I've got a 95 F150 with the 300 six and while I've towed quite a bit, nothing with this truck. It's got a class III receiver hitch on it with a 2" ball that says 500 max tongue 6000 max load, I when I was replacing the fuel pump I noticed that the rear bumper is heavily reinforced and has a sticker on it stating 1200 lb max tongue 12000 lb max pull, what's better for towing the receiver or the bumper. Also behind the bumper there are two roundish plugs in a holder (one gray one black) that I assume are for a trailer. Are these standard trailer plugs that would mate with a u-haul trailer or something along those lines? For some reason when I think of trailer wiring I think of a rectangle plug. I'm moving this week and was thinking of borrowing or renting a trailer.

Thanks,
Pat

 

Most UHaul trailers are wired 'backwards' so that they can charge you an additional $5 for the special adapter to make it match a standard wiring setup.... Most of them are just plain flat 4 connectors.

I've never seen or heard of a bumper with those kind of hitch specs, so it must be aftermarket or something... Could not imagine hanging a #1200 tongue weight on the rear bumper of any truck and have any sort of control over it.

One of the problems with towing from the bumper is that you have no control over the hitch height, so most trailers will not be level when hitched up to the bumper. You also could lose some turning radius depending on the angle of the A frame of the trailer and where the ball is on the bumper. And finally, while the bumper maybe rated for whatever it's rated at, that does not mean your truck is rated for that much....

For a UHaul trailer, you won't have to worry too much about that, so if the trailer rides level when hitched up to the bumper, go for it... If not, then use the receiver with the proper drop to keep the trailer level.

Mitch

 

Thanks for the response. The bumper is definitely aftermarket, and I know if I tried to tow anything close to what it's rated for bad things would happen. One of the reasons I put the receiver hitch on (aside from the fact that it was free) is because with my truck being 4WD I figured I could never get a trailer up high enough to use the bumper but I figured I'd ask anyway as I was curious. So I can find an adapter to go from my wiring to standard wiring and I'd be good to go with the receiver right? I think I may have to get an enclosed trailer from u-haul as I'm still moving and the thunderstorms just started with a vengeance.

Thanks
Pat

 

There are a number of different trailer wiring plugs.

Most people are familiar with the flat 4 prong.

Then there is a 5 prong round, 6 prong round, and lately a 7 prong has become popular. The extra prongs are used for trailer brakes and additional lights/electric things.

as for reciever or bumper towing, take your pick! Some of those older bumpers are seriously overbuilt and super strong.

Mitch150 is spot on with the receiver comments, it will allow you to choose the proper drop hitch for your trailer. being able to adjust the trailer ride angle/height can have a dramatic impact on the towing experience.