Surge Brakes can damage the hitch assembly?????

[nothermark]

If they work on all the other chassis types it would leave me thinking poor engineering on that model or that chassis is the real culprit. If it cannot stand braking what does it do about bumps?

[Hikerdogs]

I did call Winnebago about this statement in 2013 when we purchased our current Adventurer. It seems the warning is the result of law suits where owners were towing overweight trailers using drop hitches outside the recommended range. The combination of the long drop hitch and the excessive pressure needed to activate the surge brakes caused the hitch to fold under the motorhome chassis.

Since 2013 Winnebago has been manufacturing their own hitches for Class A motorhomes. The aftermarket hitches they had been buying (they wouldn't reveal the name) did meet the load specs, but they felt they needed a stronger hitch to cover situations where customers were either knowingly or unknowingly towing overweight trailers or vehicles, or those with minimal or no braking. I was told the hitches they manufacture exceed the rated limits by 50%.

As for "being outside our recommended limits" note this also includes the size of the drop hitch recommended. They recommend a maximum of a 4" drop. The longer the drop the more leverage is placed on the hitch when the surge brakes are applied. I have seen 10" and 12" drop hitches for sale. While I've never gone to the trouble of calculating how much additional force they could apply to the hitch I do believe it would be substantial.

During the extended phone conversation with the rep I mentioned the company was all but putting itself out of the towing business by recommending these restrictions. At that time He replied the company was currently going through the testing process and would in the future make new recommendations as to the types of equipment recommended. He did say that using a 6" drop receiver and electric brakes would be well within the working limits of the hitch.

I can attest to the strength of the new hitches. In 2014 the Jeep we were towing was hit from behind. We were going the speed limit of 65 mph when a kid texting while driving hit the jeep at about 75 mph. It did more than $12,000.00 damage to the Jeep and destroyed the towbar and drop hitch. There was absolutely no damage to the motorhome or the hitch.

Here are a couple pictures of the damaged towbar and drop hitch. For the record the drop hitch is rated at 10,000 lbs. even though the Jeep only weighs 3,750 lbs.

[twinboat]

I think WB and other manufactures should address the issue of hitch receivers mounted higher then towed equipments typical hitch height.

I understand the overhang and ground clearance issues but some are just too high if they need a 10 inch drop.

My 30 ft C, MH needed a 1 inch rise for a 17 inch reciever height.

Do I drag the skid shoes ? Almost every trip. 2 or 3 more inch's clearance would help a lot.

[Hikerdogs]

Originally Posted by twinboat

I think WB and other manufactures should address the issue of hitch receivers mounted higher then towed equipments typical hitch height.

I understand the overhang and ground clearance issues but some are just too high if they need a 10 inch drop.

My 30 ft C, MH needed a 1 inch rise for a 17 inch reciever height.

Do I drag the skid shoes ? Almost every trip. 2 or 3 more inch's clearance would help a lot.

There was a time when the federal government tried to standardize bumper heights of automobiles and large vehicles. It was largely abandoned when the buying public loudly complained that it would ruin the look of automobiles. They didn't want "cookie cutter" vehicles.

The current standards supposedly require passenger car bumpers to be 16" to 22" off the ground. I don't know if there are any in production above that height, but there are a number that certainly look like they don't meet the minimum.

As for bumper heights of HD trucks it's still all over the board. Each state controls this specification and there is a wide variation. Some states allow manufacturers to set the bumper height as high as 31". In addition it can be raised by the owner another 4".

Trying to tow a vehicle with a 16" bumper height with one having a 35" bumper height requires some ingenuity.

[vettenuts]

Larger hitch drop would make sense. I have seen lifted pickup trucks with drop hitches that had to be at least 12" towing boats. Some were downright scary.

[TonyMac]

A MUCH bigger and often overlooked issue is the affect (effect?) of extensions on the tongue weight. Even a longer draw bar changes the torque affect on the reciever box. Sometimes, bigger is not better.

[Gary RVRoamer]

I'm missing somethinnn.

Me too, TonyMac, but the reason for this may have little to do with engineering.. They probably got sued once over a broken hitch and the lawyers added this CYA.