Trailering issue with my '07 SAN 220

[tvaleri]

I just purchased my boat last Summer and tow it with a '12 GMC Yukon Denali AWD. I noticed a significant sway at about 60 MPH and am wondering what may be the cause. Tire pressure seems fine and there doesn't appear to be anything mechanically wrong with the trailer. I had the boat/trailer weighed at a public scale and it came in at 6200 pounds. I have a 5.5" drop on my hitch and it seems like I could use maybe another inch of drop. Would that make a difference in sway?

[s_kelley2000]

I don't have any personal experience with how high the receiver is on the current generation Yukon/Tahoe but a 5.5" drop seems like a pretty big drop hitch to me. I am wondering if this may be causing too much weight to be on the front trailer tires(assuming tandem axle) and maybe that is causing your problem. A picture of the vehicle and trailer hooked up on level ground might help to solve this problem.

[AirTool]

My experience is that sway is caused by too light of a tongue weight. If you can, try to measure the tongue weight. If you can pick the tongue up by hand, it is too light. The rule is 10% of the trailer weight but that puts you over 500 which might be your hitch limit.

I measured my tongue weight on the truck scale. I put the tongue on one axle pad and the axle on another axle pad. I also weight weith my tow vehicle and noted the increase in load on the rear truck axle and the decrease in load on the front truck axle. If wanted, the tongue weight can be calculated from the moment created and noted by the change in axle weights.

Trailers are somewhat sensitive to the drop distance....tandem more so than single axle. If I had to guess, I'd start with the top of your ball 18" above grade and experiment from there.

[HS]

AT is right, and sway can also be caused by towing "nose high", based on what I have read at etrailer.com Here is a place to start for determining the drop or rise for ball mounts http://www.etrailer.com/faq-ballmount.aspx and there are a lot of other help articles as well.

I bet your Denali has a load leveling rear shocks, so that might contribute to the issue. When you're hooked up on a level surface, with the vehicle idling (and load leveling engaged) look at the main beam on the trailer and see if it is level or if it the beam measures higher off the ground near the tongue than near the trailer tail lights. . .if so that would be an indication she is nose high.

I use a 3" drop on my '11 Sequoia, and I know the RECEIVER on the GM's are higher than Toyotas FWIW so a 5.5" drop does not sound too big at all.

Let us know what you find.

http://www.etrailer.com/faq-weightdistribution.aspx

[Quinner]

His drop may be OK, My Tahoe has a HUGE drop bar as well, the receiver is basically the bumper, add in 20" tires and it's way up there.

In my experience level or slightly high tows best.

[Beach-TJ]

I have found that tandem axle trailers are sensitive to being level. If the trailer isn't sitting exactly level, when hooked to the truck on level ground, that could be your problem. The rule of thumb I've always gone by is the trailer should be between exactly level and 1" high at the tung.

Another thing I've found that can induce sway is if the tow vehicle isn't properly level. Most trucks have about a 2" rake from the factory (back end sitting higher than front). I've found it's ok for the tailer to take the rake out, but if the trailer is causing the front end of the truck to rise, then it can induce sway. A 6,200 lb trailer is a bit heavy for a 1/2 ton truck without a weight distributing hitch. I would check that the front of the Yukon is not lifting when the boat is hooked up. That could be part of your problem.


As mentioned above ½ ton truck hitches are generally only rated for 500lb/5000lb without a weight distributing hitch. That's 500lb tung weight, so I would keep an eye on that as well.

[sstexan]

I tow my 230 with a yukon xl denali, basically the same truck just with a longer wheelbase. The receiver is placed really high up in the bumper on these trucks. I picked up a B&W tow and stow and that makes adjustments a breeze as I also tow the boat with a GMC Sierra pickup which has a receiver much lower to the ground. I have never had a sway issue with my setup.

http://www.turnoverball.com/products...receiver-hitch


On my utility trailer it will sway if there is too much weight on the rear of the trailer. I sure hope that trailer was built for that boat.. If possible see if you can move it forward on the trailer. On my Eagle branded trailer, I am able to move the boat 6 inches either way by sliding the bow stop back and forth with the bolts loostned up a bit. Good Luck!

[DJH]

I tow my 230 with a 2010 Denali with no issues. As has been mentioned the hitch receiver is really high. I had to go to a 6 inch drop to get the trailer level.