Do I really need an anti sway hitch?

[syclone93]

It’s quite simple, for years I have been an advocate of dealing with people that are experts in their field. It seems you have been dealing with someone with little to no actual towing experience. Your source of information may well have come from someone who was last employed at Taco Bell. On your question you need to look at the capabilities of your tow vehicle. A Ridgeline most likely will need a WDH as it’s a light duty vehicle. I have never use a WDH as I have always used 3/4 ton trucks with heavier suspension, bigger brakes and better cooling. Good luck

[SamWind]

Without it you're one vehicle towing another.

I got that and a weight distribution hitch at the same time. (29 foot 1971 Airstream), and now it feels like I'm driving one vehicle. It feels much more safe.

The difference is profound.

[Travel Kats]

Well, we are the test case for this question. We towed our double axle ‘73 Argosy home on the ball, about 130 miles, and lived to tell the tale. It pulled beautifully. But we went only on back roads. So we were confident to do without the extra hitch goodie on our shakedown cruise of our fill-in trailer, a 21ft single axle Coleman, to and from the beach, about 600 miles round trip.

There was obvious sway and drag and the hitch was V’d with the tow vehicle as we set out. We did some weight shifting and that helped, but not having time to get a new hitch and make our beach destination that night, we continued only on back roads. In hindsight, this reminds me of a lesson I thought I learned in sailing - don’t be afraid of changing plans if conditions aren’t right.

It took twice as long, but we were far safer than on the highway. When we had to take a busy highway stub on our route home, in a rainstorm, the sway was extreme. We had to pull off the highway or risk an accident. We won’t go out again without a sway bar/WD hitch. Lesson learned.

[Fakeinhvl]

I just ordered my Airstream yesterday for the 2022 season (SO EXCITED!) and because I used to haul my horses I already own a Super Hitch setup. Lemmetellya, I couldn’t even feel the several thousand pounds I was towing and nothing moved around/swayed. Horses have recently all passed, but I plan to use the hitch and anti-sway bars on my new trailer. You won’t regret it. Better to have that peace of mind on a long trip, especially if you haven’t towed much. Good luck and congrats!

[Overstreet]

So you have no towing experience and your first tow with a new trailer is 1300 miles.......likely on I-95. You have a judgement problem.

Most of the experienced towers would have a break in period of short trip to work out problems.

[judithk]

I have the 16 ft Sport pulled by Toyota Tacoma. love my anti-sway bar, especially on windy days- $850 is too much money though. Just remember to take it off when you are backing in tight campground spots- there you really do want the flexibility

[Sailorguy]

I think you are looking for advice that you can "Take to the Bank!"

If thats the case, I would recommend that you call Andy Thompson at CanAm Airstream, he is the foremost expert in Towing, especially for AS trailers!

According to the Honda Manual, the Ridgeway was designed for use without a WD Hitch. Additionally, I believe your TV has the "Factory Trailer Stability Assist Feature." So on paper, you probably are okay, but I wouldn't trust this situation.

I would follow Andy's advice!! Let him know your TV's specs, example AWD, Moon Roof, other payload you will carrying, Bikes/Generator, etc.

Having said all this, my recommendations, without knowing all the above, would be to use the Andersen WD Hitch, which we use on our Oliver Elite 2 trailer. The Andersen Hitch maybe somewhat controversial, but I think it is an ideal choice for your application. Because of this you maybe able to pick up a used Hitch for a few hundred dollars, we did. IMHO, the Basecamp maybe on the Boarder Line of needing a WD Hitch, but I don't see a Downside and you still get the benefit of Anti Sway, which I wouldn't be without under any circumstances! Your safety and piece of mind will thank you!

I think the popular belief is that with the "Trailer Stability Assist Feature," you no longer need an Anti Sway Device. My research says this is not the case, they both work to complement each other.

[2RVrs]

Have you ever been on the side of the road parked with very little shoulder and felt the semi's blow past at 60 mph? The whole vehicle shakes. Now imagine you at 60, the semi at 60, going in opposite directions, some rough highway causing some "lightness" on the front end with a trailer in tow; maybe add a little wind too.


We had a 36' Keystone Mountaineer (a flat sided "sail") using a Reese cam style WDH with an added friction bar. Now we have a 30' International with a Pro Pride; I feel virtually no side sway ever. You don't need a Pro Pride, but please use something.

[Boondocker]

Get weight distribution for the safety of the rest of us out there. Please.

[Donamigo]

You need all the help you can get with the Ridgeline.. I traveled with a friend who towed a 20’ SOB and was glad to have the equalizing hitch. his towed the trailer OK power wise, he cold kep up going over grades, but the big deal was fuel, he only had a 150 mile range when towing the trailer, kind of frustrating to travel with as my rig (2018 ram 2500 and 27’ airstream fly cloud) has a 400 mile range. The price is outlandish for the hitch but if it includes the labor OK.

[KK4YZ]

Excuse me if this has already been said, but if the dealer is Colonial, they are generally known to be a very good, reputable dealer. That’s not to say there could be a mistake or misunderstanding.

We bought 2 airstreams there and find them to be very good.

That being said with a Ridgeline, I would opt for a weight distribution hitch with sway control….and have it set up by a pro.

[Big Ol Dad]

Lots of people here talking about weight distribution. The question was about the sway bar. Pay attention folks.

I pull my 20’ FC with either my GMC 1500 or the wife’s SUV. They’re both bigger than a Ridgine so I don’t need WDH—but use it for longer hauls anyway.

I do not use a sway bar because I drive in the city a ton. I pull u-turns, and get in and out of small spaces where most people won’t take a trailer. And if I had a sway bar on, it would seriously limit my turning radius. I’d break it right off on some turns, in fact.

I’d seriously think about using one with your smaller tow vehicle and trailer. Trucks will push you around pretty good. It take it off if you are in town. You won’t need it at lower speeds and you might snap it if you make any tight turns. But don’t pay that much for it. Geez.

[freeski1057]

We bought our first trailer last year, a Nest, and having never towed anything in my life I was pretty apprehensive. It's 16'7", hitch weight is 375 pounds, dry weight is 3400 and gvwr is 4000 pounds. We tow with a Tacoma. Some said you definitely need a weight distribution hitch, others said no. Dealer said we didn't need for this trailer in their opinion and it turned out using such a hitch on the Nest wasn't straight forward though I did find an option that seemed like it would work. Long story short though is went without and haven't had any problem. I generally keep my speed to 65 mph and drive conservatively. I'm not in any way recommending yes or no just relating one person's experience.

[vhaalen]

A thousand dollars well spent in my opinion. Never had the experience of having my trailer sway as I descended a mountain pass and believe the bars prevent it. Worth the hassle to connect & disconnect for the peace of mind when towing in the mountains.

[zkrisjim]

Freeway lanes are pretty narrow. Going 55 to 80 miles an hour as permitted in certain States with the wind blowing can cause your trailer to sway into the other lane. At lower speeds in the city you don't need to worry that much but always look at your mirrors. Towing a trailer is like being a truck hauler. Pay attention to your back and front ends and sides.

[rmkrum]

I DID experience the beginnings of a serious sway event descending the Cajon Pass on Interstate 15 without any sway control.

Good thing I was able to manually hit the airstream brakes just right to stop the rapidly increasing oscillation. Slowed down and stayed well below 45 MPH for the rest of the grade.

Immediately researched sway control and went with a full-up Propride system. No more sway at all now. It’s basically impossible. Peace of mind and no white knuckle rides ever again…priceless.

Photo during maintenance session this year. Grease the ball and bar sockets. (No ‘greasy balls’ jokes, please!)



I learned very quickly that solid sway control is important. Don’t have to scare me twice to get the local Department of Overkill Engineering to jump up and solve a serious problem.

[Whamm511]

Originally Posted by Caffeinated

He could trade the ridge line for an F-350 and then he would have to spend 850 for the dealers anti sway.

Mike

Don’t be ridiculous! A 1 ton truck is not needed to tow that 20’ Base Camp. I would agree with the majority of the commenters here that a WDH and Anti-Sway Bars are needed. I tow a ‘78 Argosy 30’ w/1/2 ton Truck, 4X4. My trailer only weighs 4,500# w/Tongue Wt. of approx. 400#(dry). When fully loaded w/2 passengers I have about 600# of payload to spare. Not a lot. I ALWAYS tow w/WDH & Anti-Sway Bar (aka Friction Brake). My WDH is the original one that came w/my Argosy in 1978 and is in very good condition. I don’t think the Dealer’s price is out of line if it is including a WDH set-up as well as Anti-Sway. The OP’s terminology is not quite clear on this point.

[jondrew55]

Originally Posted by Whamm511

Don’t be ridiculous! A 1 ton truck is not needed to tow that 20’ Base Camp. I would agree with the majority of the commenters here that a WDH and Anti-Sway Bars are needed. I tow a ‘78 Argosy 30’ w/1/2 ton Truck, 4X4. My trailer only weighs 4,500# w/Tongue Wt. of approx. 400#(dry). When fully loaded w/2 passengers I have about 600# of payload to spare. Not a lot. I ALWAYS tow w/WDH & Anti-Sway Bar (aka Friction Brake). My WDH is the original one that came w/my Argosy in 1978 and is in very good condition. I don’t think the Dealer’s price is out of line if it is including a WDH set-up as well as Anti-Sway. The OP’s terminology is not quite clear on this point.

I think the OP was a bit miffed because he had been told he could tow the Basecamp with a 2-1/2 ball on a standard hitch and when delivery time came he got the WD/Anti Sway advice. Somewhere back in this meandering thread the OP acknowledged he had decided to buy the hitch the dealer suggested.

[madmac157]

My new Basecamp 20X, completely empty of cargo but with a full water tank weighed 3,880 at the CAT scales, including tongue weight of 600 lbs. That’s more than advertised by Airstream. I took it to out on the ball only straight from the Airstream dealer and experienced significant understeer, trailer bounce, and sway on Interstate 80. I went and got a WD hitch right away.

A few days later, fully loaded with 4 days food, cargo, and water the trailer was 4260 lbs, just under max gross weight. With weight distribution hitch applied, I was able to lower the load on the ball to 500 lbs, level the car and trailer, and have great steering traction on the front end.

I use an Anderson weight distribution hitch. Dead simple to install and use. It also provides anti-sway and anti-bounce.

As I left the CAT scales in Martinez, CA earlier this week and headed over the Carquinez Straits Bridge, I encountered 30 mph direct crosswinds with 40 mph gusts. This continued for another 15 miles to Cordelia. The trailer tracked beautifully straight and true behind my 2017 Audi Q7 (yes, my Audi has the CanAm-recommended hitch reinforcement done).

I then took Interstate 80 to Sacramento and Highway 50 up to Lake Tahoe. I experienced no trouble with side gusts from passing trucks (or from trucks I passed!), and had no trouble with the winding steep climb to Tahoe.

I was so glad I had the WD and anti-sway installed!! I suggest you do it, too.

Safe travels,
Mark

[Ky76Argosy]

I got a Curt Anti Sway and not the WDH. Does fine in my 2017 Silverado.Check Camping World ($59) so your price is so high so must include WDH. Instal is simple so not cost difference in price. Your 20’ rig is probably similar in wt as my Argosy 26’ but you can check tongue wt and compare. I have towed from KY to FL and back without any anti sway device. Kept 65 mph or under 65mph. When semi passed felt some push and suck movement. Once you feel you will understand but be prepared for slight affects. Just go to outside of your lane away from semi for good measure. As for wind, watch the trees and flags to tell if high winds in area and go slower. Slow is good. Monitor tire pressures. No problem. Slow is good. Keep distance in slow lane.

As for your ball, I too got a 16’ trailer with a HD tractor from dealer and dealer sold and installed a 2” ball on my truck. Dumb people are everywhere. To check trailer has size stamped on ball coupling. Be Safe.