Why Does Slider Fifth Wheel Hitch have to Be Slid Forward When Towing

Published 09/29/2017

Products Featured in This Question

Demco 5th Wheel Rail Adapter for Ram OEM 5th Wheel Towing Prep Package - 25,000 lbs

(177)

$649.00

Demco Autoslide 5th Wheel Trailer Hitch w/ Slider - Single Jaw - Above Bed - 18,000 lbs

(677)

$1725.00

Question:

can you tow with the slider set in the maneuver position

asked by: Lou

Expert Reply:

No you cannot do that. The maneuver position of a sliding fifth wheel hitch is only designed for parking lot speeds. It moves the pin weight of the fifth wheel hitch behind the rear axle of the truck and in doing so unweights the front axle of the truck. This means that braking power and handling would be diminished to a point it would be very dangerous at anything higher than highway speeds..

We one time had a guy drive here to etrailer with his fifth wheel somehow stuck in the maneuver position and he said the front end was bouncy and he felt it was very unsafe. Thankfully we helped him get it in the forward position.

So one solution is to use a hitch that slides automatically as you make tight turns like the Demco Hijacker Autoslide # DM8550034. This way you never have to get out and operate a slider.

To install this in your 2017 Ram 2500 with the factory rail kit all you'd need is the adapter part # DM6099.

expert reply by: Jameson C