Towing modifications?

[Clyde9]

From: Graham  (Original Message)   
Sent: 8/19/2004 3:31 AM


I'm sorry but almost all the postings about towing are beyond my poor brain and I really do appreciate the expertise out there.

My pending divorce is likely to leave me with my winnie, a daily use vehicle, my tools, spares and odd personal bits and pieces.

My "current" plan - changes almost daily, is to sell my Rover Sd1, buy a small land-rover and a 20' trailer and use the winnie to tow the trailer with land-rover and "wordly goods, on board.

I am simplifying my life and want to use the land-rover and trailer to earn a few extra bucks by doing some household removals and possibly car transportation.  The trailer has tandem 6000 lb axles and 8 bolt wheels with tires rated at over 3000 lb.  The unladen weight of the trailer is about 3000lb and the land rover is about 3000 lb.

I'm told the land-rover can easily tow the trailer with or without a hitch equalizer, with a ball or pintle hitch.

My questions are...

What is the maximum loaded weight I can safely and legally tow if I fit a class IV or V hitch to the MH?

Would I be able to tow more if I changed the rear springs and tires -  currently "Michelin X  Radials R17.5 XCA tubeless Max load dual 2450 lb @ 70 psi cold" and I assume the springs are standard. There is a ball hitch but only a class I.

Would a load equalizer hitch affect the ride quality of the MH and is it necessary?

I think that's about it - I'm very tired and apologise if this incomplete info.

Many thanks and God bless, Graham



From:HeavyHaulTrucker   
Sent: 8/19/2004 11:17 PM


Grahm, sorry to hear about the divorce... been there.

As for towing with the Winnie, it should do the job with little problem with a couple of modifications.

The operative word here is "tongue weight" -- the amount of weight actually put on the hitch through weight distribution from the trailer.  A class 4 equalizing hitch would allow you to put (I believe) 1200 lbs tongue weight (12,000 lbs towing weight) and the class 5 hitch would allow you 1400 lbs tongue weight.  Now, with the weight distribution of the Winnie, I wouldn't go that heavy on the tongue weight -- and from what you have said, it would seem that a standard class III hitch would fit the bill perfectly (1000 lbs tongue weight, 10000 lbs towing weight).  And, since you will be pulling the trailer with the Land Rover also, a class III would be perfect for it as well.

As for the type of hitch, with this amount of weight I would go with a pintle hitch attachment for the receiver.  Without a doubt.

Yes, I would add a couple of leafs to the rear springs (a good spring shop can do this for a modest fee -- probably a couple of hundred bucks, if you bring in the springs) and get some beefier tires; my Winnie has Yokohama 8-17.5 789 Hiway tires all around.  They are rated (at 80 psi) for 4700 lbs each in dual configuration (yes, a bit of overkill for a 21' Brave I guess) and they wear very well.  At Big O Tires in Broomefield, CO they were $165.00 each, and worth it in my opinion.

Don't forget a brake controller -- a trailer that heavy is required to have brakes on both axles, so you will need a controller box in the coach.

John



From:PhÃ¥rÃ¥oh   
Sent: 3/14/2006 8:08 AM


An option to going through the extreme hassle and expense of adding leaf springs is to add a rear air bag suspension which will add 1,500 lb towing capacity, restore ride and handling, and keep your arse-end from dragging on the arse-fault.  Use the message search to get the details on the set-up I added to the PhÃ¥rÃ¥oh's Chariot.  It was well worth it!