Why Does Hitch Extender Cut Capacity for Hitch but Longer Ball Mount Does Not

Updated 05/23/2018 | Published 05/22/2018

Question:

why should hitch extender e88YR derate towing capacity differently than a ball mount e88YR.The length of the lever bar is all that matters if both have same thickness metal.

asked by: Sylvester

Expert Reply:

Hitch extenders like the etrailer part # e88YR reduce hitch capacity for two reasons. One is the length like you mentioned and the other is amount of additional movement that they introduce to the hitch setup which puts quite a bit of stress on the setup. Also, ball mounts come in varying lengths so someone could end up using a very long ball mount with this which would add even more leverage.

expert reply by: Jameson C