School me on towing sway bars for a truck/camper please

aray · Jan 30, 2020

So my wife and I are thinking about purchasing our first camper, specifically a travel trailer. We'd tow it with our 2018 Honda AWD Ridgeline that has a 5,000 lbs. towing capacity. We're looking at campers that come in at about 4,300 lbs, probably a bit more if I have some water in the holding tanks.

So here's my question: each one of the RV dealers we're talking to offer different tow bars (weight distribution & sway control). All, of course, claim the brands they carry are the best.

Does anyone here have an experience in this area, and if so, what would you recommend for my configuration?

Thanks.

Gcs7th · Jan 30, 2020

Sounds like your going to need a bigger truck... curious how the ridge line will do. Have you towed anything with it before?

aray · Jan 30, 2020

Yes, for two years I've towed our pontoon boat with it; the boat & trailer come in at just over 3,000 lbs. No problems at all. And I know you don't want to push the towing limits. I won't. I plan to tow with no water at all whenever possible and put nothing in the RV. I've got 700 lbs. headroom. Viewed another way, I'm reserving 15% of my overall capacity as unused. I've also monitored the Ridgeline forums, and other owners report towing at the 5K limit with absolutely no problems, though I'd never do that.

aray · Jan 30, 2020

I do, however, also need to add a brake controller, which I will. Our boat's trailer has surge brakes. But obviously the RV will have electronic brakes.

jefflac02 · Jan 31, 2020

Does that towing capacity also factor in weight of the passengers in the vehicle? I know on my QX80 the limit is 8500lb payload, but you have to take out the weight of the passengers and also the cargo in the back.
I think the 15% leeway is a good idea, however, I wanted to throw that out there just in case it mattered.

aray · Jan 31, 2020

welder516 · Jan 31, 2020

IMHO , sway bars are needed and work wonders on towing . I have many thousands of miles with tow bars at high speeds out west and it keeps the trailer/camper in-line and straight also when maneuvering and braking .

I would not tow without them on major highways .

aray · Jan 31, 2020

And so, my question is, what brand did you buy, why, and what do you like or dislike about it?

FYI, for those unfamiliar with the concept, this is what I intend to avoid:

Pushrod · Jan 31, 2020

This is what we purchased from Amazon for our 8K lb travel trailer and it works fantastic. Very easy to install!
Don't pay the inflated prices at the RV dealership.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005SB6S3Y/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

welder516 · Jan 31, 2020

https://www.carbibles.com/best-weight-distribution-hitch/ The bar types with chain connection points to pre-load the tow vehicle and tongue weight

spoon059 · Jan 31, 2020

Does the ridgeline have a ladder frame, or is it unibody? If unibody, I find think you can use weight distribution. Remember that a boat has a low profile and low hitch weight. An rv has a high profile and requires substantially more hitch weight to avoid sway.

I would be quite hesitant to tow an rv with a short wheel base unibody suv...

Sent from my SM-N970U using Tapatalk

GuitarmanNick · Jan 31, 2020

You may consider upgrading the transmission oil cooler and adding an engine oil cooler since the trailer you are considering is near the vehicle's capacity limit. By the time you load it, you may find it overweight.

Loading the trailer is another thing you should learn to do with care. Ideally, the weight is distributed with slightly more towards the front of the trailer to keep the load on the hitch. Load it with too much in the rear, and the trailer will sway much more and can easily create a dangerous situation. Trailer sway control bars will help with a poorly distributed load, but they can only do so much.

I towed campers up to 5000 pounds gross weight for many years and as cars got smaller and less powerfui, they also became less capable for towing loads of any substantial weight. Never needed any sway control other than the bars on the car suspension.

welder516 · Jan 31, 2020

In my towing applications and sway bars i always had a truck/suv that was overkill for the trailer and could always move down the highway without knowing the trailer was even there . With smaller camper trailers you will certainly want a low profile RV or a lite-weight version . Or you will need to upgrade tow vehicle .

hi3cho · Jan 31, 2020

Are you talking 4300 dry weight or fully loaded? A 4300 Dry, equates to at min a 5000 packed with just what you may keep in the trailer, plus any food, luggage, gear, etc.

You also have to take into account the total vehicle weight of your vehicle, payload, and passengers. If you tow rating is 5000, I would imagine that you could only stay under your max total weight with one passenger and nothing in the truck. A lot of people tow beyond their actual true towing capacity and the RV dealers will tell you whatever it takes to get a sale.

My F150 had a towing capacity of 9600, however when taking into account the weight of my truck and all, I really only could tow around 7500 lbs. Our older trailer was around 4500 lbs and by time it was loaded up, probally closer to 6500. I would not be towing that trailer with a ridgeline. Our new trailer is 5300 (~8000 loaded) and I towed it with my F150 for a season and it worked but it was about as much as I would tow with it.

As for the weight distribution, yes I have always used one for my travel trailers. With you being so heavy for your truck, it is a no brainer.

aray · Jan 31, 2020

Answers to some of the questions you asked:

The 2018 Ridgeline is unibody.
Our boat may have a lower hitch weight but it definitely isn't low profile. It's a pontoon boat, with four big flat walls all around plus the logs underneath, and sits monstrously high up on its trailer. It's one big ginormous sail dragging behind me. Even so, we haven't had any problems towing it. The issue here is the extra weight or the RV; the profile itself probably isn't much difference.
We got the high-end AWD model Ridgeline. It came with a factory tow package that already includes a transmission and oil cooler designed for towing.
4200 is the unloaded RV weight; I tossed in an extra hundred pounds as a fudge factor on gross weight, but I'm not planning on putting anything in the RV itself. I have the Ridgeline owner's manual and it cites 5K lbs. towing capacity with 600 lbs. tongue weight, even with two passengers and a certain amount of cargo in the truck. I know I'm within spec, and have 15% left over. (Any water I would carry in the holding tanks would eat into that, but I'm aware of that and will almost always run with dry tanks.)

smkranz · Jan 31, 2020

The sway control bar we bought with our camper is a pretty simple Reese friction sway control bar. We pull a heavy (3,000+ when loaded) Coleman pop-up camper. We only use the anti-sway bar if we're going on a highway. The Coleman is a relatively low-profile camper to tow, but at highway speeds it can still catch the draft of a passing truck. Or if I have to swerve to avoid something the camper can fish-tail a little bit. If that happens it's easy to stop by slowing down and tapping the brake controller a few times to apply the trailer brakes momentarily. This tow bar adds an adjustable amount of friction between the trailer and vehicle, so that the trailer can pivot as needed, but without swaying freely back and forth. Easy to put on and take off.

https://www.etrailer.com/Accessorie...3KX2BQmQTsIqBkpGDU1FzxkvnjCTyxBYaAjnBEALw_wcB

smdub · Jan 31, 2020

We tow heavy enclosed car trailers. Have always found a weight distributing part of the hitch helps a lot more than the anti-sway part. Keeps weight on the front wheels even when braking hard. Nothing beats a gooseneck though.

basscat · Jan 31, 2020

I think you're pushing the limit on your Ridgeline. Quick google search of your vehicle shows approximately 15oo pounds of payload. You say you will have at least one extra person ( your wife) plus all kinds of supplies, clothes, food etc. You stated nothing in the trailer. That extra weight takes away from payload. Trailer may be 4200 dry but NO ONE tows an empty travel trailer. Propane tank(s), battery, water, etc all add to weight. Tounge weight should be at least 10- 15% of total trailer weight. You may want to really run the numbers. It's no fun towing at the limit.

steves1911 · Jan 31, 2020

Op check the yellow plate on the TT you plan to purchase. Their are huge swings between dry and max gvwr. You will max out the TT rating quickly with supplies, water in tanks etc. Rv salesman often push too much rv for potential buyers. We bought a 36ft TT my brother in law was with us and the saleman was telling him his silverado 1500 would tow a trailer like that easy. The dry is almost 10k max is 12k on our rig. I always try to stay 80% or less of my tow vehicles max rating. Saves room for extra passengers or a fudge factor when estimating yout weight. Lot easier on the tow vehicle too.

Viper21773 · Jan 31, 2020

I bought the Blue Ox to use w/ 2500HD pulling a 31' travel trailer. I just preferred the way it was made. Check Craigslist, I bought mine used for $150 and it was like brand new.

School me on towing sway bars for a truck/camper please

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