Advice wanted!!

83kg ball weight is empty, nothing inside..

Thanks

Hi Scott, Thanks for your comment we suspect the drawbar is shorter on this new model as the previous models could house the spare tyre on the drawbar. Given this we considered the dynamics and comments received suggest the longer drawbar would lessen the weight on the towball as the weight is being transferred away from that point. I am intrigued how this made a difference in your case. I am all ears and taking in all feedback and very much appreciated. Matt.

Matt

I found it towed better alot straighter didnt sway or bounce around as much easier to reverse for me it came down to my road train experiance that a longer draw bar on the dolly makes the whole combo track so much better. the main reason i lenghtened mine was for more space spare wheel gen set box an stone guard but didnt really weigh ball weight before or after Its a bit hard to explain so i hope you can work out what i mean but feel free to ask more if need be.

Scott

Hi Scott, again thanks for your comments am considering all possibilities to solve this issue. Sorry for the delay have been working, regards Matt.

Matted.

No prob mate best of luck with it hope it gets sorted. Let us know what the outcome is.

Scott

Website lists the tare at 2150 kg (again different to yours)

What is the plated tare of yours and is the figure your quoting off the plate or have you weighed

Regards Don

Hi Don,

Extra water tanks have been added and a push out bed. A bigger fridge was added and this is closer to the front. When I received the van the print out stated the ball weight at 83kg. Nobody noticed until the first trip. As mentioned, the weight is 2404 unloaded.

Thanks

Again what will the loaded weights be ?? as unloaded weights dont mean much unless you intend to travel empty

Regards Don

Post the ATM as listed on the Compliance plate so as we can see if the extra water etc has been allowed for or to see if it has the normal 400kg payload which will restrict what you can take.

Also what you are towing it with may be interesting.

Hi Graham, The ATM IS 2879 WITH TARE OF 2404 and unladen ball weight of 83 kg. Just to fill in a little this caravan has 3 x 82 litre water tanks, 2 forward of tandem axle and 1 at the rear. It has a 180 litre fridge, fold out bed and washing machine at the rear. It is brand new with underslung axle and towed by a new 4.5 litre twin turbo diesel toyota landcruiser. When this van was collected from the dealer empty we drove it home with the worst winds imaginable.We at that time put the handling down to that however the next trip laden with the weight mostly to the front and 2 front tanks full of water(164kg) it was a shocker. It will pitch up and down in bumpy conditions and pitch sideways if attempting to pass another vehicle also coming down a hill and facing any turn the van begins to wander. I would have to engage the caravan brakes to pull it straight. It is my opinion that the axles may be to far forward for the rig thus causing these characteristics. Needless to say the rear tank can never be filled. Sorry for going on Just thought all this may assist. Also one last thing our previous model when connected to the toyota you would visably see the rear of the toyota drop, this one hardly moves. Many thanks Matt

Sounds like there is something radically wrong with it. You wont see car drop with only 83lb on it Should be at least 200kg to be safe and I would prefer 275.

If you filled the front water tanks only it should have towed better as it would have more weight on the ball.

However by the time you fill the water tanks,the loo and the gas bottles that will knock approx 305kg out of your allowable payload of 473kg

Doesnt leave a lot for clothes and food and all the other bits and pieces does it.
Have you got a WDH fitted as if not that may help but it still shouldnt be like that. Sounds like suspension problems more than anything.

We have a 24.5ft Coromal and it tows fine Has apprx 300kg ball weight all up its 2853 and sits there no trouble.
I use a 750lb WDH.

Hi Graham, Again many thanks for your reply. We have a 250kg haymen Reece WDH which was set up by the dealer. We found to get some improvement in towing we had to force the load onto the bars bending them considerably which put more weight onto the hitch however only added to the issue by lifting the front of caravan and consequently titling it backward. Not the way to travel. My better half has suggested maybe the underslung axle could be a contributing factor we are puzzled, regards Matt.

IIt would pay to set the rig up properly

The height of the towball can make a big difference and on 200 ser a lot have put drop tongues in to lower the ball.

Shortening the tongue is a benefit as well. A lot of 100 ser run around with the tongue sticking out about 6 " which is not good I had mine cut and redrilled.

A WDH does NOT add weight by pulling it up If anything it verrrrrry slightly reduces it by transferring some weight to the front wheels and the van wheels. As per here from HR
Quote
"When using the Weight Distribution Hitch (WDH) the ball weight remains the same, however the load is evenly distributed through the vehicle's chassis to all four wheels. It is important that the capacity of the WDH is correctly chosen and that the vehicle manufacturer's recommendations are always followed."
Unquote

The correct way to set up is as follows put van on level surface and adjust the jockey wheel to get the van sitting level Then back the car up to it and adjust the hitch part so the towball is just too high to go under the van part

If you cant get it down that low you need to approach HR for the part made for the 200 that allows you to lower it to match. Then when you have done that and got it all right Hook it up.
You should adjust the cams on the hitch to allow you AT LEAST 4 links and preferably 5 minimum.
The reason is if turning tight less doesnt allow arms to swivel back and forward and can rip out the D shaclke or even break an arm.

Only pull it up far enough to level it again. Dont overdo it.

But first sort out the ball weight It should be close to or even over 250kg for that van.
Hope that helps.

Hi Graham, Agree with your comments totally and will recheck the setup when the van is returned. We had it setup by the so called professionals with the 200 series drop tongue and it was riding level but still causing grief. It appears it will come back to the low ball weight to begin with. We cannot load enough weight front of axles with the front lounge, centre kitchen and rear bed and bathroom. It will be interesting to see what Jayco come up with I am concerned that similar vans are on the road with this issue, a danger to all. Matt

Just to confuse matters - I discussed this with my caravan serviceman a couple of months ago and he said that some large European caravans were coming out with a 50 kg ball weight. Didn’t sound right to me.

The difference is in their construction and the way they situate the heavy stuff inside. It is mainly in the centre and they dont have great heavy kitchens at either the front or back.

Also dont have 50 Jerry cans hung on rear bumper and huge tool boxes on A frames like Aussies tend to do LOL.

Hi Dennis, What year is your 23' 9 and does it have the fold out bed, washing machine etc. I am suspecting the fold out bed is one contributing factor to a low ball weight. Tnaks Matt.

Hi Matt
It’s a Sterling - manufactured in Dec 2007 licensed in Feb 2008.
It’s a standard van, 2 water tanks, queen bed (no expanding section) no washing machine.
Has a lounge/ kitchen at front, centre bedroom and rear ensuite.
We tow with a Troopy, which is more stable than some short wheel base vehicles.

By the way - I had the axles slung under the springs before this trip around Aus.
Tavelled 5000ks since the mods - it may be a little more sloppy when towing but there is not much in it.
Regards Dennis

Hi Bob, Your setup looks very impressive and trust you will enjoy many travels. You mentioned a sticker in the boot and not the plate, I am assuming you have both a sticker and compliance plate in the boot. This is interesting as we only have a stamped compliance plate with ball weight of 83kg. This 83 KG is unladen of course. Am I right in assuming the 2332kg is unladen which then would be the tare weight of your caravan with ball of 112kg. We have the opposite issue to you and would like to get more weight on the front. Really appreciate your feedback, many thanks Matt

Hi again Matt. Thats correct. There is a printed sticker with the weights listed and then there is the compliance plate. Some weights on the plate are the same as the sticker. As others have said, weigh your van first. If the towball weight is extremely light it could be the source of your problem. Bob

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Hi Bob, Thanks for going to all the trouble with the pictures of the sticker in the boot. I just found ours it was in in the folder and the figures are exact to the compliance plate. I agree the low ball weight is the main problem as we cannot forward load the van enough to gain the ideal 10% loaded ball weight. Sorry for the late response have been at work. We will now wait for Jayco to give us their findings. Why I posted my concern is there will be similar vans with this setup on the road and a real danger to everyone. Regards Matt.

No probs Matt. In my haste to respond I forgot to acknowledge your good travelling wishes. I intend to retire the end of next year and was lucky enough to find the van 2nd hand recently down in SA. Did the sale over the phone, went down and picked it up and wife and I had 2 weeks travelling back home. It was one of the most relaxing, enjoyable trips we have ever had so the next year can't go fast enough.
As an aside I was under the van today and found the filler pipes to the water tanks are full of algae already. They are about 30mm dia and clear plastic so I think I will look at changing them to 12mm hard plastic and run it through a filter system and use the mains pressure to fill the tanks. Going to take a bit of plumbing but I think it can be done. Have a great Christmas and festive break. Cheers, Bob