Praise the Lord for tow hitch

Got rear ended again tonight. Guy tried to run off but got his plates and PD got him to come back.

Second time getting rear ended, and second time that the tow hitch saved me from majority of damage. The plate near the gas tank did get banged pretty bad, and is also touching the gas tank now.

After getting rear ended the first time I considered getting a super bumper...now I'm going to buy one as soon as I get a new tow hitch and everything repaired...aiya!

Low hanging beefy tow hitches...helped me and my car!

Sorry to hear about the accident but glad damage was minor.

I'm kinda paranoid about driving mine till I get the hitch back on (removed to help Welder Guy make more). Hopefully I'll be running the SuperBumper again before Christmas.

Well I know 1 thing is for sure... When I installed the third brake light flasher unit And set the unit to flash a fast frequency for a longer than normal period, people stayed further away from the rear of the VX. It is a huge noticeable difference. Its almost as if the light pattern is not only completely unique to the surrounding environment but is "screaming" at the person behind me. I have tested this over and over while driving at a fast speed, I would tap the brakes for a few seconds to activate the third brake light and most of the time the drivers behind me will keep their current speed but switch lanes to get away from being behind me OR They will go around me. When I don't do this then I have traffic behind me like I would normally expect. I am now in the habit of when I see possible danger coming or vehicle slowing too fast, I will tap the brakes just enough to activate the lights and hold that for a couple of seconds to grab everyone's attention behind me and it works everytime.

Oh yea, and I also have had the tow hitch save the rear from lots of damage as well. When I am NOT towing anything I replace the hitch ball with a Rhino step bar (even better)...

http://www.truckaccessorizer.com/sto...hitch_step.htm

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Originally Posted by tysamigo

Oh yea, and I also have had the tow hitch save the rear from lots of damage as well. When I am NOT towing anything I replace the hitch ball with a Rhino step bar (even better)...

http://www.truckaccessorizer.com/sto...hitch_step.htm

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Glad you're OK Tookie! :thumbup:


I really like the look of the Rhino step, but decided to go with the Superbumper because it has a rubber cushioning/compression system specifically designed to absorb up to 20 mph impact without touching the rear of the car.

I've been hit twice with it installed (both in Las Vegas!! :_thinking)... the first time, the taxi driver veered to the left and missed the SB entirely and took out my left rear side (on a different car).
I talked to the owner of SB and told him this story about the cabbie missing the SB...he said that happens in about 12% of accidents....:goof:

After that accident I ordered the LARGER SB (18" wide vs 24" for more coverage!)

Then this past August for the calendar photo shoot, a guy just barely tapped me while stopping for a light, put a little dimple and cracked the black powdercoat on the SB....but it would have been my VX's back end w/o it!

Now I use the 18" as my sacrificial lamb trail protector when in Moab....and don't care how scratched up it gets!

I've found the SB is also very handy as a seat too.
It's goofy looking but you get used to it.http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_5018.JPG

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_5026.JPG

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_5023.JPG

My wife has the rhino step bar on her Trooper RS. I just leave the draw bar in my hitch all the time. But I am not so paranoid about getting rear ended, just about every car out there can stop faster than I can. Plus, a rear end collision is not likely to total out my truck, so I can keep the insurance money, and make her a dedicated trail truck:)

What is this "super bumper" ya'll are talking about??

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Originally Posted by givegodachance

What is this "super bumper" ya'll are talking about??

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the black horizontal bar hanging out of my hitch.

http://sparebumper.com/index.php
Actually the Superbumper is the model WITH a trailer ball built in, the one Tom, JAMAS and myself have is called the "Sparebumper"...but we just always call it SB, cuz that's the website name I guess.

The website is a bit cheesy and very BUSY and cluttered...the product is much better than their website design...:laugho:

If you watch the pictures cycling through down next to words "Safety & Protection", you'll see my Foxfire, and JAMAS' Ebony.

The owner guy is pretty cool, you can call and speak directly with him. Name is Jeff Mohr. He'll also negotiate a little on price if you ask! ;)

Watch the video there (from MotorWeek), it shows how it works. Basically it has some very hard rubber donuts tha go on outside of hitch, and some rubber cylinder pieces that go INSIDE the stinger, so between them, you get some shock absorption effect, as the slinger slides into the receiver. You can still put a lock on it too.

THIS IS 24" ON HUBBY'S FJ CRUISER.
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSCF1815.JPG


THIS IS AN 18"....I SUBSEQUENTLY GOT THE 24"
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_4880.JPG


HERE'S THE DAMAGE WHEN THE CABBIE VEERED LEFT AND MISSED MY 18" SB.
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_5979.JPG

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_5980.JPG


THIS IS THE 24" WITH 4" TUBE.
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_6742.JPG

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/DSC_5013.JPG

Tow hitch bumpers ROCK!

I'm on my third.....

Two bent ( so far ) when rear ended..

....saved BIG $$$$$'s in actual damage.

Messed up their vehicles pretty good though :o

jo