# Intro & Hitch Question



## Bill and Teresa Pearce (Jun 15, 2008)

Hello. We picked up a 2008 25RSS last fall and have been out in it three times so far this year. We really like it but have had some problems with sway. Our tow vehicle is a 2008 Ford Expedition. The hitch we currently have is a DSP equalizer hitch. We added a Reese friction control sway bar after the first trip out when we almost lost the trailer. It has greatly improved the handling but I think it can still be improved. We've been using this forum for research. We have seen a lot of great advice and I am planning to replace the hitch with the Reese dual cam sway control before our next trip out.

I know we created part of the problem with the bike rack we are using (see below). We had a receiver welded across the back and added a heavy duty bike rack which is probably 80 pounds plus 4 bikes. It was difficult to find a bike rack that could accomodate kids bikes and the kids say it just wouldn't be camping if they didn't have their bikes. To compensate we do pack everything under the front bunk. On our short trips to the mountains (less than 90 minutes) we have been taking fresh water with us. I cannot find where the water tank is on the 25RSS to know if this is helping or hurting.

We are in Calgary, Alberta so we do encounter a lot of wind and traffic when heading out. We never realized how much air the big trucks moved until they passed us hauling the Outback.


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## battalionchief3 (Jun 27, 2006)

By the look of your pic, those aftermarket wheels may have a light tire on it. See if they are E load range tires, they should inflate to 80 psi. Too weak of a side wall from a light truck tire can lead to the trailer wagging the truck.


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## NHRA Larry (Jan 30, 2008)

Welcome to Outbacking. I had quite the same problem as you discribe. My first question is it the TV rated at 1/2 ton ? I tow my 30RLS with a Dodge 1500 w/5.7 hemi and a superchip. First thing I had to do is change out the "P" rated tires that came on the truck and get some "LT" tires on the thing. I went with a Toro 10 ply tire, that took care of the problem.

I also tow with a bike rack on the back of my TT. I have a 150cc scooter I use as a "pit bike" at the tracks and it hangs off the back like yours. I have a checklist I go by before I set out. It includes things to help elemate sway like making sure the fresh water tank is full (prevents slush). I pump up the TV tires to 85 psi on the rear, and 75 psi on the front. Also, I make sure the TT tires are pumped up to Keystones recommended pressure for the 30RLS which is 65 psi. Cross wind is still and issue for all of us, but that is nature...

Hope this brougt some light on possbile fixes to your situation. Hope to see you down the road..

NRHA Larry


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## garyb1st (Dec 6, 2007)

Welcome to Outbackers. I'm a new member myself. Just picked up a 28KRS and joined last week. This is a great site with tons of information. If you haven't had much experience towing you might want to look at this link. http://www.rvtowingtips.com/index.html There's a lot of good info there.

GaryB


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## Bill and Teresa Pearce (Jun 15, 2008)

battalionchief3 said:


> By the look of your pic, those aftermarket wheels may have a light tire on it. See if they are E load range tires, they should inflate to 80 psi. Too weak of a side wall from a light truck tire can lead to the trailer wagging the truck.


I'll check the Expedition. The tires and wheels are factory but I cannot recall what they are at the moment other than Pirelli. We did repalce all of the tires on the Outback after the first trip as we discovered cracking in two of the sidewalls. The Duro tires lasted one trip and we are not getting any response from Duro and no help so far from the dealer. We replaced the Duro tires with Maxxis Radials but I did not confirm the tire pressure. I'll check to see what they should be and make that change.


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## jetjane (Feb 8, 2007)

Your fresh water tank is usually, if not always, right where you fill it at. Wherever the drain is, the tank will be directly above it.

PS Welcome to the forum!


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Try the dual cam. Work to get it set up well. With a 1/2 ton I also aired up my tires to ~40psi (I think the max was 44psi?!?!). Don't overinflate though....


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## russk42 (Sep 10, 2007)

Have you been to the scales with your bikes attached? It's possible that the bikes may be affecting your tounge weight enough to make you more prone to sway--although not too likely, if you've got a full load of junk under the front bunks.

Having said that, it might be worthwhile to know what your weights are (trailer axles, expedition axles, tounge weight) with a fully loaded trailer---you never know, you might be surprised.

I've also recently upgraded from friction sway control to the dual cam, not only has it helped prevent sway; but I never liked having to tighten down that friction bar---i prefer to let the trailer pivot freely.

Personally, I put the bigger bikes on the roof of the suburban, and the little bikes go under the rear bed/slideout


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## skippershe (May 22, 2006)

Hi Bill and Teresa









I just wanted to add........WELCOME TO OUTBACKERS!


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Welcome...Welcome...Welcome.

Glad you found us.









We just had another member post a mod they did that moved the spare tire under the propane tanks. This would move more weight to the front and might help.

Here is the link to that topic.
http://www.outbackers.com/forums/index.php...18&hl=spare


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## GarethsDad (Apr 4, 2007)

"I know we created part of the problem with the bike rack we are using (see below). We had a receiver welded across the back and added a heavy duty bike rack which is probably 80 pounds plus 4 bikes. It was difficult to find a bike rack that could accomodate kids bikes and the kids say it just wouldn't be camping if they didn't have their bikes. To compensate we do pack everything under the front bunk. On our short trips to the mountains (less than 90 minutes) we have been taking fresh water with us. I cannot find where the water tank is on the 25RSS to know if this is helping or hurting." The 08 25rss can hold 50 gallons of water at 8.33lbs per gallon adding 416.5 lbs to the TT. The fresh water tank is on the street side just behind the tires. http://www.outbackers.com/forums/index.php...si&img=8529 In this picture you can see the low point drains and near the tires on the left side is the drain for the fresh water tank. "We added a Reese friction control sway bar " You may need to upgrade to the duel cam setup, friction sway control bars are good up to 25 feet and the 25rss is just past this point. Take your rig to the scales and find out where your at. I added a hitch with a carrier for my generator adding 200+ lbs to the back of the tt with a few runs through the scales I know how much weight to load into the front storage area to keep the tongue 10 to 15%. James


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## H2oSprayer (Aug 5, 2006)

How about moving the bikes to a roof top bike carrier such as this -->Bike rack? This would move that weight off the back of the tt.


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## Bill and Teresa Pearce (Jun 15, 2008)

H2oSprayer said:


> How about moving the bikes to a roof top bike carrier such as this -->Bike rack? This would move that weight off the back of the tt.


Thanks for all the suggestions and information. I am looking at all of them. I am certain that when we changed the tires to radials they did not inflate them to the recommended pressure. Moving the bikes is one of our backup plans. We really hope we can continue with the current configuration as it works really well. I am changing the hitch and sway system on Friday morning and will take the trailer for a spin up the highway to see how much of an improvement it is.

Thanks again.


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## Airboss (Jul 14, 2007)

Hmmm...what's the wheelbase on your Expedition? I used to tow my 25RS-S with a Land Rover LR3 (114" wheelbase) and it was obivous that the short wheelbase was a major contributing factor to the sway. You may be having the same problem - the tail is wagging the dog.


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## battalionchief3 (Jun 27, 2006)

dogs wagging tales....


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## Helheim (Apr 28, 2008)

Hey, I live in Calgary as well! I didn't want to have to worry about sway at all and my TV is a Jeep Cherokee, which has a pretty small wheelbase, so I went with the ProPride hitch. It's an awesome hitch. Pulling the trailer in the wind & rain you don't feel anything back there.

Pic


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## Bill and Teresa Pearce (Jun 15, 2008)

Airboss said:


> Hmmm...what's the wheelbase on your Expedition? I used to tow my 25RS-S with a Land Rover LR3 (114" wheelbase) and it was obivous that the short wheelbase was a major contributing factor to the sway. You may be having the same problem - the tail is wagging the dog.


The wheel base on the Expedition is 119" which is 7" shorter than a standard F-150. I am sure it is contributing to the problem.


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## Bill and Teresa Pearce (Jun 15, 2008)

We just wanted to thank everyone for their suggestions. We did change out the hitch to one that supports the Reese Dual Cam sway control. We had a friction control sway system. This last weekend we went to Jasper which is about 5.5 hours of which 4.5 of that is through the mountains. The new Reese system performed well. There was no comparison to the old setup. It felt like we had a solid connection with the trailer. The trek took us up and down mountain passes and we were much more comfortable. I would recommend to anyone the Reese Dual Cam setup. I just wish I had known about it before we started.


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## GarethsDad (Apr 4, 2007)

No more white knuckle ride for you. James


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Bill and Teresa Pearce said:


> We just wanted to thank everyone for their suggestions. We did change out the hitch to one that supports the Reese Dual Cam sway control. We had a friction control sway system. This last weekend we went to Jasper which is about 5.5 hours of which 4.5 of that is through the mountains. The new Reese system performed well. There was no comparison to the old setup. It felt like we had a solid connection with the trailer. The trek took us up and down mountain passes and we were much more comfortable. I would recommend to anyone the Reese Dual Cam setup. I just wish I had known about it before we started.


Congrats on the upgrade....glad it is working out for you!!


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## MaeJae (May 12, 2005)

Great! Congrats on your upgrade!
We used to tow our 27RSDS with an '04 Expy...
I had 20" rims with BFG A/T on it, those tires were
nice and wide and very stable! 
We have an '05 Excursion now!

BTW... WELCOME to Outbackers!

MaeJae


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