Advisibility of using weight distribution hitch: pros and cons

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by Carol H

Well Francesca as Toyota is no long offering it, it would seem Toyota agrees with you

I'd like to think that Toyota's change of "heart" is due to some desire to truthfully state towing capacity, but...

I think it has more to do with Toyota's voluntary participation in the new "SAE Towing Standards" agreed on by the biggest players in the tow-vehicle industry. (Read all about the testing parameters at this link) It's most likely that even the 6-cyl RAV 4 simply can't pass the test for the previously advertised load. Toyota's early adoption of the standard for the Tundra has earned it tons of good-guy points....probably they're extending their voluntary participation to all Toyota vehicles.

Toyota is the first to use the standard. It already applied it to the Tundra. The Tundra's claimed towing capacity decreased, but its credibility grew.

Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford and GMC full-size pickups are expected to adopt the test during the 2013 model year, which begins Jan. 1, 2012. Nissan will use the standard someday, but won't say when or on which vehicles.

Every truck tested to the standard can say its towing capacity is SAE rated. That's the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval when it comes to vehicle performance. The SAE is the leading independent body for vehicle standards and tests.

The towing standard is not mandatory. No manufacturer has to use it. If they don't, though, the figures they claim for towing capacity will be less credible and more open to challenge than their competitors'.

From : Pickup makers agree to standard test for towing ratings

It's my belief that derating of the RAV4 is due less to its being downsized to only four cylinders than to the probability that the 6 cyl. version presently out there would have to be substantially derated if subjected to the new tests. And that would make folks that bought one to tow 3500 pounds very unhappy!

Unhappy customers are not repeat customers...

Francesca

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Nancy

our Scamp has always been up close to our tow vehicle with a short draw bar. Noticed parked to another same size Scamp their draw bar was further back. Never gave it much though until now. When I looked at the variety of draw bars it is obvious that we have a short one.

Yes, some draw bars are rediculously too long which in many ways is a negative.

On our Nissan Van we had the local welding shop redrill the draw bar to get the ball as close to the back bumper as possible. Only cost a few dollars.

[rabbit]

Excerpt from UHaul's Safe Trailering Policy and Guidelines:

The weight-distributing hitch has the advantage of reducing that portion of an excessively heavy tongue load borne by the rear of the car and distributing parts of this load to the front of the car and to the rear of the trailer. Overadjustment of the weight-distributing hitch can decrease the effectiveness of the tow car's rear suspension, disturb the weight distribution of the trailer, and transmit tremendous forces through the car thus bending, warping, ripping or weakening the car's frame, subframe or unitized body. It is very important to install and adjust the weight-distributing hitch according to instructions for the specific product in use, and the attachment points should be checked for damage periodically.

Mention of unitized body is certainly germaine to the tv in this discussion. I happen to think that light gauge tubular frames in sub-2 ton trailers might also be worthy of some consideration. You CAN employ a WDH to "jack" a sagging tv rear end and increase the vertical rigidity of the hitch/tongue connection. But should you?

If "leveling" is not the primary function of the WDH, will you be "overadjusting" if you use it to this effect? Think back to the photo, mentioned by an early poster to this thread, of a sixties sedan attached to its trailer with a "trailerwaver" hitch and the drive wheels removed.

It's your dollar and "their" expert, folks and this includes Can-Am, UHaul, U-nameit. Exercise caution in a search for one-stop trailer-towing panaceas. As has been stated, the best one-stop answer is a tow vehicle of adequate weight, wheelbase, springing, and horsepower to handle your trailer.

jack

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by rabbit

Excerpt from UHaul's Safe Trailering Policy and Guidelines:

I think Jack's reference above is to the document at THIS LINK, and I think it to be very good reading for all folks towing trailers of any size/type!

Francesca

[rabbit]

Woodalls Open Roads Forum: Travel Trailers: Bent TT A-frame

Worth the reading, sports fans.

jack

[Ken C]

Members Cherie and Paul had their WDH bending their Tow vehicle frame if I remember right on their blog.

[Jared J]

Exactly why I brought up soft suspension. With a wd hitch, that puts a lot of stress on the trailer/vehicle frame/body/axles, if the rear axle isn't supporting the weight it should. If you add rough hilly ground, even more so. They have their place, but they're not a towing cure-all for small rigs.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Gee, I wonder what the trucks and buses and trains use, clean diesel fuel? I doubt it!!!

Here in BC in particular Vancouver/Whistler area the transit buses are moving away from diesel so we have a large number of transit buses running Hydrogen Fuel cell or Natural gas or electric. Currently Whistler has the biggest fleet of Hydrogen Fuel cell buses in the world. Many of the Down town Vancouver transit buses are electric.

[cpaharley2008]

Another reason why I like Canada, fresher air.

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Another reason why I like Canada, fresher air.

That's because there are so many fewer people breathing it!

Francesca

[gmw photos]

Originally Posted by rabbit

Woodalls Open Roads Forum: Travel Trailers: Bent TT A-frame

Worth the reading, sports fans.

jack

....yes, this sports fan read that, and what I read was a user who not only drilled holes in his trailer frame, thus, likely weakening it in a critical stress location, and in addition was using trunnion bars rated too high.
And then he acts surprised the frame bent ?
A WDH is like anything else, the user needs to choose the right tool for the job, and deploy it correctly.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Jared J

They have their place, but they're not a towing cure-all for small rigs.

Re WDH..... Agree.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by gmw photos

A WDH is like anything else, the user needs to choose the right tool for the job, and deploy it correctly.

Couldn't have said it better myself. A good post!

[honda03842]

The first post contains the following statement by Bob Miller:

"What's a "Weight Reduction Hitch" and how does it work?
I wanna get one of those so I can pull a larger trailer with my Honda."

I did not notice if you mentioned the specific larger trailer that you want to tow or the particular Honda that you tow with. Facts and numbers might help responders.

We tow with a small vehicle, keep the tongue light, have a sway bar and keep the ball particularly close to the rear of the Honda. This combination serves to reduce the effect of the tongue on the rear of the tow vehicle and maintains the tow vehicles close to it's normal position.

We have not had a sway problem and find our Scamp 16 (probably smaller than your desire for a larger trailer) tows very well, gets good mileage and has been very reliable.

I particularly think the refeernce to Can-AM RV to be a valuable one.

Safe Travels

[Francesca Knowles]

Originally Posted by honda03842

The first post contains the following statement by Bob Miller:

"What's a "Weight Reduction Hitch" and how does it work?
I wanna get one of those so I can pull a larger trailer with my Honda."

I did not notice if you mentioned the specific larger trailer that you want to tow or the particular Honda that you tow with. Facts and numbers might help responders.

Bob was kidding around, Norm- there's no such thing as a "weight reduction hitch", as we all know! The previous poster who'd used the term meant "weight distributing hitch" and said so a few posts later....get it?

I guess this is what comes from splitting a subject off from another thread!

Francesca

[rabbit]

Precisely right George, owner drilled holes to retain tension brackets on the frame. There is user feedback on Reese wdh elsewhere which describes brackets moving on the frame, bending, etc. Buyer beware of a product about which YOU need to know a lot more than the rep/distributor/installer can tell you. There are many such products sketchily-supported by the quote/unquote industry (read rv biz).

Jared has described the precise situation (vee culvert crossing, abrupt street to driveway angle) that gets folks in trouble with these hitches. How many users KNOW to let the tension off those bars BEFORE backing? How many will remember to do so when the situation occurs? Consequences are much worse than dragging a tongue jack but you may be the operator who has everything and does everything right.

jack

[Francesca Knowles]

Just one more example of the wisdom of matching tug-to-tow to begin with...

I got in to trailering because it made camping EASIER...and I'll be blowed if I'll add complications back in by having to deal with mechanical compensators just to get to the camp spot!

Francesca

[gmw photos]

Originally Posted by rabbit

Precisely right George, owner drilled holes to retain tension brackets on the frame. There is user feedback on Reese wdh elsewhere which describes brackets moving on the frame, bending, etc. Buyer beware of a product about which YOU need to know a lot more than the rep/distributor/installer can tell you. There are many such products sketchily-supported by the quote/unquote industry (read rv biz).

Jared has described the precise situation (vee culvert crossing, abrupt street to driveway angle) that gets folks in trouble with these hitches. How many users KNOW to let the tension off those bars BEFORE backing? How many will remember to do so when the the the situation occurs? Consequences are much worse than dragging a tongue jack but you may be the operator who has everything and does everything right.

jack

Jack,
Yes, and had the user in that case welded the brackets to the trailer frame, and been using the correct weight bars, there is probably a pretty good chance his frame would still be just fine. Welding the brackets is generally one of the accepted methods supported by the hitch manufacturers.
I would add to your comment about the rv biz. When I was looking to buy a WD hitch, I stopped by our local hitch shop. The nice lady told me the only hitch bars they sell were 1200 pound bars, and that "they would work just fine" for my application. I politely thanked her and turned around and walked out. The correct bars for my combination is 550 bars, which is what I ended up buying (from another shop) with my BlueOx swaypro.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Carol H

Well Francesca as Toyota is no long offering it, it would seem Toyota agrees with you

Toyota is no longer offering - at least for 2013 - the V6, with its corresponding engine cooling capacity and transmission. I have seen no information to suggest that this marketing choice has anything to do with towing, related to weight distribution hitches or otherwise.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Jared J

epa says they're too dirty. I wish they would, look at what europe has.

The reality is that the US EPA is intimately familiar with Euro standards and products available in the market. Now, back to WDH sytems?