towing near max weight. advice?

ah64id wrote:
The drive carefully comments always make me laugh. You can always drive carefully when overloaded... But what happens when an emergency swerve or stop has to happen? Is the overloaded suspension, frame, steering, tires, etc up to the task? Those are the times you cannot prepare or plan on, and they can easily be out if your control.

I don't list brakes because it's a gray area. The TV brakes are designed to stop GVWR plus a 2000 trailer without brakes. As the TT will have brakes the TV is within it's brake design limits. Now in an emergency the TV brakes have the initial braking power, but the TT will kick in quick.

I think your understanding of what a TV brakes will do and the loads upon them especially towing heavy are overly optomistic. I and highly doubt you have any idea what a vehicles brakes are designed to actually do performance wise. I can tell you that a TV's brakes are tested for safety thru FMVSS standards for the stated GVWR of the number on the door sticker. This is direct from a senior brake system test engineer for Fed Mogul who does the FMVSS brake testing for the FORD SD trucks. There is no extra 2K wt. involved and a particular braking system is tested to the max GVWR available for that particular configuration. Obviously there is some design reserve, but even the testing folks don't know what that reserve is nor do they really care since they have the numbers and testing protocal to certify a particular braking system for FMVSS certification.

Now as to all these comments about your TT brakes stopping the wt of the trailer I say GOOD LUCK and that is JUST NOT THE WAY THINGS WORK. The wheels with the heavier loads and more forward on a vehicle combo will perform the lion's share of any braking. I can't point to or give any definitive documentation or reference to this, but I believe it is correct so those that disagree I would challenge you to likewise provide proof to the contrary. I would not be at all surprised to find that in a towing and fairly aggressive braking event that 75% or more of the braking is done via the TVs brakes and this is why having a very high GVWR vehicle makes a better braking combo when towing. Let's also not confuse these puny electric activated brakes with sliding magnets against a rotating surface with things like the air brakes found on 18 wheelers and the hydraulic or air brakes that might be found on very high end trailers.

Larry