Friday was a sad day RIP Avalanche

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ezstriper

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Bet the trailer did not have enough tongue weight, thats exactly how they act when that happens
 

Tacky

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For us guys that don't tow, could you please explain what that means exactly.

When towing you want about 10-15% of the total trailer weight on the hitch. Too little weight on the hitch, or front of the trailer promotes sway. Also the faster you go, the more prone to sway. I used to have a sailboat that required I put the anchors, sails, and all gear at the front of the boat to prevent sway.
BTW, I have no idea if this is the cause of the OP's problem.
 

Tonyrodz

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When towing you want about 10-15% of the total trailer weight on the hitch. Too little weight on the hitch, or front of the trailer promotes sway. Also the faster you go, the more prone to sway. I used to have a sailboat that required I put the anchors, sails, and all gear at the front of the boat to prevent sway.
BTW, I have no idea if this is the cause of the OP's problem.
How would you know how much weight is on the front of the trailer and what, I guess, would be your tongue weight? Thx for bearing with me.
 

#1taho

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How would you know how much weight is on the front of the trailer and what, I guess, would be your tongue weight? Thx for bearing with me.
It's a trial and error thing. It comes over time. You need weight in the front to balance out the sway factor. I have been towing a trailer since I go my license. It's hard to explain, but you need to figure out the right balance in weight front to back.
 

iamdub

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For a camper, the manufacturer should have this info available and should locate the wheels on the frame when they build the camper so that this would induce that 10%-15% front bias. When loading a utility trailer, don't load it so that the front end is trying to pull up on the rear of the truck. This is easy to watch when you're using a single axle trailer. On a tandem axle, it's not gonna teeter-totter so you have to watch it more closely and think it about it more. It's not an exact science, it's just something to be mindful of because it is important. Loading a car on a trailer is easy cuz you can gradually bring it to the front of the trailer and stop when the back of the truck starts to sag a bit.
 

swathdiver

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How would you know how much weight is on the front of the trailer...

It's a trial and error thing. It comes over time.

It is indeed, we also have easier access to scales than our ancestors did. Most truck stops have scales and you can use them to arrive at the numbers pretty precisely.
 

Kendall69

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Doesn't matter what the "posted" speed limit is 75 towing anything is UNSAFE PERIOD. Max speed UHAUL says is 45MPH for their equipment. In Ca. max speed is 55 TOWING anything. Seriously is it worth being anywhere 30 minutes sooner at the risk of killing a loved one. Go ahead everyone CHIME IN say what you want there is no need to go "the posted speed limit" or "what the law allows". Does anyone think that "posted" 75 mph goes for everything that travels down that road - REALLY. How is it possible for any State to calculate, GVW, trailer height, wind conditions, road conditions, pulling equipment, sway bars, max tire speed, etc. ...and one small factor , Unless otherwise stated all trailer tires are rated at a maximum speed of 65 miles per hour. So tell me how a State can allow 75 mph trailer towing when .....Unless otherwise stated all trailer tires are rated at a maximum speed of 65 miles per hour. Bottom line you learned an expansive lesson that could have killed someone, just to get to your location a few minutes early, or follow a law that was not specific to your vehicle, your trailer, the conditions at the time. Make this a teaching moment for all reading this, because often time I see people towing and going WAY WAY WAY over the speed limit and for what?
 

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