im new to towing. this summer i want to tow a 12x6 uhaul enclosed trailer from texas to cail. i just wonder how the vehicle will handle. i just worry about stopping power and trailer sway.
has anyone towed this much load for a long distance to see how the vehicle feels on the road?
im making some upgrades to the vehicle AIRlift 1000, transmission cooler and front drilled and vent rotors.
towing 5000lb
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doctahjones
- Posts: 844
- Joined: Tue Nov 16, 2010 11:08 am
- Location: aurora, co
the biggest thing i can say is make sure you load the trailer properly!!
and not just front to back load, side to side as well.
last year we moved my gma from georgia to texas to live with my mom.
1st trip we had one of the smaller 5x8's i think? it's the 'middle' sized enclosed one that has 1 axle. didn't get very much trailer sway even at 70mph, but i don't think we put enough weight in the front of the trailer because that dang hitch was loud as heck every time we went over bumps.
2nd trip we used that large double axle enclosed one. front to back i loaded it great, but apparently i didn't side to side. anytime i'd get over about 65 i'd get -bad- trailer sway. so much that one time passing a semi i thought we were going to eat it. so i set cruise to like 65 and we were fine. something about 66 it didn't like though.
on the second trip i put the rear tires to 40psi. i also did not have the airlift, but either time i did not see any butt sag. not sure how the airlift would have helped the sway on the second trip, but i wish i had done it before so i could see.
my v8 didn't seem to struggle at all pulling either trailer. gas mileage was about 14 on the hwy pulling the second trailer, can't remember on the first.
as for stopping, it was easy on both trailers. the smaller one didn't have -that- much weight, and the second had the hydrolic trailer brakes that activate based on forward pressure on the hitch.
hope that helps.
and not just front to back load, side to side as well.
last year we moved my gma from georgia to texas to live with my mom.
1st trip we had one of the smaller 5x8's i think? it's the 'middle' sized enclosed one that has 1 axle. didn't get very much trailer sway even at 70mph, but i don't think we put enough weight in the front of the trailer because that dang hitch was loud as heck every time we went over bumps.
2nd trip we used that large double axle enclosed one. front to back i loaded it great, but apparently i didn't side to side. anytime i'd get over about 65 i'd get -bad- trailer sway. so much that one time passing a semi i thought we were going to eat it. so i set cruise to like 65 and we were fine. something about 66 it didn't like though.
on the second trip i put the rear tires to 40psi. i also did not have the airlift, but either time i did not see any butt sag. not sure how the airlift would have helped the sway on the second trip, but i wish i had done it before so i could see.
my v8 didn't seem to struggle at all pulling either trailer. gas mileage was about 14 on the hwy pulling the second trailer, can't remember on the first.
as for stopping, it was easy on both trailers. the smaller one didn't have -that- much weight, and the second had the hydrolic trailer brakes that activate based on forward pressure on the hitch.
hope that helps.
I towed a 5x8 with about 4000 lbs from Alaska to Florida. I had a Yakima gear basket fully loaded, and and an enclosed luggage carrier on top of the pathy, and a kayak strapped to the top of the trailer. The only problem I had was in Arizona going over the mountain passes, there were semi's passing me. I wouldn't want to tow much more than that for a long distance, but you should be ok with the Uhaul, they are lower to the ground, creating less drag.
Hey avominassian,
I live in British Columbia, Canada. I recently moved to the interior of the province which has some BIG ASS hills to climb. I rented a UHaul 12X6 trailer and had it loaded to the rafters- aka, very heavy. I've been running the Airlift airbags for 1.5 years now, so all I did is pump up the pressure in both the airbags and the tires. The trailer towed like a dream. Easy riding, turns well, fairly aerodynamic. The one thing that you have to remember with towing large trailers is that stopping takes longer. Other than that you should be good to go. Oh yeah, almost forgot.......don't pull the trailer into a small parking lot with only one entrance/exit and lots of traffic. It's a pain in the ass to get out - so plan your route!!
Good Luck,
Pete
I live in British Columbia, Canada. I recently moved to the interior of the province which has some BIG ASS hills to climb. I rented a UHaul 12X6 trailer and had it loaded to the rafters- aka, very heavy. I've been running the Airlift airbags for 1.5 years now, so all I did is pump up the pressure in both the airbags and the tires. The trailer towed like a dream. Easy riding, turns well, fairly aerodynamic. The one thing that you have to remember with towing large trailers is that stopping takes longer. Other than that you should be good to go. Oh yeah, almost forgot.......don't pull the trailer into a small parking lot with only one entrance/exit and lots of traffic. It's a pain in the ass to get out - so plan your route!!
Good Luck,
Pete
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dared3vil00
- Posts: 144
- Joined: Mon Nov 28, 2011 10:23 pm
- Location: Canada
Yeah those coquihalla hills can she be a killer if your towing something. When not towing however, damn they make fine places to pass all the slow polks.
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