Updated
review: As part of my 2006 Nissan Titan review, I
took a 2006 Logan Coach Rembrandt horse trailer for a spin up to
Estes Park next to the Rocky Mountain Park.
Scenic winding roads around mountains, was a
good test for the Hell-Ya. I had the wheel down helping support
some of the tongue weight on the way up and wheel up for no
weight on the way back.
Yes I could tell the difference. I could
take the curves faster using the Hell-Ya
Hitch Helper with less steering effort and
more control. Stability is a good thing
towing trailers, especially in the
mountains.
Towing was smoother. |

While
at the SEMA convention, looking for new towing products, I found one.
I'm old enough to remember the "Long Long Trailer" with Desi
and Lucy from the forties. Well at least the reruns. In the movie they bought a long travel trailer to pull with
their car. The
salesman then sold them a device that attached to the hitch of the
trailer with wheels on it, to keep the trailer hitch from dragging.
The
Hell-Ya Hitch Helper reminded me of that Lucy movie. Not a bad idea. I towed a
new Featherlite SURV toy hauler to Vegas to review on the way to SEMA. At
one point in Nevada leaving a gas station, I found those dips in the road
that sneak up on you. And yes I scraped the tongue jack, which was all
the way up. I was thinking "if I just had a wheel on the hitch to
prevent this". And low and behold at SEMA (Specialty Equipment
Manufactures Association) in the new products section was "Hell-Ya." I
found their booth and after waiting inline to talk to the president of
Hell-ya, Bob Cremer, arranged to try one out on my way home to Denver
(700 miles). On the "way home" is always a tricky event going back
through the Rockies on I-70 in November (snow) over Vail Pass (11,000 ft) and
the Eisenhower tunnel with it's famous 7% grade at around 11,000 ft.
Hell-Ya
did keep the nose heavy trailer from dragging the jack again and some of
the wavy pavement between Salida and Green River through Utah, bounced
less.
Toy haulers are tongue heavy when you don't have ATV's or cargo in the
back. Even curves seemed easier
to handle. I adjusted the Hitch Helper to one hole above where the
tire was touching the ground before hooking to the trailer. Towing the 8000 lb Featherlite SURV, level
with a 2004 Chevy HD 2500, from Denver to Vegas and then back again to
Denver after attaching the Hell-Ya, measured again and found the truck
set up an inch higher with the Hell-Ya. Of course I had to be extreme in
my testing to prove value, so I overloaded the Hell-Ya with a 1250 lb
tongue weight. It was a average of 75 degrees F and I traveled between
65 and 70- mph. The trailer towed better with the Hell-Ya and curves
felt safer with less trailer feedback. Hell-Ya which slides into your receiver hitch, has a 6-ply
tire that is spring loaded. The Hell-Ya Hitch Helper is rated for 1000
lbs of tongue weight. There are advantages helping your tow vehicle
reduce tongue weight. A level truck or SUV has better steering control
especially if you can transfer weight forward. Hell-Ya is well built
with the similar components as a receiver hitch and is powder coated. It
has height adjustment, easy to hook up and take off. You may need to add
a couple of links to the safety chains.
I've tried Hell-Ya
on travel trailers, tested it on horse trailers and will with a slide in camper this
spring. This may be the next big thing in towing. Boat trailers
should benefit from the Hell-Ya Hitch Helper as for some unknown reason,
the majority of boat trailer manufactures especially those using torsion
axles, don't like weight distributing hitches. Makes no sense to me, not
all WDH's will affect the surge brake coupler system found on most
boats. Having some trailer tongue weight on the Hell-Ya spring loaded
tire does take some sway from the trailer. I'd like to try the Hell-Ya
on some of the expansion joints on the freeways of California, where the
bouncing Porpus action of a bumper pull trailer can drive your crazy.
Hell-Ya Hitch Helper now offers a dual tire hitch.
Here
I drive through a dip and the Hell-Ya kept the trailer jack from
bottoming out.
    

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