Hi guys , I should know better but Im going to reach out for some advice please. New car for about 8 months and Im experiencing just a little bit of sway at times which is a bit unnerving. I use to use an Andersen hitch which I dont now because the new vehicle has auto air suspension. With the Andersen hitch on the old vehicle the hole unit was extremely stable but not so with the new one. I have got a new tow bar tongue which sets the car and caravan perfectly level. The van is loaded properly (I believe) water tanks forward of axels full ( seems more stable). Tyre pressures 40 psi. Tow bar down force 280 kg approx.
Car tyre pressure 40 psi all round.
Now Im thinking I have a 30 mm rise on my tow bar tongue would it help if I could get one with zero or maybe 20 mm rise? This may lower the nose of the van down a touch and help with the sway a touch.
Thankyou paul
Are We Lost said
11:16 PM Mar 11, 2025
You had more detail and some good responses in the thread you started several months ago.
Rather than go through that again why dont you continue on that thread?
Fred K said
09:51 AM Mar 12, 2025
I would start with tyre pressures
Get weight of van on wheels and divide by 4 to get weight on each wheel.
Then check sidewall of tyre and see max weight at what pressure
Then divide actual weight by placard (should be fraction less than 1) and multiply this by tyre placard pressure
Then subtract 2psi on front tyre of van and add 2 psi to rear tyre of van. Then do similar calculation to car where front tyres are lowered and rear tyres are increased by the same amount but more like 4-5 psi.
Surprisingly this works well in cars with active air suspension and was advocated by Collyn Rivers, a noted suspension expert from England and more recently Aus. He was written numerous books about caravanning but suspension is where he started.
Peter_n_Margaret said
11:15 AM Mar 12, 2025
Caravans are inherently unstable.
If you have "Just a touch of sway" then in my view you are a bees bum from a total loss of control and a roll over.
WHEN that happens, the chances of a head-on collision and multiple deaths are very high. Your rig should not be on the road in its current form. rvbooks.com.au/reducing-caravan-sway/~:text=A%20caravan's%20sway%20is,sway%20in%20the%20other%20direction.
Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome
budget said
07:29 PM Mar 12, 2025
Apologies for creating another post dealing with these issues and not checking first that I previously started one elsewhere. Poor memory.
budget said
07:39 PM Mar 12, 2025
Peter Thankyou for your reply and I respect your opinion, but in the case I have indicated this is not something that I believe I would be confronted with.
I do recognize the trouble an inexperienced person could get into but I assure you i am just trying to make things perfect as they were with my last vehicle.
budget said
07:46 PM Mar 12, 2025
Thankyou Fred K for your reply its great to get a reply that offers an idea that has a different approach I will try this and report back . Thankyou
Peter_n_Margaret said
07:55 PM Mar 12, 2025
budget wrote:
Peter Thankyou for your reply and I respect your opinion, but in the case I have indicated this is not something that I believe I would be confronted with. I do recognize the trouble an inexperienced person could get into but I assure you i am just trying to make things perfect as they were with my last vehicle.
Read and understand the Rivers reports on this subject. It has no respect for experience.
The sway response of a caravan/tug combination is 'chaotic'. It rapidly become totally impossible to control irrespective of experience, or not.
Last I saw, insurance companies were reporting 2 total write-offs every day, on average.
Any combination that ever demonstrates any signs of sway should not be on the road.
Cheers,
Peter
peter67 said
10:37 AM Mar 13, 2025
So! it seems it's possible to get half pregnant and stop there. Just a minor sway eh?
Possum3 said
05:52 PM Mar 14, 2025
I would bet your suspension is out of alignment. Have it checked at a truck suspension workshop.
budget said
10:49 AM Mar 17, 2025
Thanks for the reply, I replaced all of the components on the suspension recently . I marked everything before dismantling and realigned the old way with string. Everything at the time was perfect with the old vehicle. A couple of days ago I re did the levelling of the van and towbar and everything is perfect. When I hooked the car up it pump up to near perfect. I now will weigh the van as discussed previously and check tyre pressures.
You had more detail and some good responses in the thread you started several months ago.
https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t70969203/towing-question/
Rather than go through that again why dont you continue on that thread?
Get weight of van on wheels and divide by 4 to get weight on each wheel.
Then check sidewall of tyre and see max weight at what pressure
Then divide actual weight by placard (should be fraction less than 1) and multiply this by tyre placard pressure
Then subtract 2psi on front tyre of van and add 2 psi to rear tyre of van. Then do similar calculation to car where front tyres are lowered and rear tyres are increased by the same amount but more like 4-5 psi.
Surprisingly this works well in cars with active air suspension and was advocated by Collyn Rivers, a noted suspension expert from England and more recently Aus. He was written numerous books about caravanning but suspension is where he started.
If you have "Just a touch of sway" then in my view you are a bees bum from a total loss of control and a roll over.
WHEN that happens, the chances of a head-on collision and multiple deaths are very high. Your rig should not be on the road in its current form.
rvbooks.com.au/reducing-caravan-sway/~:text=A%20caravan's%20sway%20is,sway%20in%20the%20other%20direction.
Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome
Read and understand the Rivers reports on this subject. It has no respect for experience.
The sway response of a caravan/tug combination is 'chaotic'. It rapidly become totally impossible to control irrespective of experience, or not.
Last I saw, insurance companies were reporting 2 total write-offs every day, on average.
Any combination that ever demonstrates any signs of sway should not be on the road.
Cheers,
Peter