Towing a caravan

S3 and street cred aren't usually heard in the same sentence anyway :)

You're probably right, I think I'd better try them first, seeing as I've also got the correct length 'U' bolts.

Martin

Nor are caravanner and street cred 8-), but I gave up caring about street cred a LONG time ago.

I had a long chat with a bloke from a big caravan dealers and repairers yesterday and he's heard the tales but never ever seen damage caused by the towing vehicle. Apparently some makers specifically exclude towing with "commercial" vehicles from their warranty, there could be other reasons for that though..there's no mileometer on a caravan to limit the warranty with!. Maybe this is where the myth originated?.

Greg

This is much more of an issue with caravans built on an aluminium chassis than those on a steel one. If you are towing an aluminium chassised(sp) caravan, it might be wise to get a Dixon-Bate shocklink towhitch. I believe the effect is worse on a short wheelbase vehicle, so you may not have a problem.

Neil

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I hadn't realised they made aluminium chassis but it makes sense in the quest for ever lighter caravans, I certainly won't be buying an alluminium one as I would be very dubious about the strength. Those shock absorbing hitches are incredibly expensive and as I've only just fitted a standard adjustable Dixon Bate I'm not likely to change it any time soon but thanks for the info. Greg

On or around 9 May 2007 01:01:01 -0700, Greg enlightened us thusly:

nor me. they're about 3 times what I paid for my caravan!

I might contemplate rubber mounting the ball onto the drop plate.

Actually, aluminium chassis are rare now, as most caravan are built on Alko steel ones. These flex quite a lot, so cracking A frames are not really the issue they once were.

Neil

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