A tow hitch or trailer hitch is a small, metal piece that can be added to the back of a car. It allows one to tow trailers and more behind their car.
As noted by Kelley Blue Book, not all hitches are created equal, with different hitches rated for varying weights and styles of towing.
Regardless of which hitch one uses or why they are using it, most people would think that they should simply remove the tow hitch when they don’t plan on towing anything. However, one driver offered a reason why he says you might want to consider leaving your tow hitch on at all times.
Should you always have a tow hitch on your car?
In a video with over 213,000 views, TikToker Hayden Olmsted (@haydenolmsted) shows a small Honda vehicle. It appears to be in pristine shape. The Honda car has a tow hitch attached to its rear.
Then, the TikToker cuts to a large Chevrolet truck. The front of the car has been heavily dented. That implies the two vehicles were in an accident, and the smaller one came out unscathed.
“One of the reasons you need to get a hitch on ur car,” Olmsted wrote in the text overlaying the video.
So is Olmsted correct in the idea that one should always have a tow hitch on their car?
Tow hitches and safety: What you need to know
In short, it does not appear advisable to keep a tow hitch attached to one’s car.
There are a few reasons for this, but the primary factor is safety. In general, cars are designed so that, if there is a collision, the energy of the collision is spread out across the car. This is in order to minimize the impact on passengers.
This generally takes the form of a “crumple zone.” The crumple zone means that certain parts of a car are designed to “crumple” in the event of an accident and absorb much of the energy. That energy would otherwise be transferred to the car’s occupants.
However, receiving an impact on a trailer hitch circumvents this safety feature, instead transferring the energy of impact straight to the car’s frame.
The website for Tampa, Florida-based personal attorney Martin Hernandez notes that this can cause a 22% increase in whiplash for occupants. It can also make damages resulting from such an accident more difficult to prove.
Additionally, by moving the energy to the car’s frame, there’s a heightened chance that the car could sustain frame damage. That may prove more difficult to repair than a simple dent to the rear of the car.
In the comments under Olmsted’s video, he notes that his car’s frame is “fine,” writing, “I got lucky.”
Commenters share their thoughts about this hack
In the comments section, users offered their own thoughts on the idea. Many suggested that viewers not take the advice shown in the video.
“You should get your frame checked. Sometimes when your hitch gets hit hard enough the frame can crack,” wrote a user.
“Actually the hitch is more likely to total your car than if you did not have a hitch,” echoed another.
That said, some said they’ve actually been using this technique.
“Yep. that's why I leave mine on too,” stated a commenter. “had a car hit me and all that happened was a dented license plate on his car. mine was fine.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Olmsted via TikTok comment.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
