Advice for towing sag and sway, pulling 7700lb travel trailer

i have a 2017 5.7 4x4 crewmax.

Looking at a travel trailer with gvwr of 7700#’s
Hitch weight of 710#’s. 30’ long.
I am worried about sag but sway more.
Will an equalizer set up help both of these? Or am I going to need air shocks also?

I will be doing a ton of traveling all over the U.S. and I want to make sure I have the right set up.

Thanks in advance.

 

I have almost the exact trailer you describe. I'm running an equalizer hitch to help with sway, air bags to help with squat and load e tires.

It's a rock-solid towing platform but loves gas.

 

We have 30FT TT GVWR is 9400LBS.

Weight distribution hitch and a Harbor freight Anti sway bar installed. Tows like a dream.
EDIT- Currently have spring helpers installed but will be adding a leaf as well to help with squat.


We tow this trailer daily since it is our current residence after the fire.

 

Another thumbs up for the equalizer here. Very adjustable. Handles weight distribution and sway duties all in one. And you can backup with it connected.

I have Sumo Springs for squat/bottoming. I find that the sumo springs do a good job of not letting the rear end wallow over things like bridge transitions.

 

I was going to say Sumo Springs or Timbrens for the sag, but if you going to tow a lot I would purchase air bags. Having on board air also comes in handy for other things. Not sure what your budget is but you cant go wrong with any of the previous commenter's setup.

 

WELCOME!

 

Great thread, thanks. My family is looking to buy around a 28 footer or so. I'll be watching this.

 

We are looking to switch to a 5th wheel to put behind our crewmax. (5th wheel is possible with a short bed!)

 

2019 heartland prowler 30lx 33ft 11in and close to 6800lbs. Weight distribution hitch and sway bar, pulls like a champ!

 

That trailer is a beast! I am good with our 27', that's as big as I am willing to go (I know that's what she said).

 

Thanks buddy, 2 bedroom etc heated under belly pretty much solid, was going to go with a 38ft, but that's alot of length with truck and trailer.

 

Pulling a Rockwood Ultra light 30ft travel trailer. Installed the Timbrens along with my centerline weight distribution hitch. So far so good! Slight sag but no issues while driving. Side note: also have the Bilsteins adjustable front shocks installed to level my ride too.

 

Ive compared the idea of airbags vs sumo springs. The one thing I don’t understand. Sumo springs only assist after your suspension is compressed, where as airbags bring you back up to the level you want to ride at. Which seems far more effective

 

True. I think the main reason a lot of us picked Sumo or Timbren is if the air bags fail or spring a leak then you’re stuck. The timbrens won’t eliminate 100% of the sag, but definitely will aide in the sag. They are reasonable in cost. Good luck

 

Have you checked to see if your front fenders remain at the same height after hitching the trailer?

 

You can get a Airlift Loadlifter 5000 Ultimate they run $289 and it’s lifetime warranty. That doesn’t help if you spring a leak at the time, but it is nice to know they will replace it. My father-in-law has them on his f450 for his fifth wheel and loves them.

 

A properly setup wd hitch with the proper weight rated bars can level out a setup like that . Dont trust rv dealers to have a clue what they are doing in terms of setting up a wd hitch , do the research and do it yourself !

 

I have a heartland mallard m33. Its 36 feet long and right around 9k loaded up. With my old truck, 14 platinum it towed great. The new truck, 19 crewmax trd or, not so much. The softer suspension and taller sidewall tires are what I believe are the issue with the new truck. It still does ok with the equalizer hitch, but the platinum felt way more planted in the corners and took the bumps in the road better. Pic is when I picked it up with the old truck. They were setting up the hitch, so it's not actually hooked up in the picture, the squat was minimal though

 

This is my setup, Springdale 260tbe 28.5’ overall and 7600 gvwr but loaded for travel I’m right at 6000lbs with 750 lbs of tongue weight gives me just enough payload for the hitch and family on the truck. Tows amazing with no sway at all and very minimal push in high winds with a basic weight distribution hitch and friction sway bar.

 

So Glad I found this forum. I have a 2020 TSS Off Road, with the 5.7 motor, I pull a 29 ft. Crossroad Longhorn, with max weight of 9600#. I have installed sumo springs and use the equalizer hitch. My question is that motor seems to run at high RPMS on the high way, the motor only claims down at around 63mph. It there a chip or any recommendations to pull more efficient power from the motor, with out give up fuel millage that is already at 8 MPG while towing.

 

Drive in S mode locked to 5th with tow haul on, shift down to 4th before inclines. At 65mph you should be just over 2000rpm in 5th and just under 3000rpm in 4th. I average around 11mpg this way.

Obviously any big hills and you’ll be in 3rd around 4000rpm.
Gas motors need to rev to make power. Also a stiff enough head or side wind will keep me in 4th even on flat ground unless I drop to 55-60 mph.

Another thing I’ve found on moderate hills I can pull them in 4th if I start at 65mph but if I start at 60 The truck will drop to 3rd. I assume this is due to the truck have quite a bit more power at 3000 rpm compared to 2500rpm.

 

Nice looking rig ! Looks a little low in the nose of the trailer and the rear of the truck . Maybe increase the distribution by one chain link .

 

it’s about 3/4-1/2 in low in the nose while towing. The picture is a little deceiving because my driver rear tire is in a little bit of a hole.
That’s with the weight distribution set up to where I have to have to hitch up the trailer and use the jack to lift truck and trailer together to latch the chains. My problem is I need a “half” adjustment on the shank of my hitch, my next adjustment up puts me a little nose high. I plan on lifting the truck a 1/2 in in the rear with some 1” shackles which should bring right up to level.

 

oh ok yes i see , I actually had the same issue with my last wd system . I upgraded to an E2 trunnion style wd hitch when I upgraded my trailer . it has built in anti-sway . Really love it !

 

My plan was always to upgrade my hitch to an e2 or similar but didn’t have the extra cash because we wanted to pay for the trailer with cash and this trailer took every bit of our budget and then some, but after towing a couple thousand miles with this set up I don’t think I will. (Don’t fix it if it isn’t broken) my biggest issue with my setup is that my friction bar is noisy, Its gotten a bit more quiet since new and I hope it quiets down some more. If not I may put some dry wax lube or something on it even though your not supposed to.

 

At 9600# that is a lot of weight. Are you towing in S4 with tow haul on? Also, be aware toyota removed the transmission cooler starting in 2019. There is a post on here where someone put together a parts list to add a cooler to a 19

We are driving from texas to florida today, i am able to use S5 only because i have re-geared the truck with 5.29s, while on 34" tires. I am running 2600 rpm at 65mph and 2800rpm at 70mph.

For the OP, i am running an equalizer 1K WDH and have a TRD rear sway bar, removed the front sway bar.

 

Usually just using the tow haul mode, was unaware the trans cooler was removed. Guess I'll start doing research on that now. Thanks for the input

 

Thanks for the advice, was worried I was working the motor too hard, but guess I'm not.

 

I’d say as long as your not constantly running over 3k rpm your not stressing the motor to much

 

Everything I have researched, the equalizer is the best since it does both sway and weight distribution in one. That's what I run with airbags and onboard compressor with wireless remote. Zero sag.