I actually have been in this situation once. I was going down hill on the freeway back of my truck was swaying from the trailer to the point I could hear my tires screeching… luckily I taped the brakes at the right time and than accelerated and was able to disrupt the sway and get it under control with a few more cycles, pulled over safety and kissed the ground…lol. Then shifted more weight towards the front of the trailer and didn’t have any more issues. I’m surprised he doesn’t mention anything about how to stop the sway with a trailer without brakes.

@fmslick7586

2 ай бұрын

Yeah its ez to do. You just have to look and think fast+react and really let's be honest here, if you're actively driving /watching your trailer you'll never end up like this.

The reason it gets worse over 5 seconds is because the instinctive action is to correct by steering BUT because of reaction time delay this actually amplifies the sway instead of countering it. I got in to a serious sway problem towing a vehicle transporter. I quickly realised (1) that I was making it worse by correcting and (2) braking made it worse. I was lucky to have a clear road) so I steered the car in a wide weaving notion over 2 lanes at a slower rate than the sway cycle. This stopped me from amplifying the trailer's sway and brought it under control within a short time (It seemed like forever!). I think the reason is that I was setting the sway speed, not the trailer, and that brought it under control. It worked for me but I have no desire to repeat the experience to fine tune the technique.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Great post, thanks Paul!

@mmorgz6622

7 ай бұрын

i have done that myself only once. wasnt ideal but it worked.

@georgejensen496

7 ай бұрын

Very good point there. Counter steering attempts (reactive) result in matching and amplifying the oscillation rate/frequency of the trailer sway motion. Your (proactive) 'weaving' was at a lower oscillation rate of the sway motion and therefore not amplifying it. It would be quite interesting to see if the input of different oscillation rates affect (i.e., dampening (if any)) trailer sway motion. The amplitude is limited by the road width, but not the frequency. Just a thought.

In addition to everything you have said in this vid, which I totally agree with, speed is a significant contributor. In every vid where a crash has occurred due to trailer sway it appears people are travelling too fast. IMO people shouldn't be overtaking when towing, unless it can be done at a relatively safe speed and there is a long stretch of clear road ahead. I believe you shouldn't be travelling more than 90kmh full stop. Thanks for sharing yet another excellent video.

@Charlie_Paula

8 ай бұрын

Well said, thank you for mentioning this fact! Speed kills

@tin2001

7 ай бұрын

I've noticed they're often overtaking larger trucks when we see those sorts of clips... So in addition to the bow wave disruption starting it off, they also have additional overall speed, which makes everything more unstable before anything bad even begins.

@L2SFBC

7 ай бұрын

And a change of direction!

Next week I'm collecting a boat...and towing it 1500 kms. home. So glad I came across your videos. Thank you for the advice...much appreciated.

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Good luck! thanks, and please share :-)

I've never had this kind of accident before, but damn I wish they'd taught this stuff in my driving school back in Ontario! Thanks so much for this video!

8:00 “All your gonna do is get yourself to the scene of the accident quicker than you normally would have done” I literally laughed out loud!

In practice, the brake controller should be set to brake the trailer harder than the vehicle, to slow the trailer and pull the trailer in behind the vehicle. Speeding up is a bad idea because often it was excessive speed and overtaking which caused the sway. Many drivers are unaware the absolute speed limit for a caravan is 100kmh, even on a motorway.

This is a MUST watch video for anyone who pulls a trailer. Excellent descriptions of the physics behind sway and absolutely terrifying video's of what can happen with bad sway. Like, truly terrifying to the point that if i watched this before getting a trailer I'm not sure I ever would have bought one I have gotten into the habit of using the trailer brakes going downhills as it both saves my tow vehicle brakes and it's good practice to get used to grabbing those brakes by hand if ever in an emergency. One question I have is about the likelihood of bad sway with my set up. It looked like most of the vehicles in the videos were not very large tow vehicles and no idea if they had a sway bar. My set it us a 2018 f250 with, supposedly, integrated sway control(I have no idea how/if it works) and I have a sway bar attached. I have very very minor sway when semi's pass but it never gets crazy, within a second or two everything is back to normal. Basically I can feel the rear get tugged and then we're good. I have a 37 foot trailer with a 7000 pound dry weight(probably closer to 7300ish with stuff in it) and a towing capacity of 12,700 on the truck. Tongue weight is about 900 and I do have a weight distribution hitch. Thanks for this video, it was incredibly informative.

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks Josh, would appreciate a share. Good idea re downhills and practice. I think your 2018 F250 has electronic trailer sway control (check my video on this so you can see how it works). I think your trailer is on the limit of swaying as semis pass...so you're aware of that and you can fix that with the trailer brake or let the car fix it. What I think may be happening is that the F250's trailer sway control is saving you each time, because once sway starts the nature is it tends to get worse until you're inverted. Have a check of the owner's manual to see if it has TSC.

@jasonhowe1697

Жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC note: USA and north america in general it is just because you can doesn't mean you should at 7500 lbs is 3500 kg at 900 lbs is 408 kg which is 58 kg over and what is typically sold as a weight distribution hitch is typically a device that is designed to limt pitch roll of your off your hitch.. my old viscount was rated at 2000kg and thats at 23 foot.. I don't think what is stated on the vin of his van is stating the correct weight per foot you add 5 kg weight

I'm amazed at the number of modern caravans that don't have sway bars connected from the A frame to the towball. I had them on my caravan years ago. The best thing I ever had on that caravan. Easy to assemble. I had towed the caravan without them, with not too many problems until I had a heavy side gust of wind going over a bridge, luckily was able to manage to correct the movement of the van. Then I put the sway bars on before the next trip. I noticed the difference already. I also had a wind deflector on the roof of the car.

This is the first proper explanation I've seen of this issue. Thanks.

@L2SFBC

7 ай бұрын

You're welcome! Please share!

I’ve been in a trailer sway accident as a passenger. It’s NOT fun at all. Thanks for these excellent videos on the topic.

@L2SFBC

8 ай бұрын

My pleasure!

You have done a great job and as a triple road train driver and caravan tower for many years you have hit the nail in the head ,use trailer breaks to slow down at all times, thank you

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Appreciated!

I would add, that if you have a fairly heavy trailer, adding a friction-bar setup would be a great help to stop swaying.

@fredio54

2 жыл бұрын

Can you please describe what that is briefly?

@fredio54

2 жыл бұрын

Oh I see! Using a pair of conventional shocks to do that would work just as well. I'll keep this in mind, thanks for mentioning it.

@kenhall7517

2 жыл бұрын

The friction device is like a brake, it has a small ball that it mounts on the hitch with, beside the large ball, and the other end hooks to the trailer tongue, the piece is lined with brake material and one end slides inside the other, they are adjustable by a bilt in nut/screw , mine is made by husky

@Cruner62

Жыл бұрын

@@kenhall7517 You are on the right track on this except that a friction bar is the wrong choice since it would behave in accordance with the laws of friction and is limited in use - the better option is a double acting hydraulic damper set up in such a way that it can be adjusted to suit the weight of the trailer. It is included in my "Differential Stability" offer.

I was excited when I saw your video. Finally someone would take a scientific approach to tell us what to do in the case of trailer sway. In the 50 some odd years of owning a trailer, Boats, Popups, utility, I have NEVER had trailer brakes. I guess I screwed then!

An excellent, clear and comprehensive explanation of trailer sway - thank you.

Well the weight balancing can play a big role in this.

I knew most of thing’s already, although didn’t have an absolute understanding of them, great video!

I have towed large heavy loads many times and have experienced severe sway several times. There are three things to do immediately if you can 1. Hold steering firm and straight and do not try to correct. 2. Apply only trailer brakes while pressing the accelerator pedal. 3.Rapidly steer a few quick Minor! jerks in the opposite direction than your intuition tells you to and at a different frequency than the sway is occuring. This is last resort because it can make it much worse if done incorrectly. Basically what you are trying to do is break the cycle that is causing the system to resonate. So steering at the wrong frequency will disrupt the energy wave that is causing the vehicle to wobble like a Bass string. The first and worst case of extreme sway i ever had was with an empty small tri axle equipment trailer behind a Ford f250 Diesel there must have been alignment issues because it nearly wrecked me in seconds and the trailer was not as heavy as the truck and had no payload.

My grandparents rolled theirs back in the summer of 1986 near Bowling Green Kentucky on the Kentucky Turnpike. It was a 1983 Dodge Conversion extended van and about a 32 foot camper. My grandma was driving at the time (she was known to be a lead foot compared to my grandpa), and she even said by the time she noticed the swaying they were rolling over, it happened quickly. They were OK except for my grandma broke her collar bone and sprained her wrist, they were both wearing their seatbelts. My grandpa bought motorhomes and towed a small car on a dolly after that.

@conniebishop3966

Ай бұрын

I made same decision..motorhome or nothing

Brilliant! Looking forward to the video about how the car's trailer sway control senses it and works

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/m5mT1dyCpc2xiaw.html

Sir you have made one of the best educational videos I've seen. Thank you

Fantastic lesson that should be a mandatory requirement for ALL those that haven't hauled a trailer before!

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thanks please share 👍

This is the best video I've seen on trailer sway and what to do. Thank you for the effort to produce it !

@L2SFBC

11 ай бұрын

Wow, thank you! That's the most anyone has ever Super Thanked me!

Very good explanation. I have been in trouble with this scenario. Fornutely, the only damage was to the trailer. I was dumb but lucky!

I just found your channel recently, and have focused on your trailer sway and mechanical advantage videos. I am sure you have saved lives. I have a Jeep Wrangler and a 5'X8' v-nose cargo conversion. I don't expect, and have never had this issue with this rig, but am going to entirely redesign my weight distribution layout for travel. I did have a very lucky break once when foolishly pulling one vehicle behind another in an unbalanced set up but immediately just coasted down. Spooked me so I had an experienced relative bring a flat bed trailer for that move. Thank you very much for this clear, detailed, physics and design based discussion.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much! Please share :-)

"It's a theory. And the theory actually works. But not in practice." "In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is" (Yogi Berra)

In the US if you have them adjusted proper a lite touch of the brake peddle will apply only trailer brakes.

@IH-nr7dx

2 жыл бұрын

Highly dependent on the amount of "GAIN" you have set on your brake controller. Also, aftermarket brake controllers come in two basic types as I understand it. One is delayed - so after you apply enough pressure on your brake peddle to activate your brake lights the signal to the trailer brakes begins about a second or so later. That's a lot of time to lose in a sway event. The second is inertia based - the signal to the trailer brakes is immediate when you apply enough pressure to activate your brake lights. This type senses the rate of deceleration of your tow vehicle and applies the trailer brakes accordingly - the more quickly you slow your tow vehicle the harder it will apply the brakes on your trailer. So, if you slam on the brakes in an emergency situation the trailer brakes will be applied equally strong if set properly. I use this type since it is more immediate and I can set the gain based on the weight of the trailer and driving conditions i.e. slippery roads, or going downhill.

@RazeAndJadith

Жыл бұрын

Thats how we ran our setup. works like a charm. and if the sway gets bad then use the big override. Also, if you don't use a dinky vehicle to pull big stuff then sway is pretty rare imo.

Very informative. Cheers Robs 👍

Outstanding Explanations!

Great video and explanation, Thank you. Well worth discussing the reaction time as well on how long you've got before everything goes totally pear shaped.

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Indeed, having watching numerous sway crashes I think it's in the order of 2-4 seconds to identify and react. Of course, earlier the better.

Excellent video! Good information and explained very well. What works and what doesn't. 👍

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks please share etc!

I have the review camera, i always pay attention to where my trailer end is aiming. Hauling is exhausting because you have another level of attention and awareness you must maintain on top of everything else you do while driving. I havent seen any sway out of my trailer yet but I know it can happen and am ready for it.

Thank you for making these highly explanatory videos! 👍 Exactly the same thing happened to me. I was pulling a heavy single axle caravan with a VW Passat (not smart, I know). A wind from a passing lorry threw it off balance and it went surprisingly fast into a severe sway. I didn't brake and tried to steer it out. But as the video correctly says, it's really hard, almost impossible. Ended up jack knifed but without damage. The main cause must have been poor weight distribution in the trailer. It was stable till about 70 - 80 kph (50 mph), then it became increasingly unstable at higher speed even when pulled behind a heavier vehicle. For me the #1 cause of instability is improper weight balance of the trailer (heavy front and heavy back, light middle) and #2 is speed. Other factors are also significant (like gradient, car to trailer weight ratio, jerky steering or sudden breaking in a curve, etc.) but they don't seem to have the same catastrophic impact.

Excellent presentation with clear explanations and great visual demonstrations. Trailer sway is a scary concept but having watched this video and knowing that I have the right braking system to manage it I feel a little better prepared. Thanks.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Rosalie, check out my how to use the brake controller video too!

Outstanding video. One may also consider adding sway bars, and consider cargo weight distribution and tongue weight. Lots of good videos on KZread about weight distribution and tongue weight. Also, test your brake controller regularly.

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks please share 👍

Great explanation , well done

Wow. What an important video! 👍🏻👍🏻 Thank you.

Great explanation of how to control sway. Best once Ive seen

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thanks please share 👍

This is great, I'll show it to anyone I know who will be towing

Great videos you have made....... I would like to see you do a video on typical 5th wheel connections vs typical gooseneck connections, as they both have different properties from one another.... and the sway issues that are much less prevalent, but can still be just as deadly if the rules arent followed... a 5th wheel trailer is more susceptible to sustained or increased swaying than a gooseneck trailer is due to the connection joint to the tow vehicle being so much higher, which when the tow vehicle dips to one side, can lead the trailer more that a gooseneck hitch would.... a gooseneck hitch being connected to the tow vehicle just a few inches above the axle of the tow vehicle almost totally eliminates the possibility of trailer sway, and makes for a more stable ride in ANY conditions, unless one has loaded all the weight on the trailer BEHIND the trailer axles, or extremely HIGH on the trailer.. and then there is also the factor of how far ahead, behind, or centered over the axle centerline the hitch is located.... it ALL makes a difference for safe and comfortable towing....... the treadmill track with a 5th wheel trailer, and a gooseneck trailer would be an excellent learning tool for how to be as safe as one possibly can when towing something other than a bumper pull trailer.....

Thanks you. Excellent and understandable explanation.

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Very helpful video. Most of the camping groups I belong to really push the weight distribution hitches and sway bars (which I can't use with my Subaru Ascent) as the ultimate sway solution.

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful! The thing about sway is that there are multiple causes, and therefore multiple fixes. It's all very situation dependent. I'll be releasing a video on all the sway solutions in due course.

@davexb6595

2 жыл бұрын

The thing is that a weight distribution hitch isn't going to help you very much if the problem is not excessive tow ball weight lifting the front of the vehicle. It's more of a point fix for a specific issue. A truck can still come and blow your trailer around even when you have the whole rig nice and level.

Very helpful video, thanks!

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks please share 👍

Nice job Mr. Pepper. Thanks

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

You are very welcome please share :-)

In America we usually have much bigger trailers on the road as well as large trucks equipped with trailer brake controllers. If sway occurs you ALWAYS aggressively apply the trailer brakes and don’t touch the brakes on your tow vehicle. I’m a little surprised that the actual and ONLY solution to sway was covered at the very end of the video. The main reasons for sway is too light a tow vehicle, lack of a sway control hitch and lack of functioning trailer brakes.

@nathan00campbell

2 жыл бұрын

this is mostly caused by RV trailers having the axles to close to center so the dealer can LIE to you and tell you that your light duty vehicle can tow it. This reduces the tongue weight, fooling people into a false sense of security. LOAD LEVELING BARS ARE NOT THE ANSWER EITHER. You simply cannot cheat reality. On 90% of trailers that have a sway problem, if you moved the axles a full 12" to the rear of the trailer, it would never sway again. This would also mean you cannot pull a 6-15 thousand pound trailer with your suv, minivan, jeep, or half ton pick up. They are made unsafe intentionally to boost sales and sales alone. Weight balance is the one true cause of trailer sway. The video im linking here shows this with simple toys and a treadmill. That said i have over 500,000 miles in commercial trucking and RV transport. kzread.info/dash/bejne/qW14ydqeZZuag9Y.html

@IH-nr7dx

2 жыл бұрын

@@nathan00campbell This link to one of Roberts videos actually explains the concepts. kzread.info/dash/bejne/fJl5p6Vulbm0c84.html

@nathan00campbell

2 жыл бұрын

@@IH-nr7dx he pretty much said everything i just did, with the addition of talking about up and down hill. The "to much ball weight" is correct. So if you need to add to the point that it is to much for the tow vehicle, that is telling you that you don't have enough tow vehicle. Same thing i was saying, just another way of saying it. Also in these same test, if he could move the axle on the trailer he would see a greater difference. That and the distance of the ball to the rear axle of the tow vehicle plays a huge part in sway due to the cantilever effect

@Cruner62

Жыл бұрын

Hello Scott - it's pretty much the same world over and I stress people should not compare heavies with lighter trailer combinations especially concerning uncontrolled sway.

Excellent video. I recommend practicing applying the brakes on the trailer with the brake controller. You can easily do that in your neighborhood (you don't really need to slow down that much -- if you have successfully grabbed the controller and started slowing down, that is a successful try). After some practice, you should be able to start slowing down within a second and half without even looking. It needs to be as natural to you as getting your foot on the brake pedal when a child runs out in front of you.

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Agreed!!!

@pamlove421

2 жыл бұрын

I practice & use my trailer brake so often that when I am not towing I still reach for it first. I use my trailer brake 1st before my truck brakes for pretty much all stopping situations. I hope if I start a major sway it will be as natural to reach for the trailer brake controller as it is to me to steer into a slide on the ice (I'm not talking with the caravan attached here lol) & brake for the kiddos. 👍✌

@krakoosh1

Жыл бұрын

Major problem with this. Applying only the trailer brakes causes the vehicle to jackknife. Which ever axle has the greatest braking will take the lead.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

No it doesn't. Works for me and others.

@davidgates1122

Жыл бұрын

@@krakoosh1 I don't think you understand the physics involved. The tow vehicle has momentum. When you apply the brakes on the trailer only, the momentum of the vehicle jerks the combined trailer and tow vehicle into a straight line. Back in May I was on my way home with my trailer and ended up going through a very nasty and very strong cross wind. I ended up hitting the trailer brakes by hand. I can tell you from that experience, it jerks the two into a straight line. If you apply only the vehicle brakes (i.e. for some reason or another you have no trailer brakes) then you can get a condition where the trailer tries to pass the tow vehicle. In layman's terms, that is your jackknife.

Excellent video, thanks for the informative explanation 👍🏻

@L2SFBC

7 ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Good advice thanks .. can definitely use it 👌🏻

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful! Please share :-)

Thanks for giving very clearly information about tow truck. Am making same one in mY workshop I want to send you some photos of that

Mostly depends on each trailer where the axles are on the overall length and how you have the weight loaded.

@jimmcfadden1438

7 ай бұрын

Correct .this guy doesn't know what he ls talking about. You basically don't want too much weight on the tail end of your trailer.

@johnrobinson1020

7 ай бұрын

@@jimmcfadden1438 Sorry! but you don't know what you are talking about; I have towed caravans and hauled long trailers (Semi Trailers) for thousands of miles in Australia and the only way to stop a trailer or caravan from swaying is to apply brakes to the caravan or trailer; there is no other way to stop it. Weight distribution of a trailer changes how easily affected and susceptible it is to elements that will cause the sway in the first instance but get this clear in your head, there are circumstances that will cause a trailer to go into a sway regardless of any other factors involved, Axle placement, weight distribution, trailer length etc. and given the right set of forces, a trailer or caravan WIIL SWAY make no mistake about that. And that is what this guy is talking about, how to stop the sway, in some instances the human brain doesn't act quickly enough to correct the sway, even if you apply the correct procedure; If you know anything about Semi Trailers or Car and caravan towing you will know that the braking set up when you apply your brake on the towing vehicle, the trailer brakes activate slightly before the towing vehicle's brakes come into effect therefore preventing the trailer from pushing or over-riding the towing vehicle which in turn prevents the trailer or caravan from going into a swaying situation. I see so many amateur caravaners towing their caravans who believe that driving their rig fast; sometimes faster than they would drive normally with no caravan attached, somehow proves what a good driver I am; Look at me see how I can tow a caravan really fast; I have no idea what they are trying to prove other than prove what an idiot they are. They think they are experts but in reality, may only tow a trailer or caravan a few times a year but think they know more than a professional driver who tows trailers thousands of miles for a living. This guy does know what he is talking about and if you think otherwise, one day you may be in for a rude awakening.

@jimmcfadden1438

7 ай бұрын

@@johnrobinson1020 go a head and put too much weight on the tail end of one of those campers and see how much fun you have with that. Improperly loaded trailers cause the trailer sway.

@graemewindley1614

7 ай бұрын

@@johnrobinson1020 dude I have driven heavy vehicles all my life from tray trucks to car carriers( tripples) and maxi quads and the solution is load correctly and drive to conditions, I have never had any sort of trailer start to sway, I have also completed safe driving and defensive courses, and you are right, a lot of caravan's don't have a clue what the he'll is going on behind them. Professional drivers, most times can feel the vehicles reactions and response and tend not to get into these situations, that is the difference between a cowboy and a professional operator, not just a driver .stay safe friend

@johnrobinson1020

7 ай бұрын

@@jimmcfadden1438 Of course, you are correct Jimmy but my point being , although these factors you mention make it more likely, given the right set of circumstances, to end up with the trailer in a sway; It is usually the driver not knowing how to handle a load that is not correctly laden, and his lack of expertise of driving long loads with trailers; his own actions will usually bring about the swaying of the trailer; As you probably are aware, a professional driver will drive accordingly to his load. So to sum up, it is my contention that although it is much more likely for a trailer to go into a sway if the load is placed incorrectly, as you mention, That in itself does not cause the actual sway, although one could argue that it could, it is the inexperience of the driver to do something wrong in his driving ability to start the onset of the sway, and I completely agree, the sway of the trailer will be worse with a badly laden trailer, and I think you will agree with me that a professional driver would not overload the tail end of a camper trailer in the first place. Thanks for your input. I appreciate your response to my post and I take your points on board.

Trailer sway bars are PRICELESS!!! Never had this issue because of them, thank goodness. (2015 F-150 Ecoboost/2018 Starcraft 26BHS)

When I still had my caravan and it started swaying at a particular speed, I just took my foot from the accellerator. The run-in brake slowed down the caravan imediatly and stabilized the caravan. I must say I observed the caravan constantly and as soon I recognized a slidest sway I reduced my speed or break modestly.

@powerpc6037

2 жыл бұрын

This helped me too at some highly raised bridge over a canal with strong sideways winds. Just let go of the accellerator pedal and let it slow down slowly. Then it stabelizes on it's own. My car weighs about 1400kg, the caravan 900kg and I regulate the weight on the ball to 75kg by moving stuff around inside the caravan until it matches this weight.

@MicraHakkinen

Жыл бұрын

@@powerpc6037 Properly loading a trailer helps a ton to prevent and recover from sway. Unfortunately proper weight distribution on the trailer is often overlooked. Even something as simple as moving part of the cargo from the trailer to the tow vehicle (if possible) can help immensely with stability.

@dawggonevidz9140

Жыл бұрын

@@MicraHakkinen exactly right. Weight distribution isn't just about where the weight is in the trailer, it's also critically important to remember the heavier the tow car, the harder it is for the trailer to move it around, and to distribute the load between the trailer and the towing vehicle with as much weight IN the towing vehicle as possible.

@jonatanschille4133

10 ай бұрын

Yes, being alert and keeping an eye on the trailer and your speed is really good to prevent swaying getting out of hand. Has happened to me a couple of times, but because I was aware I just let go of the axcelerator, braked carefully and stopped the swaying. In the end I moved the load (towing a car on the trailer) about 30cm forward and the trailer was totally stable. I even tried to force it to sway by steering back and forth, but it would not start swaying. So weight distributuon is really the best sollution to prevent swaying.

Another cause of trailer sway can be an improperly balanced trailer with not enough tongue weight. I had this problem with my Triton 128-2 ATV trailer. I carry a side by side ATV and a regular full size ATV on the back of the trailer. I constantly had a problem when I first got the trailer. Typically it would happen at 60 to 65mph going down a slight gradient in the highway. Because of the size of the two ATV’s I was carrying I was limited in how I could position the two quads on the trailer. In order to get more tongue weight on the hitch I extended the front of the trailer by a few inches. I bolted some pieces of pressure treated 2” x 4” to the front edge of the trailer which allowed me to drive the side x side ATV forward a few more inches. This gave me enough tongue weight to stop the problem of trailer sway. I have not had any issues since no matter the speed or gradient of the road.

Thanks Rob Great lesson once again. I haven't gone through trailer sway bad enough to get outta hand But i have felt it several times in its infancy to react My action to combat it is by physically pressing the brake controller button to apply the brakes on the trailer, whilst I'm still powering forward in the tow rig. Worked everytime

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Yes take a look at the trailer sway recovery video for why that works and a demo

@taringaturi6950

Жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC thanks Rob I will do that👍🏾

I have been towing light loads for years without a problem. Recently getting a toy hauler I started studying everything regarding safety. I know trailer brake controllers were a thing and had them in old trucks but never had to use them because of the weight I was hauling I guess. My new truck, although much better for towing did not come with a brake controller installed. I did install one, but it made me think, if I am moderately experienced in towing and somewhat safety conscious how many of these trailers on the road I see are new, inexperienced or completely unaware that they need weight distribution and trailer brakes.

Robert, thanks for your detailed explanation of trailer sway and how to correct it. I experienced some serious sway last trip when a tandem truck overtook me in a valley before an incline. I attempted to speed up to correct the caravan yawl but this takes time as you have outlined and I fully accept this is not an efficient or reliable method of correction. I was doing 95km/h at the time. I have a Redarc brake controller which I will use next occasion when this occurs to slow the caravan to have the rig straighten up. I am also to have air bags added to my rear vehicle's springs to stiffen these up to offer more resistance to yawl occurring. I trust these measures will reduce the possibility of an incident. I found your video informative and a must read for those pulling significant weights behind their tow vehicle (in my instance 2.6 tonne). Thanks so much ...

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Tim, yes speeding up works in theory not in practice. Yes stiffer springs in the rear will hep a little but not massively. 95km/h is a common speed to induce sway, it is very speed dependent.

Hi Robert, I enjoy your videos very much, but have not seen them all. Having said that, I have not seen you mention wheel alignment mentioned in relation to trailer sway. I had trailer sway on a 14 foot off road independent suspension van. I checked all you general advice box's. Tow ball weight, keeping vav packed near centre of pivot over axles, keeping payload low. No matter what it towed well below GPS 95 klm, but as soon as went over it would initiate sway. It was only after I noticed significant inside tread tyre wear on one wheel that I thought the wheel alignment was out on my single axle trailer and wondered how that effected tracking and sway. Long story short the wheel alignment cured the sway issue and I now have a much more pleasant trailing experience. Thanks for your videos.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Ray, great to hear!!!

Truck and trailer matching is important, but when trying to tow a really long trailer even if the tongue weight and towing capacities are met is still a precarious situation. Over doing the tow vehicle and using a weight distribution hitch may seem like over kill and can be but even those set ups are not immune to a harmonic run away sway situation that sends even the best set ups into a "death sway". Being able to manually control the trailer's brakes and driving out of that "death sway" is the only way to guarantee the complete control over the tow vehicle and trailer set up. Great video and explanation.

Well done, great video.

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you very much! Please share!

Science is at the root of this presentation excellent job sir

@L2SFBC

7 ай бұрын

Many thanks

Excellent!! And Thank you.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thanks, please share :-)

great information! I have seen people claim you can get out of an escalating sway situation by accelerating and perhaps in rare occasions they get lucky! Not something I am going to try myself. when I installed my first trailer break controller the first time I had it tucked out of the way but still reachble by my non dominant hand! A friend wisely pointed out i would likely never find it with my left hand in time and the press it in time with where it was! I prompty re-mounted it in a much more accessible location! have practiced using it a few times and hope to never really need to use it!

@L2SFBC

11 ай бұрын

Use the trailer brakes to slow the trailer down if fitted rather than 'power out'.

Had it happen to me today, on a trailer with a bunch of metal on it. It started to rock in the back, luckely i saw it as it was going within a second or two from almost nothing to pretty severe, slammed the brakes directly and it solved the problem.

I think also the more inertia you have in the trailer with speed the more risk there is the trailer can effect its own direction. That is to say that if you travel slow, you can’t get trailer sway, those influences are too small. If you are going to tow over 60mph / 100kph your risk It’s going to shoot way up at increasing rates.

Great info when you have trailer brakes. I wagged once with a heavy 16' trailer and accelerated out of it. Granted the truck was stout, but the trailer was certainly overloaded as well. No trailer brakes....no choice. So it does work. But not with a camper towed by the civic or the soccer mom minivan.

Excellent!!!! Thank You so much!!

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thank you please share :-)

Ha ha, about your oversteer description, probably true. I've spent half my driving career sliding around sideways in control and never once spun or lost it :-) One of my strategies, particularly in the wet is to provoke the slide before it would naturally occur because then nothing is sudden in terms of weight transitions and I'm 100% expecting it. On the flip side, if you allow the suspension to load up and then the slide begins, there's a lot of stored energy released and it's much harder to recover anyway. Drifters do the same thing to an even more extreme degree forcing the car sideways under brakes biassed or exclusively on the rear and then simply continuing that steady state condition under power to suit the desire to decel or accel as the track dictates. :-)

@jeffwhitney3369

10 ай бұрын

Your correct and that's why he is wrong about steering out of it. You have to move your vehicle ahead of time. You have to find the rhythm and move just slightly ahead to the shocks don't load of and throw you back the other way

"The only thing you are going to do is get to the scene of the accident sooner." OMG, I just spit out my coffee. Great video!

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

I stole that from Martin Brundle :-)

You have successfully scared the hell out of me, but in the good way!

@danilo352

2 жыл бұрын

Same here!

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Did I scare you guys into subbing and sharing?

@danilo352

2 жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC yes, sir. 😄

@ianjharris

2 жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC lol that's how you gotta do it in this line of work

Sir, I hope you keep making videos like this. I’m definitely subscribing for future ones. This information is gold!

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

There will be more, thank you for subbing!

I found this very interesting and agree that most things don't work! However, I have developed a simple technique that does. Before I explain, can I just say that I have been towing caravans and trailers with cars on for some 40 years, some with stabiliser bars or the more modern ceramic(?) discs in the ball hitch. None of these devices have prevented all sway situations. I now believe I can say that a sway situation does not generate blind panic any more. When a sway develops it builds up a rhythm which begins to sway the towing vehicle and the natural instinct is to compensate with correction at the steering wheel, BUT this only makes things worse!! What if you could break this rhythm to "confuse" the sway of the caravan/trailer? You can! There is no need to brake or accelerate. It is all done with the steering. The best way to explain this is to think of your steering wheel as a clock face and your hands are at the 9 and 3 position. Now "shake the head" of your towing vehicle by quickly moving the steering from 9/3 to 10/4 to 8/2 to 10/4 to 8/2 etc. You can do this rapidly without losing control and without changing lanes - most important!! This rhythm totally confuses whatever you are towing and it immediately comes back into line. This has worked for me in just about all road situations such as overtaking on a motorway when you come out from alongside a lorry, buffeting from oncoming traffic or a gust of wind. I am making no guarantees and can only say it works for me. If you want to perhaps add this to your driving skills, why not take your towing vehicle to an open space where you can get up to your towing speed and try this whilst staying "in your lane" and get a feel for how far you can go without loosing control. Rapidity is the key. It is actually easier if you are towing something! Be safe and careful.

I agree with most of what you're saying with regards to towing some sort of caravan, campers that will have independent electrical braking systems which by law most will need. But for your average work or rubbish trailer which don't need or doesn't have independent electric brakes the only option you have when you're in a sway is to speed up. Also if your trailer or camper has only mechanical braking you have no choice but to speed up to get out of the sway. It's always better to try it than to do nothing and crash in my opinion.

With experience and paying attention you can feel the beginning of a sway and correct. Before pulling a trailer practice slowing down with just the trailer brake controller. Often sway is caused because the weight on the trailer is too far back. Pull over and try rearranging the load. Moving a heavy item such as a tool box from the rear to the front of the trailer might correct it. If you can't correct the balance drive much slower, or park it if its windy out.

Thanks for the video

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Our pleasure! Please share ":-)

Thanks very informative. Im in the US. I believe that there should be a mandatory course you must pass before you are allowed to drive a trailer.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

I totally agree!

I pulled an 8,000 lb TTrailer with a 5,000 lb Dodge Durango Hemi by installing a Hensley Arrow hitch. The original hitch was $3,000 but the inventor fell out with Hensley and now makes a cheaper better hitch for $2500. All info was learned the hard way years ago. Prices are only estimates.

I’ve never heard sway explained as “the toad (towed) is moving faster then the tow vehicle”. That fact alone was a light bulb moment for me! I’ve never towed before & want to do it safely. Great explanation; great videos!

@L2SFBC

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks please share 👍

@davidthomson802

Жыл бұрын

fast toads: scary

Brilliant! Thnku

Thanks 👍

Life saving!

I was towing my '67 Falcon with my 3/4 ton van and got into this situation. I managed to recover but through pure dumb luck; no idea how it recovered. I was much younger then and thought I knew it all. I took it nice and slow to the next exit and found a tire shop and asked for help. After swallowing my pride and almost losing my arse, I got a very expensive lesson on sway control bars and better tongue weight. After they installed my new sway bars they moved the car forward to get the right tongue weight and I was off again with no issues. Fast forward several decades and I have people questioning me on why I use sway control bars hauling 5,000 of hay. 'Twas because of a life lesson and I don't tow without them and knowing my tongue weight.

@L2SFBC

11 ай бұрын

Fantastic, thank you!

Great video I've read threads where people recommended to floor it if you feel it start to sway but it never felt like the right thing to do when it happened to me, my thinking was if you do that you have to commit and not back out of the acceleration or it'll get worse and even if you do accelerate it still might not work and only make the accident more severe , so when it happened to me driving a van with a 1.9 tonne digger on the trailer I just put my foot on the clutch kept the wheel as straight as possible and tried to ride it out which didn't work as it was just getting worse so I tried lightly tapping the brakes slowly and it seemed to slow it down and I got out of it just before it got really bad. I know how it happened as I had pallets on the trailer which meant I couldn't put the digger entirely over the wheels and left the trailer out of balance but I knew this and planned to drive extra slow to accommodate that but at some point I crept over 80kmph and the wobble started.. I drove 60 the rest of the way ha. I don't have a button to activate the trailers breaks so I'm not sure if they're activated when I brake in the van or not but it's worked for me so far

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Wow, that's a great story, and yes indeed poor weight distribution is a major factor in sway. You did well and were I would suggest a little lucky too!

@dabean4761

Жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC yes i was definitely lucky and I'd say it was also important that I stayed calm and didn't panic although I could hear my heartbeat through my neck afterwards ha

@Bendigo1

Жыл бұрын

Slowing and accelerating both change the the direction of force being applied to the hitch from perpendicular to parallel with the vehicle. It is simmilar to wiggling a rope that is tied to something then pulling or letting go of the rope. Acceleration can work but it increases the chance of the sway occurring again but only faster and more severely. Slowly decelerating is normally the best option as it is easier to decrease speed because of drag and friction than it is to accelerate. I am sure someone much smarter than me could describe the physics behind it in more detail, but that is the basics behind it.

This is like giving a skydiver options of what to land on when their parachute fails to open. Trailer sway or fishtailing is almost always a result of either; overloading, poor weight distribution, underinflated tyres, excess speed or a combination of those factors. Just do the proper mass calculations and be conservative and you'll never have to worry about it. Note a recent manslaughter charge in Australia after a crash involving an overloaded setup. Towing 4 tons on a close tandem axle behind a 2 ton vehicle is verging on insanity

Interesting, however, in the UK most of us don't have independently operated trailer brakes, they are usually overrun brakes; instead we have an anti-sway system built into the tow hitch, which applies friction to the tow ball through pads, so our advice is to just ease off the throttle and let the anti-sway hitch damp out the sway. This means you have to maintain the tow ball without applying grease or oil to the hitch/ball, and also replace and/or shim the pads when they wear, usually a creaking hitch is an indicator that you need to maintain the pads/tow ball. Whilst speed limits are lower for towing vehicles, 50 mph or less on single carriageways, and 60mph or less on dual carriageways and motorways. The majority of the effort here to reduce the chance of trailer sway is correctly loading the caravan in the first place. There are after market shock absorber systems you can fit to a trailer/caravan that also reduce the chance of trailer sway. Personally, I don't tow my twin axle caravan above 56mph in a 60mph limit, and the type of road in a 50mph limit changes how fast I'm prepared to tow as we have some seriously twisty and windy roads that follow the topography of the rolling hills since medieval times. The whole idea of a touring holiday here is to take in the countryside and not rush anywhere, and make the longer journeys overnight to avoid traffic.

Dangerously correct

Another great video (Trailer Sway, how (not) to fix). I seem to recall seeing shock absorbers mounted between the trailer tongue and the tow vehicle's bumper or frame. I presume the idea was to reduce trailer sway.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Yes, that is correct. However, it reduces trailer manouverbility.

@Cruner62

Жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC Only if it is done incorrectly Robert and that is shown in detail in my offer but I must stress it is only part of the solution.

Tyre pressure must be even across all trailer wheels or trailer sway is to be expected which is the most common reason for trailer sway, a part from the reason mentioned in this video.

had a chance to pull a 5 meters long trailer loaded up with metal modular garage. packed in really nice, 1ton(kg) spread trough all of the trailer. towing car weight 1.5 tones, and shorter than a trailer :D tried to pass a car on 2 lane road and as soon as I moved to other lane and tried to accelerate it started to sway. damn scary. tried to counter sway direction but did not have enough space for that, so turn on hazards and started braking slowly still countering trailer sway direction. on the rest of the trip did not exceed 90km/h because over that it was very unstable. what might help is to make a slight long turn to one side as the trailer load would shift to only one side instead of swaying both ways. i blame tire sidewall for the sway as it gives a lot of space for uncontrolled sideways movement :D

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Great post, thanks for info

If you have over-run brakes then a short prod of your brakes help the over-run system work and you slow down the combination too. Or just load your trailer better!

Electric brakes with a controller has been a lifesaver, tidies it all up behind you

Thank you.

@L2SFBC

10 ай бұрын

You're welcome!

Thanks!

@L2SFBC

Ай бұрын

Thank you James super appreciate the Super Thanks!

I haven't yet seen anything come up regarding LDH's (Load Distribution Hitches) which are based upon the idea of adding support to the connection through the entire towbar to effectively place the hitch/load point (or Artificially Relocate it) further forward on the Towing Vehicle, which centers the tire footprint of the towing vehicle, making it adjustable for maximum tow vehicle traction authority We also commonly (here in the 'States) use what are called "Sway Controllers" which are actually metal bars that act as shock absorbers to dampen sway

Hi i wonder it i could have your thoughts on a gen y hitch the multi position bubbler bush one thankyou

Hi Robert. Can you do a video on the difference between single and tandem axle caravans ie what is better.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Singles are lighter and better offroad as less drag, tandems carry more weight and are more stable.

I had an incident fifty years ago with a fully loaded long wheelbase transit towing a fully loaded 3ton trailer traveling from Worcestershire to West Sussex in the UK. I was going down a long steepish hill and as I applied the brakes to slow down the whole rig began to sway big time. The first thing I did was to keep the front wheels parallel to the road irrespective of the van angle and then accelerated. This reduced the sway to a safer level, I then reapplied the brakes to slow down until the sway built up again and then continued to repeat the process until I got to the bottom of the hill in one piece and at reasonable speed. In the UK we can only have over run brakes on trailers towed by cars. I would love electric brakes, but steering and acceleration I have found to be important tools plus keeping my speed down when towing.

@L2SFBC

Жыл бұрын

Thanks, that's a great story! Yes aware the UK only uses overrun brakes for some reason. Downhill is a contributing factor to sway. Good that you had the room to accelerate.

@Cruner62

Жыл бұрын

Overrun brakes are the best systems for light combinations for a number of reasons - they are easy to maintain and understand. They are superior because the loop arrangement means that as soon as the inertia pushes the brake on it retreats proportionately to just give enough retardation combined with a hydraulic damper they are as smooth as silk and further more do not suffer from the electrical failures associated with full electric brake systems as in the US. The downside has been that no one has tackled the sway issue until I got to grips with it 10 years ago because all Europe use this system and I could see it needed some help. Alas the companies in the industry decided to try with an electronic system called ATC that is effectively a speed governor that sometimes helps in some circumstances. I would have liked them to take a look at my system but they choose to keep going with their own Ce La vie. However, I have studied the Electronic /Electrically operated brake systems and found the basic sway problems are just the same but try to use sensitive chips and algorithms to operate equally sensitive actuators to apply brakes with more luck than judgement. In Europe we have moved to air systems on heavies that work pretty well under most conditions but nothing has beaten the pure mechanical systems on cost and use on lighter vehicles. You know when you push a lever it does what is says on the tin.

Pulling a trailer requires an afternoon training class at the very least. I am new at this and will make sure the the brakes on my old trailer are operating at 100 %

the major problem is people put the brake controller button out of reach it should be in an easy reach without looking for it so its natural to push when shit starts going wrong. You must also be adjust the brake controller sensitivity each time to prevent jack knifing then you can use the trailer brakes when required.

Great video! Hopefully viewers are in a country that electric brakes are regularly used. Unfortunately it's only the last few years that electric brakes have even been legal in the UK, so you have no option but to time slowing the car and thus the trailer via the inertia brakes.

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Wow not even legal ?? Why? But your trailers are smaller than Australian ones so that helps.

@overlandready

3 жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC UK law, never chages unless there is reason, it was only an EU change that made them legal. There is still no real amount of electric brakes though.

@L2SFBC

3 жыл бұрын

Reason would be...it is safer? Also much better offroad!

@codprawn

3 жыл бұрын

@@L2SFBC Why are our trailer smaller? My boat trailer is 14m long and 2.8m wide. All up weight 3500kg. Tows nicely behind my old Land Rover Discovery.

I have found when I get a sway starting with an un-braked trailer, if I do a short burst of acceleration (just a touch on the throttle) then very light braking to take the speed of the rig down in steps it has stopped the sway, but only if the sway is caught early. (loaded Navara with 1.5T trailer) better to load correctly and not get the sway at all though.