Towing a small camper with 17’ Sport

I’m purchasing a small camper for the first time so I have some towing questions. I have a 2017 Sport

1) with the towing package do I still need a brake controller installed?

2) when I called the dealer they asked if I wanted sway bars added to the camper quote. Is this something I should purchase on my own or just get through them?

15ft camper
1840lb dry weight
140lb hitch weight
3500lb gross

 

That depends on the camper for the brake controller. My pop up weighed more than that and I didn’t need one. Is this a pop up?

 

Nope. A Sunray 129 Sport

 

A picture of the camper might be helpful to the experts. High sided vs. pop up....that sort of thing. I will say...better to have to much safety equipment than not enough. Passing a truck on the interstate without sway control will pucker the old butt hole.

 

Ask the trailer dealer if the trailer has electric brakes

If yes, then get a brake controller.
If no, then no need.

FWIW, I'd skip the "sway bars" for now. Pull the camper a few times, then decide. You can add them later if needed.

 

agreed on the brake controller. However, for a single axle trailer, i'd want sway bars. We had a 24' bumper pull we used to pull and had sway bars. That was dual axle and with and without the sway bars, very noticeable difference. Just my opinion though.

 

FWIW, trailer sway is highly dependent on trailer loading, tongue weight and trailer tires.


The 140 lb hitch weight, quoted by OP, is likely for an empty trailer. The hitch weight should be roughly 10-13% of the LOADED trailer weight.

 

Another vote for the more the better when it comes to trailers and sway control.. I use a friction sway bar on my 19ft - they are recommended for 6000-10000lbs trailers according to the instructions, I'm barely 5000 but it makes towing much more comfortable.

 

If the fully loaded hitch weight is less than 10-13% of the fully loaded trailer weight (which I would hope it's NOT), then the 'sway potential' is pretty high. Side winds become a problem with tall, large side area trailers so that's where sway bars can help. Once the trailer starts to sway side-to-side, usually when coasting or light braking, many people react by hitting the brakes. This is especially WRONG if no trailer brakes, as it just exacerbates the sway or whipping side-to-side. The best way to deal with this is to accelerate to pull the trailer back into line with your truck. If the trailer DOES have brakes then you can increase the trailer braking a bit by way of the brake controller, which helps to bring things under control.
Most of my experience is with a low center of gravity landscape trailer that is hardly affected by side wind. I have towed U-Haul box trailers (the stubby short ones are a b%%ch) and have seen numerous instances where sway got out of control for an inexperienced driver. I have yet to tow my trailer with my subcompact tractor on board (>3,500 lbs) using my '21 TRD OR. This setup WILL have a brake controller. Did tow it with my '06 TRD OR (6 spd MT) WITHOUT the brake controller and it was fine, but a sudden need to stop would have been dicey.
Fully loaded at 3,500 lbs and the right weight distribution, you should find things quite stable. Assuming the side wind profile isn't too bad.
Good luck and happy trailering.

 

Thanks for all the input guys. I’ll definitely get the sway bars. Just not sure if I should let the dealership I’m picking the camper up at supply them or get them on my own before I go down

 

For reference this is the camper we are getting being towed by a Toyota Highlander

 

I've only towed 2000lbs on my utility trailer that is not equipped with brakes and found myself wishing it had them. If I were planning on towing at the full GVWR of 3500lbs of the trailer I would definitely want them. You can allow for extra stopping distance and get by. But in the event of an emergency braking situation it would not be good without trailer brakes.

 

i'm only speaking on experience when we were towing via bumper. We got ours and the hitch from the dealer because it was specifically setup by them to ensure the hitch and sway bar all sit level with the trailer hitch. In my opinion, get it from the dealership so they can right fit the whole setup.