Weight Distribution Hitch--Newbie Dumb ?

[jenbooks]

Do I need a weight distribution hitch if I'm buying a Casita, Spirit Deluxe (used), and I have an F150 supercab with 5 1/2 foot bed, 4.6 l engine, but some kind of souped up suspension (I honestly don't know what, but an experienced guy told me it allowed me to tow more)--and a good $200 hitch I had professionally installed?

I won't be towing in mountains or anything.

[Borrego Dave]

No, you won't need one with that truck but you will probably have to use a drop hitch stinger to get the right tow level for the trailer.

[mary and bob]

We don't use a WD hitch with our Casita 17 and Dodge Ram 1500. Maybe your truck has some kind of helper springs or air bags

[Paul O.]

Read the towing specs for the F150 as well as the weights for the Casita, but my gut feel is that you have plenty of towing margin.

[Jon in AZ]

Per http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...rld-43010.html, average weight of a loaded Casita 17' Deluxe is 3300 pounds with 425 pounds on the tongue.

[Joe Romas]

We tow with a Extended cab Silverado Z71 (4x4 package), 6'6" bed and 5.3 V8

Do we need a WDH, probably not but it sure makes for a smoother ride along with our OMW shock absorbers.
Chevy recommends a WHD at 600# tongue weight and I had the WDH and figure at just over 400# we're 3/4th the way to the recommended weight so why not.

[Bob Miller]

Quote: "but some kind of souped up suspension (I honestly don't know what, but an experienced guy told me it allowed me to tow more)--"


Adding suspension components may help the ride/stability/ride height, but the towing weight limit was pre-ordained by the manufacturer when the truck was built. What does the owners manual specify for a maximum towing limit?


If you don't have that, what is the year of your F-150?

[GMike A]

Whether or not a WDH is needed for this TOW I sure like the added protection of a sway bar.

[Dextersp1]

Originally Posted by jenbooks

Do I need a weight distribution hitch if I'm buying a Casita, Spirit Deluxe (used), and I have an F150 supercab with 5 1/2 foot bed, 4.6 l engine, but some kind of souped up suspension (I honestly don't know what, but an experienced guy told me it allowed me to tow more)--and a good $200 hitch I had professionally installed?

I won't be towing in mountains or anything.

I doubt it strongly.

I would drive around a bit to get the feel of towing before buying any add ons.

Also, first look at your TV next - good shocks, sway bar bushing, tires, tires on TV and TV inflated properly. That is probably a better investment.

[gordon2]

@ Dextersp1 That sounds like good advice to me.

One thing you can do is measure the height of your tow vehicle's front and rear well wells (all four of them) without the trailer, and then again with the trailer. In a perfect world, the difference between having a trailer and not having a trailer would be minimal. If its too much, a WDH can help reduce the difference in loading so that the front and rear of the tow vehicle remain level. Now, how much is too much, and how much you should live with before getting a WDH I do not know. Perhaps someone with more knowledge and experience can advise. But if you post those numbers, I suspect someone with a similar rig can chime in and offer some comparisons.

[Dextersp1]

Originally Posted by gordon2

@ Dextersp1 That sounds like good advice to me.

One thing you can do is measure the height of your tow vehicle's front and rear well wells (all four of them) without the trailer, and then again with the trailer. In a perfect world, the difference between having a trailer and not having a trailer would be minimal. If its too much, a WDH can help reduce the difference in loading so that the front and rear of the tow vehicle remain level. Now, how much is too much, and how much you should live with before getting a WDH I do not know. Perhaps someone with more knowledge and experience can advise. But if you post those numbers, I suspect someone with a similar rig can chime in and offer some comparisons.

True - I forgot to add, proper hitch ball height.

[jenbooks]

Thanks, all. I have the wdh and sway bar. I need to get my truck wired for brakes on the casita. I'm a total newbie so may have more questions.


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[MC1]

Originally Posted by jenbooks

I have an F150 supercab with 5 1/2 foot bed, 4.6 l engine, but some kind of souped up suspension

Nice! In these parts vehicles are often modified to get them to handle and perform better when used as TV's. A quality suspension system is one of the key elements in getting the TV work optimally.

Originally Posted by jenbooks

Thanks, all. I have the wdh and sway bar. I need to get my truck wired for brakes on the casita. I'm a total newbie so may have more questions.
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I am impressed with your setup and the attention to detail. The wdh and sway bar working together will firm up the connection and in many cases will add a margin of safety to your towing experience. Also good to see your trailer has brakes and you are getting them set up.

I don't subscribe to the minimalist's approach of....
"you will get by with just....."
or "it will be fine",
or " most of the time, it will do".

[trumpetguy]

Don't rely on the owners manual for towing limits. There will be a decal near your hitch receiver that lists the hitch limits with and without WDH. You may need to get on the ground and look up but it will be there. I was surprised to learn how much the hitch specifications differed from the ones listed in my owners manual. I do use the Anderson hitch with my Oliver 23.5, but it is over kill.

Before the Oliver we towed a 17 foot Casita SD with a Saturn Outlook and no WDH. No issues at all. Just be certain to balance your load in the Casita. Water, food, etc. toward the rear will be a problem.


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[Bob Miller]

[QUOTE=trumpetguy;525588]Don't rely on the owners manual for towing limits. There will be a decal near your hitch receiver that lists the hitch limits with and without WDH. You may need to get on the ground and look up but it will be there. I was surprised to learn how much the hitch specifications differed from the ones listed in my owners manual. I do use the Anderson hitch with my Oliver 23.5, but it is over kill.


PLEASE.... NOT TRUE

The sticker on the hitch is the rating for the hitch, not the vehicle to which it is attached, even on factory installed hitches.

As in the example I have offered before...

On my Chevy Blazer the hitch capacity sticker by GM is labeled as being 3000 lbs. direct and 6000 lbs. with a WDH.

But, the owners manual clearly states 8 different towing capacities, from as low as 2000lbs to as high as 5700 lbs., based on the body, transmission, driveline and other options, yet all have the same hitch installed by the factory. And BTW: all have the same engine.

If you look at trailer hitch ratings in catalog listings they are almost always based on the hitch class, not on the capacity of the vehicle that they fit.

For towing limits, always refer to the owners manual for the specific vehicle you are using.

That said, as it is possible to install a hitch with a lower capacity than the vehicles towing capacity, in that case the lower number always rules.

[Joe Romas]

Originally Posted by trumpetguy

Don't rely on the owners manual for towing limits. There will be a decal near your hitch receiver that lists the hitch limits with and without WDH.
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David,

That's only half true!
It depends if it's a factory installed or aftermarket.
The aftermarket one will say something to the effect of "not to exceed factory limits".

Joe

[trumpetguy]

As usual there are opinions on every subject. Believe what you wish, but there was a long dialogue about hitch limits over on the Oliver forum. I actually called the Chevrolet help line and was told to rely on the label at the hitch...not the owners manual.


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[Bob Miller]

Originally Posted by trumpetguy

As usual there are opinions on every subject. Believe what you wish, but there was a long dialogue about hitch limits over on the Oliver forum. I actually called the Chevrolet help line and was told to rely on the label at the hitch...not the owners manual.


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This just goes to prove that you can find the answer you want to almost any question, if you look long enough for it....

I am afraid that your are a party of very, very few to choose to ignore the towing values in the manual for a specific vehicle, over a hitch sticker, especially when they differ as much as the example I have in front of me and have cited. I don't think that GM filled an entire page in the owners manual with different towing specifications and values when they could have just said "Look at the sticker on the hitch" > NOT

Page 4-53, "Weight of the trailer" in my owners manual clearly states:
"The following charts shows how much your trailer can weigh, based on your vehicle model and options"

While you might have gotten that incorrect answer once from a GM rep, I doubt if you would get it again and, if you do, get a name and we will get that employee re-educated before it lead to an accident, injury or even death.

Can you in all honesty tell someone to put a 700 lb. hitch load on a vehicle that is rated to no more than 200 lbs. hitch weight?

BUT, failing that, ask two other somewhat disinterested persons for their "opinion" about ignoring specifications in the owners manual, your insurance agent and your attorney.

What's shown in the owners manual isn't opinion, it's fact, and in court, in a liability suit, will be seen as the letter of the law if ignored.

[trumpetguy]

i'm done here.


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[Bob Miller]

About the same range of towing limits applies for the 2011 Avalanche.
Depending on model and equipment, the maximum towing limit is between 4900 lbs. and 8100 lbs. per page 9-77 of the Owners Manual:
https://www.chevrolet.com/content/da...che_owners.pdf
As this horse appears to be dead, I'm getting off...