Using Winnebago Vista Leveling Jacks with Trailer Attached

[Jim_SB]

I have a 2018 Vista 32BE with hydraulic leveling jacks that work nicely.

We are going to be taking some trips this summer with trailers (either a boat or very small motorcycle trailer).

Must the trailers be unhooked prior to using the motorhome leveling Jack system?

The motorcycle trailer is single axle and very light so likely not an issue, but the boat trailer is dual axle although tongue weight is modest.

Recommendations?

[creativepart]

When traveling with my "Toad" in tow (Lincoln MKX SUV) and stopped for the night in a pull-thru campsite I use the leveling jacks without unhooking the Toad. I suppose that means you're fine leaving you trailer/boat connected, too. I've never had an issue. And, it's a common sight, with Toad connected and jacks down, at overnight stops all along our trips.

[Morich]

we've done it a lot and found only a couple issues to watch and they are likely to be spotted!
One is how high the Rv goes in relation to how the hitch and coupling swivel as the Rv goes up. Normally not enough lift on the jacks to go that high but something to consider if you have a site where you run the trailer down over the back of the pad and THEN lift the RV even higher!
And watch the prop doesn't go too low as the trailer front goes up!

[Jim_SB]

Originally Posted by Morich

Normally not enough lift on the jacks to go that high but something to consider if you have a site where you run the trailer down over the back of the pad and THEN lift the RV even higher!
And watch the prop doesn't go too low as the trailer front goes up!

Absolutely!

I’ve been traveling with trailers (boat and RV) for nearly 60 years and have been towing them myself for nearly 50 years, so I understand exactly what you mean.

The new wrinkle for me is having a motorhome with leveling jacks and a very large slide out. The Winny instructions say the jacks must be deployed before the slide-out is extended. I’m just thinking ahead to make sure things go smoothly.

Thank you both for your replies.

[wahoonc]

Crapshoot. It will depend on how level the site is that we are assigned. If it is a quick one-night stop (rare) and the site is close to being level I won't unhook. Assuming I can score a pull-through site. If it is back in, we have to unhook the toad.

Aaron

[Morich]

As we got into motorhomes, we had been moving slowly through all the other ways to go to the lake and camp. Starting with cars towing boats and then a variety of pickups and pickup campers, we normally went to places where there was limited parking and spaces were often only big enough to fit the smaller motorhomes. Pull throughs were not something we had even thought about until we got into going cross country.

We were used to just looking it over to get the most fun out of the least time.
Connecting and dropping the trailer after we launched was something to avoid if we could, even if it meant draping the trailer and boat down over the back of a space at near a 45 degree slope! It makes the boat drain better!

When we finally got around to having jacks, it was just a real game changer but by then we were also much more picky about where we wanted to park it and less prone to getting away from the crowd.
But the jacks that lift the whole RV, will have no problems with lifting the trailer tongue until it gets so extreme the hitch at the front is a problem or the prop at the rear may dig in too much!

[navnaz]

I have done alot of leveling while still connected with a trailer or vehicle toad behind my RV. I tow a large trailer with an ATV and side by side. Never had issues. My two rules: 1) Always level before the slides go in/out. 2) The rear RV wheels should never leave the ground. I think putting chocks on the rear RV wheels is smart considering the extra weight pushing you forward so the levelers don't move fore/aft and get bent.

[Jim_SB]

Chocks seem like a good idea. They certainly can’t hurt.

My family began renting trailers when I was a kid so I was hitching, unhitching and leveling at a young age. When I was 15 they bought a 31’ Airstream and a boat. By the time I was 17 I was towing both.

As a young adult tents were all we could afford but after 9 years of that we got an old Coachmen motorhome which years later led to a larger Jamboree class C.

Now with adult children, grandkids and their dog we needed more room. The Vista 32BE has been filling that need nicely. The grandkids love it. It has a backup camera which is nice but the video quality isn’t great. Luckily I’m good with mirrors.

[Sooeey]

I'm a newbie and haven't towed yet with our newly acquired 2018 Vista 32YE. Wondering if ?iu could level the MH only slightly using manual mode?

[Morich]

I often used manual as the full auto seemed to be a bitty funky at times.
When I found it going nutty, it would raise the low wend but go too far, then raise the end that was now lowest and back and forth until it got to the end of the jacks and told me the site was too much slope!
I had to blame part of that on how it decides what was level and how quick it wanted to make decisions!
There is a ball bearing rolling in some form of track that it sensed. But if you go too fast and the ball rolled too far without time to settle, the brains thought that end was low.
No function to admit it had screwed up, so it then raised more instead of backing off the first mistake!
But if I did it manually and letting the lights stop flashing and the level sensor get the right answer, we could often just go a little slower and get it right! Kind of like a ball in a bucket? You have to wait for the ball to stop moving before deciding which is low!

For leveling, I don't consider that a bother for the jacks but the thing to watch is that you are not going with one vehicle so much higher than the other that you are about to kink something on the hitch, etc.

Big point for safety is to always keep the rear wheels of the RV on the ground as they are where the brakes and transmission keep it from rolling! You don't want the RV trying to roll down hill when you have it lifted off the ground on jacks!

[Sooeey]

Obvious, but never considered the back wheels needing to be grounded.
Thanks
Sooeey

[Danjuan]

Originally Posted by Sooeey

Obvious, but never considered the back wheels needing to be grounded.
Thanks
Sooeey

Yes Indeed, this is a big thing and should be talked about in Wini manuals along with warning stickers about the danger of rolling down an incline when the rear wheels come off the ground ! They casually say to choose a “nose down” place to level but not WHY. Not only would it badly tweak the levelers, perhaps crash your rig int something, but could run over a poor soul, BAD trip !
ALSO, recently I used the levelers to lift the rear on purpose to remove a flat inner dually, on a level area with both fronts firmly chalked. Although I had set the parking brake, the wheel would still rotate some, I yanked up a couple of clicks and it held well, keep that in mind too.

This is a very overlooked issue !

• Cheers, not Jeers •

[Morich]

But that is overlooking one of the biggest faults with the book!

The darn things just lay there in the cabinet and refuse to open if I don't actually pick them up and force the pages to turn! Many times when I do open them, I have to spend several minutes reading them!

If it is not a glossy screen that uses electricity, it seems such a waste to print them!
Why do they make life so hard??

[wyocamper]

Originally Posted by Sooeey

I'm a newbie and haven't towed yet with our newly acquired 2018 Vista 32YE. Wondering if ?iu could level the MH only slightly using manual mode?

I tow a double axle car hauler and this is what I do. Every time I've tried to use the auto leveler I end up with the front wheels way off the ground, no matter how level it was before I started.

Manual mode only. Fronts down till contact, then rears down till contact. Then level up the front, then side2side. This has worked well for me, and I can almost always end up with a green light and all four wheels still on the ground. Have never had to disconnect the trailer so far.

[Jim_SB]

I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks.