Weight Distribution Recommendation for a Chevy Suburban that Needs 8 inches of Drop

Updated 05/22/2015 | Published 05/21/2015

Products Featured in This Question

Curt TruTrack Weight Distribution System w/ Sway Control - Trunnion - 10,000 lbs GTW, 1,000 lbs TW

(641)

$609.95

Curt Welded Weight Distribution Shank 7" - 10 Hole Adjustment

(246)

$174.86

Question:

We have a 2007 Chevrolet Suburban with a factory 2” receiver hitch built into the rear bumper. We currently use a Curt - C45090 8” – 5k lbs class III ball mount to pull our utility trailers 2” ball because the receiver is so high. We may need to pull the schools band trailer 2-5/16” ball next year which is bigger and heaver and I am considering a weight distribution hitch but need one that doesn’t require drilling or modifying their trailer and can later be used if we buy a travel trailer. When the empty band trailer is attached the Suburban sags significantly. I am very familiar with a trunnion bar weight distribution system like the Curt - C17322 but I am having trouble finding all of the parts to a system that will work together. The trailer frame is 3” wide and the current 8” works well so I think I will need that same capability in a weight distribution system. From what I can tell the lift bracket on the C17322 is only 2-3/4” wide instead of 3” so that won’t work unless there is an alternate lift bracket available. Most of the systems don’t give that dimension so it takes a lot of research for me to find that they won’t work. Can someone suggest some systems like the C117322 either a package deal or individual parts that fit my criteria?

asked by: Kevin C

Expert Reply:

Since you need a drop shank of 8 inches to tow the trailer level you will need to order a shank separately that can drop far enough. The Curt TruTrack system part # C17500 will fit trailer frames that are 4 inch by 6 inch and would not require drilling so it would work well for your trailer that is 3 inches wide.

The part # C17123 can do a drop of up to 8-1/4 inches so it should work well for you.

The best way to pick out a weight distribution system is to base it off of the loaded tongue weight of the setup when it is loaded and ready to tow. This figure also includes the weight of any cargo behind the rear axle of the tow vehicle. I attached a help article on determining tongue weight for you to check out as well. You will want the loaded tongue weight of your setup to fall right in the middle of the tongue weight range of the system you use. The # C17123 that I referenced would be great if the loaded tongue weight of your setup was between 800 and 1,000 lbs.

expert reply by: Jameson C