Why does my trailer yank and tug at me?

[SeaKaye12]

Hi All,

Just bought me a new truck; a 1998 Ford F150. I'm pulling a 16' runabout that might weigh 2500 lbs (I had it weighed at the dump last year and they said about 1800...so the 2500 is erring on the high side...)

On anything except the smoothest of roads...the trailer yanks and tugs as it's going along....very tiring for the driver.

What are the sorts of things that can cause this?

Thanks for reading, Chuck

 

[battery]

Re: Why does my trailer yank and tug at me?

seems to me like not enough tongue weight. try putting more weight in the bow of the boat. seems to be a bit to heavy on the rear of the trailer.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Why does my trailer yank and tug at me?

move the boat about 4 inches forward on the trailer. or move the axles back. you tongue weight should be between 175 and 250 lbs for 2500lb.

 

[willamettejeff]

Re: Why does my trailer yank and tug at me?

Loose drop bar in hitch is typically the cause this. Increased tongue weight will keep it from moving around as much. Seen various methods used in the past for keeping drop bars from moving around in the hitch from expensive drop bar solutions to nuts welded over a hole in the receiver tube so a bolt can be inserted and tightened to pin the drop bar against the side of the tube.

 

[jtexas]

Re: Why does my trailer yank and tug at me?

in my experience, that tug is a symptom of being tongue-heavy...a tongue-light trailer will sway like crazy.

 

[bjcsc]

Re: Why does my trailer yank and tug at me?

in my experience, that tug is a symptom of being tongue-heavy...

Mine, too. Especially if it dramatically increases when braking...
Either way, the tongue weight needs to be checked and corrected.