Caravan Towing Stupid Mistake

[@jamesfoote8916]

Never ceases to amaze me that people don’t check there lights. We see it every time and I forget how many times I have said you are forgetting your mirrors buddy to get a reply I don’t need them my reply is all cars need towing mirrors that is why it’s 3 points per mirror but far more important is the safety of your passengers and other road users.

[@mickyarred279]

Mark - here in Oz it’s highly recommended that you connect the brake away cable to a solid point on the tow vehicle and NOT the towbar. Reasoning is, that if a catastrophic failure occurs and the towbar detaches from the vehicle 😳 the brake away brakes will still activate. Obviously if they are attached to any part of the towbar then they won’t activate!! 👍😃

[@tristanmorgan8407]

Great update and pointer video both. One point, brake-away cable…I was told you shouldn’t loop it around the tow ball, it should be attached to the cable point on the tow bar….but mine on my 2022 Rav 4 is a nightmare to attach, so like you I loop it around the swan neck tow bar….it was a dealer that told me I was doing it wrong when I dropped off the caravan for service… all the best Tris 😀

[@kevinlawrence2127]

Especially if you have a removable tow-ball, not to loop breakaway cable around the tow-ball. On my tow vehicle, I have a separate place to hook breakaway cable with a "D" ring shackle attached onto the tow bar.

[@thecaravanplace]

@tristanmorgan8407 👆 spot on, there are 2 types of breakaway cable, 1 can be looped onto itself, 1 cannot. Again if swan neck detachable, best to go on a separate part of the chassis on side of the tow bar. 👍

[@alisterwest6987]

By the way thanks for the info on battery locker door didn't know about the separate frame, also the grease on hitch mine seems a bit rattly, thought I was in for a new one. Excellent stuff thanks 👍

[@kevinlawrence2127]

From HM government website. It is not recommended to loop the cable round the tow-ball. (But do so if there is no alternative attachment point.) It is a separate offence not to use the breakaway cable provided. Mistakes happen, and I wont be the last person to break the cable, we've all done it sometime over the years, forgetting not disconnecting it. I carry a spare, they are easy to change, don't cost much.

[@garydavis1528]

I’ve always put it around the tow ball mount the tow bar as last tow bar not have a clip as others did before.

[@paoloallen]

Get you!! Lol...loved the video... really hope you're ok and everything is going well... hope to bump into you again soon.... cheers Paolo and Roger aka 'The Camp Caravanners' x

[@busterboy7505]

Thanks for your great tips Mark, I forgot to take the brake away cable off once, we always use are phones when checking lights and in difficult situations, I will remember to do the motor over tip next time, thanks again 👍👍.

[@PatrickLight-i8f]

Love watching your very informative videos. I don't even own a caravan but love following. Lol.

[@jocockerton6726]

I hooked up last weekend to go away to find out the lights not working… I should have gone to check before the weekend. Good video

[@garydavis1528]

When works days before doesn’t mean will a week later, luck of the draw, only useful to do that if bulb gone and needs replacing etc.

[@michaelmachin4587]

Another excellent video. Thank you.

[@hughtempleton8640]

Great tips . Thank you for sharing 😀

[@Medge2sc]

Do breakaways have to be connected somewhere other than the actual tow ball?

[@karenbull7324]

Fantastic video you are so bloody funny you should be on a stage 😅😂Thank you for some amazing tips the phone one had me in fits so clever see you next week 🤣🤣♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

[@susanashurst7206]

Hi Mark, Your videos are very informative and very helpful. I wonder could you please do a video on how to change the flaps on the side of the caravan to the new slide ones, as I would like to change mine, as I have a loose flap and no matter how many times I check that it is down, I end up seeing it in my towing mirror flapping up and down as I drive along. Thanks

[@davidridge4529]

Great video mark.

[@paulflynn9351]

Great video love your hand signals . Best of luck for the future 😂

[@alisterwest6987]

We use walkie talkies don't bother with phone apps, now moved up a notch from the tin cans and string 😂

[@paulhill4457]

Dont forget MARK, to lubricate the springs on motormover especially the mechanical operated ones Bike chain spray is the best thing for it

[@LeeLorrie]

Only you can make that mistake Mark 🤣🤣🤣 I notice your tow ball, needs polishing because the paint can contaminate the hitch pads? That’s what you experts tell us 🤔 Great video as usual 👍

[@thecaravanplace]

Yes a bit of 80grit paper on your balls will remove any rough bits, and have it looking like new 👍 😅

[@LeeLorrie]

@@thecaravanplace😮😮😮😮😂😂😂

[@hitchupngomr_p3927]

Brilliant advice.. looking forward to the mini service pointers 👍 Can i ask please which make and model of damp meter you use to check your caravans?

[@thorstenh.5588]

Thank you for this very helpful video. I have never seen this box for checking caravan lights before. Can you please tell me/us the name of the tester or where to get it? Thank you.

[@suefromstoke4076]

Good advice

[@paulfuller7409]

Great advice. But where do you source your spare parts from . and can you recommend a good battery charger fo a 120 amp leisure battery. Thanks

[@cliffreynolds1448]

Hi Mark how do you check your lights if you’re on your own and don’t have a system in the car?

[@SamPegg84]

Haha yeah I carry a spare breakaway cable with me as I’ve done it a few times !

[@colinjones2505]

Managed to break 2 break away cables so far......both because the caravan wasn't attached properly, and came off.....low speed fortunately, but bloody scary as hell. Cannot believe I've let this happen twice now. Hate these modern hitches. The old ones were so much easier IMO. A vid on hitching up and treble checking for security would be very helpful....for me at least anyway! Absolute total nugget I am, I admit it.

[@kevinlawrence2127]

One easy method to check if the caravan/trailer is properly hitched up is:- When you have lowered the hitch onto the tow-ball, re-wind the jockey wheel to lift up the caravan/trailer. By doing so, if it starts to lift the towing vehicle. It only takes seconds to do this check. Then you should have a positive connection, It doesn't matter what type of 50mm ball hitch you fitted to caravan/trailer.

[@colinjones2505]

@@kevinlawrence2127 I know. School boy error, that could have led to dire consequences. I was absolutely raging with myself. First time, it absolutely destroyed the electric socket too, deeming the whole unit unusable with the consequential cancelling of a weekend away. I've become that anal now, I stop several times on a journey, just to check it's all secure still. The sight of a caravan drifting away from the back of your car with a thud and scraping noise , is not something you ever want to experience.

[@davidgamble800]

A few good points but don't forget to check the number plate lights

[@clanmac66]

Do you use towing mirrors with the pickup? I fit them on mine but the truck's mirrors seem UK.

[@andrewjones-productions]

Yes, this will happen. It hasn't happened to me yet, but I know that it will and have made myself two simple rules. 1) I put my hand across the connections to check there isn't any physical connection after disconnecting (Inspiration comes from Japanese train drivers that point at things to confirm they have done the correct operation). 2) If someone disturbs me whilst I'm disconnecting, I start the process again, by going to disconnect everything (even if it is already disconnected) to make sure that I don't miss anything. (Inspiration comes from my job where redundancy is very important). Despite these two step checks, I know that it will happen one day and do exactly as Mark suggests and pull away very slowly, making sure the back camera of the car is on and do another visual check. There is something else that I do that will not be relevant to most of you watching. That is seeing how quickly I can hitch up and pull away in the case of an emergency. What kind of an emergency? Well, a tsunami. I am in Japan and live 200 metres from the shoreline. The expected time before a tsunami hits is broadcast on TV, radio, messages on your phone etc so I know that if I have enough of a window, getting away with the caravan will give me shelter and a temporary home. Depending on how long I have, I am also prepared to leave the car and caravan and RUN! It's a tiered approach. Tier 1 - Do this Tier 2 - Do that. Each tier is a set of circumstances of which time will be one condition. I'll bet most people will never have thought of practicing hitching up quickly. For this reason, I never let the fuel tank of the car go below half full and always keep keys, wallet etc in the same place everyday. There is also emergency rations in the caravan (long life) and a case of water (again long life) next to the caravan. If you think I am overdramatic, well we had 3 tsunami warnings last year, none of which required any action - thankfully. Japan has had two fairly large earthquakes this year already. The latest just this week. No major damage and in the latest one, no damage at all (Rural mountainous area).

[@LongNeckAnd_Gorchilla]

Hi where abouts are you located? And how much would you give us for a 2007 elddis odyssey 544 in decent condition?

[@stephengray7482]

Hi Mark i see your tow ball on the cars hitch is very rusty that will chew up your pads in your trailer hitch,

[@martinbrooks8252]

Been there, done that.

[@ianhartley2598]

Love you videos but cable should not be looped round the towball and can jump off if caravan becomes unkhitched. Theres a hole under the towball on every towbar the the breakaway cable clips into. Ian

[@MrVideowill]

I carry a spare breakaway cable in the caravan...... no reason. 😂

[@garydavis1528]

WD40 into locks should never be used, especially so on main door lock, as all caravan locks are cheap plastic components and the 40 damages them but silicon spray is 100% good.

[@SuperRosie53]

Hi Mark much prefer your slower videos, as it makes for greater understanding of your points you are tryingto get across!, so difficult when you jump from one caravan to another, which in the end, makes little sense or point to the videos Please try going slower its much more enjoyable ❤x

[@LeeLorrie]

😮😮😮😮

[@jonathanloe2439]

Try putting on the break away cable in the correct location it should not be on the ball ,

[@sallydavidson2390]

Thanks for the tips but please follow your own advice and clean your towball! Dreadful condition!