randallb wrote: This is why we trailer. Everything is welded and a quick check of the drawbar pin, tongue, and the locks is all that is necessary. Takes me about five minutes to load, check, and leave.
We've towed a Saturn 4 down for 5 years and the only problems that I had were self inflicted. Somehow, I managed to leave a safety cable loose enough that it came off while we were driving and a passing trucker saw the sparks from it and signaled me.
I guess that is my point. With either a 4 down or a trailer, assuming that you cannot leave the trailer attached all of the time, you still have hookups to do and the potential for errors and distractions while doing them. I've made a rule that no one talks to me while I'm hooking up the toad so that I don't get distracted but the potential is always there to make mistakes and do something wrong.
Before assuming a mechanical failure, I'd assume human error as a cause of the OP's toad loss situation. Yes, I do have a aux brake system and yes, it does have a breakaway feature. More important, I periodically check the breakaway to make sure that it will activate and apply the toad's brakes. I suspect that many RVs, whether they are TTs or toads with aux brake systems have never had the breakaway feature tested or that it was only tested once. What good is a system that isn't periodically maintained?
The hitch came off the ball> That can also happen to randallb and his trailer. Nothing is totally fool-proof. I bet his trailer weighs more than his Smart car.
Catastrophic failure can always occur, but the fewer things to check the better. Like I said; ck the chains, ck the locks on the coupler and drawbar pin, and leave. No crawling under the car to ck for loose bolts on the base plates. I also ck the adjustment of the receiver when I off load the car. This simple ck will let me know if there is something going on with the ball or coupler. By the way bs the trailer weighs 500# (2990 gvw) and the Smart is 1880# wet. These two items were purchased for that reason.
In June 08 while traveling across the UP of Michigan on US 2, we stopped at a
walmart. We were only inside for about 15 minutes. When we came out I did my usual walk-round. I noticed the lock in the towbar had been cut and the latch on the hitch was up (Ready to remove) They must of seen us coming and we couldn't see them, because the coach was in the way. Had we just driven off the toad would have surely come loose. It always pays to do a walkaround prior to getting on the road
AS many of you, DW and I have a routine too. I hook everything up. Then get in the RV while she goes back and checks everything from brake lights, turn signals, and the complete hook-up. She has on occasion spotted a problem. Not long ago I forgot to attach the braking cylinder to the brake peddle. Another time I had forgotten to attach the brake-away cable. Then I start to move forward engaging everything and I make a slight turn to the right or left to make sure the car will turn as well. We see more than a fair amount of people, hook-up and drive away, never checking their work a second time. You know, pilots have a check list which is done by at least two people everytime. Not just occasionally, but everytime without fail. As Iwasouth does, I too walk around everytime we stop and leave the RV-toad. I too keep everything locked to help prevent tampering, but if they are intent on stealing something, they will.
BarbaraOK wrote: OK which is it - the base plate or the coming off of the ball? Big difference, at least in my mind, as to the cause of the accident.
From the OP's description, it sounds like one of those setups where the towbar is permanently attached to the toad and the arms swing forward, capturing the ball on the MH hitch. My Dr. friend used to tow his Jeep like that. The setup is just like a trailer except that the arms fold the coupler back against the bumper of the toad when not in use.
When I tow boats, I put a lock through the coupler so things like that cannot happen. Who is to say if it is the coupler breaking or just not properly latched to the ball. I lost a 3,500lb sailboat off my van because the nut came off the bottom of the ball and the ball pulled up through the receiver. Fortunately for me, the safety cables held, the boat wasn't damaged and there was only a small hand sized dent on the back door of the van before I got everything stopped and on the side of the road.
I'm always curious about toad related accidents. If the patterns follow true, most accidents are 75% human error and 25% mechanical failure. The safest thing to do for any setup is don't screw up when making the connections.
Offline
