[RockyMtnRay]

[quote author=grkman1 link=board=20;threadid=1565;start=msg11095#msg1109 5 date=1071443250]
I called Trailmanor, asked for Jimmy Davis, and was told that Ed now has his position.....Ed said he felt since the truck had a automatic leveling system, that he didnt think I would need a WDH. thinking about this, the WDH distributes the weight of the vehicle so the back does not droop down, whereby less percentage of vehicle weight would be on the front wheels.

If the leveling system is functioning properly, and the rear of the truck lifts up, you would think that the weight would then shift towards the front of the vehicle, thus eliminating the need for a WDH.

Ed told me to try it and see how the vehicle handles, especially when an 18 wheeler passes by. I plan on doing this during the holidays for a short 3 hour trip.
[/quote]

George...

Lifting the rear of the T-Reg with the suspension system will only make it level. It won't cause any shift of weight to the front wheels. For that to happen, something (like a fluid or other moveable mass) in the T-Reg would have to slosh/roll/slide forward when the rear was brought up to the same height as the front. If the T-Reg was a big ol' water tank then this would happen....but it isn't. If you lift the rear of the T-reg, nothing significant will move weight wise...the rear end will still be carrying the same load though the rear suspension will now be stiffer and will ride a bit rougher. Merely lifting the rear does not change the location of the fulcrum nor the length of the leverage arms the trailer is acting on the tow vehicle through.

In terms of weight distributions, leverage-arms, wheelbase, etc., your T-Reg is not a whole lot different than your old GC. In fact, the GC might have had a slight advantage since its cast iron V8 probably loaded the front wheels a tad bit more than the T-Reg's smaller and mostly aluminum engine does.

From my experience with my Cherokee before I finally got the weight distribution correct, you aren't going to see much effect from passing semis. Where you will see the effect of a too light front end is when you try to do a panic or even fast stop...like at suddenly red traffic light...the front wheels will start skidding, the ABS will kick in (making lots of noise) and you are most likely not going to stop very well at all. On my very last trip...after I had picked up heavier duty hitch bars but had not yet installed them...I had to make a sudden stop from only 35 mph at a light that had gone red very fast (extremely short yellow). The TM was loaded heavily and the Cherokee didn't have ABS...I skidded partway into the intersection with the front tires screeching and slowly sliding toward a ditch. It was downright scary and I don't scare easily. After I got to my first campground, I switched out the bars and from then on stopping, even fast stopping, was uneventful. The bottom line is your margin of safety on that T-Reg w/out the WDH is awfully small if you have to make any emergency maneuver.

Sorry to be the bearer of unpleasant news given your very substantial financial investment in this new vehicle but I'd hate to see you blithely get into trouble here.