A tow hook has a front portion extending forwardly from a front side of a side frame rail of an automotive vehicle and a rear portion received in a channel of the frame rail. The tow hook is releasably mounted to the side frame rail so that it releases at low impact force. The rear portion of each tow hook has at least one open slotted mounting member having a slot therein that extends rearwardly from an open front end of the slot. Each open slotted mounting member of the rear portion of each tow hook is secured to a wall of the side frame rail to which it is mounted. A vehicle has the tow hook mounted to a left side frame rail and another such tow hook mounted to a right side frame rail.

A tow hook has a front portion extending forwardly from a front side of a side frame rail of an automotive vehicle and a rear portion received in a channel of the frame rail. The tow hook is releasably mounted to the side frame rail so that it releases at low impact force. The rear portion of each tow hook has at least one open slotted mounting member having a slot therein that extends rearwardly from an open front end of the slot. Each open slotted mounting member of the rear portion of each tow hook is secured to a wall of the side frame rail to which it is mounted. A vehicle has the tow hook mounted to a left side frame rail and another such tow hook mounted to a right side frame rail.

The disclosed inventive concept provides a robust tow hook mounting structure for use with vehicles having curved frames in which the tow hook remains fixed to the vehicle during a front end impact event. The structure includes weld nuts aligned in a vehicle longitudinal direction. A frame reinforcement to which the tow hook is attached is welded to the front tip of the curved frame. Mounting bolts are aligned in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to secure the tow hook and the tow hook reinforcement to the frame weld nuts. The shear capacity of the mounting bolts is higher than the towing capacity and the crash load during an impact event. The structure generates high bending moments that trigger favorable bending deformations in the kick down area of the frame in which the structure functions as a backup arrangement in an impact event and reduces high crash pulses.

The disclosed inventive concept provides a robust tow hook mounting structure for use with vehicles having curved frames in which the tow hook remains fixed to the vehicle during a front end impact event. The structure includes weld nuts aligned in a vehicle longitudinal direction. A frame reinforcement to which the tow hook is attached is welded to the front tip of the curved frame. Mounting bolts are aligned in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to secure the tow hook and the tow hook reinforcement to the frame weld nuts. The shear capacity of the mounting bolts is higher than the towing capacity and the crash load during an impact event. The structure generates high bending moments that trigger favorable bending deformations in the kick down area of the frame in which the structure functions as a backup arrangement in an impact event and reduces high crash pulses.

In order to provide a trailer coupling in which the vehicle attachment unit is suitable for crumpling, it is proposed that the vehicle attachment unit should comprise a crumple unit, which is mountable on the vehicle rear below a bumper unit and has an impact body that extends transversely to a longitudinal center plane, which coincides with a vehicle longitudinal center plane, and deformation bodies arranged to either side of the longitudinal center plane, supporting the impact body in relation to the vehicle rear and maintaining a spacing therefrom, that the impact body of the crash unit should be connected to the trailer element, and that the crash unit should transmit to the vehicle rear all the forces that act on the trailer element when the trailer coupling is in use.

A vehicle rear body structure includes rear side frames extending along a front-rear direction, a trailer hitch fixedly provided in the rear side frames, a subframe between the rear side frames, a high voltage component on the subframe, and mounts supporting the high voltage component. The trailer hitch includes brackets fixed to the rear side frames respectively and having a length shorter than a height from the rear side frames to the subframe, a cross member between the brackets, a stay extending downward from the cross member, an arm extending rearward from the stay, a support shaft erecting on the arm, and a hitch ball provided on the support shaft below the rear side frames. The mounts include front mounts and a rear mount. A rotational moment is generated on a downward side where the trailer hitch collides with the rear mount at a collision from behind.