Travel Trailers

A generic term used to describe an RV that you tow behind a pickup truck. You’ll find different travel trailers, such as Pop-ups, Teardrops, and Destination trailers.

They are not really designed for you to tow them all over the country

Our RV Towing Guide will help you establish accurate safety considerations and responsibilities before towing your RV.

Towing a Travel Trailer

RV towing comes with more safety consideration and responsibilities otherwise it could bring some safety concerns and stressful moments during transit. Towing a travel trailer is all about “Towing-behind” or a “Bumper-Pull”. It is vital to make sure that the trailer and the tow truck are properly matched. Let’s take a trip and learn how to achieve this.

GVWR & TW

There are two important weight related factors when it comes to RV trailer. GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) and TW (tongue weight). GVWR is the permissible weight of RV when loaded for camping with water, fuel, supplies and cargo. TW is how much downforce the loaded trailer places on the hitch. It is typically between 10-15 percent of the GVWR. The GVWR and TW set the basis for choosing the right vehicle best suited for towing the trailer. Once we know these two values (weight related factors) its time to focus on the tow vehicle.

Your tow vehicle needs to have the power to pull the trailer uphill and maintain a reasonable speeds over the open roads. When matching a trailer to a tow vehicle, a good rule-of-thumb is to keep the trailer’s GVWR at less than 75 percent of the tow vehicle’s trailer towing capacity. For instance, if the tow vehicle is rated to tow 12,000 lbs. a good trailer weight should be 9,000 lbs. or less.

Hitch System

The next crucial factor is your hitch system that ensures safe connection, level towing and proper weight distribution.

Safe Connection

In order to ensure a secure connection, we need to understand Trailer Tongue, Coupler and the Hitch Ball.

Trailer Tongue

A trailer tongue is the portion of the frame that extends forward from the front of the trailer to the coupler enabling the frame to be connected to the towing vehicle. It’s important to know what type of trailer tongue you have because the coupler will either bolted or be welded to the trailer tongue and has to match your trailer frame’s tongue type. There are three main types of trailer tongue:

  • Straight
  • A-Frame
  • Composite

Trailer Coupler

  • A trailer coupler is the device that makes the connection between the hitch ball and trailer tongue. It’s important to choose a coupler that’s the right size and shape for your trailer setup. A coupler attaches to a hitch ball using a latching mechanism that clamps around the ball. It needs to be secure while still allowing for pivoting during turns. There are five main types of couplers:
    1. Straight Tongue
    2. A-Frame
    3. Channel Mount
    4. Gooseneck
    5. Surge Brake Actuator

 

Trailer Hitch Ball

A hitch ball (or trailer ball or tow ball) is the ball-shaped attachment that connects the trailer to a hitch. The ball allows the trailer to pivot, providing smooth turning while towing. The ball hitch and the coupler should be of the same size, means the diameter of the trailer ball should be exactly the same as the inside opening of the coupler. A difference in size can create an unsafe towing situation that may lead to a vehicle-trailer disconnect. The different sizes of trailer hitch balls are 1-7/8-inch, 2-inch, 2-5/16-inch and 3-inch. 1-7/8-inch hitch balls are for light-duty trailers, 2-inch are for medium trailers, 2-5/16-inch are for heavy trailers and 3-inch are for gooseneck trailers.

Level Towing Setup

A level towing setup with the correct drop or rise is important. If your ball mount is set too low it may take the weight off the front of your vehicle resulting in poor braking and steering conditions. If it is set too high, it will displace the weight behind your trailer axles resulting in trailer sway. For a safe level towing it is important to keep that load level.

Weight Distribution

A hitch system with weight distribution and sway control can give a huge safety advantage in terms of navigating through stressful moments.

Pulling a trailer with GTW (trailer weight) of 6,000 lbs. with your basic trailer hitch with a maximum GTW of 8,000 lbs. doesn’t mean it will be able to deliver the sway control and driving safety you’ll need when towing at its maximum capacity. This is where a weight distribution hitch comes in. The owner’s manual of the truck should provide specifications regarding weight distribution use. A weight distribution hitch is needed when towing a trailer that goes over from 3,500 lbs. to 5,000 lbs.