Unhitching problem

I have been having trouble unhitching my 2016 North Trail. I purchased it in December 2017, and the E2 hitch was "professionally" installed by the RV company I bought the trailer from. Unhitching has been a nightmare, and I am not new to trailers, but this unit has been a bear. Almost ready to return to the RV company (100 miles away) I asked a friend to take a look at it. The first thing he noticed was the ball was tilted at a angle away from the truck. He removed two washers to bring the ball toward the truck and mainly solved the problem. There was too much pressure on the ball from the bad angle of the installation. It still is not as easy as my other camper was, but I will just need to keep practicing with it until I figure out the specifics of this new hitch and new camper. I thought that this would be of interest to others with unhitching problems, or women or people who just are not quite as mechanically inclinced. That would be me.

Something that may help; after the trailer wheels are chocked and the trailer tongue weight is mostly on the jack, go snd release your vehicle parking brake and briefly put the vehicle into neutral. Put back into park and reapply the parking brake... this will take any existing pressure off the ball and allow you to raise the trailer the rest of the way more easily.

You should read the install manual for your hitch, as I remember our hitch on last trailer I needed to have the ball tilted out a bit to ensure proper weight distribution. If the professionals had it at an angle, there was probably a reason for it.

Do you have a power tongue jack?

The advise above from "MTPockets" is spot on....letting the pressure off the ball is key. If there is any type of slope to the site you're in, then the ball can be pressed tightly on the receiver hitch.

MTPockets said:

Something that may help; after the trailer wheels are chocked and the trailer tongue weight is mostly on the jack, go snd release your vehicle parking brake and briefly put the vehicle into neutral. Put back into park and reapply the parking brake... this will take any existing pressure off the ball and allow you to raise the trailer the rest of the way more easily.

Click to expand...

Thank you. I will take that into consideration. As I embark on six week boon dock trip, I will not have people around to help. Any tips are welcome.

- - - Updated - - -

Oregon_Camper said:

You should read the install manual for your hitch, as I remember our hitch on last trailer I needed to have the ball tilted out a bit to ensure proper weight distribution. If the professionals had it at an angle, there was probably a reason for it.

Do you have a power tongue jack?

The advise above from "MTPockets" is spot on....letting the pressure off the ball is key. If there is any type of slope to the site you're in, then the ball can be pressed tightly on the receiver hitch.

Click to expand...

Yes, I have a power tongue jack. If the tilt was intentional, then it will always be difficult for me. Making the ball straight up and down helped immensely. I tried going forward, backward, raising the jack, lowering the jack, pounding on the thing. My friend had the same trouble until he changed the ball angle. He is a trailer operator, also. Neither of us are new at this. I have the camper level in the building, and there is a slight slope to the ramp. I had no problems unhitching the other camper. Yes, I will read the manual, but not getting it off the ball is not an option.

jenobandito said:

Thank you. I will take that into consideration. As I embark on six week boon dock trip, I will not have people around to help. Any tips are welcome.

- - - Updated - - -



Yes, I have a power tongue jack. If the tilt was intentional, then it will always be difficult for me. Making the ball straight up and down helped immensely. I tried going forward, backward, raising the jack, lowering the jack, pounding on the thing. My friend had the same trouble until he changed the ball angle. He is a trailer operator, also. Neither of us are new at this. I have the camper level in the building, and there is a slight slope to the ramp. I had no problems unhitching the other camper. Yes, I will read the manual, but not getting it off the ball is not an option.

Click to expand...

Good news.....I called the RV service department and discussed the hitch problem with them. He said it was supposed to be at a slight angle as per E2, but removing two washers will not cause any damage to the hitch or any related part. As long as that made it easier to unhitch, he said it would not be a problem. Oregon Camper, thank you for this, and now my mind is at ease.

You might try the Andersen hitch. It does not require the ball to be at an angle for weight distribution.

Put a little wheel bearing grease on the ball.

trading-time said:

Put a little wheel bearing grease on the ball.

Click to expand...

Thank you.

- - - Updated - - -

rxbristol said:

You might try the Andersen hitch. It does not require the ball to be at an angle for weight distribution.

Click to expand...

This one was pricey, so hopefully it will get easier. I will consider that if all else fails. Thanks.