Tow bar and drop plate

cambridgecockney · Jul 18, 2014

My td5 has this type of towbar.
Landrover Discovery TD5 tow bar | eBay

when my caravan is hooked on the car it sits nose high,and when towing rocks up and down.my car has just had +2" hd springs and shocks.so my question is how safe is it to use a drop plate.

thebiglad · Jul 18, 2014

Hi CC, this is what I use on the back on mine and have done so for about 8 yrs.

The ball mounting plate is adjustable up and down so you can set the perfect tow-ball height.

STC50289AB | Dixon Bate Adjustable Drop Plate Kit - air spring

Dave

darrenm · Jul 18, 2014

Mine has got the same since it was new in 2004

wilson294 · Jul 18, 2014

I tow lots of different caravans for my work

The caravan rocking is due to it being back heavy either its incorrectly loaded or its damp in the back end either way just put more weight in the front of the caravan and it will tow a hell of a lot better

tow ball height wont make a difference its all good as long as the back bottom of the caravan is a good 10 inches off the ground when standing still on flat ground

Gary

Vanmancan · Jul 18, 2014

I to have the Dixon bate adjustable on mine like thebiglad has it's such a good towbar for getting your trailer level quickly ,you can just get the adjustable plate part as a bolt on to any flange tow bar . There are great if you tow more than one type of trailer . But as Wilson294 said if it's bobbing check your load and nose weight as this is more important than level on a single axle . But if your caravan is a twin axle level is always the best way

cambridgecockney · Jul 19, 2014

Ok.Thanks for the tips guys.will try moving stuff forward. i always load over the axle and forward. never checked nose weight.
if no better i will source a dixon bate.
I have checked nose weight of caravan unladen is 65kg. i believe the td5 is max nose weight of 150kg.so i need to check my nose weight once the caravan is loaded.am i correct.

thebiglad · Jul 19, 2014

cambridgecockney said:
Ok.Thanks for the tips guys.will try moving stuff forward. i always load over the axle and forward. never checked nose weight.
if no better i will source a dixon bate.
I have checked nose weight of caravan unladen is 65kg. i believe the td5 is max nose weight of 150kg.so i need to check my nose weight once the caravan is loaded.am i correct.

Yes mate, most peeps who check their nose weight do it with a set of bathroom scales.

If you aim for about 100kgs you'll be fine.

Dave

accywingy · Jul 19, 2014

I've had a few different caravans on the back of various Landy's and never had a problem until I got a Bailey Unicorn a few years ago. I had to put 120kg nose weight to get it to behave

In my opinion for it's size is that it should have been Twin Axle but the extra nose wight was a massive difference once I got it right. On the Defender I ended up having to put Air Spring Assist on the back to keep it level with all that nose weight.

Vanmancan · Jul 19, 2014

You need to find all 3 nose weights ( the cars ' the tow bars ' the caravans) and then you work from the lowest one . In your case I'm guessing the caravan ? Then make shaw you are not overloading the caravan .and try to even the weight out in it . And maybe move some weight into the cars boot . I always load my awning in my boot . You can also find your caravan unladen weight and it's max gross weight ' then this will give you it load capacity! It's very easy to overload a caravan

Glorfindel · Jul 20, 2014

My Geist twin axle behaves a lot better at 100kg than at 80kg!

But I have to pile all the awning poles and heavy stuff at the front to get the weight up that high.

darrenm · Jul 20, 2014

Are twin is the same if I only have one gas bottle in it tows bad with two in its spot on

Datatek · Jul 20, 2014

Caravans also have a maximum nose weight, on mine it's 75Kg so the max nose weight of the tow vehicle is not relevant. Overload you caravan at your peril if you come to France, there are many road side load checks and you will not move if either the tow vehicle or caravan or both are over the rated limits. As far as I'm aware, the caravan should either be level or very slightly nose down or it could get frisky at speed.

cambridgecockney · Jul 22, 2014

Found this on the bay.
TOW BALL HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT DROP PLATE ADJUSTABLE TOW BAR FITS LAND ROVER UTILITY | eBay
Would it do the job.

thebiglad · Jul 22, 2014

cambridgecockney said:
Found this on the bay.
TOW BALL HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT DROP PLATE ADJUSTABLE TOW BAR FITS LAND ROVER UTILITY | eBay
Would it do the job.

It looks the absolute bollôcks mate - I'm temped to get one myself. I particularly like the fact that it has two retaining pins; the Dixon Bate ones only have one.

Dave

cambridgecockney · Jul 25, 2014

thebiglad said:
It looks the absolute bollôcks mate - I'm temped to get one myself. I particularly like the fact that it has two retaining pins; the Dixon Bate ones only have one.

Dave

Just bought one. should be here monday/tues.will let you know what its like.

cambridgecockney · Jul 28, 2014

cambridgecockney said:
Just bought one. should be here monday/tues.will let you know what its like.

Arrived today.its mahoosive,well made and flippin heavy.

thebiglad · Jul 28, 2014

cambridgecockney said:
Arrived today.its mahoosive,well made and flippin heavy.

If it's that solid make sure you pump up your rear tyres

:rofl:

cambridgecockney · Jul 28, 2014

thebiglad said:
If it's that solid make sure you pump up your rear tyres :rofl:

Lol, yeah.that will increase fuel consumption.think it weight 8+kgs.

cambridgecockney · Jul 29, 2014

Sorry another question.this is the same as my tow bar.
Landrover Discovery TD5 tow bar | eBay
once i have fitted my drop plate is there any reason why i shouldnt fit the tow ball with it being that long.

thebiglad · Jul 29, 2014

cambridgecockney said:
Sorry another question.this is the same as my tow bar.
Landrover Discovery TD5 tow bar | eBay
once i have fitted my drop plate is there any reason why i shouldn't fit the tow ball with it being that long.

The 'swan neck' tow ball is only that long so it gets out of the way of the rear bumper on the std attachment. Once you have fitted the new drop plate you don't have need of it's extra length, so I would be fitting a combined towball draw-bar like these: Universal Jaw Pin Towball Coupling Black Free Bolts and Cover | eBay

Dave

Tow bar and drop plate

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Active Member

New Member

Active Member

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Large Member!

Active Member

New Member

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Active Member

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Active Member

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Similar threads