Heavy Duty Stabilisers & Towing

[rippers]

When I ordered my T5 SE back in the day when we used to be given optional equipment packs like the tour pack etc.. when you ordered the detachable Towbar it came with 'Heavy Duty Stabilisers' now I seem to remember that no one was quite sure what that was but I always assumed it was related to the towing.

Todays T6 Ocean configurator now mentions (incl Trailer Stabilisation) is this the same thing?

If it is important to towing then whats the difference if you have had a retro fitted detachable tow bar after the factory build as it wouldn't have the stabilisation?

 

[James Powell]

I was wandering the same thing 2 weeks ago I picked a California Beach which was a showroom model as they did a deal on it instead of a factory order. I had to have the tow bar retro fitted. Then last weekend I took my caravan a Hobby twin axle 8.5 metres long which I had no problem with a transporter 6 LWB shuttle t32 with 17 inch steal wheels 204 engine and a factory fit tow bar. it was a nightmare I could go above 55 mph without it starting to sway. I thought it could have been wheel alignment but the service depot at local dealer says no and is looking at it now. they are checking the geometry and they say the suspension takes a while to settle down. I also notice even without the caravan on it feels like a cross wind all the time even when its still as mill pond. This is the 4 th transporter I have had so I don't get it any ideas. I might need to upgrade the suspension and the dealers said 18inch sportiness might help as I had 17inch 235 on the old vehicle. Also not sure my options I bought on 10 year hp but haven't even paid its month yet but I have paid £3000 deposit.

 

[rippers]

My 180PS SE (not 4 motion) had a factory det towbar with the Heavy Duty Stabilisers and I had Sportline Springs and 18" Sportline Alloys. It towed amazingly and felt absolutely rock solid. I think if any when I get around to putting them on my Ocean I will fit the stabilisers too.. I did find a guide with part numbers before but I can't remember where I saw it

 

[Damon18]

Hi,
Our California is fitted with the factory detachable towbar and the trailer stability comes as part of the option.
Just towed our single axle La Mancelle Caravan (7,5m & 1,8T) without any problems on both motorway and secondary roads.
We do have a problem with caravan handbrake fouling the tailgate but that's another problem.

 

[Damon18]

I was wandering the same thing 2 weeks ago I picked a California Beach which was a showroom model as they did a deal on it instead of a factory order. I had to have the tow bar retro fitted. Then last weekend I took my caravan a Hobby twin axle 8.5 metres long which I had no problem with a transporter 6 LWB shuttle t32 with 17 inch steal wheels 204 engine and a factory fit tow bar. it was a nightmare I could go above 55 mph without it starting to sway. I thought it could have been wheel alignment but the service depot at local dealer says no and is looking at it now. they are checking the geometry and they say the suspension takes a while to settle down. I also notice even without the caravan on it feels like a cross wind all the time even when its still as mill pond. This is the 4 th transporter I have had so I don't get it any ideas. I might need to upgrade the suspension and the dealers said 18inch sportiness might help as I had 17inch 235 on the old vehicle. Also not sure my options I bought on 10 year hp but haven't even paid its month yet but I have paid £3000 deposit.

Just an idea.
We had a stability problem on a previous car (LR Freelander), it seemed unstable, and even slight corrections of the steering wheel caused quite large movements of the vehicle.
We changed the tyres from the OE (Conti) to a different brand (Michelin) and the problem disappeared.
Maybe the dealer could test this by fitting a different set of wheels/tyres from another vehicle they have on their park!!
Worth a try.

 

[Trebor]

Hello James Powell and rippers . I’ve got a 2015 T5 4motion . I tow fairly regularly an Anssems braked box trailer 1200 kg so not as heavy as your caravan which is probably 2 tons plus I guess .

My van has a factory removable towball which I was strongly advised to order . It came with heavy duty anti roll bars standard and I have 17 in Goodyear Vector all season tyres with 45 / 50 psi .

My history is from 30 years of several Landrover 110’s V8 and Diesel , Discovery , Range Rover Classic Diesel and the best a Landcruiser Amazon Vx auto 4.2 diesel 250k miles . I did quite a lot of towing upto 4 tons . So Vw towing was always going to be a difficult one .

I towed my loaded trailer with my Cali for nearly 2 years on an off and wasn’t very impressed but always thought the dsg gearbox wasn’t upto heavy towing so didn’t tow anything heavier . I read a lot on this website about upgrading the suspension but couldn’t justify the cost of air suspension like the Landcruiser but we’re going on the Northern Lights Trip to Northern Norway in September for 8 weeks and taking a little 750 kg unbraked trailer . I wanted a low cost way to upgrade the rear springs which were way too soft and bounced on bad roads .

I mentioned this to the guys at Breeze Poole when I was waiting for a service about 6 months ago . They suggested fitting t32 rear springs . They said they had quite a few as they come off new vans that are lowered . They offered to do it at the same time for £100 ( I was spending more on other jobs ) so I jumped at the chance . I didn’t even upgrade the shocks but have to say that it has transformed my van both normal driving and towing .

So this is a low cost option to beef up the rear suspension . I think it might be worth using tyres like Goodyear Vector Cargo with stronger side walls which I think might help as well. Its probably inevitable that a swb is not going to tow as well as lwb given the same suspension set up and tyres . This was always the case with swb/lwb Landrovers .

 

[James Powell]

Thanks everyone for your comments. Unfortunately with my Cali it’s more than just towing. It’s not sitting firmly on the road and I have to keep strearing at speed and can’t really go more than 70 without it dancing all over the road. They suggest changing the wheels and I test drove the same vehicle with 18” sport line and it was no problem. Then we compared the wheel arches of the 2 Cali beaches and mine was 20 cm lower. So they said they need to contact technical support. That was Friday last week. By Tuesday just gone I sought legal advise as it was only 10 old when I first reported the fault. They said the owner is actually vwfs so they have to return the vehicle. I phoned them and I am awaiting a case working which hopefully be Monday, which is 5 working days. They said they would look at swapping it over to a new vehicle. Unfortunately until the dealer gets a email from vwfs they won’t do anything. On top of this I am supposed going away for the summer in a week. To say I am bit stressed is a understatement. My California was also made without a Dab radio and had a secondary dab radio wired into one of the frequencies of the fm band. I have to scroll through on the stearing wheel. Every t6 should have dab radio since 2016.

To reply to your comments I have had 2 t5 LWB shuttle and 1 T6 LWB shuttle and I have never had any problems toweling or otherwise. My last t6 had t32 suspension and anti roll bar and a factory fit tow bar and towed really well. I was looking on the Configurator and can’t see a option for adding this anymore unless it comes with the tow bar stability. I have always had standard steel wheels 17” on the last vehicle, but I now appreciate what impact bigger wheels can have.

Any comments appreciated how to navigate through this as I have never had any problems of this nature with any vehicle over nearly 30 years of driving. The other small matter is mine is a grape yellow with black handles and led lights which is no longer a option on a new vehicle. Just want a resolution.

 

[B J G]

The only impact that the bigger 18" wheels would have is the fact that the sidewall is lower in height, 235/55/17 = 129.25mm and 255/45/18 = 114.75mm.
This would give a stiffer/less flexible side movement making for a more stable towing behaviour.

I've been considering changing the standard 7" wide 17" rims to either 7.5" or less likely 8" x 17" rims to square up the 235 tyres and stiffen the side flex by that method.
A cheaper option as only wheel rims need purchasing and the old rims could be sold on.

 

[Damon18]

Thanks everyone for your comments. Unfortunately with my Cali it’s more than just towing. It’s not sitting firmly on the road and I have to keep strearing at speed and can’t really go more than 70 without it dancing all over the road. They suggest changing the wheels and I test drove the same vehicle with 18” sport line and it was no problem. Then we compared the wheel arches of the 2 Cali beaches and mine was 20 cm lower. So they said they need to contact technical support. That was Friday last week. By Tuesday just gone I sought legal advise as it was only 10 old when I first reported the fault. They said the owner is actually vwfs so they have to return the vehicle. I phoned them and I am awaiting a case working which hopefully be Monday, which is 5 working days. They said they would look at swapping it over to a new vehicle. Unfortunately until the dealer gets a email from vwfs they won’t do anything. On top of this I am supposed going away for the summer in a week. To say I am bit stressed is a understatement. My California was also made without a Dab radio and had a secondary dab radio wired into one of the frequencies of the fm band. I have to scroll through on the stearing wheel. Every t6 should have dab radio since 2016.

To reply to your comments I have had 2 t5 LWB shuttle and 1 T6 LWB shuttle and I have never had any problems toweling or otherwise. My last t6 had t32 suspension and anti roll bar and a factory fit tow bar and towed really well. I was looking on the Configurator and can’t see a option for adding this anymore unless it comes with the tow bar stability. I have always had standard steel wheels 17” on the last vehicle, but I now appreciate what impact bigger wheels can have.

Any comments appreciated how to navigate through this as I have never had any problems of this nature with any vehicle over nearly 30 years of driving. The other small matter is mine is a grape yellow with black handles and led lights which is no longer a option on a new vehicle. Just want a resolution.

Hi James,
Agree with BJG comments (I've been in tyre" dev/marketing" for >30 years).
I hope you mean that the difference is 20 mm and not 22 cm (almost 8" is impossible you would be scraping the ground).
Even a difference of 20 mm seems a lot between new vehicle identical vehicles.
For info., I measured our Cali Coast (Ocean with less high tech options), and the rear wheel arch was 76 cm from the ground (measured through the wheel centre), slight difference left to right (normal as frig/water/etc.. on left).
Have you tried your vehicle with the 18", if it's still the same on the 18" then you can logically rule out the tyres ?

Good Luck. AH

 

[James Powell]

Well they are going to replace the springs for the same springs and try and get the right height tomorrow. We will see if that fixes the problem.

 

[Damon18]

Well they are going to replace the springs for the same springs and try and get the right height tomorrow. We will see if that fixes the problem.

Fingers crossed.
Good luck.

 

[Trebor]

Well they are going to replace the springs for the same springs and try and get the right height tomorrow. We will see if that fixes the problem.

What was the conclusion James Powell ? I’ve now fitted Bilstein B6 rear shocks as well as T 32 rear springs and seems really good towing and not . Off to Northern Norway next week 7k miles towing 1200kg trailer up the west coast .

 

[James Powell]

Hi Trebor I have just come back form staying in Scotland for 5 weeks and pulled the caravan back. its better than it was but it still seems wobble a lot . Even without the caravan it feels like you driving in windy conditions as it wobbles from side to side. I am about to book it in again. Also really unhappy with media system as its one of the ones with dab and it keeps shutting down without warning once mid phone call the dab work around doesn't really work and at the moment I only have 1 station.

I am also hoping they will fit t32 springs and a antiroll bar. As my previous shuttle was lwb and had t32 suspension and anti roll bar. Does anyone know if DCC does the same thing if I push for a new build as heavy duty suspension no long available on beach as a option. its all a bit tricky

 

[James Powell]

VW have just agreed to replace springs for t32 suspension and antiroll bar. I just had to make a contribution which I agreed to pay £450 which I have been offered as gesture of goodwill from VWFS. I wanted Bilstein shocks as well but they would not cover that. How much did the Bilstein shocks cost Treber and are they worth it. my previous vehicle was a t6 shuttle lwb which had t32 suspension and antiroll bar so hopefully will be enough. They also replaced the head unit and fitted a Ariel so the radio now works.