TRAVEL TRAILER TOWING TIPS
With camping season upon us, many adventurers are looking for new ways to camp and experience the outdoors. An easy, comfortable option many people turn to is travel trailers. As the RV type with one of the widest selections of sizes, styles, and prices, most people find their ideal RV in this group. However, if you’re a new owner, you may be a little worried about how you're going to get your rig to your destination. Campers RV Center has provided a guide to towing your travel trailer to help take some of the guesswork out of this hurdle. If you’re still looking for the right travel trailer, stop by our location in Shreveport, Louisiana and we’ll give you the full tour of the models we have available right now. We proudly serve Bossier City, Ruston, and Monroe, Louisiana, as well as Marshall, Longview, and Tyler, Texas.
Choosing the Right Tow Vehicle
Before we get into the travel trailers, you’ll want to make sure you've got the right tow vehicle. We’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is that a travel trailer uses a bumper pull hitch. These particular hitches are compatible with most types of commuter vehicles, from trucks to SUVs and even vans.
The bad news is that isn’t enough. You also have to make sure your tow vehicle can handle the extra weight. This is your gross combined weight rating, or GCWR. Your GCWR dictates the amount of weight your entire unit shouldn’t exceed, as set by the tow vehicle manufacturer. Your total weight will include the tow vehicle, the towed vehicle (in this case the travel trailer), cargo, and passengers. This needs to be priority number one when it comes to towing, as exceeding your GCWR can not only create a road hazard, but it can lead to hefty legal fines if you’re pulled over with an overloaded trailer.
Weight Distribution
When you’re ready to load your travel trailer, approach it with the right mindset and plan out how you’re going to distribute the cargo so all the weight in the trailer is even and won’t make driving more difficult. Your weight should be distributed evenly from side to side. From front to back, you’ll want to employ the 60/40 rule: 60% of your overall weight should be in the front half, near the hitch, and the remaining 40% should taper off the back half. Some people even recommend placing 10-20% of the total weight as close to the hitch as possible. This is because placing more pressure on the hitch is actually going to keep your trailer firmly on the road. If there’s too much weight in the back, you risk lifting the front half up and losing traction while increasing sway risk.
Practice
When your all hitched up and ready to go, it’s time to hit the road. But not for your vacation. The first time you tow your vehicle should be long before the day of the big trip. You should spend plenty of time practicing behind the wheel so you’re more confident and more experienced when it matters most. Find a big, empty parking lot and relearn some of the basics like turning, stopping, parking, and reversing. When you have those skills down, find a low traffic time of day to practice skills for the freeway, like high-speed driving and merging. Remember that it’s going to take longer for you to stop, so you’ll want to leave more space between you and the vehicle in front of you.
With a little practice and experience, even if you’ve never towed anything in your life, you’ll quickly become an expert. For those who need additional tips, or for any other RV-related needs, stop by Campers RV Center and let us know how we can help you prepare for your next big camping trip. We welcome all current and future RV owners from Bossier City, Ruston, and Monroe, Louisiana, as well as Marshall, Longview, and Tyler, Texas.