Oem tow hitch or is aftermarket Ok?

I am looking to get a tow hitch for the back of my truck, and I have found a ton online. The one from toyota seems to be higher price of course. Is it worth the extra dinero for the OEM tow hitch? Are there any benefits such as plug and play with oem vs after market for the tow wiring? Please help, Newb here.

Thanks TW members!

 

In my research the toyota one is better constructed than even some of the nicer aftermarket options. I was initially looking at a Curt from Vato-Zone for around $135 which is rated to IIRC 5000# which is more than what I could tow with my truck, but decide to wait and look for a deal. Eventually I found a take-off OEM toyota hitch on Offer-Up App for 125 bucks which was cheaper than the aftermarket ones.

 

I had an aftermarket (curt) tow hitch on my 1st gen for 13 years with no problem at all. If I remember correctly, it was half the price as OEM. Pulled my camper just fine.

 

I come across posts selling their OEM hitch usually for around $200 or less with the bumper. Seen it for as low as $50 and even come across free. Search and wait.

 

Yea, I was thinking about 2 birds with one stone and just get a rear protective bumper with a hitch built in.

 

The hitch and the wiring are SEPARATE. You need to buy them both.
An aftermarket hitch is fine as long as it is well constructed. OEM hitch is nothing special.
For the wiring though, the OEM wiring is considerably better than aftermarket. Aftermarket wiring plugs into your tail lights, so if you short out your trailer, it will take your tail lights out with it. OEM wiring adds fuses and relays up at the front of the truck, and is completely independent of the tail lights, so short out your trailer and your tail lights will keep working normally. In the event that you don't notice, it is a lot safer having *something* lighting out the back, than nothing.

 

If you're interested in an OEM receiver I'm selling one off my 2012 Tacoma. It's located in Reno NV.

 

Pm me i would be interested

 

They're all pretty much the same.