Tagged: towing safety

Safety chains and the breakaway cable are the last line of defence if your hitch fails. Here's how to rig them right, and why so many rigs get it wrong.

Bathroom scales under the jockey wheel give you a number, but not the right one. Here's how to measure tow-ball weight properly, and why it matters.

Most caravans tow around Australia with the factory brake controller gain setting still sitting where the dealer left it. Here's how to actually tune it.

A step-by-step hitch-up routine that catches the mistakes that actually cause caravans to come unstuck on the road, in the order that matters.

Caravan sway isn't random. It's got specific causes and warning signs, and knowing them beats reacting once your van's already fishtailing.

Extendable mirrors, reversing cameras and blind spot habits for families towing with kids on board — set up once, check every trip.

A used off-road van's paint hides the truth. Here's the chassis, coupling and suspension check Dusty runs before he'd sign anything.

Tread depth isn't the test. Here's how to read the manufacture date, spot sidewall cracking and know when a caravan tyre with plenty of rubber left is still done.

A step-by-step caravan coupling checklist covering the hitch, safety chains, breakaway cable and electrics, built from nine years of towing mistakes.

Electric brakes fail quietly until they don't. Here's the pre-trip brake check I do on every van before a big trip, and what actually goes wrong.

Weight distribution hitches get bolted on out of habit more than need. Here's how they actually work, when they earn their keep, and when they're solving a problem you don't have.