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 Topic: Tow ball height Kia Sorento
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12/7/2014 at 7:56pm
Location: None Entered
Outfit: Bailey Ranger S5 620 6 & Sprite Alpine
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KIA Sorento 2.2 CRDi 1 5dr 2WD.
At rest tow ball height is approx 430mm
With van (bailey ranger 620/6) it drops to about 350mm.
Measured the latter to the middle of the hitch for height.
The van is tilting a bit.
But is a long van.
Would it be fine to remove jockey wheel when towing?
Just in case it bottoms out when getting on/off ferry.
Also should i only go up to 5th gear and leave 6th alone
Pulling away bit of wheel spin. But i also stalled on a hill!!
When moving it accelerates sharpishly
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12/7/2014 at 8:53pm
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When laden towball height should fall between 420 to 350.If your tow bar has two sets of bolt holes Sorento's tow balls usually in top set of holes
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12/7/2014 at 8:58pm
Location: None Entered
Outfit: Bailey Ranger S5 620 6 & Sprite Alpine
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Yes tow bar us on higher setting
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12/7/2014 at 11:56pm
Location: Lichfield
Outfit: Coachman Amara 450
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Can't help with the towball question but regarding the gearbox it depends on the ratio of the gearbox installed in the vehicle. For instance, when I had a 4 cylinder 2.0 ltr. diesel Focus I couldn't get into 6th gear until the car was reaching about 62 mph. so it was okay to use solo but not for towing as 5th gear was realistically the maximum gear you could use. My Volvo 5 cylinder 2.4 Ltr. diesel also has a 6 speed box but can get into top gear at around 55 mph. which means that this can also be achieved when towing and keep within the speed limit. However, when travelling up the slightest incline you can hear the engine start to labour slightly so I find that 5th gear still suits the engine better even though they perform differently when solo. The best solution is to drive and use both the speedometer and the tachometer (rev counter) together and keep the engine running at around 1700 to 2000 revs and change down when approaching a hill because the higher gear puts extra strain on the DMF (Dual Mass Flywheel) which can shorten the life of the clutch.
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13/7/2014 at 5:58am
Location: None Entered
Outfit: Bailey Ranger S5 620 6 & Sprite Alpine
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1700 to 2000 it is then
Cheers
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13/7/2014 at 8:04am
Location: Dumfries
Outfit: 2022 CoachmanVIP 2022 Pilote P696GJ
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Quote: Originally posted by Wolfman on 12/7/2014
KIA Sorento 2.2 CRDi 1 5dr 2WD.
At rest tow ball height is approx 430mm
With van (bailey ranger 620/6) it drops to about 350mm.
Measured the latter to the middle of the hitch for height.
The van is tilting a bit.
But is a long van.
Would it be fine to remove jockey wheel when towing?
Just in case it bottoms out when getting on/off ferry.
Also should i only go up to 5th gear and leave 6th alone
Pulling away bit of wheel spin. But i also stalled on a hill!!
When moving it accelerates sharpishly
You shouldn't have to take the jockey wheel off when towing , there something wrong if you car is sitting that low at the back end . Have checked your nose weight accurately .
Another option would be spring assisters which would keep your car level when hooked up to the van
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13/7/2014 at 4:51pm
Location: None Entered
Outfit: Bailey Ranger S5 620 6 & Sprite Alpine
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Is it possible to get a longer necked tow ball.
This is a witter al-ko tow ball
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13/7/2014 at 5:21pm
Location: Midlands
Outfit: Mondeo Avondale Gram
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Remove the jockey wheel if you want. Some people do if you think its going to ground out.
Have you checked the caravans noseweight? Not overloading the cars rear axle are you?
I dont use 6th gear when towing. I can get better fuel consumption in 5th gear.
I need to be doing over 60mph when solo before 6th gear starts to work so no chance when towing.
On the good side though. Keeping below 60mph in5th i got 39mpg going to Cumbria.
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13/7/2014 at 9:04pm
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Outfit: Bailey Ranger S5 620 6 & Sprite Alpine
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Quote: Originally posted by Grampian91 on 13/7/2014Remove the jockey wheel if you want. Some people do if you think its going to ground out.
Have you checked the caravans noseweight? Not overloading the cars rear axle are you?
I dont use 6th gear when towing. I can get better fuel consumption in 5th gear.
I need to be doing over 60mph when solo before 6th gear starts to work so no chance when towing.
On the good side though. Keeping below 60mph in5th i got 39mpg going to Cumbria.
Cheers for that.
In my opinion jockey wheel is only there for positioning van.
Tried towing with next to nothing in boot.
Plus nose weight 95k
Well below cars max also beneath caravans limit.
Always stick to ruling of lowest figure from either tow or unit.
I will keep to 5th tops.
Hoping for bit lower ie high 20's on fuel with kia
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13/7/2014 at 9:33pm
Location: Midlands
Outfit: Mondeo Avondale Gram
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The gearing will be different on your car to mine though. So 6th may worth for you.
When its geared for 120mph rather than 150mph it should pull the higher gears better.
You need to try each gear and see how it compares.
No issue running without the jockey wheel as long as you remember to refit it before unhitching.
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13/7/2014 at 9:37pm
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Outfit: Bailey Ranger S5 620 6 & Sprite Alpine
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Kia sorento 196bhp
Not to fast but gets there fairly quick.
Also just checked on tyre pressures
33 front and back normal
Max load 38 front 42 back.
That should also raise back end a bit for hitch height
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16/7/2014 at 10:59am
Location: Stockton on Tees
Outfit: Lunar Clubman SB Kia Sorento
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I have a similar problem with my 63 reg Sportage KX2 CRDI .With 2adults in the car and a 75kg noseweight on my Lunar Clubman I have problems.Twice in France when I hitched the van up the jockey wheel was so low it could not be swung round so it was in line to be raised.Even when raised it was only about 3 or 4 inches from the road.
Kia checked car and said it was fine, caravan was recently serviced.
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