Terrified of towing
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I suspect your last sentence gives a huge clue and things will likely be a lot better with the new car. Make sure you are towing with the correct noseweight and the tyres on car and van are correctly inflated. These two factors alone could make the van unstable if they are not correct.
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It's the all up weight of the caravan (MTPLM) that needs to be considered, not its physical size. That weight needs to be within the towing remit of the car so that you do not exceed the car's gross train weight as shown on its weight plate. Towcar tyres usually need to be blown up a bit harder when towing - see the car handbook - and the van tyres as per the caravan handbook recommendation. As I said, you also need the noseweight to be correct.
If you were towing the caravan empty, it could well be a bit skittish and could behave differently when loaded but do not exceed its MTPLM. Visit a weighbridge if you’re in doubt.
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What you've experienced often happens to someone who has never towed anything before. Especially if your current car and caravan combination is near 100% of its permitted towing weight. I remember picking my first caravan up from miles away and having to bring it home driving down one of the busiest sections of the M6. It worked out ok. Reversing it first time at home wasn't so good though!😱😀 But I learnt and am really glad I did. The old adage of Practice makes perfect is a little off the mark but it certainly helps.
If you are really worried after picking up your new car then why not enrol on a Caravan Club towing course. You will be dealt with sympathetically and learn a great deal. Do you know anyone locally who tows and that you can trust? Ask them to sit with you and go for practice runs. Learn how to pack your caravan with a good weight distribution, buy a nose weight gauge and use it. The tyres advice is very good.
Take your time to learn about the weights. When on a club site ask any member for advice. Please don't be embarrassed. We were all learners once.
Come back on here for any further advice
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Thank you all very much I think all of this is the problem when looking at the set up the nose looks heavy its sort of down and the back of the car down but front of the car looks higher up - the kitchen is at the front. We used human scales as the weigh thing was out of stock. It must not have been accurate. The lucky thing is there is a weighbridge right next to our house. The caravan was loaded up but not with lots of stuff just bedding, few kitchen items, no food or anything, an awning on the axel
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You’ve demonstrated the exact reason for increasing rear tyre pressures of the car - check your handbook for guidance about towing.
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Catherine, there is nothing wrong with using human/bathroom scales and we did this for many years. You must have them on a level smooth surface as sitting them on grass will give a highly inaccurate measurement. Check your own body weight inside the house with them on a smooth floor and then outside in the garden and you will see what I mean. Sit them on an 18" square of 1/2" plywood and the reading should be correct.
As mentioned above, also check the tyre pressures on car and caravan. In over 20 years of towing the only time I have "had a moment" was due to incorrect tyre pressure.
When you fine tune your way out of this problem you will enjoy yourself immensely, so stick with it.
Where are you located as you may have a club member nearby who could help.
Colin
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I will stick with it as best I can. The car is a skoda kodiaq 1.5 petrol and caravan adria astella I think its over the 85% thing. It was suggested to try a tow car.info website and it came out as 1 star for weight and not a match. We are going to stick it on a seasonal site and have ordered a vw amarok - that gets 5 stars for everything as a match. We feel like we've been really stupid over the whole thing and with 2 little kids in the car too :(
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@cat23 You have not been really stupid at all. You felt there was a problem and you sought help and advice and that is completely the opposite of being really stupid. We've all been there when starting to tow, I certainly have. There's plenty of advice on the club's main website here.
Carvaning is a great way to holiday with children, ours, all adults now, still remember all the holidays they had when growing up. In fact they still come away with us in our caravan but that may have more to do with that we still pay for everything.
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We don’t know the exact weights of your outfit but I suspect you have a mismatch of car and caravan. If that’s the case, there should be a vast improvement when you get your new car.
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There are a few different Astella models, do you know the maximum permitted weight of your one? I very much suspect that the caravan is much too heavy for your present vehicle. It will be a case of “the tail wagging the dog”.
Our daughter has a new 1.5 litre petrol Kodiaq, I think the max towing weight for her one is around 1700kg, or even less, and towing at the max is not a good idea if you have never towed a caravan before. I took a quick look a few months back as they borrow our caravan and it would have been good if she could have towed it, but our van weighs in at 1900kg, so totally out of the question.
We tow with a 3litre diesel VW Touareg, the new car you have ordered should be ideal.
Meantime you need to reduce the weight as much as possible while still aiming for the correct nose weight. Remove the awning from the van as the first step.
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You might have fallen into the common trap of rushing things too much. Take some deep breathes, and take onboard the advice given from others above. Sort your tow vehicle out, which sounds like you are well on your way. Doing a Club towing course, or at the very least, finding somewhere quiet to do so practice towing and manoeuvring will build your confidence immensely. Don’t have the children or the dog with you while practising, this just adds to the stress. Get the tyre pressures, the weights, the loading well sorted out, make sure you are towing level, and above all, take things easy, no rushed journeys, no towing while tired or stressed. Perhaps go local a few times, pick your towing routes carefully, get used to being in mixed traffic, different types of roads, it’s all a learning curve. Then think to yourself, hundreds of thousands of folks do this all the time, with proper preparation and care it will be fine. I am sure you will be fine, and start to have fun and enjoy your new holidays😁
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Thanks - this must be the case I think they are both around 1800kg therefore on the max - the van is about 1560 without anything in it we have a weighbridge near our house which will be useful. Im not risking pulling it again its going to have to wait for the new car. It did feel like the caravan was in charge of the car if that makes sense it was knocking on the tow bar I think its breaks might even have been coming on to cause a jerking sensation. When lorries were passing it was horrible. I nearly got a taxi home at one point We are going to have it checked over again by a different place and wait for new car and then practice a lot as well as getting the weight correct
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@cat23 - some excellent advice above and I'm sure that once you tow with the Amorok, you will immediately realise what the problem was! Like @KjellNN , I also tow with a VW Touareg and although the van is 8.1m long, 8'wide and weighs 2 tonnes fully laden, I hardly know it's on the back. I'm also a stickler for noseweight, correct tyre pressures and loading. Without a doubt, the best tow car I have owned. There's nothing to substitute for having a nice heavy truck in charge! You don't say which model you have ordered, but I am absolutely delighted with the VW V6 3 litre engine and having automatic transmission makes life so much easier. If you can, I would go for that one - you won't be disappointed.
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Hi @cat23 thank you for sharing you concerns here and I'm really glad other members have been able to offer their advice. As a member of the Club you can also contact our technical team for help and advise. Their details are below:
01342 336 611 (Phone lines are open: Monday - Friday March - August 08:45 - 18:00 September - February 08:45 - 17:30)
Also as mentioned in this discussion, we do offer Caravan Training Courses, a manoeuvring course which includes hitching up and towing safely and a Practical Caravanning course which includes weight loading and balance.
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Thank you that is the exact model we are getting in white Im going to become totally obsessed with all the technical stuff to get it right. Its this one Volkswagen D/Cab Pick Up Aventura 3.0 V6 TDI 240 4M Auto the caravan is supposed to be 1680kg empty it will be about 1800kg packed and hopefully this combo will be perfect
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Cat23, it’s the max fully laden weight you need to consider - the Maximum Technically Permitted Laden Mass. It will be on the caravan's weight plate. If you exceed that, you will be breaking the law. You need to know for sure that when fully loaded you are below that weight. I'm afraid "about" the MTPLM isn’t good enough. It needs to be under the Max. Your estimate of 1800kg only allows you a payload of 120kg which is nothing and, if you have a mover fitted, it will use 30+kg of that payload.
Sorry if I sound a bit harsh but I’m trying to keep you safe and legal. I'm more than ever convinced now that your caravan is a mis-match for your current car and think you’ll find a terrific difference with the new car. 👍🏻1 -
Of all the Astella models only the 644 is legal to be towed by anything with a GVW under 3500kg in the UK because all the others have a body length over 7m and they basically need a truck to tow such a long caravan legally. Besides, if you've got one with the kitchen at the front, as you say, it'll be a bigger one than the 644 because the 644 doesn't have the kitchen there. An Amarok won't make the combination legal as its GVW is too low. I'm afraid it sounds as though you've got yourself into a no-go situation.0
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No its totally fine I need as much information as possible
We have a weighbridge 5 mins from home so that is going to be essential now. We do have a mover fitted (that doesnt work either but thats another story). Its kitchen is at the front but it only had bedding in and plastic plates. Im worried about what can pull it now
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@cat23 - Totally agree with Tinny's last comment above. Not only will you find a terrific difference, towing will become a pleasure with the car you have chosen. That V6 is so smooth - and quiet - you wouldn't think it was a diesel, and, most importantly, it has masses of low down torque. You definitely do need to know exactly what the MTPLM of your van is though, as @Tinwheeler says.
Just don't expect the fuel consumption of your Kodiac! If I get 22mpg out of mine, towing - I'm doing well, but then the van's a bit heavier than yours. Better that than an unstable - and potentially dangerous outfit, as you obviously have at the moment.
Good luck!😀
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Thanks I am going back to the caravan storage to get the instruction manual to get that figure. I was thinking we'll put everything in the back of the truck and practice getting weight distribution perfect in the caravan as I am conscious an empty caravan can also be wrong . Im a little worried about this info from Lutz now the GVW under 3500kg. Perhaps the length of caravan being the problem.
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If it is the biggest Astella then it is much too heavy for the Kodiaq.
As tinwheeler said, you need to know the MTPLM of the caravan, there will be a plate on the van with all the relevant figures on it.
You will find that with 4 people you will need as good a payload as possible. Never underestimate how much weight you are adding!!
Only certain items are included in the MRO……the weight of the van as delivered……but as you have a weigh bridge next door you should take the empty van and have it weighed as it may well weigh more than the stated amount. If I remember correctly, manufacturers are allowed a +/- 4% deviation, which can eat into your payload as you must never exceed the MTPLM. And check what Adria say is included in the MRO, particularly with regard to the battery and gas bottles. Then you can weigh everything you add, and weigh the van again to check your calculations.
With a van that size and weight, a Mover will make life much easier, but will use about 30kg of your payload.
When loading up, we only pack in the van what will be used in the van, anything for outside use goes in the car…….outside furniture, Aquaroll etc, awning, security devices ………plus anything heavy like tins of food, cans and bottles of drinks. We have a box in the car for all that sort of stuff. That also means that the van is available to use for a lunch stop on longer journeys.It sounds like it would be an idea to get the hitch damper and the braking system on the van checked, some adjustment may well be needed.
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We are going to get it independently checked as there are a couple of other issues it has a leak from the sink and has some sealant put on underneath and the wc wont flush. We have a friend with a van who is going to tow it to a site near us to be there for using over summer and after that we'll do all of the suggestions before taking it out with the new car - if the new car is going to be okay. This time last week I was in ikea considering soft furnishings ! I suppose having the vw truck everything can go into the back of there but I feel like the van needs more in the back end. On the way there it wasnt right as you can see on the photo but coming back we put everything in the bathroom at the back and it was straight. But is is definitely confirmed the Kodiaq is useless
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