Tow vehicle too short of wheelbase???

[hookset]

Recently downsized from 39' 5th wheel & one ton diesel dually to a 30' (box-34' inc hitch)trailer and a 2017 Chevy Silverado Tahoe suv. On tow home from dealership & 1st camping trip (100 miles total) I experienced a considerable amount of sway even with a WD hitch and 1 sway bar. Many years ago we started camping with a 30' trailer pulled by a Chevy Blazer - don't remember having this problem. Is it ---

1. Tahoe has too short of a wheelbase (116 inches)
2. Need 2nd sway bar
3. WD hitch not installed correctly
All the above or ????

[LVJJJ]

116", that's really long. I towed for years with a 90" wheelbase 1965 Chevy Van. yes, you do get sway with a shorter wheelbase TV, Tried two anti-sway bars but those are ridiculous, they try to stop the sway after it's started. Ultimate solution was the Equal-I-zer hitch, nary a sway since then. get one and enjoy your "long" wheelbase Tahoe.

[hookset]

Thanks to all responders ....... greatest answers I have ever had to any question, on this forum or any other! Larry

[myredracer]

Minimizing sway is always a combination of factors working together so don't expect any single change/adjustment alone to make an adequate/significant improvement. Can take a while to examine all the factors and make needed adjustments/changes. The above posts all have good info.

How was the WDH set up? Was the before & after front fender height method used? Can also be done (and more accurately) by going to a scale. Never let a dealer do the install and adjustments. Do it yourself and that way you'll know it's done right. There's a great sticky in the towing section.

I'd go to a scale with the TV fully loaded for camping and subtract the wt. from the GVWR on the door pillar sticker so you know exactly what payload capacity you have. Also take the TT to a scale and get the actual tongue wt. and the actual/gross wt. of the TT. You can also get the actual amount of wt. restored back onto the steer axle. You should know what the wt. of all the "stuff" added to a TV is - passengers, pets, groceries, camping gear & misc. It can be much higher than expected.

A 34' TT could have a tongue wt. of around 1200 lbs or so (WAG). Spring bars have ratings and you need to select the correct one for the actual tongue wt. What tire type on the SUV? You want LT type, not the "squishy" P type (if so equipped). If LRE LTs, I'd try inflating the tires to, or close to max. sidewall psi of 80 for towing.

At the end of the day, I would say the wheelbase of the TV falls way short of what is needed. The rule of thumb that has been around for some time is that the first 110" is good for a 20' trailer and every 4" after that adds another 1' to trailer length. So 116" of wheelbase is good for only a 22' trailer which isn't much compared to the 34 footer OP has.

Never get a Hensley or Propride to hide underlying issues that have not been addressed. The right combo of TV & TT along with addressing all the factors affecting sway will result in little to no sway. A WDH with built in sway control could help a lot. We use a Reese DC and it works great. We tow a 29' TT with an F250 that has a 164" wheelbase and have addressed all the other things that help reduce sway. No sway! Bilstein shocks in our truck and shocks on the TT also help. No sway is def. cool...

[_tpc_]

I'm guessing you have the friction sway bar and WDH as given to you by the dealer, nothing wrong with that, as thats what I use too. However, I would get a second sway bar to add to the other side. Its fairly inexpensive, and if you have some tools you can do it yourself.

I tow with a 2007 tahoe. While I don't have the size of the trailer you have, adding the second sway bar helped noticeably. In your case it may not help as much, but I'd give it a shot, unless your just looking for confirmation to upgrade the tow vehicle.

[Hondavalk]

dodge guy wrote:
First I would ditch the standard WD hitch and go with a Reese Dual Cam. You may be able to add it to your existing WD hitch if the bars have the crook at the ends. Then I would verify you have proper tongue weight, I go with 12%. The wheel base is a bit on the short side, but if you have the all the above set up properly then you should be good to go.

X2

[dodge_guy]

First I would ditch the standard WD hitch and go with a Reese Dual Cam. You may be able to add it to your existing WD hitch if the bars have the crook at the ends. Then I would verify you have proper tongue weight, I go with 12%. The wheel base is a bit on the short side, but if you have the all the above set up properly then you should be good to go.

[Gulfcoast]

I would never tow a 30' trailer with anything less than a 3/4 ton truck.

[owenssailor]

The suggestion to get everything weighed is very important. Then you know what you are tarting with. More tongue weight makes for better towing. With you setup being more towards 15% is better than lighter if you have the payload capability.

Second I would spend the bit of money to get an Equal-i-Zer brand hitch - sized after you have weighed your rig.

My first trailer had the setup with the add on anti sway bar . I could feel every semi coming up from behind. The current trailer is bigger higher and heavier. With the Equal -i-zer I don't feel the semis. I do have high tongue weight as well.

A friend with a 2018 Tahoe using and Equal-i-Zer just returned from roundtrip Ont to Florida. He reported no issues towing. His trailer is about 29 feet LOA.

[bobndot]

bartlettj wrote:
Tahoe is a bit short for anything longer than 25' without some serious hitch upgrades and likely some suspension upgrades to the Tahoe. The coil spring and z bar rear flop all over the place compared to a similarly equipped truck. Tahoe is designed for unladen comfort. I just upgraded to a 2500hd so I wouldn't get so beat up and tired on long trips.

As I read into this thread more, I'm thinking the Tahoe is going to be too light.

'bartlettj', I think you make sense and it's why I suggested to set things up correctly with no cost involved just in case this SUV is not the right TV for the OP.

OP, Adding suspension upgrades and H.D. hitches all equals more weight and less available payload on a marginal (or less than marginal) TV and at the end of all this, you still have a short/light Tahoe.

Here is another rv.net post with Tahoe info. IMO, Ron Gratz makes sense.
http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/25913606.cfm

[mobeewan]

I came across some info a few years ago regarding a rule of thumb for tow vehicle wheel base vs travel trailer length. For a 20 foot trailer your TV needs 110 inches of wheel base. Then for each additional 1 foot of trailer your TV need 4 additional inches of wheel base.

The above is only length and does not factor in weight which varies hugely with trailers of the same length.

To the OP. With a 116 inch wheel base that limits you to a 21 foot trailer. Considering length only and probably no sway control. Even with dual sway control you'll still need a longer wheel base for the difference between 21 ft and the 34 foot length of your trailer.

I'm towing a 28-1/2 footer with an empty weight of 4600 lbs and cargo capacity of 2000 lbs and a TV with 155 inch wheel base and Equalizer brand WDH. I haven't had any problems with sway, even with multiple trucks passing me.

I had a 1991 Isuzu Trooper that I towed a used 17 foot TT with. The first time I towed it loaded I was on I95 north of Richmond Va and was passed by 3 semis. By the time the third was passing me I was swaying so bad I was about to jack knife and would have if it hadn't been for using the manual switch on the brake controller and keeping my foot off the brake to straighten me out. After that I was grabbing for the brake controller every time 2 or more semis would pass me. I was so glad when I got to the exit at Fredericksburg. I learned real fast about too much trailer and not enough TV.

[bartlettj]

Tahoe is a bit short for anything longer than 25' without some serious hitch upgrades and likely some suspension upgrades to the Tahoe. The coil spring and z bar rear flop all over the place compared to a similarly equipped truck. Tahoe is designed for unladen comfort. I just upgraded to a 2500hd so I wouldn't get so beat up and tired on long trips.

[handye9]

hookset wrote:
Recently downsized from 39' 5th wheel & one ton diesel dually to a 30' (box-34' inc hitch)trailer and a 2017 Chevy Silverado Tahoe suv. On tow home from dealership & 1st camping trip (100 miles total) I experienced a considerable amount of sway even with a WD hitch and 1 sway bar. Many years ago we started camping with a 30' trailer pulled by a Chevy Blazer - don't remember having this problem. Is it ---

1. Tahoe has too short of a wheelbase (116 inches)
2. Need 2nd sway bar
3. WD hitch not installed correctly
All the above or ????

Could be partly 1 thru 3 and possibly some of the following.

4. Overweight ??? Tahoe's max tow and payload numbers -- Up to 8600 tow capacity and 1700 payload. Keywords being "UP TO". Depending on installed options, not every Tahoe will have same payload. Your's is listed on your tire / loading sticker, located on drivers door post. As you fill up the Tahoe, with people, pets, and cargo, etc, every pound you put in there, takes a pound away from both payload and towing capacity. The weight of your hitch equipment and the tongue weight from the trailer are counted as cargo in the tow vehicle. My trailer is similar in size to yours, and my trailer (with hitch) takes up 11 - 1300 lbs of available payload. It varies because tongue weight is not a constant number. It goes up and down during every trip. Check your loaded tongue weight, add 100 lbs, and that is a ball park of how much payload your trailer is eating.

5. Tahoe's tires ??? Under inflated and / or soft sidewalls. Could be, you're feeling sidewall flexing. Are they passenger or light truck tires?

6. Insufficient tongue weight ??? As others have mentioned, minimum should be ten percent of loaded trailer weight. Higher is better. Average is 12 - 13 percent.

7. Hitch ball height ??? Trailer should tow level to slightly nose down. Nose up can cause sway.

Note on your number 3 ... Things to check (a) weight rating on trunion / spring bars. Are they strong enough for your loaded tongue weight? (b) If they're strong enough, are they restoring enough front axle weight?

[coolmom42]

RTCastillo wrote:

bid_time wrote:
Easy fix, you need more tongue weight, 15% is good, more is better.

And some people are saying, load up some water as added weight, while the mpg suffers, adds to stability.

Don't know the conventional wisdom on this since water can swoosh left and right and therefore by itself unstable, lol.

Veteran RVers with more experience that his newbie can provide more sense that I lack.

It depends on where the water tank is. If it's behind the axles, that will make matters worse. It could also increase the weight to the point of overloading the tow vehicle. But if neither one of those applies, it may be an easy way to fix a too-low tongue weight.

[Yosemite_Sam1]

bid_time wrote:
Easy fix, you need more tongue weight, 15% is good, more is better.

And some people are saying, load up some water as added weight, while the mpg suffers, adds to stability.

Don't know the conventional wisdom on this since water can swoosh left and right and therefore by itself unstable, lol.

Veteran RVers with more experience that his newbie can provide more sense that I lack.