There is a black rubber housing on tow hitch thing on front of caravan. Hubby says when he towed it to storage it moves. He showed me that it moves in and out, Should it do this or should it be fixed by something?. Sorry for my wording, new to all this.
Thanks for that. Hubby said it was just when he pulled away and breaked it banged a bit? Also no, he said its not very loose. He's seen the grease nipples and will do them. thanks
The rubber gaiter is a protection cover directly over the damper to restrict any dirt from entering the mechanism which should compresses in then out again. The damper is linked to the caravan brake assembly so when it compresses against the towball the caravan brakes shoes are applied to assist in slowing down the caravan and release again when the towing vehicle accelerates. If there is a thud when the damper compresses it means that the caravan brakes are not set up properly which is evidence that the caravan is in desperation of a chassis service.
That's the main reason why the caravan noseweight should be correct in respect to the vehicle towball weight allowance as it also plays an important part in trailer stability.
if it "bangs a bit" on breaking or acceleration it means the damper is on the way out.. moving in or out is normal but it should should always be a slow movement..
as the damper starts to fail the in and out movement becomes quicker producing a clunk on the change from acceleration to braking or braking to acceleration..
basically there should be no clunking or banging at all..
a new damper for my van cost me about £60 quid.. it would be a fair bit more if you had one fitted.. i fitted my own..
Thanks to all of you for your help and advise. I will certainly show hubby this as ours is a 97 bailey and also maybe have a go himself, he's done so much already.
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Topic: black rubber gaiter?
