Can anyone help me with some advice please?
My wife & myself have been caravanning for 5 years now, and love it so much that we want to upgrade to a newer 'van! Can anyone tell me why some caravans are twin axled as opposed to single ones and, if possible, a brief rundown of the pros & cons of one over the other?
Thanks for any help or advice.
Twin axles are more stable. Normally only fitted to very large caravans, they tend to be very heavy and more expensive. The twin axles make the van harder to manually manouver and need a motor mover that is designed for a twin axles. A twin axle won't turn on the spot like a single axle, though can be easier to reverse because they don't respond as quickly.
Normally it's a trade off between weight, size, price and stability.
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my adria is 8.2 metres long, 2.45 metres wide on a single axle,weight 1800kgs and is very stable due to the curved al-ko axle. as it only has 2 wheels, tyres are cheeper to replace at 5 yrs rather than to replace 4 tyres.with the mover its very easy to turn. davecoaches, no trade off, single axle every time for me
Quote: Originally posted by DaveCoaches on 28/7/2016
Twin axles are more stable. Normally only fitted to very large caravans, they tend to be very heavy and more expensive. The twin axles make the van harder to manually manouver and need a motor mover that is designed for a twin axles. A twin axle won't turn on the spot like a single axle, though can be easier to reverse because they don't respond as quickly.
Normally it's a trade off between weight, size, price and stability.
Going back a few years but i think the Bessacar caravans were only 15ft long yert were a twin axle, heavy compared to most other vans at the time due to that 2nd axle.
Towing with something that has a heavy duty clutch or automatic with a decent cooler? Tight spots may cook your clutch.
Hello srose
We changed our single axle Cadiz for a twin axle Cartagena for two reasons......an island bed that does away with the hassle of making a double from the front two singles.........more space in the center of the van around the kitchen area so that we can walk pass each other without walking into each other. Oh and the shower and shower door are a better
design.
Of course with the Cartahena it is heavier so a suitable poweful enough tug is a must.
On both vans we had Powrtouch movers......works a treat on the SA Cadiz but we opted for one set of movers on one axle of the Cartahena and on hindsight that may be a mistake.......on wet uneven grass and uneven gravel, traction/grip can be a challenge as can a tight turn on a good surface. Towing a twin axle van is a bit more stable in windy and HGV passing situations.
Twins struggle to get two Alko wheel locks on as required by insurance companies. They have to line two wheels up and end up having to jack it up to do it.
Insurance will be more expensive, some companies won't insure them.
Quote: Originally posted by navver on 28/7/2016
Twins struggle to get two Alko wheel locks on as required by insurance companies. They have to line two wheels up and end up having to jack it up to do it.
Insurance will be more expensive, some companies won't insure them.
More likely to get stolen.
Servicing more expensive
Less nose weight usually.
Hi Navver that's not true re alko locks. We have a twin axle and are only required to fit on alko lock and one other lock ( we use the Nemesis )
Quote: Originally posted by diesel steve on 28/7/2016
my adria is 8.2 metres long, 2.45 metres wide on a single axle,weight 1800kgs and is very stable due to the curved al-ko axle. as it only has 2 wheels, tyres are cheeper to replace at 5 yrs rather than to replace 4 tyres.with the mover its very easy to turn. davecoaches, no trade off, single axle every time for me
The tyre replacement on a twin axle is no more expensive than a single of your size, you will need extra load tyres which are expensive as you are placing the weight of a car on 2 tyres. Twin axle vans run on standard car tyres which are much cheaper so its horses for courses.
Twin axle vans are more stable than any single, the downside to that stability is they are harder to move in tight spaces.
We got a twin axle for the extra room inside but the main reason was that in the unfortunate event of a blow out we could limp along until we found a safe place to pull over especially when on the motorway.
Quote: Originally posted by checkley1973 on 28/7/2016
Quote: Originally posted by diesel steve on 28/7/2016
my adria is 8.2 metres long, 2.45 metres wide on a single axle,weight 1800kgs and is very stable due to the curved al-ko axle. as it only has 2 wheels, tyres are cheeper to replace at 5 yrs rather than to replace 4 tyres.with the mover its very easy to turn. davecoaches, no trade off, single axle every time for me
The tyre replacement on a twin axle is no more expensive than a single of your size, you will need extra load tyres which are expensive as you are placing the weight of a car on 2 tyres. Twin axle vans run on standard car tyres which are much cheaper so its horses for courses.
Twin axle vans are more stable than any single, the downside to that stability is they are harder to move in tight spaces.
the size of tyres are van tyres available on MY TYRES . COM for £55 each premium brand continentals. al-ko have modified the axle and the contact geometry of the wheels which makes it very stable in crosswinds.
If it is just you and your wife why a twin axle the Swift challenger 570 Lunar clubman Lunar lexon 540 etc are single axle more than enough space for Two people
Quote: Originally posted by navver on 28/7/2016
Twins struggle to get two Alko wheel locks on as required by insurance companies. They have to line two wheels up and end up having to jack it up to do it.
Insurance will be more expensive, some companies won't insure them.
More likely to get stolen.
Servicing more expensive
Less nose weight usually.
It is not the case that insurance companies all require 2 Alko wheel locks to be fitted. Caravan Club will give you a discount, but only require a wheel or hitchlock to be fitted.
More expensive? Well TAs tend to be at the higher end of the market when new, so are bound to cost more to insure. Its the value that matters rather than how many wheels it has.
Some sites are still living in the past and refuse twin axles as they say they tear up the grass when manoeuvring
Some still think your a traveller with a twin as most travellers use twin axels.
But there again there are still plenty of sites will welcome you regardless of how many wheels you have. Unless you have five and to long for the pltch
Quote: Originally posted by lexie71 on 28/7/2016
If it is just you and your wife why a twin axle the Swift challenger 570 Lunar clubman Lunar lexon 540 etc are single axle more than enough space for Two people
when we were looking to change to our current van we looked at every make and model of caravan on the market,our main requirements was floor space as we travel with 3 collies and just the 2 of us.the number of axles didn't come in to it,we wanted floor space and it came a lot cheaper with adria, we also looked at the reviews of all makes and adria have the lest complaints and problems with.