Some great tips here and loved the the pool noodle under the end of the bed. Will be doing that one for sure.

Thanks for sharing, a great lesson for us all. 😊

Same problem with my 2019 first purchased April 2020. From day 1 the MUX had low power & horrendously bad fuel consumption (Never better than 12L/100klms doodling along & empty, standard fuel tank fuel light on at 450klms when it took 55L). Wow but, Towing , much worse., I reported this to My Local Isuzu dealer on each & every occasion, first 1500klm service & every service up to & including the 60K service, The dealer blamed my driving style on each occasion. So if i'm stuck with this gutless fuel sucker, so i fitted at 12000klm a 112l long range fuel tank & a DP chip. both helped with giving me a better range & not necessarily better fuel but more hill climbing power & fixed the stupid transmission shifting every 2 seconds up & down. Low & behold when the fault as described in this video finally was rectified when the failure occurred 150klms after the 60k service, the dealer didn't want to replace the turbo, but finally when i jumped up & down they replaced it, like they were doing me a favour, with the Green Dot warranty turbo & hey all of a sudden the car is the one i paid for, 8.8L/100 unlaiden & 700klms out of a tank before fuel light. Sadly or happily depending on how you look at it, while the car was at the Local dealer getting the warranty turbo fitted. (2 weeks in there) I gave up & bought a new landcruiser. Never again will i buy an Isuzu. NOT BECAUSE IT BAD CAR BUT BECAUSE THE LOCAL DEALER HERE WOULD RATHER SELL HYUNDAIS THAN ISUZU & their after sales is horrendous. Footnote: every survey from the dealer & Isuzu regarding the above nightmare was unanswered by both the dealer & Isuzu.

Over the last 12 months travelling (towing a 21'6 van)we have gone down the Dorrigo to Bellingen range twice and both times we hit fog/rain. Both times l kept my landcruiser 200 in 1st & 2nd gear the whole time letting the gears do the braking. With parts of the road only one lane and driving rain/fog it is scary but making sure the vehicle is in control is so important (obviously oil/grease adds another element to negotiate so l am not throwing blame at the van that was against the rail). My main point is drive to the conditions and control your rig dont let it control you.

Thanks for posting and it’s a lesson for us all to expect the unexpected

As they say , we are always learning, I have been caravaning - I've been doing it for nearly forty years, and you always think you know everything, some good tips here, Thnx

Looked a little scary so well done 👍

Great information. For someone who has never done a lap (like me) this information is priceless. Thankyou

Great tips thankyou

Clyde mountain can be unforgiving, traveled it plenty of times when I lived in the Bay. Remember Poohs corner well.

I have a couple of questions about your tow vehicle. 1. Does it have a rear LSD? If not, it's basically a 1WD under normal conditions. 2. Is it heavier than your van?

Glad you came out of it unscathed except a little shaken. Mountains make their own weather/climate, its actually quite fascinating. Only a couple of weeks ago we travelled down the Clyde and as we approached the mist drifted in, incredible really. Such terrible luck to have diesel on the road, the poor guys who went for a scary ride. Our sister-in-law had an awful accident on the Clyde years ago, it is quite common. Happy & safe travels. Cheers Marg

That stretch is notorious for bad weather iv ridden a motorbike through there and it was terrible.

Why would you even be driving towing a van in these conditions. As an emergency services member this is sheer crazy. Pull over and wait it out.

Always expect the unexpected you both done well to work through the situation 👍👍

Why were you climbing the apex of the road and not the shallower angle of the down lane until gaining momentum ?

Car and caravan is part of the problem. Heavy on the tow vehicle distresses things a ton. Even so, towing in the US mountains with a 1 ton truck, I pull over at the threat of ice. I don't like the possibility of losing traction or braking.

That accident happened last Thursday. I remember hearing about it on the radio. We drove over Clyde Mountain on Friday, and there were a lot of caravans en route from Braidwood direction. I'm glad the road has been widened compared to what it was a few years ago. Happy that nobody was seriously injured, and you both got through safely. Thanks for sharing.

Wow what a nerve wracking experience!! 😳 I’m glad it all worked out in the end 💕👍🏽

thankyou for showing this

Thanks Ken and Julie. We live near Canberra and have been up and down the Clyde many many times. I take it very easy, and thankfully never been in that type of weather before. My biggest fear though is car failure going up on the top section where its narrow and very winding. Nowhere to pull over and how a tow truck gets you out is a mystery. Imagine the traffic jam. Thanks for sharing.

Tow rigg needs to wrigh more than van is first rule

For goodness sake Julie can you stop taking over and talking over people. Sheesh.....he dares not take a breath before you leap in.

Thanks for sharing that - we all benefit from such sharing. Kudos.

Star link

Do use have fuel app In Melbourne its has reach 2 dollars now its 1.66. They do what they want. One day high one day low.

Why use guys dont stay longer at cheaper spots Do u have a time limit to do all your travels Or use get board in same stop

A few days before this there was a fatality on the Kings, further towards Braidwood. The road itself isn't too bad, it's bad weather, oil on road ( lots of trucks use it) and impatient drivers usually. Your experience was hairy and I was feeling same as your wife, especially when you started slipping backwards. Glad you're both safe. Safe travels.

Why use going so fast

500 a week each is good. People a paying just in rent a week Ive heard people spending 2500 weekly with 2 kids. I think they a throwing their money away and have it so dont need to budget. Have fun guys. The cost of living it expensive. Staying home or out

Thanks guys, no criticism here, you did your best at the time for yourself and your wife. There is no right or wrong and hindsight is 20/20 vision. All the best to you both

Just came across your channel. A U still doing your lap

One of the best way to tow is with a vehicle that has all time 4x4 , it does make for a much safer drive in all conditions,I would not consider anything else..

Thanks for showing us the video. We did that road a couple of years ago minus the van to see what it was like going that way. We opted out of taking the van up there. Plenty of vans were coming down it. Some a little too fast for my liking. Thankfully the weather was good then. It just shows how quickly things can go wrong unexpectedly.

Great lesson for everybody, thanks for showing this video. This is why I state on videos time and time again that it may be legal to tow a 3500kgs van with a car that is less in weight (even most 4WD's) but it is not a good practice. IMO - the towed vehicle should never be heavier than 75% of the towing vehicles weight....and most towing combinations out there exceed this limit. 1. the car coming down the hill was pushed into the opposite side of the road by his heavy caravan, even though damage would have been sustained it was fortunate that the guard rail was there or no car coming otherwise the situation could have been much worse....yes the road conditions were a major factor but when you have a towing combination like he had then your chance of handling any adverse situations greatly reduces. 2. your combination found it very difficult to gain traction again once stopped and you are very lucky that the van did not pull you back down the hill (any momentum would have gained more and more momentum)....well managed by the driver to not panic and concentrate on the situation, others may not have fared so well. More people need to investigate towing the 3,500kgs caravans they insist on buying with a light truck as it is a far superior weight to weight ratio....no tail wagging the dog. If you need to buy a 3,500kg caravan (4 or more people to bed, etc, etc) then you need to budget a light truck that is 5,000 kgs or above into your combination....and a licence upgrade. My combination is 8,000kg rated light truck towing a 4,500kgs enclosed trailer setup...but granted you need a truck licence (I think MR...I have HR), and I cannot exceed 12,000kgs as a combination, so the truck and load is only 7,500kgs max actual weight (including tow ball weight), otherwise it becomes a heavy vehicle logbook situation in some if not all states. As you can see, I spent a lot of time investigating weights vs safety when I looked around to purchase my setup.

Thanks for sharing this video. We travelled down there with our van for a holiday in Bateman's a couple of weeks ago and then back up last weekend and had similar conditions. It sure shows the reality of slippery roads when towing. Very glad to watch this!

Nosey people, and you were worried about was getting out of 4wd and not the saftey of the other people, I've experienced an accident in very similar circumstances and it I thanked the people whom had stopped to offer help, not the gossip of people who can't mind their our business.

For those who are wondering if they can get by towing without a 4x4, this is an example of a situation where you would be thanking yourself for choosing 4x4.

We live in Braidwood and heard about the accident on local FB pages. So sorry Julie was frightened but everything worked out for you. The mountain is renowned for being slippery in the wet. We are pleased you put the video up. Sorry we didn't know you were in town. Did you park down near the RSL club? Our caravan was parked in front of our house, very close.

Diesel & water turn the road surface into a skating ring! A downhill sharp bend on a wet road is not a great place to strike a diesel spill!

Thanks for the video. I think to many people on the road including caravaners, truckers, motorists and motorcyclists don’t realise how quickly an accident can occur. To be honest I try to stay away from steep mountain roads for the very reason. Safe travels

Thanks for the footage very scary indeed glad to see/hear everyone is ok thanks again

Good to see your still wearing your Shimano shirt. Must be your favourite shirt? Or are you "sponsored " them?

Thanks for sharing. Good to see things that happen in the real world.

I noticed some plastic bags under the bed where did you get them from , great tips Thank you

Thanks for sharing this, a good eye opener! Bicky Dippers unite!

Glad it all worked out for the best for all. Know the Clyde Mountain well as I lived in Ulladulla Mollymook area in the 60"s and again in the mid 70's to late 80's and travelled to Canberra to see family. Seen many accidents including one case when a motor bike ended up under my front bumper, as you stated conditions can change so quickly. On a lighter note you missed seeing Pho- Bear's Cave on the right at 8:01 on the video. Thanks for sharing, Bill Mc

Jesus Ken bad enough as it was but could have been a major disaster if multiple vehicles were involved. Is certainly sends the message that when driving a vehicle you really need to concentrate and be alert wether you are towing or not. Glad you shared the video I certainly got something at of that one. Cheers!

Can happen to the best of us

Had the same thing on a City Off Ramp and just in a Ute. Took a few seconds to know I was sliding. Gripping just before the road turned. Quite the wake up call and nothing you can do about it at the time!