What size hitch do I have?

If you are buying a hitch cover for yourself or someone else, it is important to know what size hitch you have.  Most of our covers come with pieces to fit both class II (1.25″ X 1.25″) and class III hitches (2″ x 2″).  If you don’t know what size you have, you can measure the sides of your receiver hitch and find out.

As a general rule, you will find class II hitches on mid-size cars and larger vehicles, and class III hitches on full size cars, mid-size trucks, SUVs, and larger vehicles.

categories Trailer Hitch Accessories, Trailer Hitches | Emily, 31 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

How big are these things?

One of the most common questions we get asked through the user contact form is: How big are your hitch covers? People just arent sure what to expect, and I can’t blame them. While our product pictures look great, there is rarely anything else in the picture that could be used to figure out just how big they are.

To help our customers out, I grabbed a couple of hitch covers from the warehouse and took pictures of them next to a plain old cd - Everyone with a computer is sure to have at least 1 cd laying around, so its a great tool to help you visualize exactly how big these hitch covers are.

Most of our hitch covers are 4-5 inches wide and roughly 2-3 inches tall - almost every rectangle shaped hitch cover (like the Praise the Lord hitch cover, or the Baltimore Ravens hitch cover)you find on our site will fit those rough dimensions. Logo cut hitch covers (like this Denver Broncos hitch cover, or this Carolina Panthers hitch cover, however, can be quite a bit bigger, due to their shape. Some are more like 5 or 6 inches long but still only 2-3 inches tall. Our propeller hitch covers are the biggest, coming in at about 7 inches in diameter.

A couple of pictures to help:

Propeller hitch cover comparison Praise The Lord hitch cover comparison

categories Trailer Hitch Accessories | Peter, 26 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

Squirley Trailers and Trailer Hitches

A good friend of mine just moved to town today, and I had the privilege of helping him unload his trailer. He had pulled one of the larger U-Haul trailers behind his F-150, and he had that thing stuffed to the gills. I asked him how the ride was, and he said that the truck didn’t have any problems towing up the hills, but that the trailer was very squirley and jerked his truck around the whole way. Then, when the trailer was empty, we took it back to the shop, and i was amazed at how jerky the ride was–even empty.

That jerky trip with an empty trailer really got me thinking about trailer hitch products that are out there that could have made his ride a lot more smoother. Mark’s post the other day about air ride trailer hitch systems and their air-bag designs came immediately to mind, as did anti-sway bars and friction devices. His truck would have probably handled better when the trailer was fully loaded if he had a weight distributing trailer hitch, but that wouldn’t have helped our ride much with the empty trailer. My friend doesn’t tow a lot, so he can probably get by with just his standard Class III trailer hitch on his truck, but for those of us that have a trailer attached to our hitch more often than not, these trailer hitch accessories can really be life savers.

categories Towing, Trailer Hitches | Nate, 25 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

How Much Can You Tow?

How much can you tow? Do you regularly hitch up a utility trailer full of tools? Are you hauling horses and other livestock? Or do you just need to pull your boat to the lake a few weekends of the year? Whatever you’re using your trailer hitch for, you need to make sure your towing needs and towing capacity match; your safety and the safety of others on the road around you depend on it.

Many factors contribute to a vehicle’s towing capacity: axle ratio, transmission configuration (whether it is rear or front wheel drive), tire and suspension load ratings, engine cooling equipment, type of brakes, etc. As you might expect, full size trucks, have, by class the highest towing capacity. Topping the list of heavy haulers is the 2008 Ford F450 with a whopping 24,000 lbs of towing capacity. That’s huge! In fact, it’s a full size back hoe (without a trailer). Also impressive is the the Nissan Armada (in the full size SUV class) with a 9,000 lb capacity. But the real shocker is the Hyundai Elantra, member of the compact sedan class, which checks in at 3,086 lbs towing capacity if the trailer is equipped with brakes, and 1,000 lbs for a trailer with no brakes. That’s the same or more towing power in a budget-priced compact that you will find in many more expensive full size sedans!

So, how much can you tow? Well, your vehicle’s towing capacity is listed with other manufacturer’s specs in your owner’s manual. There you will find at least two numbers relating to towing capacity; these are the gross trailer weight capacity (the weight of the trailer fully loaded) and ball weight capacity, (the amount of weight the trailer puts on your hitch ball). These numbers are pretty important as far as your safety and the safety of the drivers around you. A vehicle towing a trailer that is too heavy or improperly loaded will not have the steering or braking control necessary to operate safely. Please take the steps necessary to ensure you are towing safely.

You can (and should) measure your gross trailer weight on a commercial scale (check the yellow pages to find one locally). Make sure you have your trailer loaded as you normally would before weighing it. Drive the trailer completely on the scale, unhitch it and make sure the jockey wheel and all trailer wheels are on the scale. This gives you your gross trailer weight or GTW. Ball weight capacity, also known as tongue weight, or the amount of weight on your hitch ball can be measured by a special scale made for this purpose (Sherline is one manufacturer of a tongue weight scale (http://www.sherline.com/lm.htm)). It can also be measured on a commercial scale; to do this, drive the trailer to the scale so just the hitch part is over the scale. Unhitch the trailer, and check the weight with just the jockey wheel on the scale. Again, you want your trailer fully loaded when you weigh it.

Obviously, if your GTW is too high, your trailer is too heavy to be safely towed by your vehicle. You can imagine the potential problems of braking and/or pulling the load up hill. The problems with too much tongue weight are a little less obvious though. If your ball weight is too high, the trailer will weigh down the back end of your vehicle, raising the front end. This is particularly bad if your vehicle is front wheel drive, but steering and braking will suffer even on a rear wheel drive vehicle.

If your tongue weight is too high, but the total weight is okay, you may just need to reload your trailer. The weight that must be supported by the tongue is anything in front of the front axle of your trailer. Moving cargo back behind that front axle should lower your tongue weight. Remember, even if your GTW is well below your towing capacity, you only want 10-15% of your total weight to be on the tongue. If you cannot change your tongue weight, then you need to look into a weight distributing hitch which will distribute the weight of your trailer over both axles of your vehicle.

So, how much can you tow? Whether it’s horses or snowmobiles, find your gross towing capacity and your ball weight capacity in your vehicle’s owner’s manual, keep your tongue weight at 10-15% of your total weight, and be safe on the road.

categories Articles, Towing | Emily, 24 Jan 07 | comments Comments (2)

Trailer Hitch Universe.com Site Updates

As you may have noticed, we have been doing some construction on the Trailer Hitch Universe.com site over the past week or so. Over the course of the past several months, we have found little things that weren’t working as well as they should, so we went ahead and gave the site a little tune-up.
Probably the most obvious upgrade that we made was to re-name all of our individual category pages (NFL Trailer Hitch Covers, Misc. Hitch Covers, etc.) and product pages (Denver Broncos Trailer Hitch Cover, Chrome Propeller Trailer Hitch Cover, etc.) so that they are more user friendly. We changed them from a number based system to a more user-friendly text based system. Now, all of our pages that contain trailer hitch covers have the words “hitch cover� in them, and each individual category page has the category name in it, such as “/hitch_covers/nfl/� .
We think that these upgrades will make the site easier for you to find and easier to move around in once you are here. This is just another example of what we are doing in order to be your first choice for trailer hitch covers and other trailer hitch accessories! Let us know what you think of the new site!

categories Uncategorized | Nate, 23 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

Air Ride Trailer Hitch Systems

I was searching around the web for some cool new trailer hitch technology when I came across Air Ride Hitch Systems. After reading a little on their “about” page, I realized these guys have the solution to most of the discomfort towers feel when pulling heavy or light trailers with standard trailer hitches. You know what I mean–the back and forth or side to side jerk you feel when your trailer hits a bump, if you turn a little too sharply, or even if you apply the brakes a little too hard at a stoplight. The guys at Air Ride have come up with the solution.

They integrate “heavy duty” air bags into the trailer hitch assembly to drastically soften the shock you usually experience. You still have a firm connection to your trailer, but not one that tires you out or makes you nervous to corner or use the brakes. Their website claims an 80% smoother ride and 75% safer tow than with a standard trailer hitch. With that kind of potential, this is a trailer hitch worth checking out. They offer standard hitch receivers, fifth wheel trailer hitches, and even gooseneck hitches. You can learn more at www.airridehitch.com.

categories Trailer Hitches | Mark, 21 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

Trailer Hitch Mounted Cargo Carriers

Every year I swear, “We’re never doing this again!” And, every year, exactly 12 months later, I find myself in the same bad situation: struggling to fit all the presents, all the suitcases and all the toys into the family van to make the trip to Grandma’s for Christmas. This past Christmas was especially bad because now three out of my four kids are old enough to ski, so we took all their skiing gear too. We ended up with an extremely large duffle bag, two sleds, one suitcase and a cardboard box strapped to the roof. It was a wonder we ever hit 75 mph.

Once we got on the highway, I noticed we weren’t the only ones with too many people and too much stuff to fit it all in the car; lots of families seem to be in the same situation near the end of December, but some of them manage it a little better. A lot of people have roof top carriers. Those are a nice option; they look good and can carry a lot of gear. They do have a couple of drawbacks though: their weight limits tend to be rather low, and there is always the possibility that they will blow open mid ride (this has happened to my friend a couple of times!) Plus, they are awkward to load. A few people are starting to solve their cargo problems with hitch mounted cargo carriers. I like those! And they’re very simple: a platform on a hitch mount!

Looking at hitch mounted carriers on the web, I found prices ranging from $185 for a good size, 500lb capacity cargo carrier to almost $1300 for a top of the line, fully enclosed, hitch mounted cargo box. Basically, you can get a nice cargo carrier for under $250, and a hitch mounted cargo box for around $500-$600.

Some features to look for include side rails to help hold onto your stuff or to use as anchor points for tie downs or cargo nets. You may want a folding shank that will allow you to fold the carrier up toward your vehicle’s rear end when not in use. Other carriers fold in the middle one or two times for easy storage. A few of the carriers had a swing away option that allowed access to the rear of the vehicle. Many provided clearance for spare tires and optional racks for bikes. Most carriers came with one of two platform types: a metal mesh platform that is easy to clean, or a full floor that keeps road spray off your cargo. You might want to look for a light kit as the carrier could block your tail lights. Most cargo carrier manufacturers also put out a line of high quality, weather resistant cargo bags that fit perfectly and secure snugly to their platforms.

If you opt for the hitch mounted cargo box, be sure the material is UV resistant and that the box comes with a good lock and comfortable handles. The box should allow adequate clearance from your vehicle so that it can open completely for loading and unloading. Finally, check if you need a light kit or a license plate mounting kit, as both may be blocked by the cargo box. Note that the weight capacity in the cargo boxes is generally lower than the platform style carriers as the weight of the actual box has to be taken into account.

If you can think of any other feature you need in a cargo carrier, it’s probably available on one of the models out there. Anything you need to carry from garden supplies to golf clubs to camping gear will ride smoothly on your hitch mounted carrier. And the next time we’re headed “over the river and through the woods,” the family will be comfortably riding in the car while our excess stuff is securely stowed behind us on our new hitch mounted carrier! I can’t wait!

Remember, anytime you are buying a trailer hitch accessory you need to make sure your hitch is the right size for the accessory. Most of the hitch mounted cargo carriers fit a class III (2 inch) receiver hitch, a few, with a lower weight capacity, are made for class II (1.25 inch) hitches. You can get a conversion kit, but a class II hitch is not manufactured to support the weight that a class III hitch is, so check your owner’s manual and don’t overload your hitch!

categories Trailer Hitch Accessories | Emily, 20 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

Trailer Hitch Covers

A trailer hitch cover is a great and inexpensive way to add a custom touch to your truck or SUV.  Whether you are into college basketball, professional football, NASCAR or some other sport, we have a hitch cover for that.  If you’ve served in the military, or love to hunt or fish, we have a hitch cover for that.  Maybe you’d rather be riding your motorcycle . . . we have a hitch cover for that  too.

Whatever your passion, when you find the hitch cover for you, be sure to protect it with a hitch lock.   While the $40 you spent on the hitch cover may not be a lot to you, it’s a hassle to buy a new one, and knowing yours is secure should afford some peace of mind.

Finally, don’t forget that hitch covers make great gifts.  If that “special someone” has a naked receiver hitch, do him or her a favor, and purchase a good looking plug to protect the hitch and keep it clean.

categories Trailer Hitch Accessories | Emily, 17 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

2008 Ford F-450 tows 24,000 pounds!

First off, I want to say that this blog is not paid advertising space, and is not meant to sell anything. We just want to share what we find on the web that you might find interesting, and let you make up your mind on whether to look further at it or not. After posting about the new Chevy Silverado last week, I thought I would make it fair by talking about Ford today. A quick search came up with more than I had been expecting–the new 2008 Ford F-450 just unveiled at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) blew my mind with it’s 12-ton (24,000 lb) towing capacity. It has three engine choices (5.4L Triton V8, 6.8L Triton V10, and 6.4L Powerstroke Diesel), and all are available with electronic shift-on-the-fly and Torqshift (TM) Transmissions. When properly equipped, the F-450 has a payload of 6000 lbs and, as mentioned before, can tow 24,000 lbs.
The F-450 has several great features for towing the heaviest of loads, be it on a rear-mounted trailer hitch or on a gooseneck trailer hitch. It has an enlarged radiator to keep things cool when towing uphill, and is equipped with a factory-installed Trailer Brake Controller (TBC). the TBC is “…integrated with the anti-lock brake system and synchronizes the vehicle and trailer brakes for seamless braking while towing even the heaviest loads.â€? This optional feature also includes telescoping trailer tow mirrors.
So, whether you want to see what your Class V trailer hitch can really do, or you need to tow the biggest of trailers around with your gooseneck trailer hitch, this beast might be right down your alley!

I found this great pic at blogs.cars.com:

categories Towing | Nate, 16 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)

Road Trains?

I love running across interesting and surprising things on the net, so when I found this article about road trains on automotiveblogger, I just had to post about it.

Road trains are huge semi trucks pulling anywhere from 3-6 trailers along barren roads. In barren places like central Australia, road trains are a fairly common sight as rail lines are often not an option. Lumbering down miles of flat dirt roads at slow speeds, these road trains can often be quite a hazard to drivers, who find it difficult if not impossible to pass. In Australia, a road train with up to 6 full sized semi-trailers is road legal, while in the United States only 3 (or 2 in some states) are allowed. According to Wikipedia, The Guiness World Record for longest road train clocks in with 104 trailers in Queensland, Australia.

As far as trailer hitches go, the first trailer is obviously attached to the tractor, while each successive trailer is attached to one of a few different dolly setups. The dolly is attached to the rear of the leading trailer, which give the trailing trailer a place to hitch. No word yet on whether anyone is making trailer hitch covers for these beasts.

categories Towing | Peter, 15 Jan 07 | comments Comments (0)