This is an article written by Tom Oldhoff, on the Caravan and Motorhome Magazine.

It may answer some of the questions posted in here.

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Some people, often 4WD owners, believe that the fix consists of simply fitting stronger springs or air bags to the rear suspension. All this does is raise the rear and leaves the front of the vehicle higher than before the trailer was hitched on. Similarly some that own cars with self-levelling suspension mistakenly believe that takes care of the load on the towball. Self-levelling suspension is designed to maintain a set vehicle height with occupants and luggage on board. Not when there is a vertical load a considerable distance behind the rear axle.

Relying on self-levelling suspension to take care of the load on the towball can result in expensive repairs to the air compressor and/or airbags.
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SUMMARY

There is really no substitute for having the right towing equipment. Apart from making sure that the car and van stay together, it also reduces the stresses that can be associated with towing. Any well set-up car-trailer combination will tow in a stable manner without causing any concerns. But sadly there are many excellent caravans being towed by equally excellent towing vehicles that are an accident waiting to happen due to the lack of the right towing equipment.

Having the right towbar, weight distributing hitch and, if towing a large van, an anti-sway device should be seen as being just as important as settling for a car and van that has appeal. Don’t wait until something goes wrong to make the investment. Do it all to start with and you will be able to handle any situation that may arise and be ready, just-in-case there is something unexpected.

Even a 4WD with a single axle pop-top can become difficult to handle without a weight distributing hitch.

A small van with a high ball load due to the axle being located towards the rear also needs a weight distributing hitch.