Ive searched and cant find really clear answers so bear with me please!

I recently picked up an 05 tahoe 5.3 4wd and will use it for occasional tow duty for my tj. I know im gonna need a WD hitch, so im trying to figure out what I need before I plunk down $500 for one... this is the flyweight edition of pirate's tow section, so bear with me please!

anyways, heres my noobert questions...

first whats the difference between the 'round bar' and 'trunion bar' WD hitches?

second, I see two types of sway control... one that just looks like a trailer hitch that plugs into a receiver, and another that will attach to the V on the trailer tongue. which would i need, or is one better than the other???

third, can I go too heavy with the tongue weight rating on the WD hitch? If I go with a 1000# rated wd hitch, do I really NEED 1000lbs tongue weight, or does that just give me extra capacity? Im sure this will have alot to do with placing the jeep properly on the trailer to get the right balance too... but if Im under that rating on tongue weight will I be nose heavy?

fourth, Im likely going to be borrowing/renting trailers for a while. I dont have space to store one, and most of the places Ive called around here want $80 a month for a parking place to store it. any reason I couldnt use any of the WD hitches with bolt on brackets with a u-haul trailer? I know the u-haul trailers have only surge brakes. am I nuts for even considering these things for occasional use? at $49 a day I'd have to do alot of trailering to justify the purchase + storage + insurance + maintenance + registration costs of owning my own trailer. but I'd much rather have my own that is a) lighter, b) mine, and I know how its maintained c) mine in case I F it up...

thanks folks

[devils advocate]
I'd think the Tahoe could tow the TJ even on a steel trailer without WD.

the tahoe is rated to 5000 (accding to manual) or 5500 (according to the placard on the hitch) without a WD hitch.

figure 3800ish for the jeep and 2000# for the uhaul, or 1600# for the bigtex 60ch I looked at yesterday, and im right in that range... its pretty close to the threshold, and im sure I could get away without it, but would have lower blood pressure with it!

and im sure I could get away without it, but would have lower blood pressure with it!

a lot of it is how you load the trailer too. I've pulled a 14 k boat on a tag trailer without WD.
Hitch it up and try it out before dropping all that $$$

I wouldn't tow that much weight with a softly sprung 1/2T Tahoe without a W/D hitch.

I would do bags before the hitch. I towed close to 11k with a lifted 06 f150 and bags. It was easy. no probs from Wyoming to Ohio.


micky

first whats the difference between the 'round bar' and 'trunion bar' WD hitches?

I could be wrong but I believe that the trunnion bar heads don't allow you to pull the bars off and run without them. The round bar heads have the bars slip in from the bottom so you can run with or without them. Dunno though.


second, I see two types of sway control... one that just looks like a trailer hitch that plugs into a receiver, and another that will attach to the V on the trailer tongue. which would i need, or is one better than the other???

I think it's a ford vs chevy thing.

third, can I go too heavy with the tongue weight rating on the WD hitch? If I go with a 1000# rated wd hitch, do I really NEED 1000lbs tongue weight, or does that just give me extra capacity? Im sure this will have alot to do with placing the jeep properly on the trailer to get the right balance too... but if Im under that rating on tongue weight will I be nose heavy?

In theory the 1000lb bars will transfer that much weight to the front of your truck. So you need to watch the GVW on your front end to make sure you don't overload it. Which bars you need depends on how much tongue weight you have and what it takes to level the trailer. You don't want the trailer to run nose up or down because that increases the chances of sway.

any reason I couldnt use any of the WD hitches with bolt on brackets with a u-haul trailer? I know the u-haul trailers have only surge brakes. am I nuts for even considering these things for occasional use?

The brackets for the WD hitch come in different styles. You need to match the a frame of the trailer to the brackets. Channel, box tube etc. I don't see a problem using one with the trailer but it may scratch the paint etc. Depends on how picky your trailer rental place is.

Surge brakes suck. You'll hate life in a panic stop on a wet day but then you probably already knew that.

I've got a 06 Silverado w/ the 5.3 / 4wd (143.5" wheelbase compared to 119 or so on the tahoe), I've towed a wrangler and monte carlo many times on a HEAVY equipment trailer (about 3,000 lb trailer). I'd say, Skip the weight bars, I've never had a problem with sway even at 80 mph. It's all in how you load the trailer. My biggest upgrade for that 5.3 would be a 9.5" rear end from a escalade or denali yukon (can find them for about 1,000 to 1,200 w/ low miles and they are a direct swap). I've had awful luck with the 8.8 on my truck towing heavy (gets real hot). Get yourself a good tune on that 5.3 and the 9.5 w/ 4.10s you'll have a tow beast. Oh don't forget to remove the rear seats and get a double bed air mattress, then you've got one comfy sleeper too.

Edit: I've only towed into GA. I can't say if you live out west how the 5.3 will handle the big hills but I've never had a problem even running in the brooksville area which has some good size grade for FL.

Edit: I've only towed into GA. I can't say if you live out west how the 5.3 will handle the big hills but I've never had a problem even running in the brooksville area which has some good size grade for FL.

Im in the atlanta area, and most of my trips will be into Alabama, tennessee or NC.

I wouldn't tow that much weight with a softly sprung 1/2T Tahoe without a W/D hitch.

Hell, I wouldn't tow that much with any 1/2 ton rated chevy without either adding overloads or using W/D.

I could be wrong but I believe that the trunnion bar heads don't allow you to pull the bars off and run without them. The round bar heads have the bars slip in from the bottom so you can run with or without them. Dunno though.


No, trunnion bars can be removed - I do it all the time when my trailer is empty. I like the trunnion bar setup, and haven't heard stories of losing the bars like can happen with the round bars.

Mark

No, trunnion bars can be removed - I do it all the time when my trailer is empty. I like the trunnion bar setup, and haven't heard stories of losing the bars like can happen with the round bars.

Mark

can you give me some details on how they're different?

no one has this crap in stock for me to take a look at and compare, and none of the salesmen ive tlaked to know much more about it than I do :shaking:

any thoughts on this unit here? reasonable price, includes sway control, trunion bar, free shipping, good feedback :confused:

Ive heard the Curt brand is solid...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/New-Trunnion-Bar-Weight-Distribution-Hitch-Sway-Control_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a1171Q7c66 Q3a2Q7c65Q3a12Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318Q7c301Q3a0Q7c2 93Q3a1Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZ item330302044094QQitemZ330302044094QQptZMotorsQ5fC arQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

from the instruction manual:

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO HOOK-UP OR TOW WITH A FRONT WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE WITH THE REAR WHEELS
REMOVED. This will cause severe instability, loss of control and structural failure.

dont they do figure 8 races like this out west?

if not, they should start! :o