# Outback 210Rs Wdh Question



## SalishSea (May 8, 2012)

We pick up our new Outback 210RS soon and being completely new to towing wanted to make sure we pull off the dealer lot with the right hitch set up.

Our TV is a 2012 Ford Expedition 4x4 with the heavy duty tow package. Max tongue weight is 920 lbs; however, I suspect with a full tank of gas and a family of four the max tongue weight we can have is around 850 lbs given the TV GVWR is 7500 lbs, the rear GAWR is 4250 lbs, and the dry TV weight is probably 5900 lbs.

We're getting the 1,000 lb equal-i-zer E4 WDH installed as part of the purchase as well as a P3 brake controller and an electric tongue jack.

We asked the dealer to make sure they complete the following prior to our arrival for the PDI: fill the fresh water tank, fill the propane tank, install the battery & battery box, and install the electric tongue jack. My thought was that I'd like to make sure the WDH was installed correctly with the additional weight of these items.

Once we take delivery we plan to drive straight to the CAT scale. I'm interested in how the weight is distributed to each axle. I'm also interested in what % of the full fresh water tank weight is added to the tongue.

This will give us a good estimate of how much weight remains for cargo assuming 15% of that is transferred to the tongue weight. This should also help determine if we can later add a couple of deep cycle 6V batteries. I suspect based on our cargo needs we likely won't be able to travel with a full tank of water even without the extra weight from a battery upgrade.

Does it sound like we're on the right path for safe towing? Anything I might have missed or consider as part of preparing for the WDH installation?

Thanks

Todd


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## hautevue (Mar 8, 2009)

Lots of good questions, so I'll pick off the ones I'm sure about:

1. You can save a lot of towing weight by not traveling with a full fresh water tank. Water weighs 8 pounds per gallon and if you have 35 gallons in the tank, that adds 280 pounds to your tow. We travel with about 10 gallons so we can flush the toilet while on the road, and get some fresh water for drinking. We fill it at the campground if the individual site has no water (common). What you plan to do is fine--find out what your numbers are with full water. But I recommend that you not tow all that weight around when going camping (unless you are dry camping, and then I fill up with fresh water nearby rather than haul it from home).

2. Cargo weight is somewhat independent of the weight distribution on the hitch. The TT weight goes somewhere! The WDH moves weight from the rear TV axle to the front of the TV. But the notion of going to the scales is a good one--might as well find out what your numbers are for real.

3. Checking the WDH installation: without the TT connected, and on flat, level ground (a concrete pad or that supermarket asphalt is fine) measure from the ground to the fender well on all 4 corners of the TV. When hooked up, remeasure. The TV should still be close to level. If the front is higher by more than about 3/4", there is so much load on the hitch that it's forcing the front end up. Usually that rise is visible when you stand at 90 degrees to the TV and look. High front ends are swaying messes looking for a place to happen.

I'm towing w/a 2008 Expy EL, and it's a fine vehicle for us. Tons of room in the back, so be judicious what you put in there--the yellow sticker on the door jamb is your bible of the magic weights.

Others can add stuff to this--my WDH setup by Holman was fine and I have had not needed to re-do a WDH setup, so I'm not an expert on that task.


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## SalishSea (May 8, 2012)

We took the Expedition to the CAT scale today. It's a 2012 Limited 4x4. Steer axle weight 3020 lbs & drive axle 3020 lbs, total weight of 6040 lbs with a full tank of gas and no passengers or cargo - 1460 lbs for tongue, passengers and cargo remains.

Estimate 485 lbs for the family and 850 lbs for the tongue and we only have about 125 lbs to spare before reaching the TV GVWR. We'll need to store cargo in the TT vs the TV. Maybe get a little more exercise as well, lol.

It looks like we'll need to pay attention to where there's a water source near or at each campground and fill up when we arrive as recommended. That should leave enough weight for any cargo in the TT we would need on a 2-3 day weekend trip.

I think the plan is to weigh again once we pull out of the dealer lot with a full tank of water, dump the water, and reweigh.

Todd


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

Good thing you weighed the TV. I don't mean to be negative, but when I bought at Tacoma RV, I know they didn't adjust the Equalizer correctly. Driving back North through Tacoma on I-5, the trailer was porposing so badly my wife was getting car sick.

I would recommend that you make sure you have a full set of washers (7) in hand for the Equalizer before you leave and then visit the scales again and weigh both truck axles and the trailer axles. When they did mine, I weighed and found out they way they had the hitch adjusted it was pulling weight off the front axle of the truck. It wasn't distributing the weight at all.

There are very few Equalizer dealers in Western Washington. The closest to me are Tacoma RV and Advanced Toys For Trucks in Burlington. I've had both try to adjust my hitch and both of them did it wrong. After talking to tech support at Progress Mfg, the company that make Equalizer, I've managed to get it dialed in by myself.


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## duggy (Mar 17, 2010)

I'm not sure about the 210RS, but on our 250RS the fresh water tank is behind the trailer axles. Filling it would actually reduce tongue weight. I try to travel with about 10 gallons in ours as well, then fill at the campground. Sounds like you're on the right track with weighing things, and making sure the set-up is correct.


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## duggy (Mar 17, 2010)

duggy said:


> I'm not sure about the 210RS, but on our 250RS the fresh water tank is behind the trailer axles. Filling it would actually reduce tongue weight. I try to travel with about 10 gallons in ours as well, then fill at the campground. Sounds like you're on the right track with weighing things, and making sure the set-up is correct.


I just took a look at the Holmans website. By the location of the water fill, it appears the fresh water tank is at the rear of the 210RS as well.


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## SalishSea (May 8, 2012)

Since the 210RS has the fresh water tank behind the trailer axles filling it all the way would reduce tongue weight? If that's the case we might be able to go through with installing a couple of 6V batteries after all. It will be interesting to see how the tongue weight changes based on an empty vs full tank.


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## SLO250RS (Mar 11, 2010)

Try going to equalizers website and watch the video of the install,get yourself set with the install and have at it.Lakeshore set up our hitch when we purchased but I knew once we loaded everything that we would carry in it it would not be remotely close.I took me 3 tries before I dialed it in but the effort was worth it.Good luck.


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## Leedek (Nov 28, 2010)

Just so everyone has a video to watch. I could not find this video on the Equalizer web site but this one has the same production company. It has been added as a favorite for me on my laptop. You never know when you might want to adjust / check the hitch.

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=xjK9jfTW_J4

*To clarify* : I could not find the installation video on the Equalizer site. The link above actually demonstrates how to install and adjust the hitch.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

Equalizer video link


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## SalishSea (May 8, 2012)

We loaded up or TT with all our gear, loaded up the family and dog in the TV, filled up the gas tank at the scale site, made sure all the TT tanks were empty and weighed using the WDH as set up by the dealer:

Steer axle: 3220
Drive axle: 4020
Trailer axle: 5720
Total weight: 12960
Rear/front wheel well heights uncoupled with full tank of gas and all passengers loaded: 34.5" & 35.5"
Rear/front wheel well heights coupled and TT & TV fully loaded: 31.25" & 36"

We then went home, readjusted the WDH, put 10 gallons in the fresh water tank, loaded everyone back into the TV and weighed again:

Steer axle: 3400
Drive axle: 3980
Trailer axle: 5480
Total weight: 12860
Rear/front wheel well heights uncoupled with full tank of gas and all passengers loaded: 34.5" & 35.5"
Rear/front wheel well heights coupled and TT & TV fully loaded: 33.75" & 35"

I'm not sure how the total weight was a hundred pounds less after adding 10 gallons of water.

The changes we made to the WDH prior to the second weigh:
1) Moved the sway brackets from about 28.5" to 30.5" inches back from the center of the coupler (the battery tray prevents moving any farther back)
2) Added one additional spacer washer for a total of six (We tried 8 & 7 total but couldn't get the lower shank bolt in with any more than 6 spacer washers.
3) Raised the L-brackets up two notches (one more notch remains before it's raised to the highest point).

Should we move the L-brackets up one more notch, as high as they'll go, and reweigh one more time or are we at a good weight distribution point now?

Honestly I didn't notice any difference when driving off the dealer's lot with no cargo in the TT, to fully loaded with no changes to the WDH, to fully loaded with changes to the WDH. That route includes both freeways and back roads with one very steep freeway incline/decline depending on which direction. The ride was smooth regardless of TT weight and WDH setting.

Todd


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

The L-brackets on the frame should be positioned to keep the bars parallel to the trailer frame. According to the Engineer at Progress I talked to about Equalizer adjustments, adding a washer is equivalent to raising the L-brackets one hole. It is also possible that the hitch head isn't at the correct level. Changing that will also change the number of washers you need. Just remember that when it is all done, the trailer should be very close to level, the bars should be level and you should drop about the same amount on both the front and rear ends when you connect the trailer.

By the way, where are you weighing? I always used the weigh station on I-5 in Everett until a drunk driver smashed it. The state has no plans to repair it so I am looking for a new location.


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## SalishSea (May 8, 2012)

CAT Scale. Here's the link to their site locator - http://catscale.com/cat-scale-locator

First weigh is $9.50 and a reweigh is $1.00.

I've been using the one in Sumner off of 167.

I'll have some more time to dial in the WDH in several weeks once we get the parking pad finished in the back yard and get the TT home. At that time I'll have a level site to work from and can make sure the sway bars are parallel and the hitch head is at the correct level (if I recall correctly it was when we left the dealer lot). Has anyone else had challenges getting more than 6 spacer washers on?

Until then we plan to take it out for it's first real camping trip this weekend and then try hauling it over Snoqualmie pass the following weekend to see how the TV handles a mountain pass crossing.

From there it's time to enjoy all the outdoor riches we have in Washington.

Todd


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## duggy (Mar 17, 2010)

thefulminator said:


> Just remember that when it is all done, the trailer should be very close to level, the bars should be level and you should drop about the same amount on both the front and rear ends when you connect the trailer.


I agree with the first two points, but on a lot of new trucks the best you can accomplish is to keep the front height where it was without the trailer hitched. Mine, like many, has bump stops that resist compressing the front suspension.


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## duggy (Mar 17, 2010)

SalishSea said:


> We loaded up or TT with all our gear, loaded up the family and dog in the TV, filled up the gas tank at the scale site, made sure all the TT tanks were empty and weighed using the WDH as set up by the dealer:
> 
> Steer axle: 3220
> Drive axle: 4020
> ...


It sounds like you're headed in the right direction. I'm happy to see a couple hundred more pounds on the front axle, and less on the rear axle, but a little confused why the trailer axle is 240 pounds less, especially considering you added a little water. Was it the same scale each time? It would also be interesting to see what the numbers are unhitched. You want to try to avoid having less weight on the steer axle, hitched, than you do unhitched.

I've never tried to put seven washers on mine, so I don't know if that would be a problem or not. The preference is to add washers first, while keeping the bars parallel to the trailer frame, then raising the "L" brackets if you can't add any more washers. As already stated, make sure the trailer is sitting level, or slightly nose down.


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## Collinsfam_WY (Nov 9, 2006)

Sounds like you are getting it dialed in. Part of it is just getting to know the on-highway feel of the hitch and how it is supposed to perform. I have set mine up on 3 different TV's now and this last time I set it up on my Dodge, took the least bit of fiddling around. As a rule, I always print off the instructions and follow them to the letter. I then adjust as needed from there. Just a quick tip - You should have to jack up the trailer with the truck attached in order to get the bars onto the L-brackets. On level ground, I have to turn the jack handle around about 15 times in order to get the bars on with the cheater. The bars should then "pop" pretty good off of the cheater arm onto the L-brackets. Trailer should sit level or very slightly nose down, even with the water. Our 23RS sits level with about 35gals of water in the tank (behind trailer axles). No sway. Great hitch.

-CC


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