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Subject Topic: Stabilisers Post Reply Post New Topic
PersonBabyfish
26/6/2013 at 8:58am
 Location: Northants
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Are we safe to tow a caravan home without a stabiliser?
We are buying our first caravan and ideally we wanted one with an AL-CO hitch but haven't found a suitable buy yet. What happens if we don't find one? My husband has never towed before and FIL has put the fear of God up him going on about caravan's 'jack-knifing' on the motorway etc etc etc. Sorry if I seem rather clueless - I am!!!


Personmillermicm
26/6/2013 at 9:16am
 Location: west country
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Many people think stabilisers are a waste of time and do not use them at all. With reasonable care you should be perfectly ok.

I always use a stabliser. That's no to say I wouldn't tow a van without one. I certainly would until I had the opportunity to get one fitted.

The scare merchants talking about jack-knifing etc are being very naughty and probably talking about something of which they have little knowledge. It can happen with excessive speed, sudden braking, poorly loaded caravan etc. It very rarely does. Have you ever seen one?


PersonBabyfish
26/6/2013 at 9:22am
 Location: Northants
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Nope, never!
Thank you for your reply :-)


Person664DaveS
26/6/2013 at 9:41am
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Anything which makes towing safer is a good idea IMHO. Of course the outfit should be correctly matched and loaded.

Towing a new van home will need extra care especially if it empty of gas bottles etc, as it will be light, once loaded correctly it should be ok.

Any sudden swerves etc may cause a snake, its common sense.

It is not uncommon for artics to jackknife, probsably because someone does something forcing them to take evasive action.



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


PersonBabyfish
26/6/2013 at 11:55am
 Location: Northants
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I hadn't thought about the caravan being empty making a difference. It will have to be a slow and careful trip home (obviously we drive carefully anyway!) if we can't get a stabiliser on to come home with.


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PersonGrampian91
26/6/2013 at 11:56am
 Location: Midlands
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Properly matched and properly loaded you wont need a stabiliser.

Artics jacknife because they have30 tons or so pushing the cab unit that may weigh as little as 6 tons.

99.9999% of the time the trailers brakes slow it properly, But in an emergency that may not be enough.

If the caravans 85% of the cars weight then you wont have any issues.

I have towed at high speeds with an old Sprite caravan. No problem. But the car weighed a lot more than the caravan. 850kg for the van compared to about 1200kg for the car.


PersonDaveCoaches
26/6/2013 at 7:54pm
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I won't have a stabiliser because I want to feel the caravan moving. If I had a stabiliser and something went wrong, I might not know until it's too late. A stabiliser won't stop a snake.

Load and drive safely and you won't notice any difference with or without a stabiliser. If it does make a difference then there's something wrong. A stabiliser is not to be used to stabilise an unstable outfit.


Persondinkum
26/6/2013 at 10:54pm
 Location: crewe
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Stabilisers DO work. Google "Peter Jones Snaking Accidents" and spend some time exploring the physics and engineering behind them. Oh, and do not believe that all research is carried out correctly before accepting the "gospel" of NOT needing a stabiliser. They have to be set up correctly. It is not just nose weight and advisory towing limits.
Like Grampian above, my old Sprite could have featured on top gear! But I had a high friction blade stabiliser fitted , set up to offer decent damping resistance. Pretty sure that Scott used to issue full set up instructions to match the damper (stabiliser) to the caravan mass etc.

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cramming for my finals in the twilight zone


PersonBabyfish
27/6/2013 at 12:55pm
 Location: Northants
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The caravan we want to buy on Saturday has an Alco hitch so fingers crossed everything will be ok. I must admit I find the whole towing thing really scary and am very glad it won't be me driving.


PersonGrampian91
27/6/2013 at 9:53pm
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Make sure you have an alko towball or any other towball (swan neck or detachable) not a standard one.


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PersonBabyfish
28/6/2013 at 4:40pm
 Location: Northants
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We've been fitted with an ALKO towball today so everything crossed :-)


Personrobert/julie
28/6/2013 at 6:00pm
 Location: Ivybridge Devon
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When we picked up our first caravan I towed it home without a stabiliser but it was a very light van and although having to drive down part of the M5 I took my time 2 reasons never having towed a caravan before and the light was going and a wet road. We got a bulldog 2000 soon after. Our ewer van that we got this year has an Alko stabiliser fitted to it so before picking it up I got my tow ball changed


PersonThe 2 Tops
03/7/2013 at 5:42pm
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Can't understand the claims that stabilisers don't achieve anything. The next claim will be that the Al-ko ATC doesn't work either.
Nothing is foolproof against careless loading/mismatching/bad driving practice but, within the accepted safe parameters, these things do make a difference.
Bertie.

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The 2 Tops


Personlisterdiesel
04/7/2013 at 12:29pm
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I've never used a stabiliser in 40+ years of towing, but I can see that for a lot of folks they add a bit of security and peace of mind.

What they don't do is make an unstable outfit any better, and also disguise the fact that there is a problem until eventually the situation arises where the imbalances overcome the stabiliser and you're into a crash situation.

I often wonder, given the popularity of the devices whether crashed outfits are fitted with a stabiliser or not, that would make an interesting statistic.

People often don't connect the loading of the caravan with the dynamic of an accident, they just carry on until the day arrives when they are another statistic.

Caravan manufacturers should give comprehensive loading instructions for their vans so that people are aware of just how little they can carry in the rear of the 'van, and even twin-axle 'vans have an ultimate limit.

Peter


PersonThe 2 Tops
05/7/2013 at 10:42am
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I started towing without a stabiliser, then moved on to the old friction-blade unit and finally the integrated towhitch; which became an industry standard because all new caravans have fitted one as OE for several years.
I generally agree with listerdiesel. Stabilisers and ATC will only add to safety if all other aspects are observed correctly, and driving habits/speed not infringed on the assumption that these devices will rectify abuse.
How the van is loaded, even when care is taken, is one thing that can become a problem for anyone, but the observant driver should quickly feel any instability and stop and rearrange the load as soon as it is conveniently safe to do so.
Bertie.

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The 2 Tops



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