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Achieving a Safe Towing Combination
Ensuring a camper or caravan is safe and easy to tow is generally an easy thing to achieve, this doesn’t mean it’s
always the case and sometimes, a vehicle and trailer combination may need some tweaking to make it ideal.
There are a number of aspects that need to be correct in order to maximise towing safety and handling. It is
important to use this information in conjunction with the maximum weight limits applied by your tow vehicle’s
manufacturer as well as ensuring you stay within the maximum specified ratings of your caravan or camper.
These can be found in the vehicle’s owner manual. This summary will address the main aspects, these aspects
include, but may not be limited to the items listed in the following diagram:
Trailer Tire Pressures
Tire pressures have a large effect on the handling and performance of any vehicle, be it a towed vehicle or
motorized. The tire pressure on your camper or caravan will indeed be a major contribution to how well it tows
and resists instability. Due to how much a camper or caravan may vary in weight depending on the cargo (as
much as 3,500lbs to 7,700lbs in the MDC range) it is important to have your tires at the pressure recommended
by the trailer manufacturer, for the actual weight of the trailer when loaded. You should follow the tire pressure
guide in this manual for on road/highway tire pressures.
Tow Vehicle Tire Pressures
Equally as important as trailer tire pressure is the tire pressures in your tow vehicle. The added weight of the
trailer ball weight should be factored into calculating the tire pressures in the rear of the car. What should also be
factored in is the effect the distance of the hitch from the axles plays in leverage. A load on the tow bar of 250kg
may well have the effect of 300kg or more on the vehicles rear tires meaning additional pressure must be applied.
This will limit sidewall flex and sideways movement of the rear of the vehicle, limiting unwanted movement that
can cause instability in the trailer.
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