Towing

More info will be needed I'm sure..........towing specs for the Forester ? Plus weight of the van overall, and it's down load at the hitch. Hell....... don't scare us with any more of this potentially fatal fish-tailing stuff.........we're just getting over Easter !

Thanks Darian. The rated towing capacity of the Forester is 1400kgs and the van is 1300kgs. On the limit I know but when my friend towed it with a big Cruiser before I made the adjustments, he also said "it towed like a pig".

Wolly - do you have a weight distribution hitch? Forester is a pretty light vehicle compared with the van I would guess, and I wonder if you have so much weight on the tow ball that you are almost lifting the front wheels off the ground. When that happens you have little steering control, and when you pass trucks or go in and out of strong cross winds you don't have the steering control to hold the van against side forces. Putting extra weight in front will make that worse.Cars and vans have and do flip over under these circumstances.

The car should be level at the front and rear wheels with and without the van.

Two things to do for starters:

1. Have a look at these articles:

Site Link

Site Link and similar on the NRMA site

2. Repack the van so that only 10% of the loaded weight of the van is on the ball. Have heavy things low and near the axle. Avoid heavy weight at front and back as much as you can. You may need to go to a weighbridge and weight the car, van (loaded) in total and wheels only to get the ball weight.

The fishtailing you describe is very dangerous - if you cannot work out what is happening and fix it completely then you should take it to a caravan or towing specialist - members of the forum can probably recommend good places to go if you tell us which area you live.

Good luck

Max

Thanks Max , I live in Hobart

Max i assume by a weight distribution hitch you mean the towing bars that go from the tow ball bracket to the draw bar, if so yes, I did have a two bar set connected

The geometry of the tow point to wheel triangle has a bit to do with this but unfortunately it is not easy to move the trailer axle back further.
There is a guy at Straight Talk Suspension in Blacktown NSW that has been helping people with swaying trailers (especially large boats), He says that adding shock absorbers (with the right valve rate) make a big differene to the harmonics that create the swaying effect. His own boat trailer is an example of the fact having had some serious death wobbles behind his holden ute.

hope this helps,

Wolly i think your Forester is not big enough and it's tow rating is not high enough to tow this van.

I think you'll find that the tow ball rating won't be high enough to be legal for one thing, and not high enough for towing the van.

I'm not positive but i would be fairly sure your towball capacity will be around 100kg to 120kg at the most.

Baz.

Wolly,
The ball weight should be 10% of the van gross weight, say about 130kgs. You could test this by using bathroom scales under the jockey wheel. Also look at the weight distribution inside. All heavy items shoud be near the axle line of the van, nothing too heavy at either end.

I would also have the van wheel alignment checked.
It may have a bent axle stub on one end which can cause the symptoms you describe, especially if it exhibits the same tendency behind a 2tonne Landcruiser
furph

It is a 93 mod van springs could have a bit of sag

Mate, I'm with Baz, Subys are great!!,( I own a liberty) But don;t try and commit suicide anymore It s just not heavy enough!!, even if you stop the swaying, wet roads, taking off on steep hills, the list goes on&on.

Cheers Axle.