Question about towing

[xceebeex]

Well I just picked up the Bravada yesterday and I have a question about towing. First question is does the hitch usually come with the car or does that usually have to be purchased separately? Next question is, do I have to get some sort of harness adapter for when I tow because I notice the connector is round and all the stuff I have towed in the past has the rectangular connector?

Where is the best place to get this stuff if it does not come with the truck?

Thanks

[Rob]

The receiver hitch should already be mounted on the car. You have to by the ball and mount to work with the trailer you want to tow (so the trailer is level). Wal Mart's as good a place as any for hitch stuff. They may also have the adapter to go from the round plug to the flat, four wire plug. If not, you should be able to find it at Pep Boys or Northern.

[LOWRIT00]

Welcome to the wonderful world of towing your toyz...
1. your need a 7 round to a 4 flat connector
2. your truck should have come with the hitch
3. any place from Murrays Discount Auto to Meijer would have extra receivers and ballz, and will also have your connetor too, prices to vary from place to place. I use a 2 inch ball with a 2 in drop receiver for my snowmobile and boat trailer.
4. I changed out all of my trailer lights to LED to make sure people can see my trailer and changing lanes.
5. dont forget trailer bearing buddies to, they make greasing your trailer bearings a breeze.
6. im sure other guyz on here can add more info for ya and / or more detailed

[Doc Brown]

When you say hitch I'm assuming you mean ball mount, not the receiver (the part that is permanantly mounted to the truck)? The ball mount does not come with the truck. That's because what you need depends on what you are towing. I have a weight distribution hitch (http://www.etrailer.com/c-WD.htm) because I tow a travel trailer. Quite expensive but nessesary for proper, safe towing of a box that is a travel trailer. If you're towing a bass boat or popup camper you only need a a ball mount (http://www.etrailer.com/c-BM.htm) with the correct drop and ball for your trailer. You should be able to get a ball mount at most auto parts stores. If you need weight distribution I'd recommend getting it an RV shop or a shop that specializes in trailers. They are tricky to setup even when you have experience with them

You can also buy an adaptor for the 4 pin connector (http://www.etrailer.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=E&Product_Code=37345&Category_Code=A) at any auto parts store, or any department store with a decent automotive dept. Hoppy is the most common brand. Another great place to buy from is Etrailer (http://etrailer.com/). Their prices are so-so but they are reliable and know their stuff.

[xceebeex]

Awesome guys, thanks for the help. Yea I meant the ball mount, I know the receiver is the permanently mounted part on the truck. Anyway, I don't have my own toys yet, but I will be helping the in-laws tow their boat and/or jetski so my best bet would be to find out which mount they use on their cherokee and go from there.

Thanks again.

[ScarabEpic22]

I would get whatever setup your inlaws have. Really doesnt matter too much what the drop is for a jetski trailer or a single axle boat trailer. If their boat trailer is 2+ axles though, you really want to have the trailer level so it rides properly. More important on long trips, if you are just going to the local lake dont worry about it. I have a 2" drop hitch and use it for everything.

Also, you need a 7-4 (or 7-5) pin adapter for the wiring to hookup correctly. Cost is ~$20 from local autoparts store and is a lot easier than trying to order online if you do not know what you need.

To go with the mounting piece (I call it the hitch insert personally), you need to find out what size ball their trailers use. It will be either a 1 7/8" ball or a 2" ball. 2 5/16" is only used by really large trailers and I have never seen a boat trailer with one. Make sure you get the right size ball, my dad actually had a trailer come off their car when he was a kid because they thought it was a 2" ball when it was really a 1 7/8" one. Not a very good thing to have happen.

[PAblzr]

I would get whatever setup your inlaws have..... you need to find out what size ball their trailers use. It will be either a 1 7/8" ball or a 2" ball. 2 5/16" is only used by really large trailers and I have never seen a boat trailer with one. Make sure you get the right size ball, my dad actually had a trailer come off their car when he was a kid because they thought it was a 2" ball when it was really a 1 7/8" one. Not a very good thing to have happen.

Yes, absolutly yes.

Quite a while ago I belonged to a dirt bike riding club. When we went on rides rather than everyone driving by themselves we usually met some place with a large under used parking lot and "car pooled" to the trail. Frequently this involved someone pulling a trailer that was not their own. With a never the same combination of trucks and trailers we eventually figured out that if everyone painted their ball size on their ball mount (hitch insert) AND their trailer tongue the likely hood of an unpleasant surprise while traveling down the road was greatly reduced.

Of course there a dozens of other things that can go wrong when towing a trailer. Just for starters: Do your inlaws have a spare tire on their trailer? Do you have a lug wrench that fits the trailer? Does your Bravada's jack go both low enough and high enough to change the trailer tire? Hopefully your in-laws can give you some useful advise.

[turbomike]

Check your owner's manual, but I believe anything over 1500lbs will require trailer brakes, that's what the large round connector is also for. Good thing is, the truck is already wired for a brake controller.

[xceebeex]

Check your owner's manual, but I believe anything over 1500lbs will require trailer brakes, that's what the large round connector is also for. Good thing is, the truck is already wired for a brake controller.

That number seems kinda low, but I can check on that. Wouldn't that also depend on the trailer though? I know that my in laws don't have a break controller in their Cherokee and they pull the boat with the V6.

[RozmerJJ]

The manual does state 1500lbs, but I agree that is a very low number to require trailer brakes.

[Doc Brown]

Check your owner's manual, but I believe anything over 1500lbs will require trailer brakes, that's what the large round connector is also for. Good thing is, the truck is already wired for a brake controller.

This is actually more dependant on state law than anything else. Of course common sense is important to use here too. Some states require brakes at 1500#, some as much as 4500#. I found this list to be very helpful (http://www.roadmasterinc.com/laws.htm). Most travel trailers come with brakes. I'm not sure about boat trailers. I've always got the impression brakes were an option on boat trailers.

BTW Scarab, I respectfully disagree with the idea that it doesn't matter what drop you use to tow a small trailer. Those traliers are light weight and subject to road and wind conditions more than a travel trailer or large boat. Those are the ones that I see flipped over on the road two or three times every summer. I agree that leveling it isn't much better, but every little bit helps. I've towed small and large trailers. The large ones are far more stable on the freeway. Spending $50 bucks on a couple of different balls and ballmounts is cheap compared to the hassle and agravation of dealing with a mishap. I think its as important as the getting the size of the ball right, which is excellent advice.

[ScarabEpic22]

This is actually more dependant on state law than anything else. Of course common sense is important to use here too. Some states require brakes at 1500#, some as much as 4500#. I found this list to be very helpful (http://www.roadmasterinc.com/laws.htm). Most travel trailers come with brakes. I'm not sure about boat trailers. I've always got the impression brakes were an option on boat trailers.

BTW Scarab, I respectfully disagree with the idea that it doesn't matter what drop you use to tow a small trailer. Those traliers are light weight and subject to road and wind conditions more than a travel trailer or large boat. Those are the ones that I see flipped over on the road two or three times every summer. I agree that leveling it isn't much better, but every little bit helps. I've towed small and large trailers. The large ones are far more stable on the freeway. Spending $50 bucks on a couple of different balls and ballmounts is cheap compared to the hassle and agravation of dealing with a mishap. I think its as important as the getting the size of the ball right, which is excellent advice.

I think 1500lbs is pretty low for a recommended trailer brakes, but then again Ive only towed my boats (both of which have trailer brakes) and uhaul trailers less than 2500lbs.

And, I have to agree with you Doc, I know it is not extremely important to have the drop match your trailer height to make it level, but as you said, every little bit helps which is definitely true especially on long trips. And, the only trailers Ive towed for longer than an hour or so are my boat trailers which are tandem axles with at least 1 axle with brakes.

[brettster98]

the top of the ball should be between 17 and 19 inch off a level road surface by having the tongue of trailer to high puts a lot of stress on the coupler of the trailer, having to low of a ball puts weight on the rear of truck and if real heavy makes the front tires of truck light on the road especially when stopping. also make sure you put something (lock) on the latch of trailer to prevent it from popping up so the trailer stay lock to the ball