Gdetrailer wrote:
Hybridhunter wrote:
He did mention he only gets that mileage drafting a semi, which still seems to be a stretch, but whatever.
Why do so many posters get so hyper at the idea of 10% tongue weight? Lots of folks saying "that's unsafe"? 10% is a nice balance of rear axle loading and stability in my experience, no lower though. I've been towing for 15 years, and from the reading I've done, 10-12% is perfect. (only if it tows well though).
As for having to crank up the friction to keep a lid on sway, that's just kooky talk.
And for the OP, there's a reason Toyota gives those ratings, and even if you think it's underated, that's just a guess. There are HD half tons that will handle that trailer no problem, but Toyota doesn't offer one. My experience with my last Toyota truck, was I killed 3 sets of rear gears running it hard at GVWR, so Toyota's are not inherently any tougher than American iron.
I would bet that if YOU changed from 10%-12% TW to 13%-15% you WILL find that the trailer BEHAVES even better than 10%. That IS a fact.
What you (and many others) fail to notice is that is a STATIC weight as in stationary. Once towing that weight IS shifting up and down as the vehicle and trailer are bouncing down the road. If you run 10% while stationary you end up with a TW GOING BELOW the 10% as you drive. That is one of the reasons as to why folks get their shorts in a knot about it.
To make things even more confusing is something called "center of gravity" this ALSO shifts front to back, to much shifting to the back and the whole rig gets unstable.
If you have ever played with fork lifts or tractors with front loaders you become keenly aware of center of gravity. #1 rule is to ALWAYS move with the LOAD as close to the floor as possible.
Why?
Well, as the load goes up in the air, so does the center of gravity. Once the center of gravity goes up, the whole rig gets unstable. Once unstable driving on uneven, unlevel ground the LOAD makes the whole unit tippy.
Keeping MORE than 10% TW helps to KEEP the center of gravity FORWARD of the axles basically keeping the unit as a whole much more stable.
^^^^^^^ This should be a sticky in the TT forums. :)
(Let me guess: You either race, are an engineer, or you've towed and setup trailers a hellofalot?)
