Front End Drift At Freeway Speed

Ok, so I should have realized this before, but I must not have been lined up correctly on the scale when I weighed. My trailer according to the CAT scale comes in about 200LBS lower than the dry weight, and my trailer was loaded for camping also with a 1/2 tank of fresh water. This would probably explain why the rear axle showed an enormous amount of weight. I probably won't be able to really get good scale time until next weekend, but I will do all the proper weights: hitched, unhitched. I also want to see my tongue weight. I have absolutely nothing in the back of my truck during tow and when I did my weights. I have seen suburbans pulling my trailer with lots of sag, but they were cruising on the interstate. I think I may just be a bit anal about towing safety and making sure everything is setup correctly. My truck is well within what the trailer's dims so no, I will not be getting a new truck any time soon. I am simply asking for advise, I have scoured the internet on forums and the benchmark of my problem seems to be length and a better WD hitch would seem to help this. I am not doing bags or any other upgrades.

Tires are an enhancement, the rest are band aids. Was the TV and TT fully loaded for a trip??

What else do you carry in the bed of the truck when going on a trip? What is the GVWR for your truck, you have 6,820# listed, on 7,600# of axles rating you are VERY CLOSE to over loaded. Your rear axles only has 350# to spare, so if you through more in the bed before you leave you may be over your rear axle rating.

It sounds like you are within your weight ratings.

I had a similar "front end floating" experience years ago with a conversion van loaded with camping gear and family. I had Passenger (P) rated tires on the van. A mechanic told me to put Light Truck (LT) tires on the rear because the feeling of the front end floating was actually caused by the rear tire sidewalls flexing side to side because they were not stiff enough to handle all the weight on the rear tires. Most of the weight in the loaded conversion van was on the rear axle and tires.

I had him put 2 Michelin LT tires on the rear and the front end floating went away. I ran it that way for 17 years (replaced tires a few times) and no more front end floating.

Also, note that my Dodge RAM 2500 uses LT tires with 80 PSI in rear tires and 65 PSI in front tires as recommended by Dodge.

Ed

Run the psi on the sidewall.:S Get a truck.

Tires tires tires. TT and TV.

jscheelar wrote:
Ok, so made MASSIVE adjustment to the hitch for my trip this last weekend.---

What adjustments did you make?

Did you measure the unhitched and hitched heights after making the adjustments?

Better yet -- did you measure the unhitched and hitched loads after making the adjustments?

We really don't have much basis for giving advice unless we know the loaded tongue weight and tongue weight percentage.

Ron

Ok, so made MASSIVE adjustment to the hitch for my trip this last weekend. Drove near Mt. rainier up and down twisted around highway speed 55. Towed comfortable and stable. Still some bounce and a bit of sway. Still not wanting to test the winds. I have decided that a new hitch is what I need. I am looking at an equalizer, reese straight line, husky centerline, or the new anderson hitch. Don't have the money for a Hensley... I think something with an active duel sway control will help. I don't think the current hitch I have is supportive of the weight (it's a cheep dealer installed based WD.) I have a rear kitchen, and have been loading everything in the back to keep hitch weight down, but I now realize this may be counter intuitive.

You can install sections of well casing between the axle and the frame on the rear of your truck to hold it level if you want. It will do NOTHING for the front axle, and neither will Timbrens, Airbags, Helper Springs, or what have you.

The problem is the "see saw" effect of the trailer tongue pushing down on the back of the truck, causing the front to lift. Making your rear suspension stiffer will at best do nothing, and at worst enhance the effect.

You're near the maximum, but still well within the ratings of your F150 with a little room to spare. Anyone that tells you that your truck can't handle it is not being helpful.

The problem is not the capability of the truck, but physics. You need to get more pressure on the WD bars to get the front end back down.

One thing I noticed while looking at the Aerolite site is that most of the trailers have really low CCC. Couple that with 33' and there's not much stability there.

Do you have the Aerolite 315BHSS? If so then the dry weight is 6460lbs. Do you have anything in the TT and what is your tongue weight? Need some info on the TT.

You can install 2 anti sway? I never go above 60 towing, mainly because that is when I feel the "bumper car" feel. Trailer tires are on NITRO inflated at their max to 50 PSI