Sudsy

They just passed a law in the state that there is no smoking on any public property - so in other words sitting around the campfire with a good cigar is now illegal in NJ I hate this nanny state

" The New Jersey Division of Parks & Forestry discourages visitors from bringing firewood into New Jersey State Parks. " Brilliant ! They don't sell or provide firewood at Worthington State Park, where my fishing club is camping in a month, so lot of good that request is going to do.

Permit ?? Firewood ? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard ! (Oh wait, this is NJ, we just got saddled with a tax on rain, ISYN)

Would this be a good idea? Or a different brand but the same principle? Timbren Suspension Enhancement System - Rear Axle https://www.etrailer.com/Vehicle-Suspension/Ford/Transit+Connect/2019/TFRTCA.html?vehicleID=20194319950

No towing My only worry is 3 days worth of camping firewood on the cargo rack and a 2 hour drive in traffic in NJ, that's the only time there will be enough weight to concern me (I've no idea what that would weigh) I'll also occasionally be carrying a live well with 20 to 25 gallons of seawater, 212 lbs max, but that will not entail any distance driving at all, 5 miles on 35 mph roads would be max and I'll be driving extremely carefully Most of the time it will have one nights worth of firewood,, a grill, shovel.......... dirtier stuff that we won't want inside, not a lot of weight.

I left off a very important piece of information - it is NOT a factory hitch I'll be adding an aftermarket Curt class III hitch The rating on the Curt tongue is 525 lbs So now looking at it I realize I did not ask the question correctly Is the tongue weight still 200 lbs even though I have a 525 lb class III hitch attached - in other words, is it based on the suspension capabilities ? Still not sure how the math works for the swing out arm

I have a similar question - how would a swing out cargo rack be calculated ? just posted i in a separate thread:

I read somewhere that the maximum tongue weight for my new 2019 Transit Connect Passenger XLT long wheelbase is 200 pounds How is that figured? Is it based on the suspensions ability to handle the load, or the frames ability to handle the load of the hitch ? Is it based on "while moving" or "at rest"? We're in the planning stages of a "weekender" mini RV build and a swing away cargo carrier is a key component If the tongue weight is based on "while moving" - when the swing away arm will be folded tight, then we can load closer to the 200#s. If it's calculated based on being parked then some extremely complicated math is going to have to be done to figure out what the tongue weight is when the arm is swung out (like a long lever)

reposted in the cargo / hauling forum where it belongs