Trailer Hitch Guide

travel with your gear in tow

In addition to Roof Rack Systems, you can also carry your gear with rack systems that mount to a Trailer Hitch. But the first step would be to have a Trailer Hitch installed onto your vehicle. Fortunately, trailer hitches are available for most vehicles.

The Fastest way to find your hitch is with our handy fitguide:

Find your hitch!

Jeep in a grassy field with a hitch mounted cargo basket

With a Trailer Hitch installed, you then have a choice of adding a hitch bike rack, a hitch ski rack (requires bike rack), a hitch cargo box, or a hitch cargo basket. These rack systems slide into the receiver hole in the Trailer Hitch and are held in place with a bolt or pin. Or add the appropriate towing drawbar, ball, and wiring harness to allow you to tow trailers, campers, boats, etc.

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Trailer Hitch Classes (Sizes)

Trailer Hitches are typically bolted to the chassis of the vehicle. Trailer Hitches are categorized by their load capacity into a few common classes: I, II, III, IV, and V. The opening of the receiver-type hitches is usually 1.25" or 2" square, but some Class IV or V are available in 2.5" square.

When it comes to bike racks, the most important thing to pay attention to is the carrying capacity of your vehicle's hitch, or the "tongue weight." This number, divided in half, gives you a good estimate of the maximum weight your hitch can carry (this number is very different from the maximum weight it can pull or tow)

For the most part, class I and class II hitches can only carry two, sometimes three, bikes. If you want to carry 4+ bikes or have the ability to swing the rack to the side, you're going to need a class III or higher hitch.

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A diagram showing different hitch sizes and classes

Get your trailer hitch installed

A trailer being hooked up to tow vehicle

Get a trailer hitch installed on your car at one of our stores

Using our Trailer Hitch fit guide, you can see what Hitch best fits your vehicle. If you can find it on our site, we sell and install it!

Rack Attack is North America's premier hitch installation service provider with multiple full service locations to serve you better. Having performed thousands of hitch installations on a wide variety of vehicles, no other retailer can offer our high level of experience or give you the confidence that the installation will be done right.

Please call to book an appointment at any of our locations across North America. Installation time for a standard hitch is about 2 hours depending on the vehicle. Our locations offer all the top Class I, Class II, and Class III hitch receiver brands, including Curt, Stealth Hitches, and more. Not to mention we do complete wiring installations as well. For those hard-to-fit scenarios, contact us, and our friendly Gear Guides will help you find a solution that works for your vehicle.

After you've found a Trailer Hitch solution for your vehicle, you can add a hitch rack to carry all your gear - bike racks, ski racks, cargo, and more.

Roof Rack Guide

Bike Rack Guide

Watersport Guide