Just bought my 1st caravan. Can anyone tell me why it bounces up and down while I'm towing it. Is it the nose weight too light, or something else?
Thanks
could either be down to the loading, or its your cars suspension or both, what car/caravan have you got? have you checked the load on the front of the van?
Post up full details make/model & all weights of car & caravan to get specific advice but even with a correctly loaded outfit you will know you have a caravan behind you which first time towers will find they need to get used to.
You do need to understand the basic principles though which is that caravans are machines that need servicing. If you have just bought a cheap caravan off ebay then if there are no service records get it serviced at a local caravan workshop & if tyres are old they could be perished so should be replaced regardless of wear.
if the nose weight is too low the car feels like it is bouncing up and down which makes you feel like you have been on a boat.
load the caravan so the nose weight is close to the maximum of the car or 7% the MPLM of the caravan.
if you dont have one buy a nose weight gauge. they are not so expensive.
correct nose weight makes a massive difference to the outfit handling especially on a single axle.
------------- First van bailey ranger 550/6
Now the proud owner of a coachman amara
Quote: Originally posted by Mick S. on 28/11/2016
I've never seen a caravan bounce. But when i've seen general trailers bounce its been because the suspension was knackered.
My raclet TT feels very bouncy if I do the opposite and put too much in the front box (which is easily done)
I often take mine around the block once before setting of on a long journey, I find if it feels wrong at low speeds it will be more pronounced at a higher one and more dangerous. Then back for a bit of a shuffle round if needed. Never used a nose weight measure because IMO it's better to get a balanced weight rather than just a nose reading under the maximum.
Quote: Originally posted by jeff juke on 28/11/2016
I think the bouncing is caused by high tyre pressures and van not loaded to the max.
Tyre pressures are a consideration, but 'loading to the max' or not shouldnt be an issue, given the poor pay-loads many vans have now. The extra bit of weight in ratio to the car+van together, shouldnt make the van jump about.
Can't really help unless you post up exact details of model of you car & caravan. There are several different versions of both your car & caravan.
Is your car petrol, diesel, 2wd or 4wd. What is loaded weight of caravan? It will be the higher figure on the small plate fixed to caravan along bottom of body somewhere.
What has not been mentioned is that most caravans other than upmarket ones, are not fitted with dampers (shock absorbers). This leads to bounce on the road - if a caravan passes you hopping about a bit, you can be sire it has no dampers. Theses are available for Alko in different colours according to teh application, and are easy to fit as the mounting are already present - its just that caravan manufacturers are too penny pinching to fit to all vans.
Other than that check your tyres are correct. Some people feel the need to fit reinforced or van tyres, which will have stiffer sidewalls, and are unnecessary for caravans. The stiffer sidewalls would give you van a hard time , and contribute to the bounce. Also related is tyre pressures - these need to be at those recommended, which will not necessarily be the maximum values which may be embossed on the sidewalls of the tyres
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Topic: Bouncing
