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I'm probably going to get myself a bad name here but I'd like to see stabilisers made part of the insurance company requirements. Surely we owe it to our families as well as other road users to make our outfits as safe as possible on the road. I consider running without a stabiliser nothing better than removing the seat belts from the car. Perhaps I go over the top with my unit but I like to know that my kids & everyone around me are as safe as I can make them. 

I have a mate at work who is adamant he doesn't need a stabiliser on his outfit just because he has a 4x4 & a twin axle caravan. I just reming him of the morning we spent a few minutes sitting on the M4 in a que because a caravan had turned over. When we got to it, it was a 4x4 towcar, the caravan was on its side & the rear wheels of the car were off the road. He goes quiet fairly quick. Whether he's put his hand in his pocket yet I don't know.

BB  

I think there is an issue here.  How can these fittings be called "stabilisers" if they do not stabilise?  Surely some trading standard body would have challenged the description by now.  I have not yet read the report, but I feel very sceptical about any claims that stabilisers do not increase safety.  I will hold my final judgement until I have read the report then, if I am unhappy with the situation, I shall challenge Winterhoff; the manufacturer of my stabiliser.

Here we go on another mission to set the hare running!

Bertie.

Goferrit Bertie !! Having read the ad blurb, I don't think they do claim that stabilisers make you safer. They do claim that they stabilise a ride ie make it smoother. Which it would seem is precisely what they do. It then seems to have become received wisdom that a more stable tow = a safer tow. This just gets endlessly repeated and so we all believe it. I have moved to the other thread, but I am concerned that a widely held belief that stabilisers make you safer is lulling us into a false sense of security. I think that because rides are smoother, this lets some people believe that they can increase their speed and still be safe. You can't stop idiots, but if they don't know they're being idiots that's a slightly different matter. Thanks again to Gram, without whom none of this would have been possible........!!!! My personal Grammy Award.

Well, I've "gone for it".  I have emailed Winterhoff, the makers of my coupling, and asked them for any info that may, or may not, dispute this study.

Meanwhile, I refer to a section of the Essential Towing Guide, issued by The Police Foundation, and I quote: "Stabilisers can help to improve the stability of an oufit by increasing the friction at the joint between vehicle and trailer.  This reduces snaking (left-right) movements of the trailer, and some stabilisers reduce pitching (up-down)movements as well".

It goes on to say that, as we all should know, that it should not be used to cure a mis-matched outfit.

It concludes: "Stabilisers are of greatest benefit to high-sided trailers such as caravans, which are subject to wind-buffetting from large vehicles and sudden wind gusts".

The Study does not seem to indicate whether caravan stabiliser tests were carried out at speeds and swerves which would not be acceptable in normal driving situations.  Just as a stabiliser cannot be used to correct an ill-matched outfit, neither is it intended to compensate for bad driving.

I think the article should be read with a little caution, as proving that a stabiliser has a point of failure is not the same as confirming its satisfactory performance when used within the recognised guide lines for the safe towing of caravans. 

Bertie.

I have only read the conclusion quickly, but looking at the extrapolation of the results for stabiliser on and off there is a point where both systems behave the same.  The researcher himself states that more research is needed.  The tests were for one car and caravan combination.  Although not variables the wheelbase of the towing car and the relation of the centre of gravity to the position of the rear wheels also has an effect as well as the width of the caravan axle has an effect. 

The study seems to endorse good loading practice and keeping the speed down to a reasonable level.  Also the importance of low caravan mass in relation to car mass - how many times do you read of people using outfits with the caravan heavier than 85% of the mass of the car and saying its ok because they are experienced.  If an outfit is unstable then it is unstable regardless of the drivers experience of coping with the effect .

If people load properly using a matched combination and drive within the maximum speed then a stabiliser will give more comfortable towing and will keep oscillations damped better as long as the speed at which catastrophic oscillations occur isn't reached. 

brian

No dispute with anything that has been said.  All that worries me is the general assumption that stabilisers = increased safety. ( I was one of them) You guys are all knowlegeable and understand the ins and outs.  I think that the majority do not have your knowledge and understanding. ( talk about setting yourself up as a target to be shot down!)

I would like to throw out a contrary statement.  Stabilisers can smooth out the buffeting, pitching and sways that can be experienced when towing a caravan. When stabilisers are not used, caravanners experiencing any of the above will reduce their speed to a level where these effects are no longer felt. Stabilisers remove the early warning signs, thus creating a risk that cravanners will increase their speeds to levels approaching critical. The use of stabilisers may increase the risk of accidents. Discuss.

To be honest Purplehat, the behaviour of drivers on the road whether towing or not is getting so bad that the day will soon come when we have speed limiters forced upon us. My OWN opinion is that this wouldn't be a bad thing. I see where you're coming from with reference to the safety devices seemingly giving the driver licence to drive a bit faster & to a point I think this is probably the case. Increasingly congested roads &  rapidly falling driving standards are a bad combination. The drivers who are kicking against the traces at the moment & driving like complete idiots will bring some form of enforced control to car drivers the same as the speeding lorry drivers brought speed limiters to us with lorries.

It takes the man behind the wheel not the stabiliser between the car & caravan to sort the driving out at the end of the day. The sad thing is that I don't think many of them are prepared to learn.

BB    

It would be interesting to have a study comparing heavier combinations of car/van with lighter combinations and all the other variables that can alter thr outcome.  Do these articulated 5th wheel setups diminish the risk? Would making caravans with lighter, more durable materials (such as carbon fibre v wood) help reduce snaking?  It would surely help having lighter (and stronger) vans.  Design seems to have gone backwards in terms of weight.  Personally I like wooden items at home but would quite happily live with carbon fibre cupboard doors in a caravan.

Brian

The 85% rule is not a mandatory one.  Even the various club advisory panels agree that this can be exceeded by experienced towers.  And it is legal to tow up to the weight stated in the vehicle handbook, with two provisos; the van must be properly loaded (this applies in any circumstances), and the vehicles gross train weight must not be exceeded.

I am holding judgement on the stabiliser issue until I get a reply from Winterhoff.  However, at this moment in time, I am more inclined to trust the manufacturers' claims that stabilisers do reduce the risk of snaking, and improve safety.  I am still not satisfied that this reported study has not taken the test beyond the normal towing standards in order to prove a point.

Taking into consideration the length of time these units have been in general use, I am sure that any failure to do the job as claimed would have been exposed before now. 

Bertie.

My father towed caravns when I was a kid. I distinctly remember some hair raising moments on the M4 in the 70's with a Sprite behind an Austin Marina 1300. Looking back, an outfit asking for trouble, especially considering my mother packed everything except the kitchen sink in the caravan, I even recall a canoe being pushed in through the back window!

I bought a caravan several years ago, I forget the make, but it was a 10ft long 3 berth one dating back to about 1980 with lots of damp! I towed it with a Peugeot 205 1.8 diesel. It should have been ok, but did seem to lack power. It was certainly no fun to tow. some time later, not being keen on towing a caravan, I bought a trailer tent which I have towed behind a Mercedes 190E 2.0. I have never used a stabiliser on any of these outfits.

Having improved my confidence, I decided to go for a caravan this summer. Having 2 kids and looking to foster another one, we opted for a 5 berth Avondale Ulysses. Looking around these seem to be one of the most stable vans around. Having never used a stabiliser, I was unsure as to their worth, but bought a cheap blade stabiliser from Towsure. I really did not want to spend up to £500 on an alko or winterhoff, especially as I have seen mixed reviews of them. It seems that the main advantage is ease of use, which I really did not value that highly.

I picked the van up and towed it 50 miles home without the stabiliser and it felt great. I fitted the stabiliser, loaded up and went away the next weekend. It felt exactly the same. When we packed up, I dropped the van off for storage and left the stabiliser inside the van. The next time we used it, we hitched up and drove away, I forgot to fit the stabiliser. While it towed fairly well, without snaking, it did not feel nearly as stable without it. Given that it was quite windy, I thought this was possibly the cause, but on the return trip, still windy but with the stabiliser fitted, it felt perfect again.

I certainly wouldn't tow without it again. It was a very well spent £50 in my opinion. Even at low speeds, with a well loaded van, it still gives a more comfortable drive, the draft from passing lorries is less noticable, pot holes in the road are less noticeable, generally a much less stressful drive.

Would I pay £500 for an all singing all dancing stabiliser / hitch lock?

No.

I would definately recommend a stabiliser of some sort, and I have no doubt you get a lot more if you spend hundreds of pounds, but you have to draw the line somewhere. I am very impressed with my £50 investment. I would probably be happy with the performance of the expensive ones, but I am sure I would be complaining about the cost too.

The "all singing, all dancing" stabilisers are nearer to £300.  I changed from a Bulldog blade stabiliser to a Winterhoff on the same van.   There was a noticeable ikprovement in almost complete removal of sway due to large, overtakimg vehicles. I admit that I did not tow with the same car, but the difference is, in my opinion mainly due to the change of stabiliser.

Bertie.