Alko Stabiliser - Discovery 4 Towbar

wendy wilkinson
wendy wilkinson Forum Participant Posts: 12
edited October 2018 in New to Caravanning & Touring #1

Hi to all im a 50yr young brand spanking new caravaner yipeeeee!!  with a big question, ive got a discovery 4 with a detachable towbar.  I fitted an alko stabiliser to my caravan all went well until i hooked up my disco, the red handle on the stabiliser will not lay all the way down.  The stabiliser is second hand i fitted brand new pads to the stabiliser when i bought it as the old ones were very worn.

Are all towballs the same dimensions?? or do i just need to jump up & down on it 🙄

Comments

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
    1000 Comments
    edited October 2018 #2

    😉

    https://www.caravanclub.co.uk/club-together/discussions/wendy-wilkinson/mirrors-needed-to-fit-on-a-landrover-discovery-4/?p=2

  • redface
    redface Forum Participant Posts: 1,701
    1000 Comments
    edited October 2018 #3

    That stabiliser does require a bit of oomph get it down into the horizontal position.

    Perhaps it might need the skill of mechanic to set the outfit up correctly in the first place in so far that the pads/pressure are adjustable.  

    New towballs are 50mm and I suppose the over time they might wear down to a smaller diameter. So a second hand unit, set for a worn towball, might be giving you difficulty.

    Good luck

  • Navigateur
    Navigateur Club Member Posts: 3,880 ✭✭✭✭✭
    1000 Comments
    edited October 2018 #4

    I did not know it was possible to fit a second-hand stabiliser hitch on to a caravan that did not previously have a stabiliser fitted. I wonder if there is a problem occuring here that is more serious than it appears?

    The only condition where I cannot get the stabiliser handle to lie flat on my caravan is if the hitch has not dropped far enough onto the ball to lock in place. The lock handle blocks the stabiliser handle. That is to say, the caravan can uncouple without warning.

    Please, please check.  I may be the person coming the other way when it does . . . !

  • ocsid
    ocsid Forum Participant Posts: 1,395
    1000 Comments
    edited October 2018 #5

    I have a Disco 4 and use an Al-Ko stabilised with no issues what so ever; their is IMO something wrong with the OP's hitch if the handle does not deploy properly and stay down.

    Have the new pads or the shims adjusting the sideways tension not been correctly fitted?

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
    1000 Comments
    edited October 2018 #6

    Perfectly possible to fit an Alko hitch to any caravan ... they just bolt on. When I bought my previous Lunar, I had the seller (a dealer) fit a Alko hitch instead of the standard trailer hitch, as part of the deal.

  • Hakinbush
    Hakinbush Forum Participant Posts: 286
    edited October 2018 #7

    Wendy once you've made sure its a 50 mm ball stick one of the old pads back in, if its that tight it should still work fine..

  • wendy wilkinson
    wendy wilkinson Forum Participant Posts: 12
    edited October 2018 #8

    Everything is working correctly as to say the hitch is dropping on to the towball then thats all locked in correctly its just getting the red handle to lay down, the old pads were to worn to leave in so thats why i had to change them, i will try all the shims i got with the replacement pads as you get 2 pairs & i think that they are slightly different in thickness. 

    I have looked at a few sites today regarding this and i think after using the stabiliser more & more it lay down flat eventually and yes as above you can add a stabiliser brand new or second hand as long you have enough clearance for it.

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