Expedition towing problem

[cekkk]

Hope this is cricket, but this fellow posted on a different non-RV forum that his Expy with 140k on it bounces while pulling his new to him 28' Puma. He has an Equalizer WDH. He was advised to weigh it, did, and gave these numbers:
" I was finally able to take it to the cat scale. I did measure from the ground to the top of the wheel wells and I realized that my Expedition is a little squatted before having any weight on it. The measurements for the Expedition empty are Front Driver: 36 1/8”. Front Pass. 36 1/4”. Rear Driver: 35 3/4”. Rear Pass: 35 7/8”.
Then I hooked up the camper with Only the hitchball (no weight distribution) and my measurements were these. FD: 36 7/8”. FP: 36 7/8”. RD: 33 7/8”. RP: 34 1/8”.
Then I hooked it up with the weight distribution and these were the results. FD: 36 1/4”. FP: 36 1/2”. RD: 35” RP: 34 3/4”.
At the scale the weights were as following. Steer axle: 3100. Drive axle: 4020. Trailer axles: 6400. For a Gross Combined Weight of 13,520. The Expedition weight axles together were 7120. Then I weighed the Expedition alone and the Front axle: 3160 and the Rear Axle was 3260 for a total of 6420. From my understanding there needs to be more weight distributed to the front axle on the Expedition. Judging by the rear shocks being lower than the front I would assume the the shocks are not good right?"

Any thoughts I could pass on?

[APT]

Shocks purpose to to control the springs/bounce. 140k miles on the vehicle - how many on the shocks? If they are more that 50k miles, they are likely worn to and should be replaced especially if the vehicle has been heavily loaded/towing a fair amount.

[keymastr]

I towed my trailer with an Expedition and it was not an ideal TV for a heavy trailer like he has. For one thing they have an independent rear suspension so they tend to lean to each side a little more than a solid axle. Mostly though he needs new shocks. A set of bilstiens would help a bunch.

His hitch is set up well. If he distributes more weight to the front axle the rear will get moved around more by passing vehicles.

Measure the frame of the trailer to make sure it is level from front to back when WD is hooked up. Slightly nose down is OK but not nose up. Should be within an inch and a half from front of trailer to rear.

[mkirsch]

What's the 600lbs of stuff in the back of the Expedition before he hitches up to the trailer?

[Grit_dog]

Does this person have previous towing experience? Numbers look good, shocks could be toast, but "bouncing" is subjective and I'm sure there are people who think they shouldn't be able to feel a trailer behind them. That's a significant load for a pudgy half ton like an Expe.
Or it could be a poorly balanced load, as some TTs are.

[lawrosa]

Have him put in his data here,,,,It will tell him his TW and %.

http://towingplanner.com/ActualWeights/TravelTrailerCatScales/?w1sa=3100&w1da=4020&w1ta=6400&w3sa=31...

[lawrosa]

cekkk wrote:
Hope this is cricket, but this fellow posted on a different non-RV forum that his Expy with 140k on it bounces while pulling his new to him 28' Puma. He has an Equalizer WDH. He was advised to weigh it, did, and gave these numbers:
" I was finally able to take it to the cat scale. I did measure from the ground to the top of the wheel wells and I realized that my Expedition is a little squatted before having any weight on it. The measurements for the Expedition empty are Front Driver: 36 1/8”. Front Pass. 36 1/4”. Rear Driver: 35 3/4”. Rear Pass: 35 7/8”.
Then I hooked up the camper with Only the hitchball (no weight distribution) and my measurements were these. FD: 36 7/8”. FP: 36 7/8”. RD: 33 7/8”. RP: 34 1/8”.
Then I hooked it up with the weight distribution and these were the results. FD: 36 1/4”. FP: 36 1/2”. RD: 35” RP: 34 3/4”.
At the scale the weights were as following. Steer axle: 3100. Drive axle: 4020. Trailer axles: 6400. For a Gross Combined Weight of 13,520. The Expedition weight axles together were 7120. Then I weighed the Expedition alone and the Front axle: 3160 and the Rear Axle was 3260 for a total of 6420. From my understanding there needs to be more weight distributed to the front axle on the Expedition. Judging by the rear shocks being lower than the front I would assume the the shocks are not good right?"

Any thoughts I could pass on?

Dont do anything Your within 60 lbs of restoring the front to original ride height. Thats pretty good and as good as youll get without going over on the front.

Front 3160 truck alone
Front scale with WD 3100..

Just leave it.


To get TW you needed to weight without WD hooked up. Do you have those #'S..

The expeditions have coil springs. Replace the shocks with bilsteins and add sumospings to the rear...


This is a cheap fix. Get them for his yeartruck.

http://www.sdtrucksprings.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=21954

The idea of the WD hitch is to restore the front to the original 3100 without going over.

Once he gets shocks and the sumo upgrade he may be right on.

[cekkk]

Thanks all. I'll copy and paste for him.

[copeland343]

Measurements not bad. But you are taking weight off of the front. I would add one or two washers to tilt the ball back to add weight to the front wheels. Then go drive it.

[ScottG]

Worn shocks or WDH that is either too over-sized or set too tightly.
I would install some Bilsteins. They have the best rebound dampening which will quell the bounce.

[camp-n-family]

Bounce could be from worn out shocks but shocks have nothing to do with ride height. The springs (coil or leaf) control ride height. New stiffer springs may help with sag but will not stop bounce.

The measurements don’t look bad. I’d be curious to know what the tongue weight is. Too much or too little can cause bouncing conditions. Likely too little tongue weight. Does he have a rack on the back of the tt?