Thread: Disco 4 - 2.7l Caravan stability

freopete,

In reply to your questions re types of hitch used.

I originally used a HR WDH head which I had from my old Patrol but without the bars. This gave me the ability to adjust height easily. The only problem with this hitch is that it weighs a ton but it was very effective in providing height adjustment.

I have sinced purchased a D4 tow adaptor and a "Rapid Hitch" which all works very successfully. As you have a D4 you would only require a "Rapid Hitch" for the same setup. The adavntages of the "Rapid Hitch" is that it is light and provides ample height adjustment very easily. I purchased mine from a caravan accessory shop in Toowoomba Qld and I am sure you would be able to do the same in WA. A "Google search" would provide you with the relevant information.

Hope this helps,
Cheers.
bobk

That Rapid Hitch looks like it will solve my hight issues very well. Thanks for the tip.

Here is a link...

Titan Trailer Brakes - Rapid Hitch

Trailer Stability Control should never kick in if the trailer is correctly set up and driven. It should only be felt when the trailer is beginning to get out of control. Think of it as a safety net.

The D3/D4 is a superb towcar and if it doesn't tow well I'd look at your setup:

- tyre pressures all round (trailer is NOT necessarily the same as towcar)
- towball mass
- weight distribution even if towball mass is in limits eg heavy weight on far rear and on drawbar is a bad idea as this has considerable interia
- binding brakes on trailer, other differential drag effects
- wheel alignment trailer and towcar
- make sure it's all level, especially if it's a tandem
- set up the brake controller properly, few people do so and you should definitely have one rather than overrides with a 21

Basically the problem is with the trailer setup not the car, and anti-sway devices will mask not fix the problem. For that reason I don't like them because there are too many inherently dynamically unstable trailers out there towable only due to this fix. It is also important to note that some trailer manufacturers concentrate more on cost, fit and other features with towability a long way down the list. I'll stop here before this turns into a rant.

Hi Mowog, after having Landcruisers, I found the Disco's slightly more sensitive to tow ball weight. Having said that, once the weight is right, they tow better than the Cruiser. I ended up putting a Mitchell Bros tow hitch on my D3, but found the D4 hitch height perfect with my boat, tool trailer & rubbish trailer.

I have the hitch height pretty close with my old Ford hitch. Its just an ugly and heavy unit. I found my van tows very well even over some very average roads.

I am going to give the Rapid Hitch a try.

Depending on what and where you are towing a Mitchell Bros Hitch may be a better solution.
D4 hitch is an improvement on the D3 one but still too low for off road use.

I concur. Sway occurs when you have too much weight a the back of the van, and not enough on the ball. You should have at least about 240KG in my experience for a van your size. Typically I have found the more you remove weight from the rear of the van, the better. Try removing all spare tyres, bike racks, boxes etc from the rear bar of your van, and then taking the van for test drive. Based on your "feel" of the setup, you can then add/subtract weight from the draw bar/bumper bar to suit.

I wonder if the Toyota's were less 'sensitive' cause they were live axle at the rear....

As for problems with sway it is almost certainly lack of ball weight. If it were me with an IRS I would consider WDH and anti sway together.

Cheers