Do I need Stabilizer Bars?

[Guest ChaplainLar]

I am going to buy an open 16' car hauler.

Do I need stabilizer bars and why?

[MCHinson]

From my experience, it depends on exactly what you are towing on the trailer and it depends on what you are towing it with.

For example, I can pull my enclosed trailer with a Model A Phaeton in it in heavy winds behind a full size long wheel base pickup without an anti sway bar without any problem. If I want to pull that same combination any distance with my 2003 Chevy Tahoe, I have to use an anti sway bar.

[Guest ChaplainLar]

I will be towing a 1928 Essex ( 2500 lbs)

with a 2006 Dodge Durango.

[R W Burgess]

Larry, you may not need the bars, but they will transfer the weight off of your rear tires onto the front ones, which will keep the weight and heat buildup lower on your rear tires. They'll live a little longer.

Wayne

[Ron Green]

I personally would use both a sway bar and load distribution bars that will allow you to play with the tongue weight by shifting the weight to the front truck wheels. The sway bar should help to keep you from being pushed by the big rigs when they fly by you.

[Guest imported_Brenda Shore]

Larry,

We have the sway bars on our rig and I wouldn't go anywhere without them. The extra support is great and the knowledge that they assist with the weight distribution makes both my husband and I feel much better - especially on the longer hauls which is what we do.

Brenda

[Ron Green]

I was unaware that anyone made a combination sway bar and load distribution bars? I have only seen the 2 distribution load bars that shift the weight onto the front truck wheels and the single sway bar that has a lever adjustment (tight / lose) that connects the trailer to the hitch to prevent swaying.

[Mark Shaw]

Wayne has offered some good advice. It will help to distribute the load to all four wheels of the Durango & will help with tire wear and braking too.

I towed my Buicks with a 2000 Durango on my 16' open trailer without a load distribution hitch, but with a sway bar & had no problems. But, when I got an enclosed trailer, I really needed the distribution hitch and the sway bar....and a bigger tow rig!

It was really too much for the Durango, so I got a full size Silverado Z71 & now I can tow just about any single car hauler. And my mileage while towing is much better now too!

[charlier]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Ron Green</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I was unaware that anyone made a combination sway bar and load distribution bars? I have only seen the 2 distribution load bars that shift the weight onto the front truck wheels and the single sway bar that has a lever adjustment (tight / lose) that connects the trailer to the hitch to prevent swaying. </div></div>

Ron, I have one of these combination units that I use with my Toyota 4Runner SUV & 20ft enclosed car trailer combination.

This combination weight distributing and sway control unit is great and it does the job VERY Well.

More info and a photo can be found near the bottom of this thread: http://forums.aaca.org/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/500595/fpart/3

FYI, the link I put in the other thread to the reese-hitches web site is not the company I purchased it from.

I purchased mine from the trailer dealer for a LOT less than this web site's price.

Of course I purchased mine 4 years ago so maybe prices have changed.

[Ron Green]

Charlie,

Thanks for the link / picture. I like the theory with the combination unit especially since there are actually 2 sway bars. I am not a Reese hitch fan as much of their stuff now is made in China, and I don't trust Chinese metal especially wheel bearings (short life).

Draw-Tite which I like doesn't offer the this type sway bar but probably will in the near future.

[charlier]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Ron Green</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Charlie,

Thanks for the link / picture. I like the theory with the combination unit especially since there are actually 2 sway bars. I am not a Reese hitch fan as much of their stuff now is made in China, and I don't trust Chinese metal especially wheel bearings (short life).

Draw-Tite which I like doesn't offer the this type sway bar but probably will in the near future. </div></div>

Ron, your post got me thinking that I thought I saw somewhere that both Draw-Tite and Reese were owned/operated by the same parent company.

After a little internet searching guess what? Some of the biggest names in towing (ie Draw-Tite, Reese, Tekonsha and others) are all part of

the Cequent Group of Companies. http://www.cequentgroup.com/

After finding that out it made sense that there appears to be product overlap in the Draw-Tite & Reese Towing product lines (ie some of there products look IDENTICAL). That being the case, one has to wonder exactly where both product lines are manufactured and what raw materials are being used.

BTW, the Cequent Group web site has links to all their other various companies' web sites.

Might be worth bookmarking that site for future reference for towing accessories, supplies, etc.

[Ron Green]

I recently picked up a Reese hitch and it said made in China and a Draw-Tite was made in the USA. I did notice that these companies intermix their products? Another conglomerate in the making and probably soon to be all from overseas.

[charlier]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Ron Green</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I recently picked up a Reese hitch and it said made in China and a Draw-Tite was made in the USA. I did notice that these companies intermix their products? Another conglomerate in the making and probably soon to be all from overseas. </div></div>

After reading your last post, I checked out the tow equipment components on my trailer.

It seems that the various towing components are either Draw-Tite or Reese.

I agree with you that it appears that these companies intermix their products.

In some cases, they share the same product numbers for each of the two brands.

[Barry Wolk]

After crashing my trailer due to the failure of the China-made Round Robin round bar hitch I decided to spend the big bucks and go with an American-made Equal-i-zer 4-point sway control hitch. It proved a good investment.

It makes a heck of a racket going around corners, but that just shows that the friction points are working. Other than the fact that it was poorly packaged and arrived in an exploded box, I'm very happy with the product.

I rode behind my trailer for about 10 miles and I detected no sway at all. The driver of the Avalanche tow vehicle said he could barely feel that he had a 36-foot 12,000# package behind him.

Equal-i-zer hitch

[Paul Dobbin]

I've been towing for years and think the key is more about the tow vehicle that the one being towed.

Weight and wheelbase of the towing vehicle compared to the one being towed is the key.

Any tow vehicle can get the load rolling, but to be safe you need to be ready for anything. Sway, swerve, stopping and porpoiseing all can happen and cause you to have an accident.

Rule #1 If it can happen and you are not ready, you are on your way to an accident.

Rule #2 If what you are towing is similar to, heavier or longer than the tow vehicle you need both an anti-sway bar and a load leveling hitch.

Rule #3 If you violate #2, #1 will happen.

What happens in most trailer accidents is that the trailer takes over the control of the direction of both vehicles and the tow vehicle can only ride it out to the scene of the accident. The causes are, weight, tongue weight, load weight & distribution which can all take over.

With the tongue weight at 10-12% of trailer weight loaded and a weight distribution hitch with a sway bar, you reduce the chances of the trailer taking over.

The few hundred dollars you save by taking a chance are nothing compared to the costs of an accident.

[Ron Green]

Excellent points Paul. I have never been one to scrimp on equipment to save a few dollars and in my many tow miles throughout the years have seen just about everything. It does seem that with a dually sway bars don't seem to be as critical.

One thing I do need to do a better job of is keep track of the newer products coming on to the market.

[charlier]

Paul you do make some excellent points.

Kind of interesting that I passed a big Chevy pickup towing a travel trailer last weekend.

Had a nice long wheelbase and I believe it was a "Heavy Duty" model pickup.

The thing that caught my eye immediately was that the trailer was not not very large yet the truck and trailer were both bobbing up and down (ie. porpoiseing) on a relatively smooth, flat road.

Obviously, that towing setup had serious issues that even a long wheelbase, HD pickup was not equipped to handle.

Sad part is that this is not the first (or last) time I have seen a big pickup truck tow vehicle that lacked the proper equipment and/or had serious tongue weight issues.

[Paul Dobbin]

Charlie,

That big dually may have had negative tongue weight or been close to a balanced trailer. Either one can cause the trailer to first push the rear wheels of the tow vehicle down, which in turn lifts the traction to the two front wheels that are steering the whole rig. On a straight that may not a big problem but when it happens in a curve,

it can cause real difficulties in control when the trailer wants to continue momentum it a direction other than what the driver wishes. Then if the pushing weight is enough it can turn the towing vehicle around before the driver knows what's happening.

The old 10-12% rule on tongue weight important.