If you’ve ever pulled something with a pickup, you might have thought to tell the truck’s design and engineering team, “You had a simple task.” I’m referring to the annoying receiver hitch arrangements, with those safety chain hooks and trailer plug connections. Trucks are theoretically supposed to function well, and they are advertised as such (whether consumers utilize them as intended is another discussion). Yet, inexplicably, many contemporary pickups have unacceptably mediocre towing configurations. But not Honda.
The Honda Ridgeline may be the prime example of the unremarkable truck that excels. The rear-seat layout, in-bed underfloor storage, and multi-functional tailgate are all well-known, but what truly impressed me were the receiver and safety chain connections for towing.
Honda’s design and engineering team really hit the mark here. The receiver is a typical single-wall design enhanced by sizable safety-chain attachments that are not excessively thick, overly complicated, or confusing in design, and appear to be easily compatible with virtually every type of connection and emergency brake hook I’ve encountered. The seven-pin light connector is placed directly next to the receiver, which does require you to bend down more than if it were mounted by the license plate, as seen in some trucks, but it means that the plug cord doesn’t need to extend as far as it does on those other trucks.
This might seem insignificant, but let’s assess the full-size, light-duty competition for context. I have receipts.
Kicking things off is the current Ram 1500. The receiver itself is fine. The plug outlet is located near the license plate, which makes it a reach for older trailers with shorter wiring harnesses (our old deck boat required an extender to reach). However, the most frustrating aspect of the design is the safety chain connections. They seem ingenious at first glance, featuring a square hole punched in the rear-facing box wall and a round opening directly below in the bottom wall. Ideally, you could just clip your safety chains through the square hole and down into the round hole. Smart, but there’s no effective way to secure the smaller emergency brake hook of the boat trailer, as it won’t reach through both openings.
The Toyota Tundra, along with nearly everything else sharing the TNGA-F platform it utilizes, might be the most perplexing of the group. The receiver features a double-walled design with an air gap. In practicality, this means your 3.5-inch hitch pin that fits into practically every other vehicle’s receiver won’t entirely clear this setup, requiring at least a 4-inch hitch pin. This isn’t an issue if you possess a 4-inch hitch pin, but if you don’t and grab the 3.5-inch pin used for other applications, you’ll run into problems. Ask me how I learned this. We now have a 4-inch hitch pin.
Toyota engineer Sheldon Brown clarified to me that this double-walled design (with an air gap) was engineered for strength, durability, and safety. Okay.
Visually, the safety chain attachments appear to be an ideal design, but they are too wide for some boats’ emergency brake hooks to fully secure, as illustrated by the right photo above.
General Motors’ equivalents—the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500—rank somewhere in the middle. The receiver itself is satisfactory, lacking any notable design aspects (except this specific truck had a cover on it at the time). The connector for trailer brakes and lights is positioned up by the license plate within the bumper area, akin to other full-sizers, which is universally acceptable, but necessitates a longer cord than some older trailers may possess.
The safety chain hooks are circular and conveniently located next to the receiver in an easily accessible area. Most safety chains should fit without a hitch, but the openings aren’t particularly large, meaning that if a trailer features larger hooks, it might be snug between the safety chains and emergency brake connection. The area surrounding the hole isn’t excessively large, so a smaller S-hook for the emergency brake pull hasn’t presented issues in my experience.
Confusingly, holes have been punched into the receiver’s bracket near the bumper. These are definitely not intended for trailer safety chains, and a GM representative informed The Drive that these exist to “create space for the hitch pin.” In theory, this logic is sound, but in practice, the extra holes create some ambiguity regarding their purpose.
And that brings us to the leader of the pack: The Ford F-150. One might assume it would naturally possess the best towing configuration of the lot, but those people would be mistaken. Similar to the other full-size trucks, the light connection is located near the license plate, necessitating a sufficiently long cord. That’s typical at this point in the narrative. However, the safety chain connections are recessed underneath the bumper and angled. The angle of these facilitates clipping on, but their recessed position makes visibility more challenging. Consequently, you’ll likely find yourself on one knee or crouching low to secure the trailer’s chains. Ford may argue that this angled and recessed design allows for more space and room around the cotter pin. Probably, but it’s unnecessary and complicates the ability to see or attach those chains.
Ironically, the Ford F-150 Lightning featured a different receiver arrangement than the standard F-150. This was due to the necessity of repositioning the spare tire beneath the bed, resulting from the independent rear suspension and battery pack. The receiver configuration on the Lightning—which, as a reminder, is now discontinued—was, in some ways, much better than the standard F-150’s. The safety chain hooks were not recessed; they were front and center, directly next to the hitch pin. I’m sure Ford would contend this creates crowding for the hitch pin, but I never encountered an issue, and these attachments were far easier to see than the recessed and angled design. However, the flat bottom metal piece for the loop was overly thick, causing the emergency brake hook for the boat trailer (which is from 2017, a completely current trailer) to not clear over the metal bracket.
Ultimately, all these full-size trucks are more capable than the Honda Ridgeline in terms of attaching and towing. The Ridgeline is limited to hauling up to 5,000 pounds. Yet, it is clear that the design and implementation of receivers and safety chain hookups differ significantly, and Honda has again demonstrated how simplicity and functionality can prevail.
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