Trailer weaving????

[427dave]

I have a Droptail trailer that I tow my trike on 2 times a year. I tow it about 1600 miles and it has towed very nice. I pull it about 70-75mph with out any problems. This has been for three trips. When returning this year if I got above 60mph the trailer started swaying all over. I looked everything over and thought the suspension did not move up and down much on the trailer. The trike was in the chock the same as always. I drove below 60 all the way back to Florida, at least the gas mileage was better I talked to Droptail and also the company that makes the axle. No ideas from either of them. The manufacturer of the axle gave the address of a dealer near me. I took it to them, they said there was nothing wrong with the trailer.

Any ideas???????:Shrug:

 

[Gorilla]

Did you have anything else on the trailer other than your trike? Was the trike loaded different? How about something on the trike that could of changed the weight distribution? How are the tires? Possibly a sidewall issue.

 

[rhino 2]

Just a guess, :Shrug: But if you have too much weight on the rear of the trailer,
And not enough on the hitch (ball) it will act like the Tail wagging the dog.

 

[Rsw]

About the only thing that will make one pull like a wet noodle is tongue weight or height if everything mechanical is ok. Sometimes there is a fine line between pulling good or not. Is it a single or dual axle? Was you using the same tow vehicle as before?

 

[jtilmon]

The common cause of trailer sway is unequal pressure in tires, worn out or wheel bearing not properly tightened or trailer loaded too heavy on rear causing negative tongue weight. The most common is the negative tongue weight, because I have experienced it when young, but became educated quickly.

 

[bayoudave]

Could also be a problem with tow vehicle. Tire pressure or a tire with a problem that only shows up when put on extra weight. Try pulling it with a different vehicle.

 

[mtn rider]

Check your wheel bearings then your tire pressure.

 

[Tip Schwartzbeck]

having stated that a dealer checked it out,I would agree with others that you did not have enough tongue weight.Have been there and done that-towing a '61 vette many years ago.
Moved it forward and end of problem.
I would reload - forward - and try again.
ride safe,
Tip

 

[John Luciano]

Towed a trike home Pittsburg to Conn . We could not go over 62 MPH . Stopped at a Home Improvement store and bought 2bags of sand and placed it in the front. Improved speed to 70.

 

[DTR 11TG]

Some more info might help-
did you tow with the same vehicle every tow?
did you have a different amount of weight in the tow vehicle or any changes that made the tow vehicle sit different?
did you have any extra items on the trailer that was or wasn't on the trailer the last time?
was the dealer a trailer dealer or ? and did they take your trailer, trike & tow vehicle for a test drive?

LAST but not LEAST!!

DO YOU have a gremlin bell on your trike, IF NOT, you were probably towing a load of gremlins and THEY were messing with your trailer!!!!!:Shrug:

 

[427dave]

Some more info might help-
did you tow with the same vehicle every tow?
did you have a different amount of weight in the tow vehicle or any changes that made the tow vehicle sit different?
did you have any extra items on the trailer that was or wasn't on the trailer the last time?
was the dealer a trailer dealer or ? and did they take your trailer, trike & tow vehicle for a test drive?

LAST but not LEAST!!

DO YOU have a gremlin bell on your trike, IF NOT, you were probably towing a load of gremlins and THEY were messing with your trailer!!!!!:Shrug:

Tow with the same vehicle every year, 2005 Buick Rendevouz
About the same weight in towing vehicle
Nothing on the trailer except trike
It was a trailer dealer and representative of the axle company
They did not take it on the road. When I took it up to them it pulled great empty. no trike

Yes I do have a gremlin bell on the trike, maybe I needed it moved to the underside of the trailer

 

[DTR 11TG]

One thing I didn't think of during my first post was about the wind, but I'm sure that is something you would have figured out while it was happening.
The only thing that I would do is load everything up similar to your normal load & take it on the highway and take someone with you for extra eyes. Drive at the problem speed to see if it happens again and see if you see a reason why. Let us know what happens or what you did to fix it.

Don't forget to get someone to buy you a gremlin bell for the trailer!!

 

[clint44]

Towed a trike home Pittsburg to Conn . We could not go over 62 MPH . Stopped at a Home Improvement store and bought 2bags of sand and placed it in the front. Improved speed to 70.

Our trailer is a 7x10 open with a Pingel wheel chock. Before I installed the 15deg Kewlmetal triple trees on our Boss Hoss,I never noticed any sway at any speed when towing. Afterwards,the increased wheelbase of the trike moved the CG back far enough that I notice trailer sway when hitting some highway irregularities. Not bad enough to have to slow down but I'm sure it's not good for tire wear. Our old tow vehicle was a 1998 Isuzu Rodeo with small V6/4spd auto. Our new tow vehicle is a 2011 Toyota Tacoma Crewcab with big V6/5spd auto. Since buying the newer tow rig,I have been storing the three trailer ramps (about 50lbs each) in the truck bed. After reading this thread,I've come to the realization that was a mistake. From now on,the ramps will be tied down on the front of the trailer again.