Hi, I have a 2012 Honda Odyssey. I have a Class 3 hitch installed, and am pulling a 2800 pound, 17' Viking trailer. I use a Weight Distributing Hitch with Sway Control (550 pound rated), and also have a Tranny cooler installed. I haven't driven it loaded yet, just me, but I'd like to add in my wife, kids and some luggage, while staying under the 3500 pound tow limit, if I can crack this problem:When I am towing I feel like the van is shuddering (from front to back, or vice versa) any time I accelerate/brake, go over small bumps, at low speeds, moderate speeds or highway speeds (-55mph). It's a "chug-a-chug-a-chug-a" type of feeling, not high/fast vibrations. Everything is properly connected, as confirmed with the dealer. Most experienced towers tell me to check the sway control: I have tried more friction, less friction, etc, but it's still there. It is NOT a side to side motion. The electric brake controller is working and I feel like the brake controller is set to the right setting. If I turn the brakes up, it creates a noticeable shudder/shock, okay, that's too high. If I turn it down, I can feel the van doing all the braking and taking forever to stop. So I don't think it's the brakes, plus it's like I said, this happens when starting to accelerate or hitting bumps in the road as well.It feels like the trailer is really pushing/pulling and turning my van into a bucking bronco.I'm thinking it might be the WDH shifting too much weight forward? I have it set on the third link (which makes the bars parallel with the A-frame), but maybe I should try another link? I've driven other vehicles before (dualie pickups) while towing heavy loads, and didn't experience anything like this...I'm not an expert, but a concerned amateur!Thanks!EDIT: one thing i forgot: the shudder happens with just the ball on the hitch, no WDH.

Need more weight on the hitch perhaps?.

If your tow vehicle is porpoising (rocking front to rear axle like a fish jumping out & into the water), likely there is not enough weight on the front axle meaning your bars are not pulling up enough. It should take some effort to lift the bars into place. If you get to the level-with-frame position too easily you may need to tilt the ball assembly rearward so that the bar tips are nearer the ground. Then you are loading the spring bars more to pull them to level position.

Try taking it for a test tow without the W/D or sway control installed. That trailer's pretty light- your Ody should do up to 350 pounds on the ball just fine. Sway shouldn't be a problem at low speed test drive, but if you're nervous about going without the sway control, make sure tongue weight is correct and keep the speed below fifty.If you don't get the same shudder, you've narrowed it down to one of two things. Add the two components back one at a time (if you still think them necessary) to determine which is causing the problem.

Is a WDH permissible with that TV? I know that many SUV makers specify no WDH, although that may be just the European ones.I was always told that the proper settings for a WDH were that both the TV and TT be level, front to rear, and that the only reason for considering the bars was to get them in the right weight range. Or am I wrong about that?In any case, it does sound like there's something not right. Good luck getting it sorted out.

thanks for the help! i can tell there's several hundred pounds of force on the hitch (from two of trying to deadlift it!), and the chains take a decent amount of muscle to get into place, using the pry bar. If it were any harder to lift them I think the average person wouldn't be able to do it without working really hard.When I kick the bar/chain they don't budge, for what that's worth.

Shaking/Shuddering while towing trailer | Good Sam Community

carringb
Explorer
Aug 11, 2014
Sounds like wheel hop to me. It's plain a simple a FWD problem. Good dampers (struts in your case) can reduce this. Better tires will make a difference too. But so would weight distribution. Have you looked on the Honda forums to see if anyone has tried it?
PUCampin
Explorer
Aug 11, 2014
Do you have the correct size trailer ball? They come in 1 7/8", 2" 2 5/16". If your ball is to small there will be play. Also, even iff the ball is correct if the coupler is not adjusted there could be play. There is usually a nut underneath that adjusts how tight the movable part is when closed.
keymastr
Explorer
Aug 10, 2014
I have seen many people who had big problems trying to tow with small passenger vehicles. The factory specs say they can do it, and they can if you don't mind throwing lots of cash at things like transmissions and brakes. I have even seen vehicles where the doors would not close properly because the unibody construction had twisted/sagged. These vehicles are meant to tow a small utility trailer a few miles to the dump not to tow a full size TT and also load it full of people and luggage. And then try to climb a pass with the A/C on. The dealer will say it will do it and he knows tons of folks with the same combination because he wants the sale.
hddecker
Explorer
Aug 10, 2014
Front wheel drive TVs have a tendency to shudder when they are loaded to the max. I've had two different brands of FWD cars that did the same thing when I loaded them to to the limits.

The front wheels get unloaded with the weight of the TT, then on acceleration it is compounded with the weight transfer to the rear wheels.

IMHO front wheel drive vehicles should come with a warning, "not suitable for towing".
GaryWT
Explorer
Aug 10, 2014
When I owned mini vans, I would only tow pop ups. Payload could be an issue. Good luck.
zab
Explorer
Aug 10, 2014
thanks everyone for your help. I have come to the bittersweet conclusion that I'm just gonna have to get a better Tow Vehicle.
Gdetrailer
Explorer III
Aug 04, 2014
zab wrote:
Hi, I have a 2012 Honda Odyssey. I have a Class 3 hitch installed, and am pulling a 2800 pound, 17' Viking trailer. I use a Weight Distributing Hitch with Sway Control (550 pound rated), and also have a Tranny cooler installed. I haven't driven it loaded yet, just me, but I'd like to add in my wife, kids and some luggage, while staying under the 3500 pound tow limit, if I can crack this problem:

When I am towing I feel like the van is shuddering (from front to back, or vice versa) any time I accelerate/brake, go over small bumps, at low speeds, moderate speeds or highway speeds (-55mph). It's a "chug-a-chug-a-chug-a" type of feeling, not high/fast vibrations. Everything is properly connected, as confirmed with the dealer. Most experienced towers tell me to check the sway control: I have tried more friction, less friction, etc, but it's still there. It is NOT a side to side motion. The electric brake controller is working and I feel like the brake controller is set to the right setting. If I turn the brakes up, it creates a noticeable shudder/shock, okay, that's too high. If I turn it down, I can feel the van doing all the braking and taking forever to stop. So I don't think it's the brakes, plus it's like I said, this happens when starting to accelerate or hitting bumps in the road as well.
It feels like the trailer is really pushing/pulling and turning my van into a bucking bronco.

I'm thinking it might be the WDH shifting too much weight forward? I have it set on the third link (which makes the bars parallel with the A-frame), but maybe I should try another link?

I've driven other vehicles before (dualie pickups) while towing heavy loads, and didn't experience anything like this...I'm not an expert, but a concerned amateur!

Thanks!

EDIT: one thing i forgot: the shudder happens with just the ball on the hitch, no WDH.

Is your trailer
THIS ONE?

If so you ARE OVERWEIGHT, period.

Per the specs in the link above..

Dry Weight (lbs/kg) 2818 / 1278.2

Hitch Weight (lbs/kgs) 406 / 184.2

GVWR (lbs/kgs) 3626 / 1644.8

Payload Capacity (lbs/kgs) 791 / 358.8

Your actual dry weights most likely are a bit more than the weight listed on the brochure.

Not to mention that is a single axle trailer which tends to ride a bit more ruff than a dual axle..

I HAVE been there MANY YEARS AGO when I was not as "wise", towed a single axle 4x8ft utility trailer with a car that had a 3500 lb towing rating.. Even thought the utility trailer weighed about 800 lbs empty it made the ride very harsh.. A lot of front to back "push" (this is not a side to side sway movement), kinda felt like the Jolly Green Giant was pushing the vehicle back and forth..

The "fix" for this feeling I found was when I bought my first TRUCK. When the trailer was hooked to the truck I got a real taste for how it SHOULD TOW.

Plain and simple, your trailer is too big and heavy for your vehicle.

I would recommend that you find someone with a 1/2 ton truck and take it for a tow.. I think you will agree very quickly that your vehicle is not the right one to tow your trailer.
rexlion
Explorer
Aug 03, 2014
First I would weigh the trailer tongue to see how heavy it is. You should be under 350 lb. A bathroom scale will go nearly that high. If it's over 350, you are overloading your hitch. You don't want to have it tear off while driving, right? If you are over 350 lb, the only good solution is to have a custom receiver fabricated... Can-Am in Ontario does a bunch of these, but a good welding shop could duplicate it too.

Next, the motion problem. The trailer tongue will always try to bob up and down when you go over even small bumps, creating an uncomfortable jiggly-jerky sensation that many folks call 'porpoising'. You said you are getting this motion when towing on the ball alone. A minivan's soft rear suspension will let you really feel this motion. Adding a properly adjusted WD hitch should remove 3/4 of this sensation. But you'd need a lightweight WD hitch, because you are already (I suspect) close to if not over the 350 lb limit. The lightest one I know of is the Andersen No-Sway, which is what I used on my rig to eliminate most of that motion.

The other possibility that comes to my mind is that maybe you have a trailer tire out of balance.
Boband4
Explorer
Aug 03, 2014
Same thought, has the pin wallowed the hole out to be egg shaped so parts are moving fore and aft while towing?
Dannyabear1
Explorer
Aug 03, 2014
Doesn't Honda NOT reccomend a W/D hitch because there is no chassis, just subframe uni-body construction