RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Topic: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question (Read 9 times) previous topic - next topic

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February 13, 2010, 09:41:22 am

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From: Bonnie
To:
Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 10:35 AM
Subject: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

I have a new tow vehicle that is pretty low to the ground. I am getting a Blue Ox tow package and the difference in the height of the 2 inch receiver hitch on the LD and the hitch point on the car is about 6 or 7 inches.
Is this a significant enough height difference to warrant getting a dropped down tow bar from Blue OX? The people at the garage doing the work say that 6 inches is probably tolerable.
The hitch point on the car is about 12.5 inches off the ground and the center point of the 2 inch receiver is about 19 inches off the ground...there was a bit of snow on the ground (where isn't there?) which may have thrown my measurement off by as much as a 1/2 inch.
I need to be able to tell them what to order from Blue Ox by Monday morning.

Thanks for a reply!

Bonnie Jacobs
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Re: Fw: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #1 – February 13, 2010, 01:52:21 pm

Yahoo Message Number: 110023

Six or seven inches seems excessive to me. Why don't you contact Blue Ox and get the info from the people who should know best. I looked for my Blue Ox data at home but couldn't my hitch info. I towed a rental UHaul trailer from Reno to Phoenix last year behind my MB and had to buy a 6 inch drop to properly tow. Its not an issue until you need to stop quick and then the toad will either climb up or dive down. Be safe and sure.
Jack in Reno

Re: Fw: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #2 – February 13, 2010, 01:58:16 pm

Yahoo Message Number: 110024

It would seem having a braking system in place on the toad would mitigate against the need for a drop hitch.

best, paul

"Thriving not surviving" - "All of us have cancer cells in our bodies. But not all of us will develop cancer." from ANTI CANCER - A NEW WAY OF LIFE, by David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD - See our website at www. LazyDazers.com

Re: Fw: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #3 – February 13, 2010, 02:27:10 pm

Yahoo Message Number: 110029

I've also heard it can cause problems with the towed car tracking properly (causing car tire wear) and stresses being placed on the towbar and baseplate. IIRC for our Sterling bar plus Blue Ox baseplate combination, one of the manufacturers stated no more than 4" height difference.

Michelle

Re: Fw: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #4 – February 13, 2010, 02:33:31 pm

Yahoo Message Number: 110030

"I am getting a Blue Ox tow package and the difference in the height of the 2 inch receiver hitch on the LD and the hitch point on the car is about 6 or 7 inches. Is this a significant enough height difference to warrant getting a dropped down tow bar from Blue OX?"
As others here have said, the generally accepted rule of thumb is 2 inches, so the vertical mismatch you're describing would be unacceptable. A "drop hitch" would be one way to correct the misalignment, but it carries serious drawbacks of its own: mainly, the likelihood that it would drag on the pavement when entering and exiting driveways.
Yes, it's possible to buy a drop hitch with a roller mounted below it, but that isn't a great solution either: the roller must be mounted *beneath* the hitch in order to work, so it's even more likely to hit the pavement than the hitch alone would be.
What are the alternatives? Well, when I outfitted my 2009 Honda Fit for towing last year, I face a similar problem, as described here:

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/skylarking/2009/towing.htm>
Blue Ox's baseplate for the Fit would have resulted in an unacceptable 5-6" vertical misalignment. Rather than use a drop hitch, I chose Roadmaster tow gear and was able to achieve perfect vertical alignment (within half an inch), due to Roadmaster's different baseplate design. The Roadmaster Sterling towbar I ended up with is equal to Blue Ox's best gear.
To summarize: a drop hitch is a last resort, and not a desirable one. Blue Ox is an excellent company, but they're not the only ones building high-quality tow gear. Try Roadmaster, and others who make towbar/baseplate systems. Shop around, and with luck you may find a setup that doesn't force you to resort to a drop hitch.

Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/

Re: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #5 – February 13, 2010, 02:45:29 pm

Yahoo Message Number: 110031

"It would seem having a braking system in place on the toad would mitigate against the need for a drop hitch."
That would be true if the toad did all its own braking; that is, if the forward thrust at the hitch were always zero. But this is not something we have any way to measure, so we can't set our braking systems to achieve that delicate balance. And from what I've read, most RVers adjust their toad brakes so that they don't come on until braking is fairly strong--in fact, some deliberately set their toad brakes for "panic stop only" operation. Thus the override or underride caused by a height mismatch remains a real concern, even with toad brakes in place.

Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/

Re: Fw: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #6 – February 13, 2010, 03:25:27 pm

Yahoo Message Number: 110035

Good point, Andy. I know Roadmaster outfits their towbars to fit either their or Blue Ox's baseplates; not sure about the other way around but there are various configurations which could be considered with

RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #7 – February 13, 2010, 10:20:34 am

Yahoo Message Number: 110012

Quote

I have a new tow vehicle that is pretty low to the ground. I am getting a Blue Ox tow package and the difference in the height of the 2 inch receiver hitch on the LD and the hitch point on the car is about 6 or 7 inches.
Is this a significant enough height difference to warrant getting a dropped down tow bar from Blue OX? The people at the garage doing the work say that 6 inches is probably tolerable.

Hmmmm...are the people at the garage willing to put in writing that the 6" difference will cause no problems? And that they'll make any repairs for free if there IS a problem? I doubt it.
If I'm remembering correctly, the difference shouldn't be more than about 2" ... if it were "me," I'd get the drop hitch.

YMMV.

Linda Hylton http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167 http://earl-linda.blogspot.com

Re: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #8 – February 13, 2010, 10:27:25 am

Yahoo Message Number: 110013

I have a drop

If I'm remembering correctly, the difference shouldn't be more than about 2" ... if it were "me," I'd get the drop hitch.

YMMV.

Linda Hylton http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167 http://earl-linda.blogspot.com

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Re: RV hitch to tow vehicle height difference question

Reply #9 – February 13, 2010, 10:29:18 am

Yahoo Message Number: 110014

Sorry for the last send - my mistake.
I got a drop hitch some years ago with a steel roller on the bottom that helped when dragging on dipped driveway entrances. However it was only a ball mount, not a 2" receiver. Think I got it at Camping world, but I'm not sure.
Mike

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February 13, 2010, 09:41:22 am

Reply #1 – February 13, 2010, 01:52:21 pm

Reply #2 – February 13, 2010, 01:58:16 pm

Reply #3 – February 13, 2010, 02:27:10 pm

Reply #4 – February 13, 2010, 02:33:31 pm

Reply #5 – February 13, 2010, 02:45:29 pm

Reply #6 – February 13, 2010, 03:25:27 pm

Reply #7 – February 13, 2010, 10:20:34 am

Reply #8 – February 13, 2010, 10:27:25 am

Reply #9 – February 13, 2010, 10:29:18 am

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