weight distribution hitch.

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Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

in part thats why they work.

the overall force is the same but the distribution is different, by turning the hitch into a "torque point" some of the weight is pulled from the rear axle of the tow vehicle and pushed to the front, following newtons rules theres an equal amount of transfer on the trailer, as its only got one axle (effectively unless its a dolly trailer) the axle acts as a pivot so theres an effective weight transfer from the front of the trailer to the rear...


Theres a couple of issues with this.

1. youre unweighting the rear axle and pushing weight to the front axle.
2. youre unweighting the front of the trailer and pushing weight rearwards.

like highlift jacks, done right its a good thing, but its easy to get it wrong.

getting it wrong usually changes the E adjective, you go from being effective to entertaining.

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Yep. An excerpt from a Clayton's Towing article.


Swaybars
Weight distribution hitch, another touchy subject. Do any of us have them? No. Do lots of caravan crashes we see rolled have them? Yes. With a heavily loaded tow ball, they can help. If you have low tow ball weight, we personally consider they make things worse. With their tension, they really could provide the opposite result and have a dangerous lifting effect on the rear of your vehicle. If you are getting them, make sure you know what you are doing, know your weights or go to reputable companies who can give you the time to assist in having the right ones. These should not be used as a solution to a problem, only another tool that may help your towing experience. If they are used with limited tow ball weight, we really feel you are making things worse. If you are getting them, make sure you know what you are doing, know your weights or go to reputable companies who can give you the time to assist in having the right ones. These should not be used as a solution to a problem, only another tool that may help your towing experience. If they are used with limited tow ball weight, we really feel you are making things worse.

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Originally Posted by trout1105

Why are you towing with the bantam weight Kia when you have a perfectly good tow tug in your D2a V8?

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I wouldn't put anything bigger than a bike rack on a Kia.[bigrolf]

Oddlly enough i saw a Yaris with a tow bar on it a few days ago.[bighmmm]

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Originally Posted by loanrangie

I wouldn't put anything bigger than a bike rack on a Kia.[bigrolf]

Oddlly enough i saw a Yaris with a tow bar on it a few days ago.[bighmmm]

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I have got a tow ball on my ride on But that doesn't make it a tow tug[bigwhistle]

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Originally Posted by trout1105

I have got a tow ball on my ride on -----

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and a fine job it does too! [wink11]

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Originally Posted by lewy

Our little kia has a paltry 100kg tow ball weight our camper has 140kg tow hitch weight,whilst overall the camper is legal to tow the camper even when fully loaded the tow ball limit excludes towing it.I can shuffle a few things to the rear like the battery and tool box etc,but does anyone know if a weight distribution hitch will lower the weight on the towball even further and what would the inspectors actually weigh if inspected.cheers.

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# For what it's worth:
The stable mate of the Kia....Hyundai santa fe has a 100kg towball weight as well. They share a common suspension setup. Hyundai sell uprated rear springs which raise the towball max to 150kg. DIY spring swap is a couple of hrs (including coffee time) on the driveway with a floor jack and jack stands... Probably less $ than a weight distribution setup...

Can anyone find any real science behind the '10% ball weight rule'? I can't.

I've towed all sorts of things over the years, from 300kg to 3500kg, maybe more, and never had an issue using a ball weight that never exceeded maybe 120kg, except once.

That was towing a tandem bobcat trailer that weighed over a tonne alone, with a full load of 4m redgum posts on it. Couldn't realistically adjust the load to get the ball weight down below an estimated 300kg.

All I can say is that the steering was dangerously light.

Here's a plate on a stock LR towbar.................why doesn't it give a static ball weight capacity of 400kg? [bigwhistle] with a towing capacity of 4,000?

Attachment 181260

DL

We just bought 10 new trailers for work - to have 60 and 100kva gens put on. Custom made to suit the gens - manufacture states 4 to 7% recommended tow ball weight - no more than 8%.

The heaviest units tip the scales at 2950kg with a ball weight of 180kg and the lightest are 2290 with a ball weight of 150kg. They tow brilliantly. The owner has had and built trailers for gens for decades and he gave up trying to convince people the 10% ‘rule’ was a load of BS - even his old trailers come in around 5 to 6% and tow really well.

10% may be ok for a 6x4 but not much more than that IMO.