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Topic: Knocking noise

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bev+jon

17/12/2017 at 8:54pm
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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Seem to have a knock when towing on less than perfect roads,mainly at low speed.just appeared on this weekends trip, not heard it before.doesnt do it when solo,just when van on and doesnt knock when braking,so assume its not the hitch damper.
Towbar bolts seem secure but mot on tuesday will get them to double check all is well.
Would worn friction pads cause this knocking ?
The stabiliser handle seems to lock down rather easily like theres minimal resistance there.

Thanks in advance

Geoff48

17/12/2017 at 9:46pm
Location: Bolton
Outfit: Avondale Dart 510 5

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I see knocking occurs only when towing but could it be the towcars shocks and struts only displaying an issue when under load. Just a thought.

tango55

17/12/2017 at 11:10pm
Location: Lichfield
Outfit: Coachman Amara 450

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The way to check for worn friction pads in the stabiliser is to either remove the towball or better still if you have a spare and connect it up to the stabiliser hitch and lock the handle down into position. If you can twist the towball slightly it is evident that the pads need changing but if the towball won't budge it proves that it's operating effectively. That's how a service engineer will check for pad wear as well.
If the pads are contaminated with particles of dust you are more likely to hear a creak than a knock but it sounds like the knocking is evident when pitching (up and down) which could be a worn damper and the way to check that is to try and lift the hitch up and down to see if there is any play in the shaft. If there is then this is more likely to cause a slight knocking when bouncing vertically on the towball. Also check the two securing bolts and make sure they are still tight too.

bev+jon

18/12/2017 at 7:08am
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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Cheers 👍

bev+jon

18/12/2017 at 10:31am
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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Just had a quick look and there is a very slight amount of play up/down on the hitch.damper works perfectly when pushed in,releases smoothly.

tango55

18/12/2017 at 5:43pm
Location: Lichfield
Outfit: Coachman Amara 450

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Did you check also the tightness of the two stabiliser securing bolts as well?
The reason is because there is a brass sleeve between the outer casing and the damper shaft so just check there is no movement in the stabiliser itself. The bolts shouldn't come loose providing they were tightened up securely but with constant movement of the stabiliser in all directions it's just worth checking as quite often it can be just a minor problem with an easy remedy.

alex

18/12/2017 at 6:53pm
Location: West Sussex
Outfit: None Entered

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I experienced a similar sound. Though I can't say exactly what caused it as I fully serviced the hitch. On the coupling I had to replace the front and rear friction pads on mine as they where very worn as well as the side ones. If you have the front and rear type ones you can't tell how worn they are by how the handle goes down. Also check if the overrun is properly greased.

On the towbar front I had to re-seat it a couple of years later as it looked like it was put on by a blindfolded monkey (bracket plates upside down and some bolts only hand tight) something that the MOT never picked up.

Alex

bev+jon

18/12/2017 at 10:02pm
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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Update, greased the overrun front and rear nipples,weirdly it seems to have eliminated any up/ down play in the hitch , side pads appear well worn , only getting resistance way past the wear markers, got some new spares i will fit tomorrow. Now the front and rear pads must be quite worn, got a very thin green line on the hitch handle and looking inside the hitch they are very glazed.more concerning is the shiny metal under the rear pad, looks like it may have been contacting the towball ?? Dont know if this is occuring during hitch up or the pads so worn its flush with inside of hitch and rubbing on ball when towing... not removed yet as havent got a torx until tomorrow..
Towbar will be checked in morning as part of mot,but will get them to have a real close look,but all seems tight to me.

tango55

19/12/2017 at 12:27am
Location: Lichfield
Outfit: Coachman Amara 450

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I think you will find that the shiny piece at the rear of the stabiliser is actually the metal latch that locks directly on the towball to stop the hitch lifting off and disconnecting. If you lift the towball handle up (not the large red stabiliser handle) and feel up inside the towball socket you will feel that the latch has retrieved back which is correct which is designed to allow the hitch to drop onto the towball. Once the hitch is down and the handle released the latch then locks onto the towball. As far as I'm aware there are only two friction pads either side of the ball and if you look at the sides of the stabiliser where the large handle pivots you will see a round cap either side. If they are red then they are the original caps but if they are black then they have been replaced as the red ones are no longer available. When you remove the caps it provides access to be able to push out the old worn pads but there aren't any other caps visible to replace a top or rear pad.
If you suspect that the side pads are worn then check with a towball as mentioned in my previous post.

bev+jon

19/12/2017 at 7:53am
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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Mine must be different then, ive the 2 round pads on the side and a curved square one front and a smaller square one rear of hitch held in with torx screws
Alko part 1212126

Grandad Kenny

19/12/2017 at 7:57am
Location: Essex
Outfit: Fiat Ducato 3.0 Autotrail Mohican

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It's not something really simple like something in the front locker, just a thought 😎

bev+jon

20/12/2017 at 10:29am
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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No,def not...changed side pads,put washers in as on the old ones and couldnt get ball in hitch,too tight, removed washers tried again and ball fits ok .takes lots of effort to push handle down now and ball doesnt move in hitch at all...used a spare ball as tango suggested so maybe once hitch is on ball fixed to car there will be some movement..bizarre that comparing old and new pads the difference in wear looks fractional but the difference in resistance on handle is massive.

664DaveS

20/12/2017 at 11:04am
Location: Shropshire
Outfit: Bailey Phoenix GT 75

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Ours was noisy,new pads helped a lot.
Do you have a removable tow ball?
They can cause a noise due to tiny amount of play in the receiver and hitch.
It is actually mentioned in the Bailey manual.

Our last Sorento had ,the noise does not occur with our new Santa Fe,which has a non removable hitch.

-------------
DS-There's more to life than football!!!

bev+jon

20/12/2017 at 11:31am
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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No, ours is fixed.got towbar checked out while on ramp having mot done,no problems and had the ball diameter checked as well, in spec.
Pretty sure the changing pads and greasing shaft tube should cure it.
Only things not done are the 2 pads front and rear of hitch .
Will trial it on next trip and if no better will change them.

Weird how theres been no issue until last trip out at weekend though

tango55

20/12/2017 at 5:28pm
Location: Lichfield
Outfit: Coachman Amara 450

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Just as a matter of interest, do you know what model the AL-KO stabilser is that is fitted to your caravan?

bev+jon

21/12/2017 at 6:33am
Location: N Yorkshire
Outfit: Xc60 D5 Abbey Vogue

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its a 2004

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