Has anyone else had any problems with the reciever hitches on their 04-07 F-150's? Mine cracked while on the way back from the mountains. The reciever tube split on both sides at the bottom. The splits are almost 1/2 the length of the tube itself. THe trailer in tow was 8500# with a tounge weight of 920#. I was within the limits of the hitch and having no difficulties at all. I have towed this trailer with this truck for almost a year totaling well over 2000 miles. I had it patched on the way home just to be on the safe side. They welded a plate on the front side of the tube and welded the splits. It held together but just barely. I called my dealership this morning and told him what happened. He couldn't believe it! He has another hitch ordered for me and it will be here Friday or Saturday. He said that he was going to make Ford cover it. Once again, has anyone else had this problem or did I get a bad hitch?

 

If that wasn't with a weight distribution hitch, no it wasn't within weight limits. Anything over 5k should be with a weight distribution hitch, and depending upon the state, it may be required with a lower weight.

 

Yes, It was with a WD hitch. There is no way possible to tow a trailer with a 1/2 ton truck with a TW of 920# without a WD hitch. It cracked on the bottom of the receiver tube where the WD hitch puts all of its force. Oh BTW, I am using an Equal-i-zer WD hitch. It towed wonderfully until I got a little sway due to the hitch being cracked. I pulled over to check everything out and I noticed it then.

 

Any new information on your hitch? What do you think caused it? What are you replacing it with? Once my TT comes in, I will have very similar weights as you, tongue and overall.

 

I took it to the dealer yesterday. They said that it was not normal and it looked like a bad piece of steel. The hitch itself did not break, just the tube that the shank slides into. I also went to a fabrication shop and had then look at it. THe agreed that the tube is faulty.
The truck goes in Monday. They have to remove the bumper cover, the bumper itself, the license plate lights, the spare tire, and then unbolt the massive piece of steel that goes all the way across the back of the truck. They then have to replace the hitch and put everything back together. The hitch has 2 holes in the tube. I asked the dealer about putting 2 pins in the receiver when the hitch is in place. He said that it would make it impossible for this to happen again with that setup. I have talked to the machine shop and my Maintenance supervisor at the shop. They said that it would be the best thing I could do. They are going to drill another 5/8' hole on Tuesday for me.
The dealer said that it shouldn't have happened with the tounge weight I have. I like the idea of the two pins. This will definitely prevent the upward rotation that the EQ hitch provides. If it were a regular non WD setup it wouldn't have broken. You can see right through the tube all the way to the spare tire. The EQ hitch puts alot of pressure on the bottom of the tube when the bars are snapped up into position. This is where the tube broke. I have a trip planned for Fathers day weekend. I'll see how it works. The dealer also mentioned that the hitch should be the new design which is rated to pull 11,000. It has an 1100# WD rating for tounge weight. That would put me way over what I need. They are going to hook me up with a loaner car for the day and cover the entire thing under warranty! The dealer told me that hitches on these truck shouldn't break. They are just as tough as Ford trucks themselves. I just laughed. He told me not to worry about a thing. I really enjoy having a good dealership to work with. It makes life much more enjoyable!

 

I had a somewhat similair experience with my receiver. Although mine didn't actually crack, it did bend significantly. Twice, with 2 different factory hitches!

My travel trailer has a tongue weight of about 900lbs. I also use an Equal-i-zer brand WD hitch (excellent product BTW). Anyway, both time the receive actually ben UPWARDS from the upward force of the WD hitch. First time it happend, I thought maybe it was a fluke. Took it to the dealership and they replaced it under warranty. Happened agian. I even took my truck and trailer to a very reputable hitch/RV dealer. They checked out my entire setup, said it was about as perfect as can be.

So, being the 2nd failure, I decided to go with an aftermarket hitch. I got a Draw-tite class IV hitch. I've been using it for several months now, and there's absolutely no bending at all now. Needless to say, my faith in our factory hitches is in the toilet now.

 

Well fellas, here's an update. I took the truck in on Saturday. They couldn't do the job so I had to take it back in on Monday. I dropped the truck off and they gave me a loaner for the night (07 Explorer... very nice). They called me on Tuesday and siad it was ready to go. I went to pick it up and I found that the hitch was a different design from the old one. This one looks much stronger. It is a Reese brand hitch that is made for Ford. It is a class V. I'll see how it works out in 2 weeks. I have a trip planned for Fathers Day weekend. I have to tow up to 3500'! I'll really see how tough the F-150 really is. bamorris, did both of your factory hitches have 2 holes in them? This new one only has one. The steel looks much stronger and the electrical plug location is in a different location. Like I said.. I'll see in about 9 days how it does. I did have to pay a deductable but it was very minimal. THey hooked me up even out of warranty. Hey ba, we looked at the Adirondacks when we were TT shopping. We really liked them but we were unsure about all the white cabinets.

 

Without seeing a pic of the broken hitch it's hard to say.

With a WD hitch you do have to be a little cautious with large/sharp dips and aggressive humps that put to much vertical angle between the trailer and tow rig. This would be my guess without seeing pics.

 

FYI... When backing up and making sharp turns, you should remove the w/d bars and sway control.

 

FX4.... I think you need to read up a bit more. I have an Equal-i-zer brand hitch. There is no external sway control and you don't need to un hook anything to back up. Look it up. It is manufactured be Progress mnfg.

Ken, why would you have to be cautious about sharp angles? The trailer sits on a round ball. It is made to pivot. I am not saying that it is OK to go 4 wheeling with the TT but have you really looked at the roads in the USA? The campgrounds give the hitch more of a workout than anything. I just left a CG on Mem day, They had cutouts on the corners that you had to swing your truck out onto so you could keep your trailer on the road! The side of the road dropped off about a foot. If anyone dropped thier trailer off right there they could say good bye to a stab jack, and all of thier plumbing for thier tanks.

bamorris, just in case my problems arent over yet, do you have a PN# on that Draw tite? If you can give it to me I would greatly appreciate it!

 

Yes... the trailer sits on a round ball, but the freedom/tension at which the trailer can pivot vertically is limited by the WD hitch. Your WD hitch is designed to transfer some of the trailer load to the front wheels of your truck when running flat and level. The tension on the swing-arms is adjusted while your sitting flat and level. BUT... for instance if your rear wheels dropped off into a ditch... or backing into a steep driveway, etc... even more of the trailer weight will be sent to the front of your truck as additional tension is applied to the arms. Much more than just your tongue weight is being applied at this point. Even any payload you have in your bed adds to the effective tongue weight under these circumstances. This additional load of course is being transfered through the receiver where the weakest point would typically be the bottom of the square tube causing it to tear.

Years ago there used to be a company who advertised the strength of their hitch system by actually removing the rear wheels of a FWD tow vehicle and pull the trailer around by the front wheels alone. Their WD hitch and receiver supported both the tongue weight and the rear of the tow vehicle.

If the campground you're pulling into isn't relatively flat and level ... I would disconnect the WD swing arms until I returned to the open road.

 

"This additional load of course is being transfered through the receiver where the weakest point would typically be the bottom of the square tube causing it to tear"

This is exactly where the hitch broke. I drove into the campground with no problems. I drove out the same way. The hitch was fine at checkout at the front gate. I live in the peidmont of NC. There is nothing flat around here. I was in the NC mountains and it was the farthest thing from flat that you can get. I have been there before without problems. The hitch broke about 25 miles from the house on a completely flat road.... well except the grade that I was on. It was definately not hitch breaking material. The dealer, the shop where I work, and a steel fab shop all agreed that the metal was bad. None of them had ever seen a hitch break there before.
I fully understand the physics of a WD hitch.... probably more than I really need to. I can look at a setup and tell what needs to be done to it to level it out and make it right. I have been dealing with them for quite a few years. The WD hitch doesn't put as much force on the reciever at angles as you think it does. Heck, there are only 2 little hitch pins holding the bars in place. The "L" brackets only have one bolt each about 3/8" holding them. This would be the weak link in my opinion. Bottom line is, Hitches are not supposed to break. Unless they are grossly overloaded or you do something stupid like grossly overload it then you should be good to go. If a WD hitch can tear a hitch apart why would there be 100's of thousands of them on the road towing TT's daily?

 

[QUOTE=the4by4freek]FX4.... I think you need to read up a bit more. I have an Equal-i-zer brand hitch. There is no external sway control and you don't need to un hook anything to back up. Look it up. It is manufactured be Progress mnfg.


I know you have this, http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/r...ay-control.htm, I was simply stating, FYI, that you should remove your bars, (spring arms) when backing. Even if the Mfgr. says you can back with them, physics or (common sense) tells me not too. If you look at the design of these w/d setups, including the equilizer, it would but additional binding and stress on the the receiver tube period. That my friend is why you are breaking the tubes. I have the other type of w/d with the bars and chains. I also have an additional sway control hook up too. I have zero hitch problems. I also remove these when backing up on differents terrains or tight turning. I believe that you are either cracking the tube loose while in these tight turning or off road terrains, and it is not an issue of normal driving conditions on paved roadways.

 

[QUOTE=FX4ME2]I am NOT cracking the tube loose. The tube has torn in the 2 lower corners. The welds, angle, and geometry of the receiver are all in perfect condition. If I had to go and jack my trailer up to remove the bars every time I turned or backed I think I would just quit. I think you are confusing removing an external friction type sway control... (which I had, and had to remove every time I backed) with the Equal-i-zer brand hitch. Any and all WD setups exert the same load on the hitch in the same direction. The only difference is the way the sway is addressed. I know for a fact that if you removed your bars at some of the campgrounds I go to, you would not get your rig in without bottoming out on every speed bump and curve. The shank portion of your hitch must look like it's been dragged down a gravel road.... basically, with no bars hooked up it has. I know my buddy has bottomed his shank while crawling over speed bumps with his bars hooked up. Look at or in any campground anywhere in the USA and tell me if you see anyone taking thier WD bars off at the front entrance. I bet you will not see one. External sway controls, yes. WD bars, no. I have been dealing with RV's for well over 25 yrs. Everything from popups to 5ers. I have NEVER seen anyone drop thier tounge jack at the entrance to a campground and unhook thier WD bars. Maybe Greywolf will stop by and clear this up. OK smart guy... if you have to unhook your WD bars before backing, how do people with HA's and Pullright hitches do this? It is a mechanical sway control coupled with a WD bar setup. Totally impossible to take apart and put together without major setup time and adjustment time. It is the same principal as a conventional WD setup just with a mechanical sway control instead of a "friction type" such as a Reese DC or Equal-i-zer. I have seen the hitch description you posted the link to. It is included in the box, on the video, and on the website. It is simply an illustrated picture of how the hitch controls sway and WD in one easy step. They all work the same. If the reciever tube was twisted, I could see it, but it's not.

 

You most likely have too much weight on the hitch. It's possible to have the spring arms cranked up too much. It's possible that it's defective metal too. We'll never know. Good luck with your new hitch.