Good question. I thought long and hard about this too, and came to the conclusion that skimping on safety is not a good idea. After all I would not buy a car now without a 5 star N-Cap rating.
However, mine was just £400, not £500 3 months ago.
It does seem a lot of cash for an electronic device when a stabiliser is a good substitute for half the price.
However, it's not much different to motor movers really as people will pay extortionate amounts for them and usually have to splash out for a bigger battery to power it as well. I have never felt the necessity for a mover as learning to reverse costs absolutely nothing, just sheer determination and a bit of practice that's all.
Regarding the ATC, if it's included in the price of a new caravan then so be it but to pay £500 seems rather extortionate when realistically all you need is a book for basic guidance and a bit of common sense on how to load a caravan properly.
Thank you. I'm thinking exactly the same (freeatlast). Sometimes though you just wonder if things are over-rated. Good to know there's potential for negotiation on price:0) Have you towed with and without it? If so, do you really feel the benefit?
I know somebody who had it fitted on their new caravan and said it was weird at first but you soon get used to it but they actually cause a bit of drag so fuel consumption is affected slightly when it activates. If a large truck overtakes and causes buffeting, it then activates the ATC which in turn alternates the brakes on each caravan wheel independently in order to bring the caravan back in line with the towing vehicle again. However, this caravan braking is pulling back when your foot is on the accelerator so effectively it affects the fuel consumption but not to a degree that you would notice.
It's the AL-KO stabiliser hitch that helps reduce buffeting from passing vehicles.
AL-KO ATC is designed to help prevent SEVERE lateral movements of the caravan by applying the brakes in order to bring the van back into line. In my experience it hardly if ever activates, but I feel safer knowing it's there - a bit like I feel about ABS or traction control on the car.
I think with proper weight distribution the ATC is almost inactive like ABS, and it is not there so that you can just load the van up any old way. However in an emergency (a blow-out say) it comes into its own and stops a problem becoming a catstrophy. Mine came with the van and it comforts me to know its there should I need it.
Dave
------------- Never argue with an idiot, they will drag you down to their level and beat you on experience.
Mark Twain.
We had an elddis crusader superstorm with no ATC or mover and the husband said next time I want ATC on the caravan and a motor mover...... well next van a pegasus 646 with ATC to be fair we notice no difference if the van is loaded correctly they all tow well and the motor mover just seems to drain the battery when we have tried to use it, reversing is soo much quicker and easier !
I have had 11 caravans over 41 year period and only my present van has factory fitted ATC. Only in past has any van had hitch stabilizers, but present van has both and cannot feel any difference at all, so ATC probably has never had need to activate.
Quote: Originally posted by laineymac on 31/5/2014Thanks tango55. Any idea what the ATC is supposed to do over and beyond a stabiliser?
ATC is much like seat belts & insurance something that you hope you don't need but could save a lot of hassle or injury or worse if you do.
So just like seat belts there are many who have never felt the benefit, and a few who are very grateful for them.
Here there is a misunderstanding of how ATC works; it does not differentially apply the brakes like DSC in cars, but applies both [or all 4] caravan brakes together. This has the dramatic effect of snatching the trailer back into line behind the tow vehicle.
In that it is very different to a stabiliser, here it is an active device; the stabiliser only damps oscillations by adding a little frictional resistance to rotation about the ball. There is no comparison at all in the end result, one is a powerful correcting force, the other a minor influence to reduce movement where it is still at a very low level. The stabiliser adds a lot to the "comfort" of towing but little if anything to its safety. The two systems compliment each other, in no way do they do the same function. ATC can save a critical situation, a stabiliser only damps criticality, but only by a small amount. Think for a second of the differences in the forces between the frictional clamping of a stabiliser and the frictional forces of the van's brakes to judge the powers involved.
ATC does not absolve poor loading, if indeed a van is poorly loaded it will activate very frequently; it will save the situation but in a most uncomfortable way and impact on fuel consumption and lead to rapid wear.
On the other hand good loading does not replace ATC. Any towed unit, even an optimally loaded one, is inherently close to instability, we aim to drive in a way not to provoke it. eg not go too fast, avoid abrupt steering movements, hope it is not too windy and vehicles don't over take us whilst going down hill or we go under a bridge too fast etc etc.
But it happens and if things are not right even the best units go unstable; here ATC activates putting a massive correcting force on that instability when it detects it. At present there is no other technology that comes near matching is corrective power.
If you doubt your perfectly loaded and matched unit is likely to go unstable without ATC then try and ELK test at 50 plus mph, but when no other person is anywhere near. And hope that in real life you never have to do an avoiding move anything like approaching an Elk test. I did once to avoid a smash up, and as a consequence was first in the queue when ATC was made available.
Is it worth buying? Well at the end of the day that solely depends on what you value.
For me, Motor Movers, ATC units, Tyron Bands, etc etc are there for my "peace of mind" and do not make me a Big Girls Blouse if I decide to fit them to my van.
Again, for me, I strive to make my caravanning as relaxing and pleasurable as possible and if by fitting some extras I reduce any "what if" stresses that I have had from previous bad experiences, then caravanning becomes a more enjoyable experience.
Never mind the cost of a written off van. Been there, done that, lived to buy another.
What is my life, and that of my wife's, actually worth?
£500 for the ATC?
£1000 for the Motor Mover? I have already had one Heart Attack and don't want another.
Just because you can reverse your van through the eye of a needle, load your van the exact gram of nose weight or balance it to a featherweight, will not negate the usefulness of any of items if adverse conditions that you have no control of, present themselves.
So bottom line. If you can see a benefit to you and you can afford any or all of these items, then go for it/them.
JTQU has got it spot on, and I agree with everything Lobey says.
I've done a lot of towing in the last 40 years. Once when in the army, after driving for 16 hours solidly in Germany, on an icy bend I saw the trailer out of the side window. It set the heart rate up a tad!
Cost wise. At over £20 a night these days, caravanning is not a cheap holiday any more.
I have had one serious snake when we had a trailer tent. It was one of the larger ones, and on a (fortunately) quiet motorway at just under 60mph on a slight but level bend it went. I must have gone well over a mile before it came under control. There had been not the slightest hint of instability before this, and loading was correct. The Alko stabiliser had hidden any slight instability which would have given me an early warning.
I've got to retirement fit and healthy, and after forking out for a new caravan, the £400 is a small price for safety. I might never need it BUT.... Also I suspect I will get some of that money back when I come to part ex in the future.
Towing? Obviously, as JTQU says you feel absolutely nothing.
The old motor mover chestnut. I was on a very small campsite a couple of weeks ago (must do a review, it was brilliant) backed in to an awkward pitch first time no problem. However it was impossible to tow it out, and it would have taken considerable effort to do so. Plus I would never have been able to get it positioned correctly on our sloping drive.
Batteries. Motor movers do not drain the battery. I am still using my 6 year old 80ah battery. A motor mover uses 20 amps when running. 10 minutes of use (a long time in reality) equates to just over 3ah of battery capacity.
As Lobey says bottom line for me is safety, and added versatility.
I did not seriously intend anybody actually tries an Elk test when towing, however convinced they at present are of their unit's impeccable towing behavior.
It will, if without ATC go unstable, most probably violently unstable with the usual outcome. With ATC it will behave a lot better.
I have ATC on my present and previous van and it does work
I overtook a truck on the A34 at 60mph and during a senior moment forgot I had the van behind me , came in rather quickly and induced a serious sway .
Before I had time to react the ATC kicked in and applied the brakes and dragged me right down to 30mph before releasing the brakes .
Needless to say I had one very HGV driver behind me who had anchor up because of my stupid actions
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Topic: AL-KO ATC
