Making a big trailer more off-road worthy?!?

[dustboy]

Ridgeline is pretty decent but by the sounds of it, a larger tranny cooler ie aftermarket should be on your list of modifications. Or at least add one in line with the current set up. Think Ridgelines are spec'd to over 5klbs on road. What does the trailer weigh and how much stuff was in the Ridgeline
BTW, I have a Pilot with 160k that I've used to tow all kinds of trailers.

I estimate the trailer was 3k lbs. The only reason it overheated was that we were moving at walking pace, therefore no air was moving over the cooler. I agree the cooler should be bigger, but we climbed back out of that deep valley with no issues. I made a point to drive faster and it seemed to work.

My old Tacoma was a "truck", but I would rather tow this trailer with the Ridgeline any day of the week.

BTW I just found this writeup, I think it's exactly what I needed to know!!

 

[lqdchkn]

Only thing I would caution about that link is the grease between the leafs. For off-road/trail use I personally wouldn't do this because grease will trap dust/dirt and that would add to the chaffing between the leafs.

 

[dustboy]

Yeah, I agree with that. Even on the road that grease is going to turn into sticky mud.

Actually, some friction between the leafs could be beneficial, as it is a form of damping. Without shock abosorbers, the only thing that is keeping the whole system from bobbing up and down forever is the friction in the bushings and the leafs.

 

[dustboy]

I went ahead and removed the short 4th leaf, as described here.

Didn't think it would make much difference, but boy, did it. No more jerking, bucking, or bouncing. On the highway you almost forget it's there. Off road you can move at a much more reasonable pace without all the drama. Gotta love a cheap fix!

 

[Cabrito]

How hard was it to remove the leaf?

 

[VanIsle_Greg]

Check into one of these...

http://www.dirtboundoffroad.com/jeep-cherokee-xj/cooling/transmission-oil-cooler-with-fan/

Not too expensive and could save a big bill when you overheat and cook your trans.