LOAD-LEVELLER
DILEMMA
WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION HITCHES ARE USEFUL TO LEVEL A TOW
VEHICLE WHEN HITCHED TO A CARAVAN. BUT DID YOU KNOW THEY
CAN HAVE A REAL IMPACT ON THAT VEHICLE’S CORNERING ABILITY?
WORDS: COLLYN RIVERS
A towed caravan has to be heavier at its front
than at its rear. If it is not it will sway strongly,
particularly if towed by a vehicle that is lighter
than the caravan. It may even jack-knife if
sway occurs at high speed. To limit swaying,
caravans require 7%-10% of their laden weight
to be carried by the rear of the tow vehicle.
A tow vehicle’s hitch is typically 1.2 to 1.5
20
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metres behind the tow vehicle’s rear axle. The
download weight on a hitch, however, pushes
down the rear of the tow vehicle, causing its
front to rise, reducing the load on its front
tyres and potentially prejudicing handling.
A partial solution, originally from the USA,
was to insert a semi-flexible sprung beam
between the caravan and tow vehicle. Called