WD Hitch for a R-Pod 196 - R-pod Owners Forum

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Jwilson23

Newbie

Joined: 28 May 2021
Location: MN
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Posts: 4

Topic: WD Hitch for a R-Pod 196
Posted: 06 Aug 2021 at 9:00am

We decided to upgrade to a new 2021 196, picking it up this afternoon, pretty pumped to finally get it home. My question is the WDH we have has a max loaded trailer weight of 4,500 lbs. With the UVW of the 196 at 3,600 and the CCC of 1,161 for a total of 4,761, will this WDH work? Should I be looking at upgrading to something with a higher max weight rating? I don't want to spend the extra money if I don't need to but if it is the right choice I will.

Thanks,

Colonel Podder View Drop Down

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Joined: 25 Sep 2020
Location: Lexington, SC
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Posts: 68

Posted: 06 Aug 2021 at 9:28am

This would depend on how the load is distributed, and the capacities of your tow vehicle. You may not need a WDH at all depending on these factors.

With my Yukon & 196, I can pull with or without the WDH and it does not feel any different. I don't feel it is needed in my case for weight distribution, but I do use it for the four points of sway control, and because I paid $800 for it! Not sure it is needed for sway either, but I use it in case there is a rouge 50+MPH side wind that hits the camper. Better safe than sorry.

2021 R-pod 196

StephenH

podders Helping podders - pHp

Joined: 29 Nov 2015
Location: Wake Forest, NC
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Posted: 06 Aug 2021 at 10:12am

If you don't need weight distribution, you can add sway control easily by adding a Hayes Sway-Master electronic Sway Control or the Tuson version or one of the others. The Hayes is plug-and-play. I have it and use it in conjunction with an Equal-i-zer hitch. There was one circumstance where the Equal-i-zer could not stop the situation that arose when I hit ice with a strong cross-wind. I am taking the belt-and-suspenders approach.

StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

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mjlrpod

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Joined: 27 Sep 2016
Location: Massachusetts
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Posts: 1214

Posted: 06 Aug 2021 at 1:21pm

Originally posted by Jwilson23

We decided to upgrade to a new 2021 196, picking it up this afternoon, pretty pumped to finally get it home. My question is the WDH we have has a max loaded trailer weight of 4,500 lbs. With the UVW of the 196 at 3,600 and the CCC of 1,161 for a total of 4,761, will this WDH work? Should I be looking at upgrading to something with a higher max weight rating? I don't want to spend the extra money if I don't need to but if it is the right choice I will.

Thanks,

I would say the correct answer is, when you are fully packed, and don't have the spring bars on, does the vehicle squat at all? If it squats, even a little, you probably should use wdh. I would get the 600/6000 model. I use it and it works perfectly fine. Just enough grunting and groaning to get the job done. It's not just the squatting that matters, it's lifting the front end, and that will affect the steering control. Going into a sway condition with less steering control is not the formula you are looking for.

2017.5 Rp-172
2020 R-pod 195
2015 Frontier sv 4.0L 6cyl
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offgrid

Senior Member

Joined: 23 Jul 2018
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Posts: 5290

Posted: 07 Aug 2021 at 1:50am

It's not the trailer weight that matters to a wdh, it's the tongue weight it's trying to lift.

Can you get stiffer spring bars for your existing wdh? With some that is an option.

Personally I would go with at least an 800 lb rated wdh. You can have a tongue weight in excess of 600 lbs with and the wdh is lifting both the trailer tongue and whatever you have in the back of the tow vehicle. I had about 750 lbs of tension on my spring bars and that was with a 179 with about 500 lbs on the tongue.

1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold