Trailer Tongue Length

[Monkei]

I have a 40ft diesel pusher and am looking for car hauler to tow ... I am concerned about how much tongue length I should have.  I am not sure if I want an enclosed or open aluminum yet, but should not make any difference in the tongue length.  I look forward to hearing from those who have the same setup.  Thanks!

 

[mdbass]

Whatever you decide-check the maximum tongue weight of your hitch before proceeding. We recently had to deal with a cracked hitch and: to our surprise, the max tongue weight was just 300 pds. The replacement was rated at 500 pds and neither one of them was rated for GVW of over 5000 pds.

 

[Monkei]

Whatever you decide-check the maximum tongue weight of your hitch before proceeding. We recently had to deal with a cracked hitch and: to our surprise, the max tongue weight was just 300 pds. The replacement was rated at 500 pds and neither one of them was rated for GVW of over 5000 pds.

Thanks, my tongue weight is not an issue.  I am worried about left and right hand turning clearance.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Turn clearance is generally not an issue with ball-mount towed trailers. The swing out of the tail end of the coach in a turn tends to make the trailer follow the line of the coach. Front engine chassis coaches typically have a greater rear overhang than rear engine (pusher) coaches, so the swing out is more pronounced.  Any rational amount of trailer tongue is not going to make much difference.  Granted, the distance between hitch ball and the trailer axle will affect the turning track, but car trailers have their axles relatively forward to carry/balance the heavy load, so there generally is no issue with turns.

What size trailer are you considering - something in the 15-19 ft range that just holds a car, or one of the 30 foot super-haulers?

 

[Monkei]

Turn clearance is generally not an issue with ball-mount towed trailers. The swing out of the tail end of the coach in a turn tends to make the trailer follow the line of the coach. Front engine chassis coaches typically have a greater rear overhang than rear engine (pusher) coaches, so the swing out is more pronounced.  Any rational amount of trailer tongue is not going to make much difference.  Granted, the distance between hitch ball and the trailer axle will affect the turning track, but car trailers have their axles relatively forward to carry/balance the heavy load, so there generally is no issue with turns.

What size trailer are you considering - something in the 15-19 ft range that just holds a car, or one of the 30 foot super-haulers?

I am looking at an 18ft auto hauler to place two motorcycle trikes on there, one backed in, the other pulled in.  I am leaning towards an open aluminum hauler. 

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I don't think you will see any turning problem with that size trailer. A typical tongue length would be around 4 feet, and the trailer axles would be near the middle of the trailer, placing them about 13-14 feet back from the ball hitch. That's not far enough to create much turn, if any, lag in the turns.

How much overhang does your Tour have at the rear, i.e. distance from ball mount to the coach axle? Probably several feet at least.  That means the trailer tongue swings out in the opposite direction when the coach turns, and that pretty much forces the trailer to follow in the coach track.

 

[Monkei]

I don't think you will see any turning problem with that size trailer. A typical tongue length would be around 4 feet, and the trailer axles would be near the middle of the trailer, placing them about 13-14 feet back from the ball hitch. That's not far enough to create much turn, if any, lag in the turns.

How much overhang does your Tour have at the rear, i.e. distance from ball mount to the coach axle? Probably several feet at least.  That means the trailer tongue swings out in the opposite direction when the coach turns, and that pretty much forces the trailer to follow in the coach track.

Gary, I measured from the middle of my rear tire to the end of the coach, it is around 10'10" long.  So is that short enough that a 4' tongue will be ok?

 

[zukIzzy]

I have a 16 footer with a 3 foot tongue and the tool box can make contact with the ladder in a tight driveway turn. I have a 26 footer with a 4" tongue and I will turn as tight as the motorhome with no chance of making contact. Backing is easier with a longer tongue too. around 4' is good much shorter and I would search on.

Wayne

 

[blevtr]

When we bought our 18' box trailer, I specified an 18" extension of the tongue to prevent tight turn not good stuff.  The tongue is 47" from front of the trailer to center of the ball.  Less than that and sooner or later you WILL get into a tight situation and crunch something.  I also use an equalizer hitch, cause Winnebago specified a 10k load with a 500lb tongue weight.  I have a 7000 lb trailer, 10% of weight on the tongue means I need an equalizer hitch. 

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Good point. A tongue that is too short is a worse problem than one that is too long.

 

[zmotorsports]

Personally I would (and did) go with a 5' tongue if you choose an enclosed trailer.  An open trailer will tow/turn fine with a standard 4' tongue.  A friend of ours damaged the top of his Diplomat with his enclosed trailer and standard 4' tongue when turning and going through a dip.  The top of the trailer made contact with the coach and caused several thousand dollars worth of damage.

On both of our enclosed trailers I have the extra length added to the tongue, some trailer manufacturers call it and RV tongue but 58"-60" is generally ideal for an enclosed trailer.  Mike.