Hitch Tutorial Video Gosilver

Hitching up an Airstream takes about fifteen minutes once you have done it a time or two, and you never do it alone the first time: at pickup we walk you through hitching, unhitching and setup on your own trailer and tow vehicle. This guide and the video below are for practicing before you arrive, and for the morning you hitch up at the campground on your own.

What does my vehicle need before I can tow an Airstream?

Three things: a standard 2 inch hitch receiver, a 7-pin round electrical connector, and an electronic brake controller. Most of our trailers go out with a weight-distributing hitch, which we include. Your vehicle also needs to be rated for the trailer: stay within 80% of its maximum towing capacity, so a truck or SUV rated for 10,000 pounds tows a trailer up to 8,000 pounds. Tongue weight should run 10 to 15% of the trailer’s weight.

Not sure your vehicle qualifies? Stop by our Lathrop lot one to two weeks before your trip and we will test your brake controller and connector at no charge. If you have no brake controller, portable ones are available to rent, and if your vehicle cannot tow the trailer you want, you can rent one of our trucks or have us deliver it. Full details are on How It Works.

How do you hitch up an Airstream, step by step?

Ten steps, in this order. Work slowly and check each one before moving to the next.

1. Chock the trailer’s wheels so it cannot roll while it is unhitched.
2. Raise the tongue jack until the coupler sits a little higher than the ball on your hitch.
3. Back the vehicle up until the ball sits right under the coupler. A spotter outside the vehicle makes this much easier.
4. Lower the coupler onto the ball with the tongue jack, then close the latch and put the safety pin through it.
5. Cross the safety chains under the coupler and hook them to the vehicle’s hitch.
6. Clip the breakaway cable to the vehicle itself, not to the safety chains. If the trailer ever separates, that cable sets its brakes.
7. Plug in the 7-pin connector.
8. Attach the weight-distribution bars the way we set them up at pickup. Do not change their tension.
9. Raise the tongue jack all the way up and remove the wheel chocks.
10. Check the lights and brakes before you leave: running lights, brake lights and both turn signals, then roll forward slowly and use the manual slider on the brake controller to make sure the trailer brakes grab.

How do you unhitch it at the campsite?

Do the same steps in reverse. Park where you want the trailer, chock its wheels, lower the tongue jack until it carries the weight, then remove the weight-distribution bars, unplug the 7-pin, unclip the breakaway cable, unhook the chains, and open the coupler latch. Raise the jack until the coupler lifts off the ball, and drive forward. Level the trailer with the blocks that come with it before you set up camp.

What are the most common hitching mistakes?

• Forgetting the coupler pin. The latch can work loose without it.
• Clipping the breakaway cable to the chains. It has to go to the vehicle to work.
• Skipping the light and brake check. It takes one minute and catches a loose plug before the highway does.
• Driving off with the tongue jack down. Walk around the whole rig once before you pull away.

Backing up is the other skill worth practicing before you go, and there is a reversing tutorial for that. If a question comes up on the road, call us: roadside and technical support is included with every rental, 24 hours a day.

Book your Airstream

Browse our Airstream fleet and check dates here. Every rental comes stocked and trip-ready, and if you would rather skip the towing altogether, ask us about delivery and setup. Here is exactly how the rental process works.