Troubleshooting a Toy Hauler that Sways With New Tires on Tow Vehicle

Question:

I bought this system for towing my toy hauler and it doesnt seem to remove the sway while towing. Had friction style sway control prior to installing this style which seemed to work better. Followed all instruction and it seems to be set up properly. I have a 2002 F250 Crew cab 7.3L 4x4 short bed. I installed new rear tires on truck before using this set-up. My back tires needed replaced, fronts were ok. Replaced back tires Bridgestone Duelers LT285/75R-16 prior to first trip. Sway and control was worse than prior friction set-up with old tires. So, swapped old fronts with new rears, seemed to tow much better. Dont understand that. Then after 25 miles or so, truck had a bounce from 40-60 mph, smoothing out at 65. Balance weight had come off old tire, and by the time I got to tire shop, back tires were cupped and needed replaced. Now, with 4 new tires sway and control was so bad I couldnt drive more than 45 without control issues. I lowered truck tire air pressure to 40lbs, which helped some. I even went through the dual cam adjustment again but was no help. I need help/advice on this because we dont want to go anywhere because it tows so poorly. Sorry for the novel, trying to give as much info as possible.

asked by: David B

Expert Reply:

New truck tires can feel strange at first when towing. The tread on the new tires is pretty tall and when you are towing the tread will actually fold over from the weight which will give the rear of the vehicle kind of an odd sway that wasn't there before. I experienced this first hand with a buddy of mine's truck that he put new tires on and was towing his boat.

The best way to fight sway is proper trailer loading and making sure the trailer is sitting perfectly level. Sway control systems can help a lot with sway that starts with wind gusts. But if the trailer wants to sway at a certain speed all of the time either the trailer is loaded improperly or the suspension of the trailer needs repair.

Try moving as much weight into the front of your tow hauler as possible. Nearly all sway problems are caused by too light of tongue weight.

expert reply by: Jameson C