Trailer sway with air ride

[DavidNJ]

Using the Andersen WD Hitch with stability control. This is from the Airstream AirForum, posted in 2019.

Using the WD Hitch with late-model vehicles that have electronic anti-sway

The Andersen WD Hitch features its own sway control system that is designed to auto-adjust to the load in your trailer and prevents trailer sway when installed properly. Unfortunately, some newer electronic anti-sway systems can misread the anti-sway efforts of the Andersen WD Hitch and the anti-sway system may actually cause the trailer to sway as the two systems work against each other.

These potential issues typically occur with electronic anti-sway systems that are designed to detect trailer sway and automatically use the vehicle brakes to help control the sway. Please note that this type of anti-sway system is different from electronic traction control, which does not cause this type of problem. If you experience this type of issue, you will need to turn off the electronic anti-sway in your vehicle in order to tow with the Andersen WD Hitch.

This issue is most likely to occur in 2011 and newer truck models from Ford, GMC, Dodge, and Chevy. Refer to your tow vehicle’s owner's manual to determine if you have a built-in electronic anti-sway and how to disable it while using the Andersen WD Hitch to tow.

 

[massram21]

ok Thanks everyone. It seems maybe I just have something else going on with my truck.

I could post some pics if I could ever get my truck back from the dealer.

I did try dropping ball to lowest, and up one as well from where I had it on the 14. Neither made a huge change. I also put on scales and checked my tongue weight, as well as front and rear weights (platform scales). I tried jacking up bars to load the front. All these things offer improvement but there is a weird pushing at the rear that seems to go into the steering and give a weird feeling of lack of control. It even activates the traction control. The service department has towed with different trucks on the lot. All will sway, especially with crappy Alaska roads and a little wind, but this is more like the truck is swimming.

I will say the air ride does suck up those frost heaves nicely, but the rear end pushing is un-nerving.

I originally thought this was an Air suspension problem, but if no one else is having issues, it must be my truck, my trailer, or these wallowy Duelers.

Thanks for advice

D

I have 2021 big horn quad cab with 5.7 torque and 392 axle and it tows horribly, towing 2014 outback 230 rs 550 hitch weight dry and 7500 gvwr and the truck will side shift 2 to 4 inches constantly, need to hold tightly with 2 hands ,went to dealer and told me to get WDH ,told him i had one and sway bar alreadyand he says i guess you already know everything best , no help at all also just towed my old 2002 sprtngdale which i sold after 16 years towing with silverado 1500 with absolutely no issues and ram swayed all over road with that to , very disappointed in this truck dangerous to ride over 60 , I wanted dealer to recccomend air bag type to help with problem but no help from them .first person who ever complained

 

[Bt10]

I have 2021 big horn quad cab with 5.7 torque and 392 axle and it tows horribly, towing 2014 outback 230 rs 550 hitch weight dry and 7500 gvwr and the truck will side shift 2 to 4 inches constantly, need to hold tightly with 2 hands ,went to dealer and told me to get WDH ,told him i had one and sway bar alreadyand he says i guess you already know everything best , no help at all also just towed my old 2002 sprtngdale which i sold after 16 years towing with silverado 1500 with absolutely no issues and ram swayed all over road with that to , very disappointed in this truck dangerous to ride over 60 , I wanted dealer to recccomend air bag type to help with problem but no help from them .first person who ever complained

I am in the same boat. Do you have the 18” off road pkg/tires? They are c range, which are crap. Make sure the hitch is perfectly level/setup according to the mfr’s directions. Try running the sway lightly snugged. The truck dealer may have suggestions too. Let us know if anything works, I’ll try to also, wish someone would chime in with a good experience.

Most people suggest a hellwig swaybar on the truck, but that seems to be masking a bigger issue of rubber suspension bushings. I also previously towed with a gm 1/2 ton leaf spring truck on 305/70-16, from a p tire to an e range, all better.

 

[massram21]

I am in the same boat. Do you have the 18” off road pkg/tires? They are c range, which are crap. Make sure the hitch is perfectly level/setup according to the mfr’s directions. Try running the sway lightly snugged. The truck dealer may have suggestions too. Let us know if anything works, I’ll try to also, wish someone would chime in with a good experience.

Most people suggest a hellwig swaybar on the truck, but that seems to be masking a bigger issue of rubber suspension bushings. I also previously towed with a gm 1/2 ton leaf spring truck on 305/70-16, from a p tire to an e range, all better.

goodyear fortitude ht 265/65/18 ,i did not see any load rating.. only 1500 miles on truck . the dealer rep told me to get WDH ,i already have WDH and friction sway bar and he is is like saying thats is all he can say , no help at all i went there asking him if he could make ride saferbecase WHD was not enough .thinking i should have bought Ford

 

[massram21]

goodyear fortitude ht 265/65/18 ,i did not see any load rating.. only 1500 miles on truck . the dealer rep told me to get WDH ,i already have WDH and friction sway bar and he is is like saying thats is all he can say , no help at all i went there asking him if he could make ride saferbecase WHD was not enough .thinking i should have bought Ford

I am going to inflate tires to max of 51 lbs next trip , chevy towed better but those box frames they have now are going to rust out quick

 

[IvoryHemi]

goodyear fortitude ht 265/65/18 ,i did not see any load rating.. only 1500 miles on truck . the dealer rep told me to get WDH ,i already have WDH and friction sway bar and he is is like saying thats is all he can say , no help at all i went there asking him if he could make ride saferbecase WHD was not enough .thinking i should have bought Ford

What is the tongue weight rating of your WDH bars?

 

[massram21]

What is the tongue weight rating of your WDH bars?

11500 lbs

 

[IvoryHemi]

11500 lbs

That’s not realistic.

Stamped or sticker will likely show something in the 600 lb to 1,400 lbs range.

 

[massram21]

That’s not realistic.

Stamped or sticker will likely show something in the 600 lb to 1,400 lbs range.

your right , hitch rating is 12000 lbs , but the bars are 750 lbs tongue weight , trailer has rated tongue weight of 555 lbs , 5075 lbs with 2425 lbs cargo capacity

 

[IvoryHemi]

your right , hitch rating is 12000 lbs , but the bars are 750 lbs tongue weight , trailer has rated tongue weight of 555 lbs , 5075 lbs with 2425 lbs cargo capacity

You’re maxing out those bars. I’d step up to 1,000 lb bars

 

[massram21]

You’re maxing out those bars. I’d step up to 1,000 lb bars

You’re maxing out those bars. I’d step up to 1,000 lb bars

thank you for your advise , did not know bars did not match hitch , bought them as kit , though there was no sway issues for 16 years , issue is side shifting as i don't have issue with sag or bounce , I contacted Ram and they responded within day and dealer is going to look at suspension next week, I hope they find problem ands it is not me buying and installing aftermarket upgrades as this trailer is 4000 lbs under my rated towing capacity of 11561 lbs. . impressed at how fast they got back to me

 

[IvoryHemi]

thank you for your advise , did not know bars did not match hitch , bought them as kit , though there was no sway issues for 16 years , issue is side shifting as i don't have issue with sag or bounce , I contacted Ram and they responded within day and dealer is going to look at suspension next week, I hope they find problem ands it is not me buying and installing aftermarket upgrades as this trailer is 4000 lbs under my rated towing capacity of 11561 lbs. . impressed at how fast they got back to me

Not all trailers are equal so towing capacity doesn’t mean much.

 

[Bt10]

thank you for your advise , did not know bars did not match hitch , bought them as kit , though there was no sway issues for 16 years , issue is side shifting as i don't have issue with sag or bounce , I contacted Ram and they responded within day and dealer is going to look at suspension next week, I hope they find problem ands it is not me buying and installing aftermarket upgrades as this trailer is 4000 lbs under my rated towing capacity of 11561 lbs. . impressed at how fast they got back to me

Who did you contact at Ram? Please let us know if anything substantial comes from the manufacturer. There are few threads on here dealing with this subject = the percentage of owners with bad experience is much, much greater than with leaf spring truck owners. Thanks.

 

[Bt10]

For reference, if I got lazy pulling my 4700lbs TT empty home from storage, I wouldn't put on the weight bars, but put on the sway control on my leaf spring truck = all fine. Non-airbag Ram kept swaying, so I kept tightening the sway control until it finally kept sticking in a slightly sideways drift and would pop back to center or worse to other side. Will not track straight. I've read all the threads on here and the only mistake I could find was hitch height was a couple inches low. Good luck.

 

[massram21]

Who did you contact at Ram? Please let us know if anything substantial comes from the manufacturer. There are few threads on here dealing with this subject = the percentage of owners with bad experience is much, much greater than with leaf spring truck owners. Thanks.

thru contact us on Ram website

 

[massram21]

Not all trailers are equal so towing capacity doesn’t mean much.

looked for 10 k bars and not available, the ones I have are max for this model which has round bar spring bars

 

[IvoryHemi]

looked for 10 k bars and not available, the ones I have are max for this model which has round bar spring bars

That’s a bit surprising that the shank and head rated for 12k without an available bar upgrade from 650 lbs. I’d say time for a new WDH then

 

[massram21]

That’s a bit surprising that the shank and head rated for 12k without an available bar upgrade from 650 lbs. I’d say time for a new WDH then

750 lbs

 

[massram21]

750 lbs

tongue weight on hitch is 1200 or 1000 depending on which hole you use for pin

 

[Nick57]

I'm shocked to see people are having this problem. I went from a 2000 ram 2500 to a 18 ram1500 to my current 21 ram1500. Only my DT has had the air ride. My 21 tows sooooooo much nicer then my 18 did which towed better then my 2000 did. I've only ever experienced trailer sway is when I miss loaded the trailer or the hitch was too high for the trailer i was towing. Do you have any pictures to show how your setup looks when it's hooked up that you're having an issue. A picture in these cases can help ALOT.