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Old 06-22-2016, 07:05 PM   #21
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Name: Jack L
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Tires, tire pressure, and to much or to little tongue weight and hitch height are the first (and easiest) things to check and rule out. Before spending hundreds of dollars on a WDH that you may not even need, checking the basics is a good way to go.
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Old 06-22-2016, 10:06 PM   #22
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Originally Posted by Jane H. View Post
Am I crazy to think that if the anti-skid brakes the car when you're towing, the trailer brakes should also engage?
Many trailer brake systems rely on a movement of the brake pedal to begin braking the trailer just before the brakes engage on the tow vehicle. I am not familiar with the system on the Durango, and don't own any vehicles new enough to have those kind of systems, but I have rented them. The braking on at least one model did not engage the brake pedal, it was otherwise controlled.

If your trailer braking system uses the direct link to the brake pedal to brake the trailer, this may explain your issue.

Another thought: check your owner's manual to see what it says about trailer towing modes. You may need to de-activate certain features to tow safely.

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Old 06-23-2016, 08:02 AM   #23
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Jane, I reread this whole thread. I can't imagine how frightening your experience must have been, and unless I could find and fix the cause, I would not tow with this combination again, either. You have a substantial amount of money invested in the trailer and vehicle (sweet!!!), so it may be time to involve a professional hitch specialist to help you figure out what went wrong and get it set up right. I have to believe it can be fixed, and I am thankful nothing worse happened so that you have another chance!

It seems to me there are two possibilities: either trailer sway is causing the ESC to activate (most likely), or the ESC is activating for some other reason and causing the sway.

Taking the second possibility first, if the ESC is initiating the sway condition, I can think of several possible reasons. (1) The WDH was improperly adjusted and allowing some wheel slippage on an inside wheel during cornering (at the front if under-tensioned or at the back if over-tensioned). (2) The trailer brakes and/or controller are not adjusted correctly, causing an unexpected tug or jerk on the vehicle and activating the ESC (but you said you didn't touch the brakes, before or during? the incident… hmmm…). (3) The ESC is malfunctioning or improperly set for towing, as Vic suggests. If you haven't already, a careful read-through of everything in your owner's manual about the ESC system and towing would be a good start. Your Durango R/T was designed as a high-performance vehicle, so the ESC may be programmed differently from the run-of-the-mill systems in other vehicles. It wouldn't hurt to have a conversation with a Dodge technical specialist. If they don't return calls, a letter might be in order.

On the other hand, if sway is the initiating factor, it has to have a cause. A number of them have been mentioned: low tongue weight, nose-high attitude, excessive speed, wrong tire type or low pressure, shifting weight (water sloshing in a half-filled tank, for example), improper cargo loading, faulty trailer design, to name a few.

If it were me, I would start with some baseline data regarding the tongue and axle weights of this trailer, preferably loaded for travel. I would definitely want to understand more about the ESC and towing systems on this specialty vehicle. If the brake controller is built-in, I'd want to understand how it works in tandem with the ESC system. In a sway situation, you really don't want vehicle braking without trailer braking. And I would seriously consider working with a hitch specialist in your area to choose and set up the WDH.

Best wishes, and don't quit just yet!
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Old 06-24-2016, 06:13 PM   #24
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Thanks for all of the comment and suggestions. I am reading and rereading them all.

Sorry for the delay in responding. I was really down yesterday. I've read the manual again and the only new info I got was that I should hear a noise while the anti-skid is active. I never heard a noise. The towing info is a half page with the weights for each engine and model. No help there. By the way, my RV guy hitched the trailer the second time I had the problem.

The good news is that my insurance company is sending an investigator to look into the problem. I hope he can figure it out. I'll post it if I get a definitive answer.
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Old 06-25-2016, 07:45 AM   #25
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Equalizer vs. Fast way E2 hitch?

Sure hope they can uncover some additional data to shed light on this puzzling situation. Disappointing to hear Chrysler doesn't return calls. Your vehicle is one of their premier models. I'd keep pursuing them- maybe after insurance completes their investigation and you take some time to recover. Keep us posted.
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Old 06-25-2016, 08:24 AM   #26
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I would send Chrysler a registered letter. It's much harder to ignore than a phone call.
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Old 07-15-2016, 09:42 AM   #27
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Equalizer vs. Fast way E2 hitch?

I have a 2014 Jeep GC, virtually the same vehicle as a Durango. If the computer detects trailer sway it will brake one of the wheels to TRY to correct the sway. Sounds like your system is malfunctioning. There is no 'adjustment' or 'tow-haul' switch.

The towing package includes self leveling rear shocks. They aren't air shocks but adjust themselves up (or down) over the course of a couple of miles of driving.

I don't know much about WDH but don't they have to be adjusted to apply the correct "virtual" tongue weight. If so and the hitch was grossly out of adjustment the car might have been trying but was unable to correct the sway. You have a stout tow vehicle with plenty of capacity, weight and wheel base to easily tow a 21' trailer (360 hp, 7200 # trailer weight limit). Either the ESC is malfunctioning or the WDH is set up wrong.


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Old 07-15-2016, 10:22 AM   #28
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Originally Posted by MCDenny View Post
I have a 2014 Jeep GC, virtually the same vehicle as a Durango. If the computer detects trailer sway it will brake one of the wheels to TRY to correct the sway. Sounds like your system is malfunctioning. There is no 'adjustment' or 'tow-haul' switch.
Personally would disconnect any system on the vehicle that resulted in it applying brakes to the vehicle only when towing.

Its a pretty well known that applying brakes to the vehicle when a trailer is swaying is the perfect recipe for a full out fish tail as the OP experienced. If and when a trailer starts to sway applying brakes to the vehicle will make things worse - thats the reason for the lever on the brake controller that allows you to apply brakes to the trailer only, if and when it starts to sway. Applying brakes to the trailer only is a much safer way to stop the sway.

If I was the OP I would download the instructions from the WDH manufacturer and make sure it really is set up correctly. Not only does the trailer need to be level but equally as important is the tow vehicle needs to be level. If the tow vehicles front end is high it will result in a very sloppy tow.

Recently had a new WDH installed by my trailers dealer. While I paid for the install I noted that the employee doing the install was measuring the trailer all the way around to make sure it was level but not measuring the front wheel well of the vehicle - he just stood back and eye balled it. They assured me it was good to go although I suspected it was not as it looked to me that the front end of the truck was a bit to high. Sure enough I got out on the highway and it was NOT a nice solid tow - to wiggly/sloppy feel for my liking. Pulled into a rest stop found a flat spot and reset the whole thing, so not only was the trailer level but so was the truck. Much better!!
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Old 07-15-2016, 02:01 PM   #29
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Another thought: adjusting the WDH properly with a self leveling rear suspension may be more complex. I know vehicles with air suspension require you to do something special with the suspension settings to set the WDH bar tension right.

Does your Durango have air suspension?


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