Coast Resorts Open Roads Forum: Truck floating in front of travel trailer

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Topic: Truck floating in front of travel trailer

Posted By: danv1317 on 02/01/17 06:19pm

I may be able to answer my own question, but just want confirmation.

I have a 29ft Springdale travel trailer that i was pulling with a 2wd dodge ram 2500 5.9L.

Since we stopped full timing, we got rid of the diesel and got a 2014 Ford F150 3.5L ecoboost. It's 4wd so it sits higher. To add some xtra umph to the suspension on it, i put on the Roadmaster Active Suspension.

I didn't change the height of the ball on the weight distribution hitch so it's still set for the dodge which was 2wd (lower to the ground) and didn't accomidate for the extra inch lift you get putting the active suspension on.

Driving down the highway today getting hte trailer fixed, the Ford feels like it's floating on clouds. Even at 30mph, it feels like i'm driving on snow, floating back and forth. I do have weight distribution hitch and sway bar.

I measured the front and rear of the trailer and the top of the ball is 2 inches higher than the rear of the trailer, so it does squat slightly.

Am i putting too much weight in the rear end?

Also, the truck isn't squatting really at all with the trailer on. Is this correct?

Thanks for the reassurance that i need to lower the ball if that is the case, if not, i appreciate any input. I know my TV is probably a bit overweighted, since i'm sure a lot of you will reiterate that to me.

Posted By: hohenwald48 on 02/01/17 06:24pm

Seems to me that with your new truck, you should start from square one and re-setup your WD hitch properly. If you don't know how, there are several threads that describe it and tons of info available at Google.

When seconds count, the police are only minutes away.

2019 Newmar Canyon Star 3627
2017 Jeep Wrangler JKU

Posted By: GordonThree on 02/01/17 06:24pm

What's your tire pressure on the truck, and are these P or LT tires?

2013 KZ Sportsmen Classic 200, 20 ft TT
2020 RAM 1500, 5.7 4x4, 8 speed

Posted By: downtheroad on 02/01/17 06:28pm

Hard to say....
if "floating" could be tires (P rated) or tire pressure.
if "swaying" could be not enough tongue weight or improper hitch set up

These are just rough guesses.

"If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane."

Arctic Fox 25Y
GMC Duramax
Blue Ox SwayPro

Posted By: Walaby on 02/01/17 06:41pm

Start from scratch and setup your hitch for your current vehicle. Then if you still have issues, take a look at TV tires (P rating vs LT), air pressure etc.. But, until you setup the WD hitch properly for the TV you will be chasing your tail.

Mike

Im Mike Willoughby, and I approve this message.
2017 Ram 3500 CTD (aka FRAM)
2019 GrandDesign Reflection 367BHS

Posted By: Ava on 02/01/17 06:56pm

Too much weight in the back of a trailer can cause a lot of sway which will affect driving control.

Posted By: AmericalVette on 02/01/17 06:58pm

Out of curiosity, did the "Trailer-Sway-Control" activate in your F150?

Times fun when you're having flies!

Posted By: danv1317 on 02/01/17 07:00pm

AmericalVette wrote:

Out of curiosity, did the "Trailer-Sway-Control" activate in your F150?

No. I didn't get any alarms or anything. Just had to pull off the highway going like 45mph cuz it was going all nutty. thought i was going to float into outter space.

Posted By: danv1317 on 02/01/17 07:04pm

Posted By: jfkmk on 02/01/17 07:33pm

Looks a little nose high.

Posted By: coolmom42 on 02/01/17 07:38pm

Get the trailer level and then re-adjust your weight distribution. Get some weights and make sure the tongue weight is 10-15 percent of the trailer weight. Then look at tires.

Single empty-nester in Middle TN, sometimes with a friend or grandchild on board

Posted By: Sandia Man on 02/01/17 07:48pm

I agree the photo shows nose is too high for my liking, I set up our WD/SC hitch where nose is just slightly lower than level. Re-adjust your hitch set-up where nose is at the very least level, LT tires are better for such a sizable TT. Don't know how much payload you have available, that Springdale is heavier than most TT's produced today of similar size. Not surprised your 3/4 ton Dodge handled the load better.

Posted By: danv1317 on 02/01/17 09:00pm

Will start from scratch on saturday and get everything in place. Thanks. i do have the P rated tires.

Posted By: GordonThree on 02/01/17 09:08pm

danv1317 wrote:

Will start from scratch on saturday and get everything in place. Thanks. i do have the P rated tires.

P tires are built for a nice soft ride carrying nothing more than groceries and the family dog. The treads going to wear pretty fast, you don't have to replace em right away just keep an eye on the tread and rotate often. You could try increasing the pressure but that's a stab in the dark without knowing axle weights.

Posted By: dodge guy on 02/02/17 05:22am

Yes, definitely start from scratch. From the sounds of it, it sounds like you are taking too much weight off the rear axle.

Lower the hitch and set everything up properly. I`m sure it will then tow great.

Wife Kim
Son Brandon 17yrs
Daughter Marissa 16yrs
Dog Bailey

12 Forest River Georgetown 350TS Hellwig sway bars, BlueOx TrueCenter stabilizer

13 Ford Explorer Roadmaster Stowmaster 5000, VIP Tow>
A bad day camping is
better than a good day at work!

Posted By: ken56 on 02/02/17 05:25am

Switch to LT tires as soon as you can. P metric tires are too soft in the sidewall even when aired up to max pressure. I had Goodyear Wranglers and they were not stiff enough to prevent that wiggle feeling in the rear end. My new LT Michelin tires took care of that. Also, I agree that you need to reset the hitch set up. Go to the scales afterward and get proper numbers on your rig.

Posted By: colliehauler on 02/02/17 06:06am

The 150 doesn't handle weight like a 2500.

Posted By: tdiller on 02/02/17 06:34am

GordonThree wrote:

danv1317 wrote:

Will start from scratch on saturday and get everything in place. Thanks. i do have the P rated tires.

When we bought my wife's 1500 Ram it had P tires on it. She was complaining about the ride being squishy when she loaded up the bed with hay. It was time for new tires anyway so I had the lt tires put on it. A world of difference. Now days with so many people buying trucks who never use them like a truck the manufacturers are trying to make them ride more like a car.

I use my truck as a truck almost every weekend hauling horses to or from show or hauling hay or other stuff.

Posted By: trail-explorer on 02/02/17 06:40am

danv1317 wrote:

Also, the truck isn't squatting really at all with the trailer on. Is this correct?

You answered your own question before even asking the question, all in the quote above.

Bob

Posted By: SouthpawHD on 02/02/17 06:49am

Likely some issues with the WDH and sounds like you are going to address that.

But let's look at something a little more basic than that. You've been driving around in an older and heavier 3/4 ton truck. Now you're in a newer and lighter 1/2 ton with a better suspension. Perhaps you're just not used to that feeling of now it rides. In some respects it's almost like a bus compared to a Caddy. Just a thought.

Palomino SolAire 307QBDSK
2016 Chevrolet 2500, CC, 6.0L, 4.10

Posted By: rbpru on 02/02/17 08:04am

I believe you have heard the two most obvious comments. New truck new setup and an F-150 is not going to tow like a 2500.

You have a lighter truck, with tires, suspension and other options designed for a softer ride.

That said, we love our E-boost F-150 but then we might like an F-250 even more.

Keep us posted.

Twenty six foot 2010 Dutchmen Lite pulled with a 2011 EcoBoost F-150 4x4.

Just right for Grandpa, Grandma and the dog.

Posted By: ford truck guy on 02/02/17 08:28am

My bro in law had the same issue... turns out that it was caused by the new tires that were on the truck.. they rubber was soft, and the tread was high,, that gave the treads room to flex a bit and gave him the feeling of floating.. after about 1,000 miles, that all went away...

Not to say its your problem......

Me-Her-the kids
2020 Ford F350 SD 6.7
2020 Redwood 3991RD Garnet

Posted By: coolmom42 on 02/02/17 11:51am

ford truck guy wrote:

I agree, I've had this problem with new tires too. But check the other stuff first.

Posted By: drsteve on 02/02/17 12:12pm

Get it so the nose is about an inch lower than the rear, and go from there. You'll probably find that with a little adjustment, the tow is just fine.

2006 Silverado 1500HD Crew Cab 2WD 6.0L 3.73 8600 GVWR
2018 Coachmen Catalina Legacy Edition 223RBS
1991 Palomino Filly PUP

Posted By: old guy on 02/02/17 12:31pm

looks to me like you just bought a new truck and hooked up without trying to match the hitch and tt to the truck. you need to tear down the hitch and set it up properly to this truck. once you do that go for a drive and reevaluate the system again

Posted By: RPreeb on 02/02/17 12:45pm

As others have said, towing nose up is a no-no. Should be level or slightly nose down on the TT. Need to change the hitch ball setup to lower it. We had to buy a new adjustable height ball mount when we went from a Honda Ridgeline to the F-150. The Honda was AWD, but not nearly as tall in the rear end as the Ford.

Rick
2016 F-150 XLT 4x4 3.5 EB
2017 Jay Feather X213

Posted By: 1stgenfarmboy on 02/02/17 03:34pm

I know this has been talked about a few times, when I replace the tires on my dually and hook up the goosneck farm trailer it feels like I am going to die, it is the worst feeling ever the way it walks all over the road, it really feels like the rear end U bolts are loose, but after a few thousand miles it settles in and all is good.

the tires were Geolanders for the record.

1993 Dodge W350 Cummins with all the goodies
2014 Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn 2wd 395hp
2017 Forest River Surveyor 243 RBS
2001 Super Sherpa & 2012 DL650A go along also

Posted By: Camper G on 02/02/17 04:58pm

I cannot add anything to this conversation other than what others have said, the nose the travel trailer should be slightly lower than the rear or at least level, get that squared away and then go from there

2017 Dodge Ram 2500 HD, 4x4, CCSB, 6.4L HEMI, Snow Chief, tow package.,1989 Skyline Layton model 75-2251.

Posted By: GaryWT on 02/02/17 05:35pm

Once you lower the ball and get more weight on the front tires of the truck with the hitch it will be better but might never be perfect.

ME '63, DW 64, (DS 89 tents on his own, DD 92 not so much), DS 95
2013 Premier Bullet 31 BHPR 2014 F350 Crew Cab 6.2L 3.73

Posted By: CampingN.C. on 02/03/17 07:28am

Hard to tell in the pic, do you have any sway control or just a standard WD hitch.
If not, and it doesn't look like it, you may want to consider adding the Reese Dual Cam to your existing hitch.

2018 Ram 3500 DRW CCLB Aisin 4.10 4x4

2018 Jayco Talon 413T
B&W Companion

Posted By: Hannibal on 02/03/17 05:26pm

Our F250 was solid as a rock with it's well worn Firestone TransForce HT's towing our 32.5' TT. I had new Firestones installed before our Christmas trip. I was expecting some tread squirm and got some. As said above, after about 1k miles, it settled down. Until then, the constant minor steering corrections were a bit tiring.
I second resetting the hitch. Trailer needs to be level or slightly nose down. And never lighten the tongue to accommodate a light tow vehicle.

2020 F250 STX CC SB 7.3L 10spd 3.55 4x4
2010 F250 XLT CC SB 5.4L 5spdTS 3.73
ex '95 Cummins,'98 12v Cummins,'01.5 Cummins,'03 Cummins; '05 Hemi
2017 Jayco 28RLS TT 32.5'

Posted By: Mike Up on 02/04/17 10:55am

danv1317 wrote:

I've had 2 Crew Cab 4WD F150s like yours, a 2010 with a 5.4L and a 2012 with a 5.0L, and now a new generation 2016 Crew Cab 4WD with another 5.0L. I pull a stick and tin 2012 Jayco Jay Flight 26BH which is 29' bumper to hitch.

I see 2 problems with your setup. First is that weight distribution hitch is setup incorrectly and you're nose high which will cause porposing and will cause the trailer to be unstable.

2nd, unless you're towing that trailer with just you in it, you've probably overloaded your truck. Both my F150s of that generation had lower payload. That's one long trailer with a very heavy slide and heavy stick and tin build.

And while I can't see it, with that huge trailer, you definitely need some LT tires and not the standard P series tires that come with a F150. The P series tires are soft and will cause your rig to wallow back and forth and feel unstable.

[image]

Old hitch on new truck. Bounced and was unstable the entire way to the camper dealer. Reese straight line dual cam system proved not to work correctly on new 2016 due to it's omission of 1000 lbs bars.

[image]

New Blue Ox Sway Pro hitch for new 2016 F150. Adjusted correctly if not somewhat low. Rides very good and stable now. I did adjust 1 link tighter to get the rear up a bit more which proved to offer a better tow experience.

Good luck in making that rig work.

* This post was last edited 02/04/17 11:20am by Mike Up *

2019 Ford F150 XLT Sport, CC, 4WD, 145" WB, 3.5L Ecoboost, 10 speed, 3.55 9.75" Locking Axle, Max Tow, 1831# Payload, 10700# Tow Rating, pulling a 2020 Rockwood Premier 2716g, with a 14' box. Previous 2012 Jayco Jay Flight 26BH.

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