Did all 2014-21 tundras come with receiver hitch/bumper?

Really curious if my 2018 SR 4.6 BASE was available WITHOUT a hitch and just a regular old bumper.? I never trailer anything with my truck and don’t want this mess underneath my truck dragging in the woods.. any information wold be epic

 

Just so I'm clear,
Why exactly do you want to know if they came without the tow setup, if you already own a truck? Would you trade?
Or are you just wondering if it's okay to remove yours without any ill effect?
I can go dbl check, but I'm pretty sure you can unbolt the hitch from the frame and remove it.

 

Looks like it was standard equipment on my 2014 SR5..


Welcome to the forum..

 

No, you can't, it supports the rear bumper.
Probably has something to do with rear-end collision protection as well.
It would require a lot of work to remove the hitch, unless one would just 'cut' it out..

 

It came from the factory with the hitch standard. However the truck will not have a trailer brake controller or tow haul mode.

 

Well, that sucks

 

I've never towed anything in the 9 years I've owned it, but I do use the tow-haul button sometimes..

 

I've never given it much thought or thoroughly inspected that area. I use the hitch on occasion so never looked into how to remove it.
On that same note, I've never looked into an aftermarket rear bumper, but I've seen pics of a few that have a hitch built in.
The new question would be if it's worth all the work and expense of removing the rear bumper and hitch to replace with an aftermarket bumper, for an extra little bit of approach angle clearance.

 

Not just worth it, but almost mandatory if you offroad. Makes the difference between dragging your hitch on just about every tiny incline and never touching at all. And these pics are with 37’s. Smaller tires are even worse.

 

That looks like a factory bumper.
Any idea how they pulled off removing the hitch and keeping the bumper?

 

Standard equipment for 2018 SR5

 

The hitch is still on the factory bumper. Just can’t see it from the angle of the pic. But yes, the hitch assembly acts as a crossmember and supports the frame. Definitely don’t want to just remove the entire thing without welding in some kind of X brace.