Bumper pull toy hauler ?

[summit151]

Hey guys I have found a Fuzion 260 toyhauler for a good deal. It is 30ft overall length. I am wondering if anyone has experience pulling a bumper toyhauler ? I have heard horror stories that they are a hand full to pull with bad sway issues. I have a 3500 gmc 6.0L. Any experience would help to make my decision to buy it or not


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[Smokinyotes]

Is your truck a 1 ton on singles or duals? I’m sure with an equalizer hitch it will be fine but it still won’t pull like a fifth wheel.

[summit151]

It is a single wheel


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[300savage]

My wife’s ex husband has one around that size late 90’s his frame was cracked right behind the equalizer hanger. Me and a buddy had to fish plate theftame and subframed it as well for extra ground clearance.

[gmcmax05]

Your 1 ton will have no issues with getting tossed around.

[operator john]

We have a 27' toy hauler. We pull with a dually.
I find with cross winds the additional wheels provides better stability.

It is not the ability of your vehicle to pull or stop it, but can you control it in worst case scenario?

[vinny]

Originally Posted by operator john

We have a 27' toy hauler. We pull with a dually.
I find with cross winds the additional wheels provides better stability.

It is not the ability of your vehicle to pull or stop it, but can you control it in worst case scenario?

X2. The reason we switched as well.

[gmcmax05]

Originally Posted by operator john

We have a 27' toy hauler. We pull with a dually.
I find with cross winds the additional wheels provides better stability.

It is not the ability of your vehicle to pull or stop it, but can you control it in worst case scenario?

Seen semi's laying on their sides in "worst case scenario's" You have to know your trucks ability, weather can blow you off the road no matter what you're driving. That said, a SRW 1 ton with equalizer hitch is more than enough truck for a 30 foot bumper pull toyhauler.

[Arty]

Why exactly would the fact that a trailer was a t-hauler have anything to do with trailer sway? Just asking here.

Assuming you have sufficient tongue weight and anti-sway bars, what is the nature of a hauler which causes it to sway more than a box without a rear ramp?

[summit151]

I do agree that any truck will pull something but handling winds and stopping power is a must and I have towed a lot more weight with my truck then this toyhauler weighs and it didn’t struggle stoping it. I have just heard with that much weight like 2 quads over the rear axles of the trailer is creates swaying issues and there is a 106 gallon water tank so I’m curious how that would affect the towing and weight ratio on the trailer


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[Ice Fishing Maniac]

I do not see a problem. I pull a 31 foot holiday trailer ( just over 34’) with equalizer hitch and no issues with my 2500hd with the 6.0L. No concerns . Have been thru some wicked wind and rain storms too. Some occasional sway with the crosswinds.

[Arty]

Originally Posted by summit151

Hey guys I have found a Fuzion 260 toyhauler for a good deal. It is 30ft overall length. I am wondering if anyone has experience pulling a bumper toyhauler ? I have heard horror stories that they are a hand full to pull with bad sway issues. I have a 3500 gmc 6.0L. Any experience would help to make my decision to buy it or not


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Anyway, good topic because I'm starting to design my second utility/RV ('toy-hauler') trailer. There's probably several factors specific to the trailer itself (separate from loading or hitch type) that contribute to sway; it's not too clear yet what those are.

Not too many reports of Airstream trailer sway accidents exist for example, compared to other higher and sharper bumper-pulls. I wouldn't go with a 5th-wheel or gooseneck just yet, because of the limited capacity due to required percent weight over the axle with my current truck.

If you needed 25% tongue weight for example, and total box payload cap is 1600#, that's about a 7000# maximum tow restriction. Even less of course with lots of camping junk in the cab. With a bumper pull at 12% hitch weight and equalizer bars, I'd be legal up to max rated tow cap of 9000# or so and 15,000# gross combined with 3.73 gears. (Not to mention the $$$ of just switching out trucks).

[vinny]

Originally Posted by Arty

Why exactly would the fact that a trailer was a t-hauler have anything to do with trailer sway? Just asking here.

Assuming you have sufficient tongue weight and anti-sway bars, what is the nature of a hauler which causes it to sway more than a box without a rear ramp?

Most of your weight is at the back in the garage. Most people probably overload as well. Definitely changes the way the trailer acts on the road.

[JB_AOL]

Originally Posted by vinny

Most of your weight is at the back in the garage. Most people probably overload as well. Definitely changes the way the trailer acts on the road.

It really depends on the TH (toyhauler), some are designed where there is nothing in the "garage", and everything else is in front of the garage, which actually causes the weight to be to far forward. I use that garage term loosely as it probably isn't a separate room on a trailer this short. Then you have to add ALOT of weight behind the axles to balance this out, and end up with your 10-12% tongue weight.

But some TH's have a "channel: where you can drive the toys in between the cabinets/etc. These usually have a better weight distribution.

What kind of toys are you planning on putting in there? This makes a big difference.

Will your truck handle it? Most likely, but you haven't said much other than it's a 1 ton with the 6L. How old? You might not have the payload.

Bumper pull travel trailers require 10-12% tongue weight (when loaded). Anything more than that, and the trailer will not tow properly.

Most sway issues are because of incorrect tongue weight/bad hitch setup.
If you do purchase this trailer, buy the BEST Weight distribution hitch With built in sway control. As in Anderson or Hensley, and then understand how to set it up. This makes a HUGE difference in how a bumper pull tows.

[summit151]

Originally Posted by JB_AOL

It really depends on the TH (toyhauler), some are designed where there is nothing in the "garage", and everything else is in front of the garage, which actually causes the weight to be to far forward. I use that garage term loosely as it probably isn't a separate room on a trailer this short. Then you have to add ALOT of weight behind the axles to balance this out, and end up with your 10-12% tongue weight.



But some TH's have a "channel: where you can drive the toys in between the cabinets/etc. These usually have a better weight distribution.



What kind of toys are you planning on putting in there? This makes a big difference.



Will your truck handle it? Most likely, but you haven't said much other than it's a 1 ton with the 6L. How old? You might not have the payload.



Bumper pull travel trailers require 10-12% tongue weight (when loaded). Anything more than that, and the trailer will not tow properly.



Most sway issues are because of incorrect tongue weight/bad hitch setup.

If you do purchase this trailer, buy the BEST Weight distribution hitch With built in sway control. As in Anderson or Hensley, and then understand how to set it up. This makes a HUGE difference in how a bumper pull tows.

Thanks for the info it is a 2012 3500. And I plan on putting 1 quad and possibly 2 quads in the odd time so not a lot of weight really


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[JB_AOL]

Originally Posted by summit151

Thanks for the info it is a 2012 3500. And I plan on putting 1 quad and possibly 2 quads in the odd time so not a lot of weight really


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Oh, and pay attention to where the tanks are. Most are between the axles, but some are in front of the axles, which can have a large affect on towing weights, especially if you back country camping with full tanks.

[walker1]

Your truck should make a good tow vehicle for that trailer if it stays gross weight under 10k. As other said, it will tow tow like a fifthwheel version but so what.
I would also put a higher load rating tire on the trailer as it probably came with with ST trailer tires and minimum rating. Even the big fifth toyhaulers do the same. I got rid of the cheap junk that came on mine and replaced with Sailun ribs with 4000 lbs cacity per tire. You don't need that extreme.

[BUSHRVN]

I have a 34' bumper pull toy hauler. The garage in mine is all behind the rear axle and this creates problems. When empty, your tongue weight will/could be well over the rating of your receiver hitch. Mine was as high as 2,323 lbs!!
When the garage is loaded, the tongue weight is fine, but the axles are quickly overloaded (without water! up to 1,500lbs of water in my case coming forward of the front axle that would make tongue weight even worse).
If it is one where the toys go all the way in and are more over the axles, then you should be fine as long as the axles don't get overloaded.

Mine was an annoying roller coaster because if I was going on a trip with no toys, I was grossly over the hitch weight ratings. I added an aftermarket receiver to deal with this as well as an equalizer that is rated for this. But this was still a heavy concern. I added a third axle infront of the existing two (which is directly under the water tank so it doesn't affect my weight balance at all) because the two were so far back and this brought the tongue weight into a reasonable range and as well gave me overkill capacity so that I can now haul a full tank of water and still haul two quads with 3,000 lbs of axle capacity and 8,300 lbs of tire capacity left over.

So all that said, bumper pull toyhaulers are sketchy in handling and balance. Fifth wheels don't suffer this weight change much at all as far as handling goes.
Tires as mentioned make a BIG difference in safety, handling and durability. I took my chinabombs off the next day after getting it home and put Goodyear G614 RST tires in my case, G rated. A good tire pays for itself in durability, safety(not destroying the side of your trailer) and peace of mind.

[Vigilante]

I pull a 26' Work and Play, it has a separate garage in the back, and is built like a brick. I think it is somewhere in the range of 7500lbs dry, and 13,500lbs loaded. I used to haul with a 2003 Chev 2500 6.0l but I really didn't like it in the hills. I never had any sway issues as the trailer is pretty flat, but that weight would have the 6.0l screaming at 4500 rpm trying to get up some big long hills doing 75 - 80 KMH (Tanker trucks also use the road and regularly slow to 40 to 60 kmh)

[rembo]

I have a 30 foot bumper hitch toy hauler that I pull with a 2011 2500HD Duramax EC short box. This one is a tri axle with 120 gal water tanks right over the axles. I run air bags and have no issue at all with or without the quads in it. I adjust the air bags and equalizer bars depending on whether it's loaded or empty. Your 3500 will be fine.

[walker1]

Originally Posted by BUSHRVN

I have a 34' bumper pull toy hauler. The garage in mine is all behind the rear axle and this creates problems. When empty, your tongue weight will/could be well over the rating of your receiver hitch. Mine was as high as 2,323 lbs!!
When the garage is loaded, the tongue weight is fine, but the axles are quickly overloaded (without water! up to 1,500lbs of water in my case coming forward of the front axle that would make tongue weight even worse).
If it is one where the toys go all the way in and are more over the axles, then you should be fine as long as the axles don't get overloaded.

Mine was an annoying roller coaster because if I was going on a trip with no toys, I was grossly over the hitch weight ratings. I added an aftermarket receiver to deal with this as well as an equalizer that is rated for this. But this was still a heavy concern. I added a third axle infront of the existing two (which is directly under the water tank so it doesn't affect my weight balance at all) because the two were so far back and this brought the tongue weight into a reasonable range and as well gave me overkill capacity so that I can now haul a full tank of water and still haul two quads with 3,000 lbs of axle capacity and 8,300 lbs of tire capacity left over.

So all that said, bumper pull toyhaulers are sketchy in handling and balance. Fifth wheels don't suffer this weight change much at all as far as handling goes.
Tires as mentioned make a BIG difference in safety, handling and durability. I took my chinabombs off the next day after getting it home and put Goodyear G614 RST tires in my case, G rated. A good tire pays for itself in durability, safety(not destroying the side of your trailer) and peace of mind.

Yeah.... brand new trailers with GVWR at 16k and putting the cheap rubber on with very little extra capacity. Those tires you got are great. l looked at them but went Sailun and had 4 installed for 1000 bucks. Sleep better. Run 100 psi when loaded to 90% and each tires weighs 65 pounds and runs cool.

[summit151]

Thanks for the info and suggestion guys, So I went and looked at yesterday and it is a tall trailer! It has to be close to the same interior height of my current fifth wheel. Trailer was in good condition tho. But it is just me and the girlfriend and I do a lot of solo hunting trips so I’m starting to wonder if it would be overkill for the size for what I need..


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[BUSHRVN]

Originally Posted by summit151

Thanks for the info and suggestion guys, So I went and looked at yesterday and it is a tall trailer! It has to be close to the same interior height of my current fifth wheel. Trailer was in good condition tho. But it is just me and the girlfriend and I do a lot of solo hunting trips so I’m starting to wonder if it would be overkill for the size for what I need..


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Yea, I would love a smaller trailer but this is the only way for me to get either 4 quads in the bush for my family of five (two in trailer and two on truck deck) or two quads and my small jet boat (two quads in trailer and boat on truck) into BC since you can pull two trailer into BC.

[BUSHRVN]

Originally Posted by walker1

Yeah.... brand new trailers with GVWR at 16k and putting the cheap rubber on with very little extra capacity. Those tires you got are great. l looked at them but went Sailun and had 4 installed for 1000 bucks. Sleep better. Run 100 psi when loaded to 90% and each tires weighs 65 pounds and runs cool.

Yea, the Goodyears are not cheap! $400 or so a piece! But worth it to me for capacity and the fact that I can't see them in my mirrors due to the trailer being a wide body model so I wouldn't know if something was running low while towing. I run mine at 95 psi as that covers me for being loaded with two quads and a full tank of water. I did buy a TST monitor system for the trailer that monitors the pressures and temperatures with preset alarms that I set the range on to alert me it something is hotter than it should be or lower psi than it should be. I've alway put high end tires on my RV's for peace of mind and durability. Had Michelin XPS ribs on my last trailer that I got 7 years and about 70,000kms out of and they still had 3/8" deep lugs on them when I sold the trailer with them.
These are 16" tires and are a great trade up for those of you with 15" china bombs on your trailer. they are typically the same height as the 15" and fit pretty much all trailers without mods. Just buy new steel rims and you're done. much more load capacity as well and inflate them according to the inflation chart that's online for them.

[walker1]

Originally Posted by BUSHRVN

Yea, the Goodyears are not cheap! $400 or so a piece! But worth it to me for capacity and the fact that I can't see them in my mirrors due to the trailer being a wide body model so I wouldn't know if something was running low while towing. I run mine at 95 psi as that covers me for being loaded with two quads and a full tank of water. I did buy a TST monitor system for the trailer that monitors the pressures and temperatures with preset alarms that I set the range on to alert me it something is hotter than it should be or lower psi than it should be. I've alway put high end tires on my RV's for peace of mind and durability. Had Michelin XPS ribs on my last trailer that I got 7 years and about 70,000kms out of and they still had 3/8" deep lugs on them when I sold the trailer with them.
These are 16" tires and are a great trade up for those of you with 15" china bombs on your trailer. they are typically the same height as the 15" and fit pretty much all trailers without mods. Just buy new steel rims and you're done. much more load capacity as well and inflate them according to the inflation chart that's online for them.

I have 16" on mine also. Towed Calgary to Cape Breton 2 summers ago ( 10K) and last summer 12 days into Seattle and BC for a 4 k trip. I bet they are still 90% and run cool. I wanted a double axle toyhauler at 40 feet so the tires have to be better than the junk on most toyhauler 38 feet plus as they cheap out knowing there are 6 tires so load capacity can be lower. Anything to save a buck.................. even on 85 thousand dollar trailers.