Picking up our first RV - Weight Distribution Hitch

[Nicksterrr]

Hi All
Total newbie to the RV world but am steadily overloading myself with as much info as I can before we make our first purchase (very soon hopefully).
Had a question.  When we find the right trailer and go to pick it up from the dealer would you recommend purchasing a Weight Distribution Hitch in advance so that the dealer could help set it up? Or do they generally throw one in with the trailer? (as I say im totally new to this game!)  Is this something they generally would be OK to help set up? Ive just started reading through this forum (getting some great info, thanks) but it sounds like a Weight Distribution Hitch is a pretty essential piece of kit for a stress free ride so im thinking I may need to purchase in advance...?

We have a 2016 Ford Expedition with Heavy Duty Tow Package (trailer sway control, Trailer break controller, 9200lb tow capacity)
Looking to buy a Forest River Sonoma 240 BHS or similar.

Many thanks in advance

Nick

 

[Prior member]

My experience:
When we bought our first travel trailer, I didn't have a clue, and didn't even know about "weight distribution hitches".
When the dealer said we needed one, I completely left it up to him and had him include it in the price.

Now fifteen years later, I am very glad that I did. We are picking up our third trailer tomorrow, and I will still be using the same Weight distribution bars and sway bar. I still have the instructions that came with it and and it all makes sense to me now.

My suggestion: If you are a green horn like I was and you know the dealer is a reputable one, pay and let him supply and install it, and let him walk you through the process of hitching up.

Jack L

 

[Bobmws]

The dealer 'should' be able to set it up properly. I would recommend you check out a few You Tube videos on how the wdh is set up and adjusted so you have a basic understanding of how it works. I would insist on being there to observe the installation and adjustment.

 

[kdbgoat]

I would also go with one that doesn't use the add-on friction device for sway control. The others are more expensive, but are worth the extra dollars.

 

[E5Jake]

We also purchased ours from the same dealer that we got our TT from. They set it up while we were doing the final walk through. By the time we were done doing the walk through with the service guy, my truck was hooked up with the new hitch. The service guy then showed us how to hook it up, unhook it, and make adjustments if needed. Worked out well for us.

 

[Jeff in Ferndale Wa]

When I bought my trailer, I knew nothing about WD hitches or sway control.
It was during my first trip towing without one that I found I needed one.

I was able to do the research(with some input from this forum),purchase the hitch online and install and set it up myself. The supplied instructions were pretty clear, and the procedure not too complicated. The items that needed to be torqued I took to my local tire store and they did them for me for free.

I would check around and see what a hitch would cost online,(Amazon is a good place to start) then find what the dealer wants to charge you to purchase and set up.  Then decide if the difference in what the dealer charges and the cost to do it yourself is worth it to you.

 

[Patnsuzanne]

Even if you were to buy a WD hitch prior to buying your trailer it will have to be set up correctly to match that particular trailer befor you pull it off the lot. I suggest that you pay very close attention to how it is set up at the dealer because when you get it home and loaded up for a camping trip you may well have to readjust it to account for the added weight in the trailer.  An excellent suggestion from much smarter folks than I here on this forum is to take your loaded rig to a scale and have it weighed. That way any adjustments you may need to make can be easily quantified and your efforts rechecked with a follow-up trip to the scales.

 

[scottydl]

Having the dealer set it up for you is fine (if you buy from them, they cost ~$350 new so it won't be just "thrown in"... you'll pay one way or the other) but you need to understand how they work, what each part does, and how to make adjustments.  As mentioned, once you add weight to your setup (cargo in the Expedition and trailer) that may change how the WDH should be adjusted for best ride control.

It's not hard, but it is a learning curve and unique understanding of towing dynamics... if you've never towed before.  I was brand new to it all last year, when we bought our 32' bunkhouse trailer (after previously owning a motorhome) but with the help of this forum and Youtube I know have a good working understanding of the whole arrangement.  You'll get there too! 

 

[robertusa123]

If your buying new I would expect it to be included with the purchase of the travel trailer. Along with extension mirrors.....  I threatened to walk away from buying a new car because they didn't want to give me a coffee cup.

 

[JX2Fields]

I would price out some different brands of hitches, so when to start negotiating on the trailer and hitch you know if it is a good deal or not. If you have any mechanical skills at all you can install the hitch yourself.

 

[Nicksterrr]

Thanks everyone, some great advice.  Before we decided to buy a TT I always thought it was just a simple process of buying something, hitching it up and off you go.  Oh how I was wrong...! What did we do before the internet?!!

 

[Sailorkane]

I towed a 24'TT with a Ford Expedition.  Needed a WDH.  I picked the Reese twin cam.  Its the absolute best.  No friction control.  Has to be installed on the trailer.  It does take basic mechanic-type skills. Like drilling and measuring.  And IMHO cannot be set up properly without a truck scale.  You NEED to know that the weight has been distributed properly.  Before the WDH,, my truck front end was way light and unstable.  The WDH transferred the weight from the hitch to trailer and front of the truck.  Weight each axle before adding tension to the WDH, then keep adjusting and weighing it.  Takes about an hour at a truck scale.    I bought and installed my own from etrailer.  But I'm a DIY guy, a former engineer, and need to know the details about everything.  I am not a "point and pay" kind of guy.  I feel that the mechanic at the dealership has only experience to draw on, and I have logic and theory and knowledge, which should trump experience.  Just my opinion.

 

[kdbgoat]

  I feel that the mechanic at the dealership has only experience to draw on, and I have logic and theory and knowledge, which should trump experience.  Just my opinion.

You also have a vested interest in how well the hitch performs,  and the mechanic at the dealership doesn't.

 

[scottydl]

Thanks everyone, some great advice.  Before we decided to buy a TT I always thought it was just a simple process of buying something, hitching it up and off you go.  Oh how I was wrong...! What did we do before the internet?!!

We did most things like this wrong.    Or at least took a long time to figure out the right way.

 

[RVfixer]

I had a Reese Dual Cam WDH on my first trailer that was dealer provided and installed.  On my second trailer, from a different dealer, I had to buy the hitch.  I bought an Equal-i-zer WDH from the second dealer that I bought the trailer from and that dealer installed it.

Both the Dual Cam and Equal-i-zer hitches have sway control incorporated into the hitch and both work very well.  I have no preference of one over the other.  Both dealers set up the hitches.  When I got home I took the manual that came with the hitch and checked the set up.  In the case of the Reese Dual Cam hitch it had not been adjusted properly.  That was easily corrected using the manual....easy but important!  In the case of the Equal-i-zer hitch the installation was incorrectly installed by the dealer due to brackets being installed incorrectly on both sides of the trailer "A" frame.  The hitch ball was adjusted as high as possible and still left the front of the trailer a little low.  When I reversed the brackets to their proper configuration per the manual, I was able to lower the hitch ball assembly to the middle position and have the trailer dead level and the measurements of the effect on the truck came right into the proper range.

My point is...no matter how you get the hitch, what hitch you get or who installs it...Use the manual at home and check it out closely.  On the Equal-i-zer hitch you have to take the "L" brackets off to see if the brackets underneath then are installed per the manual.  There is an "A" and "B" installation of those brackets depending on how your trailer ball coupler is factory installed on your trailer.  Mine takes the "B" installation and the dealer had used the "A" installation...Wrong!!

I also recommend that you read the manual and understand how the hitch works and how it is adjusted.  Then you will be able to recognize when it needs adjusting and know how to make the adjustment and what tools you need, if any.