Stabilizers yes or no?

[bob5856]

Just picked up our 2013 Rockwood 2560G and towed it home this weekend without the aid of stabilizers or anything to distribute the weight. Seemed fine but I have to say with the 'over steer' of our tow vehicle (Toyota Sienna) I'm a little concerned if conditions weren't ideal it could get interesting when towing. Any thoughts or suggestions greatly appreciated.

[bikendan]

"Stabilizer" is the wrong term for what you're talking about.
Stabilizers are what you crank down when you are at the campsite.
What you're talking about are anti-sway bars and a WDH.
An anti-sway bar should ALWAYS be used if your tow vehicle is a minivan.
Your van's manual will specify how much tongue/trailer weight will require a WDH.

[SKnight]

Seeming fine or not, I'd always recommend a WDH and sway control sized for your unit. It just makes towing more pleasant.

[raspivey]

I had a 2280BH and never ran sway control. Having said that, all combos pull a little differently. After about six months I did get a WDH and it helped a huge amount on my softer suspension (Ridgeline). It felt much more solid. As stated, make sure it's sized for your tongue weight. It's really personal preference, but you may want to look at just a basic WDH instead of spending more on something with sway built in. The spring bars will provide "some" anti sway properties and you may not need anything more. If you do, a single friction sway bar is fairly cheap to add afterwards.

[dewitt76]

I have a Pontiac SV6 van and pull a Flagstaff HW26KS and use a WDH. Would really recommend the use of a WDH with any tow vehcile pulling a camper.

[bob5856]

To all, thanks for the help. After doing some more reading I will definitely need to use anti-sway control, not sure yet on the WDH still looking into that. Bob5856

[itat]

We used to pull a Coleman Santa Fe (10' box) with our '05 Sienna. It pulled perfectly fine without a WDH or anti-sway bars but we did add Airlift 1000 air bags to the rear suspension.

[raspivey]

Originally Posted by bob5856

To all, thanks for the help. After doing some more reading I will definitely need to use anti-sway control, not sure yet on the WDH still looking into that. Bob5856

Measure your wheel well height at the front hooked and unhooked. A WDH is primarily used to move the weight off of the hitch and onto the other wheels, not eliminate squat in the back (although that is a side effect). A lot of people don't realize that, depending on tongue weight / suspension / wheelbase / etc., the front end can be lifted and take control away from the rig. A long wheelbase truck with HD suspension may squat a few inches in back and the front end might not change at all. I pulled my old popup with a Ridgeline and the back end only dropped about 1.75", but the front actually came up just over an inch. Night and day handling difference after the new hitch. As a rule of thumb, I recommend a WDH any time the front end of your vehicle comes up more than a half inch when hooked up. You may find that improves your ride much more than just putting on sway control. If it were me, I'd measure first then go with the hitch if it looked like it would benefit. I'd see how it pulls and then add sway control if necessary.

Oh yeah, if you don't have a brake controller on it....WELL worth the money.

[phillip252]

Ok this is an interesting topic. So I can follow along, what is WDH?

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[raspivey]

Weight Distribution Hitch. Basically couter-levers using the tongue weight and pushes some of it towards the front wheels of the truck and the wheels of the camper.

[phillip252]

Ok, I am with you now.

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[dakranii]

My research led me to believe wdh on a popup towing with a minivan (08 Caravan) wasn't the best setup. After looking into options for a year and being set on a wdh, I eventually went instead with Airlift 1000 air bags, like a previous poster. I've put about 5 hours on the road so far and felt good with the setup so far. Granted, I'm new at this too, so I'm not bringing a wealth of info here.

[bikendan]

Reese makes a WDH specifically for popups/A-frames and other single axle trailers. it's well loved in the popup community.