Towing Post Lift

Looks like I will be making the 375 mile haul back from Virginia in a few weeks with a pretty heavily loaded trailer. (I do not want to have to make another trip, ever.) By "heavily loaded" I mean within the standard limits of the Jeep and hitch, not trying to do something crazy.

Now that I'm roughly 4" over stock, should I buy a new ball mount with 4" more drop than I have now? That would seem logical, but thought I would ask.

Anything else I should keep in mind during the trip back? I did a few runs with a heavy trailer pre-lift and the Jeep did great. Just want to make sure this next trip goes well.

Seems like I asked this question before, but I can't find the thread. Sorry of this is a rerun.

Yeah I'd just figure out how much higher you are and get a new receiver to match.

Very interested in hearing feedback on this opcorn: I've got the same setup basically, and plan to tow a +/- 3500lb trailer from California to New Jersey. With the stops along the way, it'll be 5000mi.

I'll be using a weight distribution hitch, and that has a drop hitch on it already. I'm a little concerned with out much it will end up sagging, I know WD hitch helps, but I have nothing to gauge from here.

profdlp said:

Looks like I will be making the 375 mile haul back from Virginia in a few weeks with a pretty heavily loaded trailer. (I do not want to have to make another trip, ever.) By "heavily loaded" I mean within the standard limits of the Jeep and hitch, not trying to do something crazy.

Now that I'm roughly 4" over stock, should I buy a new ball mount with 4" more drop than I have now? That would seem logical, but thought I would ask.

Anything else I should keep in mind during the trip back? I did a few runs with a heavy trailer pre-lift and the Jeep did great. Just want to make sure this next trip goes well.

Seems like I asked this question before, but I can't find the thread. Sorry of this is a rerun.

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First measure the trailer tongue height that you will be pulling
Then you'll know for certain how much drop you'll need
You have to also figure in tire height as well as the 4 inches so measuring is best bet.
Then OD off when pulling the trailer, plan ahead of course when stopping etc

tommudd said:

First measure the trailer tongue height that you will be pulling...

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I will be renting a trailer. Hopefully they will have the information available and that it will be accurate.

When I had the drawtite hitch that has a longer neck on it the 2" drop ball mount always worked great with my ~3" lift. Now that I have the recall hitch I find that its sometimes impossible to get trailers hooked up with the spare tire in the way. Ive got to put the ball mount on the trailer first then back the Jeep up or pull the trailer up and insert the ball mount in the receiver... I need to paint my drawtite and put it back on.....

In short, all trailers are different so it just depends on what the trailer needs. U haul trailers have worked good with my 2" drop.

I think there was a standard where the top of ball should be 17.5-18.5" off ground loaded.

trust, but verify.

The trailer being level when towed is more important than the ball height.

If the trailer tongue is 24 inches off the ground and the ball it 18 inches, the trailer will be tilted down and not level. Same for the opposite. This may be exaggerated measurement numbers, but give the "visual".

As Tommudd said, get the measurement of the tongue height. Then measure your hitch height. The difference is the "rough" drop or raise ball mount needed.

Remember, 10-15% for tongue weight. This will lower the hitch height some also.

Also, IMO, if cannot get trailer level, it would be best to have the tongue slightly higher rather than lower. No more than 1 inch though.

What they said.

profdlp said:

I will be renting a trailer. Hopefully they will have the information available and that it will be accurate.

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Will this trailer have trailer brakes? Is so you will need a controller.
After 2500 lbs, trailer brakes really help!

If it's a uhaul, no controller needed. They (ones I've seen) have brakes, but are hydraulic. When slowing, the weight of the trailer will push into the vehicle, and with their brake setup the tongue collapses, so to speak. When it does it pushes on a piston on the tongue and pushes fluid to the brakes to slow the trailer.

kejobe said:

If it's a uhaul, no controller needed. They (ones I've seen) have brakes, but are hydraulic. When slowing, the weight of the trailer will push into the vehicle, and with their brake setup the tongue collapses, so to speak. When it does it pushes on a piston on the tongue and pushes fluid to the brakes to slow the trailer.

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Yep, that ^^^^^

I towed a UHaul 6X12 dual axle from Northern Ohio to Nashville and back a few years ago. At the time the KJ had the full OME/Bilstein lift so it was near 4" over stock at the time and I used my standard 2 inch drop receiver. As you can see in the pic the trailer was slightly nose down - I wouldn't have pulled it using more drop than that.



If you're renting a UHaul I'm not sure how you'd use a weight distribution hitch; their trailers aren't compatible with them. However, if you're using another trailer that will work with a WD hitch, if it is set up correctly it will raise the rear of the KJ so it's level front-to-back - puts the weight back on the front wheels so you have stable steering.

All that to say, if you're renting a UHaul like the one above you should be fine. Balance the cargo so more weight is in front of the trailer's axles (60/40) and it will tow well. IMO the dual axle trailer tows MUCH easier than a single axle. :waytogo:

Bob

TwoBobsKJ said:

If you're renting a UHaul I'm not sure how you'd use a weight distribution hitch; their trailers aren't compatible with them. However, if you're using another trailer that will work with a WD hitch, if it is set up correctly it will raise the rear of the KJ so it's level front-to-back - puts the weight back on the front wheels so you have stable steering.

Bob

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I'll be towing a 6x10 that I plan on buying in the next week or two, then adding breaks and the weight distribution hitch to it. I feel like the WDH is a must since our trip is so long. I plan on maxing out the trailer, so 3500lb range; the brakes will also keep us safer and put less stress on the vehicle. In the end it's about having more control on the Jeep since I'll be traveling with my wife, who will be driving some of the time, and she's not had much experience with trailers.

I towed a 6x12 Uhaul from FL to WI in 2011, no idea on weight, not real heavy. Used a 3.5" drop, I had about 2.5" of lift then.

I'm renting a 5'x8' from U-Haul. I was tempted to go larger just to be safe (I seriously do not want to have to make another trip down there) but I don't think I have enough stuff to justify it. I would rather pull a smaller trailer filled all the way up than a huge trailer that was 50% empty.*

I did it several times before, just not since the lift. I was mainly concerned about having the tongue way up in the air.**

Also wondered what effect the lift and larger tires might have, but I'm guessing that if there was a difference it would be a positive one.

I think I'll split the difference and buy a ball mount with 2" more drop than the old one. If I'm packing the trailer and it looks like the tongue is too high I can always throw a bunch of heavy boxes of books in the back of the Jeep to sag it down a little.

*Yes, I am a "the-trailer-is-half-empty" kind of person right now. :blah:

**Those of you with dirty minds can make of that what you will. :mwah1:

please tell us what the ball height measures. I bet it will be 17.5-18.5" for a uhual

They don't exactly narrow it down...

From the specs page:

kejobe said:

https://www.uhaul.com/Articles/Tips/5227/How-To-Select-The-Correct-Ball-Mount-For-Your-Hitch/

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That is perfect - thanks!