2014 Eagle BHDS heavy tongue weight

[Shannonannon]

I was so excited when we found the perfect trailer for our family and purchased a new 2014 Jayco Eagle BHDS.

DH drives a Chevy Silverado 2500 Diesel with a class V (1000/1500 WD) hitch with a ranch hand bumper.

When we chose our trailer we made sure to pick a trailer with a dry tongue weight light enough (870 lbs) to leave us room to use weight distribution and still load the camper (not all in the front), bikes etc.

When we left the lot things looked a little funny. We were close to bottom-ing out the truck, but our dealer had installed the WD hitch and assured us that everything was safe.

We decided to go ahead and weigh the trailer and found that lightly loaded (1 fresh water tank 1/3 full and some bedding and kitchen gear) the tongue weight was over 1400 lbs. Our WD hitch was only a 1,000 lb. We felt for sure the scale was wrong so we took it to the dealer and had them weigh it (Dry and completely empty) and came up with a tongue weight of 1200 lbs. We didn't have anything extra added to the camper and this was the "factory" weight.

The trailer materials gave us a tongue weight that allowed us room to carry what was needed for trips and now we are pulling something that will prematurely wear out our truck and even with upgraded WD bars doing it unsafely.

Jayco warranty service has said that the tongue weight is 1100 lbs regardless of what the printed and website materials say and that our truck should pull that weight safely with no problem.

We went to the trouble to be sure we were buying something that we knew would work for our needs and are now finding out that they represented it incorrectly.

Has anyone else had a problem like this? Any suggestions?

[clutch]

If the dealer supplied the hitch with the weight distribution bars have them change the bars for 1200 to 1500 lb bars.

[Jmooney]

While airbags don't increase the GVW, they do lift and shift weight forward on the truck when towing.

Between them and a larger WDH, you might find it levels out nicely .

[Rustic Eagle]

Welcome to JOF!

What many folks find out are that "published" (web sites, brochures, etc.) UVW's aren't reflective of actual factory ship UVW's (noted on yellow sticker).

As far as the Eagle 314BHDS I'm not surprised that you are exceeding a 1,200lb loaded tongue weight. The 314BHDS is a 37ft long TT, so your loaded tongue weight should be 13% to 15% of the TT's loaded weight for enhanced TV handling of the TT. RV and WDH manufactures recommend a 10% to 15% range.

I don't understand how Jayco Service can make the statement, "the tongue weight is 1100 lbs regardless of what the printed and website"...., how do they know one's loading habits?

Example modest loaded 314BHDS: (7,580lbs UVW) + (500lbs ship weight delta) + (100lbs dealer, battery, etc) + (500lbs crgo, no fluids) =8,680lbs TT weight. So 8,680lbs at 13% to 15% = 1,128lb to 1,302lbs loaded tongue weight.

Worst case "loaded" at 314BHDS GVWR: 9,975lbs at 13% to 15% = 1,297lbs to 1,496lbs loaded tone web range.

I agree, a 1,500lb rated WDH would be recommended.

Bob

[wwsmith111]

If you can go and look at another TT exactly like yours and compare the axle location i.e. measure it. If the factory installed the axles one or two inches farther to the rear than normal it could have a significant impact on your hitch weight (increasing it). What did your TT weigh at the scale? Is it to spec? Carpenters measure everything twice and still screw up sometimes...

[clutch]

The dry hitch weight on our trailer is 1500 lbs. With the trailer loaded it is probably around 1800 lbs. I have Firestone air bags on the truck and before I hook up I measure the distance from the ground to the hitch. I set the trailer on the hitch and then air up the bags until I have nearly the same height to the hitch. Then I hook up the bars. Our trailer tows great and if I am still on the road after dark ( which is rare) I don't get the high beams from oncoming traffic.