it in, make sure you and any one else who drives your vehicle knows it's there - I can see someone backing into a spot and accidentaly ramming that thru someone's bumper.



Trep

 

[Larry Harp]

Mine doesn't stick out that far.



Harpo

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

My jeep demands that I leave it in. I'm not worried about minimizing the damage to the vehicle that hits me, I'm worried about minimizing the damage to mine. Without mine in, the spare (mounted on the tailgate) would total the tailgate and probably damage the fiberglass top.



TOXIC

 

[Jim B]

Tox, when i got hit in my blazer is bent the frame so bad that the rear windows and tailgate window shattered, the tailgate buckled and the floor in the rear was bent. If someone hits that hitch with enough car it can really do some serious damage. Im still surprised the ins co didnt total it.

 

[Mike Tosello]

If i took mine out and got rear ended, the other car would still hit the Hitch, if any kind of impact that was great enough it seems it would damage the frame if its in or out... I elect to leave it in only for protection from small fender benders ..



Mike

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

Yowza!! I'm not talking about that type of hit.....Nothing will minimize the damage if you are hit hard enough to bend the frame. Mine were fender benders that would have cost me a lot more that the idjuts that hit me.



TOXIC

 

[Mike Tosello]

Thats what i'm saying.... if the hit is hard enough to bend the frame with it in, it most likely will damage the frame with it out...



Mike
http://

 

[Steve Rizza]

I was rear ended by a full sized Ford Bronco while at a red light in my s-10.He hit me so hard it pushed the bed forward and smashed in the rear of my cab.My hitch rolled his front bumper downward and had my rear tires almost off of the ground.If sure was a mess pulling the two apart,but there was no frame damage.

I agree with Mat,whether it's in or out will not make much difference.Just having a hitch installed will help by acting as another crossmomber at the very rear of the frame.

 

[Jim B]

Guys that hit im talking about is a 10mph fender bender at a stop light by a big car not a little tiny one and not someone slamming into me at 100. he never hit the bumper just the draw bar and all the force of the accident was on the draw bar and the frame. The guys that hit me his car suffered minimal damage, just the bumper was screwed up. My truck had to go away on a wrecker because it was so bent up. It wasnt a bad accident, just a 4000#+ car hitting a 4" drop bar puts a lot of stress on the frame. I have been hit harder without the bar with far less damage.



The drop in the draw bar gives that bar a lot of downward leverage on the frame that can and will bend the frame in the right circumstances. Also the more drop you have the more leverage can be asserted on the frame. Had i not had my bar in and the car hit the bumper my damage would have been a lot less. The body/frame guy that fixed my truck said i most likley would have had little to no damage if the bar was out. I for one would rather someone hit my bumper then hit my hitch again, its designed to take a hit for one. And its cheaper to replace a bumper then it is to bend back a frame.

 

[Bill Gintzel]

I leave mine in MOST of the time but was getting grease on my pants when I brushed up against it.(the ball should have a light coat of grease). I purchased a cheap plastic cover to solve the grease problem. >1.00