Towing Your Caravan Safely: Tuson’s Guide to Essential Safety Features and Weight Considerations

When you’re gearing up for a caravan adventure, ensuring safety on the road should be your top priority. At Tuson, we understand the importance of keeping you, your loved ones, and fellow travellers safe throughout your journey; that’s why we’ve put together this comprehensive guide to caravan towing safety, covering essential features and weight considerations that every caravan owner should know.

What Do Breakaway Units Do?

Ever wondered what would happen if your caravan were uncoupled from your tow vehicle while driving? Enter the breakaway unit – a lifesaving mechanism designed to automatically engage your caravan’s electronic brakes in such emergencies.

Essentially, a breakaway system uses a cable that attaches the brake system on your caravan or trailer to your tow vehicle, and if the towing load detaches from the tow vehicle, the trailer brakes will be activated.  

Breakaway systems are legally required in all states for caravans and trailers with a GTM exceeding 2000kg, and they ensure that your caravan stays under control for at least 15 minutes to give you crucial time to manoeuvre safely.  

What are Brake Controllers and ABS?

Smooth braking and efficient stopping power are crucial when towing a caravan. That’s where brake controllers come in. Continuously monitoring your vehicle’s dynamics, these controllers deliver the precise amount of voltage to your trailer brakes, ensuring that the speed of your caravan matches that of your tow vehicle. This not only improves safety, but also makes for smoother, more efficient braking and extends the lifespan of your trailer brakes. Brake controllers are particularly advantageous when travelling downhill where you can adjust your caravan brakes to do more braking, taking the pressure off the tow vehicle. This helps to minimise the tow vehicles brakes overheating on long downhill roads.

Some caravans have incorporated ABS into their brake systems. This will help support your brake controller in an emergency braking incident but will not help control a sway event or evasive driving.

What is a Sway Control Device?

Nobody wants their caravan to sway or, worse, roll over while on the road. And remember, you have a choice in the sway controls on the market: Symmetric sway controls act like automated brake controls by activating all the caravan’s brakes to take speed off and slow the tow vehicle down in a major sway event.  

Tuson Asymmetric Sway Controls system brakes either the left or right side of the caravan to bring sway under control, utilising the same technology as car manufacturers in traction control for optimal safety. Tuson Asymmetric Sway Control systems act as guardians against sway emergencies by measuring for sway around 200 times a second and applying brakes asymmetrically to prevent rollovers or jack-knifing. With this device onboard, you can enjoy a smoother and safer towing experience, even in challenging road or weather conditions. Read more about the Tuson Sway Control system here.  

Understanding Towing Weights:

Navigating the maze of weights associated with towing can be daunting, but it’s essential for safe travels. Let’s break it down:

• Payload: This is the term for any mass (weight) you add to the vehicle’s tare mass. For tow vehicles, the payload will include factors such as aftermarket modifications and the tow ball mass, as well as passengers and luggage. Your payload doesn’t include standard specifications that are set by the manufacturer, like fuel, oil, coolant, etc. For trailers and caravans, the payload will include factors such as water, gas, accessories. For both vehicles and caravans, it’s important to know your maximum payload, as it should not be exceeded. Maximum Payload = ATM – Tare Mass (caravan) – Tow Ball Mass

• Tare Mass – Vehicle: The mass of your towing vehicle, how much it weighs at manufacturer specification, without towing payloads.
  

• Tare Mass – Caravan/Trailer: The mass of your trailer or caravan as specified by the manufacturer, with no extra payload.
  

• ATM (Aggregate Trailer Mass): This is the tare weight of your caravan/trailer, plus its maximum payload. The ATM is outlined by the manufacturer and is the maximum your caravan can handle in transit.
  

• GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass): This is the vehicle tare mass plus its maximum payload. The GVM is the maximum weight your vehicle can support, including passengers and payload.
  

• TBM (Tow Ball Mass): The TBM is the weight exerted on the tow ball by your fully loaded caravan – when your caravan is hitched to the tow ball, this mass is included in your tow vehicle’s payload.  
  

• GTM (Gross Trailer Mass): This is the maximum weight that your loaded caravan’s wheels can support – not counting the weight supported by the hitch or jockey wheel. The GTM is a rating set by the manufacturer and cannot be exceeded. GTM = ATM – Tow Ball Mass
  

• GCM (Gross Combined Mass): The GCM means the overall (gross) combined maximum weight of your vehicle and caravan. You won’t often need to consider this. GCM = GTM + GVM
  

You should be able to find the tare, ATM, TBM, and the GTM on the vehicle identification number plate (VIN). Tare excluded, by staying within these weight limits and ensuring proper distribution, you can optimise safety and performance while towing your caravan.

Caravan Mass and Safety Chains:

The weight of your caravan will also determine the number and type of safety chains required while towing:

• Trailers that do not exceed an aggregate trailer mass (ATM) of 2500kg must have at least one safety chain fitted.

• Trailers more than 2500kg and not exceeding 3500kg ATM must have two safety chains of 3500kg designation fitted.

• Trailers more than 3500kg ATM must have two safety chains made from steel of a minimum 800MPa breaking stress. Each chain must be sized such that the minimum breaking load exceeds the ATM.

At Tuson, we’re committed to your safety and peace of mind on the road. By understanding the importance of features like breakaway units, brake controllers, sway control devices, ABS, and weight considerations, you can set off on your caravan adventures with confidence.  

Still have questions? Contact the Tuson team! We’re here to help make every journey safer.