**Effective October 1st, 2009. We recommend our Stabilizer Bar Kit for every Trailer Toad and REQUIRE them to be used on trailers over 10,000 lbs. They are adaptable to older models as well. Our company learns something from every Trailer Toad we put on the road and we have learned the Stabilizer Bar Kit not only works but it reduces stress on the drawbar and the opening of your receiver hitch on your tow vehicle.

1. After you drive a short distance try to find a level parking lot you can pull into to get a good look at how level the trailer is and if the frame of the Trailer Toad is slanting down toward the tow vehicle slightly.
   Sometimes your driveway or where you set the Trailer Toad up at may not be as level as you thought. This can cause a couple of minor, easy to remedy problems.

2. If the trailer is slightly too high in the front this will put additional weight on the rear trailer tires. This will cause excess sway and possible overheating of rear trailer tires. You can try loosening the equalizer chains one link and see if that helps bring the front down. If it is still too high you should lift the trailer off the ball, lower the hitch head one hole and then hook up again. The goal is to end up with the trailer frame sitting level. If the adjustment made the front of the trailer a little to low, tighten the equalizer bar chains one link at a time until it is level. If it takes more than two links, go up one hole with the hitch head, you may have lowered it too much. If you are in-between adjustments you could use a standard height trailer ball, just make sure it is rated high enough to use on your trailer.

3. Now that the trailer is level make sure the Trailer Toad frame is tilted downward toward the tow vehicle no more than one inch. If it is more than one inch low in the front you can continue your road test but you should bring the front up slightly before your next trip. If the frame is higher in the front than the rear and the frame runs down towards the trailer it is recommended you lower the front before you travel at highway speeds. With the frame high in the front it reduces the Trailer Toads ability to reduce sway. Call us if you have any questions.

The extra time taken in getting everything set at the correct heights is time well spent. Your towing experience will be improved by making these final adjustments.

In almost every case that we hear back from a customer that tells us he is feeling some sway, it is that the front of the trailer is simply higher than it should be. Most of us with heavy trailers have spent a lot of time trying to balance the trailer BEFORE we had the Trailer Toad. Now you can put that weight back in front, we like to see 15% of the gross weight of the loaded trailer on the ball, it let's the Toad do what it was designed to do, "carry the load".

 If your trailer weighs over 10,000 lbs. we highly recommend you use the best equalizer hitch you can get. Look for a model with drawbar and components rated at 12,000 to 17,000 lbs. Some manufacturers feature trunnion bars while others have round-bar systems. We have a simple modification that allows the trunnion-style to function well with the Trailer Toad. We also offer "Equal-i-zer" brand hitch assemblies. American made and the best quality we can find for our customers.