[ICTsccaCamaro]

I am running a 18' steel deck trailer with no issue, of course more room would always be nice for tools and fuel but my 18' can fit inside my garage and is slightly better for parking. I have no tongue weight issues, as others have said you definitely want some tongue weight so you don't end up with trailer sway and putting herself into a ditch at 80 on the highway.

[glamcem]

Like others mentioned, tongue weight is important. I have no issues with my 16.5 ft tilt bed trailer, it's great for doing maneuvering in tight parking lots and backing up to my parking space.

[Badmojo]

18' is fine.

[94boosted]

Originally Posted by ember1205

For me, that's "too much squat" in the tow vehicle and I would be looking to reduce that tongue weight a touch or I would put on a WDH.

In that picture the tongue weight was pretty much perfect. But I did end up adding a WD hitch later on that summer, didn't really notice a difference in handling at all.

I'm tempted to get an Air Lift 59570 Ride Control kit.

[ember1205]

Originally Posted by 94boosted

In that picture the tongue weight was pretty much perfect. But I did end up adding a WD hitch later on that summer, didn't really notice a difference in handling at all.

I'm tempted to get an Air Lift 59570 Ride Control kit.

Lots of people use either air suspension or at least air bags to control bottoming out and similar. They work well, but aren't a straight replacement for a WDH. The rear axle of the tow vehicle is a fulcrum - too much tongue weight and the nose lifts. That won't really change with air suspension or air bags - you'll only control how far down the rear can be compressed.

The WDH changes how the weight is transferred to the tow vehicle and allows more weight to remain on the front suspension. This improves handling and braking.

I know from personal experience that the rear can squat quite a bit without changing the characteristics "too much." But I also know that a subtly incorrect placement of the cargo can throw the tongue weight and create big issues (I dragged about 6000 lbs on a 10k trailer (about 8500 lbs total) and the weight was just a touch too far back. I had no issues with sway, handling, or braking, but the rear tires didn't have as much grip as they should have and you had to be a little more gentle on the gas when pulling away from a stop on dirts roads / roads with dirt or gravel on them because it would slip a little.

I pulled off to the side and used a very large ratchet strap to drag the cargo forward about an inch (wrapped around the rub rail and used the ratchet mechanism like a winch). Made a huge difference the rest of the way home.

[Stephen12ZL1]

Originally Posted by ember1205

Can you provide some detail on how you secure the rear of the car to the trailer?

I use ZL1 add ons strap points which work great.