I'd get one fitted. I've no idea how much they cost,our first one came as part of the deal & the new van has one on it so I can't help with prices. However, I would advise that if you fit one yourself, buy the longer bolts to go on the towing bracket & fit the new spring/locking washers, it'll prevent the nuts working loose. Myself, I'd get one fitted & have it receipted as supplied fitted.
Ive been towing for years and as long as you load the van right and have the correct tyre pressures there is no need for a stabliser,my personal view is there a waste of money.
------------- a bad day caravaning is better than a good day at work
Hi, agree with laird, never needed one, load correctly drive sensibly and you'll be fine. I have towed with one and didn't notice any benefit. So if you haven't got one save your money, If it's given to you or already fitted go ahead and use it and by the time you've read previous posts you'll be so mixed up you wont know which to get anyway...
------------- Doing as little as possible for as much as possible...
I think it's very much a personal thing whether you use one or not. We've been towing with an Escort Estate and always used a stabiliser - folding camper and now caravan. Just changed to a Nissan Mistral 4WD and we still prefer to use a stabiliser.
Best thing to do is see how your caravan tows. If it pitches or sways more than you like, you might feel a stabiliser would be worth investing in. We were lucky that, when we bought the caravan, we could chose from a free towbar or stabiliser.
Having bought a van two weeks ago, I bought a stabiliser. Towed the van home without it, fitted it at home and then took the van away for the weekend. Granted it was only a cheap one (£50 from towsure) but I could tell no difference at all, if anything it felt worse with the stabiliser fittes, although I put that down to additional weight. In hindsight I would say it was a waste of money.
The dearer ones doubtless sre better but I would save my money next time.
Found it to be a great help when towing on the motorway helps reduce the sway when goods vehicles overtake or if its windy i use a secondhand bulldog stabliser a friend gave me it creeks a bit when turning but it does a great job.
Quote: Originally posted by laird john on 23/7/2006
Ive been towing for years and as long as you load the van right and have the correct tyre pressures there is no need for a stabliser,my personal view is there a waste of money.
Don't agree, Laird John. No matter how careful you are, another, larger vehicle (e.g. lorry) can pass too close and cause the start of snaking. Many other factors can then influence your ability to regain control. For years, I used a Bulldog spring leaf stabiliser, and was aware of the improved control. 18 months ago, a vehicle change made it necessary to employ a removable tow ball, so I converted to a Winterhoff hitch-cum-stabiliser. This also control yaw as well as snaking, and is superior to my previous leaf type. Expensive yes, but definitely worth the cost. A small outlay when the overall value of your oufit is considered; the lot could be wrecked, not to mention the safety of people on board.
hi i have had sevaral caravans when i started i always used the snakemaster bars and similar when my friend upgaraded his caravan i had the oppertunity of buying his alko the one that fits on the caravan
i took him up on this
i can honestly say at the time i had a shogun and a 23 ft luner delta with the alko on it seemed there was nothing there the shogun used to run away with me there was no sway on the motorway when under or getting over taken this is a must if especially towing with the car no matter on the size of the van the beauty is you save your old hitch off of the van so once you have bought this its yours for life
hope this helps
delburt0.....
One thing though. I recently changed my van. My Winterhoff was on the outgoing one, and the new van was already fitted with an Alko hitch-cum-stabiliser. I have a VW Touran and a detachable tow ball. The dealer had to change the Winterhoff over to my new van. My tow ball is so close to the car's rear bumper that, on a tight turn, the Alko would foul the car. It's aBrink tow bar assembly, and there is no choice of tow ball lenght. Anyhow, if there was, the effective nose weight would be affected. Anyone changing vehicle/van should bear this point in mind if a hitch-cum-stabiliser is in the equation.
"....I have towed with one and didn't notice any benefit..."
As said, various opinions; but (in my view) if you never have a snake, you may well think you don't need a stabiliser; if you do have a snake even with a stabiliser, you may think they're worthless - both thoughts are may be right - or the stabiliser might have prevented/eased the snake - you're not aware of any benefit although it's there...
I would rather spend (waste?) the money and err on the side of caution; I can't spend it if I'm dead. As for being given a false sense of security and driving recklessly, I always use a stabiliser but try to drive as though I don't....
I don't like to take chances with my life or anybody else's.
Gram
------------- What's the difference between a chicken?
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Topic: stablising bar
