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Post by doublechevron on Dec 30, 2016 12:54:12 GMT 10
John needs this for his Zepher .....  How sweet is that, it just popped up for sale on one of the facebook groups. A towing dolly. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2016 15:03:18 GMT 10
John needs this for his Zepher ..... Zephyr How sweet is that, it just popped up for sale on one of the facebook groups. A towing dolly. Not likely to my way of thinking they are madness I can not see how they could possible be safe  |
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Post by greedy53 on Dec 30, 2016 20:34:41 GMT 10
try and remember that the tow cars were underpowered so speed was not a option,i can remember my sister and me riding in the van on our way to somewhere with our baby brother with us,hate to think what would happen to dad these days
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Post by 78466noM on Dec 31, 2016 9:03:34 GMT 10
That dolly would make a good garden ornament it would take a lot of weight off the tow ball of tow vehicle but cause a lot of other problems eg if you swerve with trailer attached to vehicle trailer will swerve out attached to dolly the same trailer will whip out very fast and in a bigger arc , I have never seen one used on road but it would be excellent for farm work slow and allow more weight in trailer less weight on tow vehicle means less chance of sinking in paddock. If you have seen a dog trailer whip from side to side when the driver has moved too quick in lane that is what would happen at speed with the dolly I have also been told you have to be constantly fully alert in a road train as with three trailers there is a dolly under the two rear trailers.
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Post by atefooterz on Dec 31, 2016 10:59:01 GMT 10
try and remember that the tow cars were underpowered so speed was not a option,i can remember my sister and me riding in the van on our way to somewhere with our baby brother with us,hate to think what would happen to dad these days I remember hours stuck behind convoys of caravans on the single lane Pacific Highway, in the early to mid 70s & noticing most Viscounts started swaying over 65-70klmph the Franklins 70-80 klmph, Along that 100klm zone  |
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Post by bobt on Jan 2, 2017 20:54:31 GMT 10
I saw one being used in the late 60's. Being a car nut I was always on the the lookout. It was attached to the back of a VW beetle with a franklin caravan hooked on it.I do recall my father being very pleased to discover they were going in the opposite direction to us.
I think there are a couple of Vintage Vanners that still use them..
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Post by 78466noM on Jan 4, 2017 9:50:18 GMT 10
Over the Christmas break I have noticed at least three modern caravans being towed by vehicles with standard mirrors all full width vans two were medium 4x4 and a wagon. The trouble with this is the blind spots are the whole of the rear of vehicle changing lanes would be turn wheel hope for the best Mr Magoo sort of driving. Towing can be stressful enough for people who don't do it all the time but to do it blind would stress out even the people who do tow all the time.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2017 10:20:00 GMT 10
Over the Christmas break I have noticed at least three modern caravans being towed by vehicles with standard mirrors all full width vans two were medium 4x4 and a wagon. The trouble with this is the blind spots are the whole of the rear of vehicle changing lanes would be turn wheel hope for the best Mr Magoo sort of driving. Towing can be stressful enough for people who don't do it all the time but to do it blind would stress out even the people who do tow all the time. This is the problem we have when towing with the Zephyr , it has the mirrors on the front guards as can be seen in my avatar so unable to use clip ons the Viscount is 7' wide so we seem to manage but I have a wireless rear view camera I intend to fit which is activated by the tail lights not reverse light hopefully this will overcome the blind spot , we have similar on our motorhome and that works a treat |
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Post by Warrenk on Jan 4, 2017 14:35:00 GMT 10
Over the Christmas break I have noticed at least three modern caravans being towed by vehicles with standard mirrors all full width vans two were medium 4x4 and a wagon. The trouble with this is the blind spots are the whole of the rear of vehicle changing lanes would be turn wheel hope for the best Mr Magoo sort of driving. Towing can be stressful enough for people who don't do it all the time but to do it blind would stress out even the people who do tow all the time. I travel on the western end of the Warrego Hwy and Ipswich Rd on reasonably regular basis and I see anything from 6 -20 caravans depending on the day and time. On the caravaners forum in middle of last year there was a post about people not using towing mirrors so out curiosity I started to take notice of caravan tow vehicles that do not any suitable mirrors. The numbers of people not using tow mirrors(and breaking the law) on their vehicles consistently averages out to about 25 - 30 %. ADR 14/02 is the rule that tells you what the field of vision behind your vehicle should be. If an accident were to happen due to not having the correct field of vision it would a fine and possibility of not be paid out by your insurance company. Below is a pararagrah from the ADR relating to the drivers side(passenger side has similar wording). There a few different mirrors it lists with different field of vision, but this "which is parallel to the median longitudinal vertical plane and passing through the outermost point of the vehicle " is the same for every mirror. "The field of vision must be such that the driver can see at least a 5 m wide, flat, horizontal portion of the road, which is bounded by a plane which is parallel to the median longitudinal vertical plane and passing through the outermost point of the vehicle on the driver's side of the vehicle and extends from 30 m behind the driver's ocular points to the horizon." Retired John, Although this ADR does talk about review cameras it appears the use of them to be only legal for large trucks. Warren |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2017 15:07:27 GMT 10
Over the Christmas break I have noticed at least three modern caravans being towed by vehicles with standard mirrors all full width vans two were medium 4x4 and a wagon. The trouble with this is the blind spots are the whole of the rear of vehicle changing lanes would be turn wheel hope for the best Mr Magoo sort of driving. Towing can be stressful enough for people who don't do it all the time but to do it blind would stress out even the people who do tow all the time. I travel on the western end of the Warrego Hwy and Ipswich Rd on reasonably regular basis and I see anything from 6 -20 caravans depending on the day and time. On the caravaners forum in middle of last year there was a post about people not using towing mirrors so out curiosity I started to take notice of caravan tow vehicles that do not any suitable mirrors. The numbers of people not using tow mirrors(and breaking the law) on their vehicles consistently averages out to about 25 - 30 %. ADR 14/02 is the rule that tells you what the field of vision behind your vehicle should be. If an accident were to happen due to not having the correct field of vision it would a fine and possibility of not be paid out by your insurance company. Below is a pararagrah from the ADR relating to the drivers side(passenger side has similar wording). There a few different mirrors it lists with different field of vision, but this "which is parallel to the median longitudinal vertical plane and passing through the outermost point of the vehicle " is the same for every mirror. "The field of vision must be such that the driver can see at least a 5 m wide, flat, horizontal portion of the road, which is bounded by a plane which is parallel to the median longitudinal vertical plane and passing through the outermost point of the vehicle on the driver's side of the vehicle and extends from 30 m behind the driver's ocular points to the horizon." Retired John, Although this ADR does talk about review cameras it appears the use of them to be only legal for large trucks. Warren Well that IS interesting I have in fact asked the local plod about this when pulled in on the way to a vv event at Evans Head and their answer was, so long as you can see the rear corners of the van in the mirrors it is fine which because of the well forward site of the mirrors I can JUST but when I also enquired re the reversing cam but wired in permanently he said it was a good idea for "tailgaters" which is why we put one in the motorhome in the first place  The difference is the old '68 Viscount is only 7' wide not 8' like many new units , however saying that a set of wider mirrors would be nice if it were possible to fit them without damage to the vehicle . I do believe the plod view H plate cars and vans differently because for a start we do not even have seat belts  some do not have indicators and other vintage models have brakes on 2 wheels only or a band on the tailshaft and all are legal to drive on the road . I agree however re modern units we see many d/cab utes towing blocks of flats with standard mirrors which is madness and not just because of the mirror situation |
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Post by doublechevron on Jan 5, 2017 10:33:10 GMT 10
I travel on the western end of the Warrego Hwy and Ipswich Rd on reasonably regular basis and I see anything from 6 -20 caravans depending on the day and time. On the caravaners forum in middle of last year there was a post about people not using towing mirrors so out curiosity I started to take notice of caravan tow vehicles that do not any suitable mirrors. The numbers of people not using tow mirrors(and breaking the law) on their vehicles consistently averages out to about 25 - 30 %. ADR 14/02 is the rule that tells you what the field of vision behind your vehicle should be. If an accident were to happen due to not having the correct field of vision it would a fine and possibility of not be paid out by your insurance company. Below is a pararagrah from the ADR relating to the drivers side(passenger side has similar wording). There a few different mirrors it lists with different field of vision, but this "which is parallel to the median longitudinal vertical plane and passing through the outermost point of the vehicle " is the same for every mirror. "The field of vision must be such that the driver can see at least a 5 m wide, flat, horizontal portion of the road, which is bounded by a plane which is parallel to the median longitudinal vertical plane and passing through the outermost point of the vehicle on the driver's side of the vehicle and extends from 30 m behind the driver's ocular points to the horizon." Retired John, Although this ADR does talk about review cameras it appears the use of them to be only legal for large trucks. Warren Well that IS interesting I have in fact asked the local plod about this when pulled in on the way to a vv event at Evans Head and their answer was, so long as you can see the rear corners of the van in the mirrors it is fine which because of the well forward site of the mirrors I can JUST but when I also enquired re the reversing cam but wired in permanently he said it was a good idea for "tailgaters" which is why we put one in the motorhome in the first place The difference is the old '68 Viscount is only 7' wide not 8' like many new units , however saying that a set of wider mirrors would be nice if it were possible to fit them without damage to the vehicle . I do believe the plod view H plate cars and vans differently because for a start we do not even have seat belts some do not have indicators and other vintage models have brakes on 2 wheels only or a band on the tailshaft and all are legal to drive on the road . I agree however re modern units we see many d/cab utes towing blocks of flats with standard mirrors which is madness and not just because of the mirror situation they probably have those super expensive "clearview" towing mirror. They are installed where the standard mirrors are, but can be extended outward for towing. eg: www.ebay.com.au/itm/BettaView-Caravan-Towing-Mirrors-Toyota-Landcruiser-200-Series-With-Indicators-/141911166302?hash=item210a908d5e:g:3yAAAOSwGjpXTZ-Zseeya Shane L. |
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Post by Warrenk on Jan 5, 2017 11:28:37 GMT 10
Well that IS interesting I have in fact asked the local plod about this when pulled in on the way to a vv event at Evans Head and their answer was, so long as you can see the rear corners of the van in the mirrors it is fine Now if owned an Olympic you would be trouble as they are curved along the side and the back is 60mm narrower than the middle. Towing with my late model Falcon, fitted with flat glass legal tow mirrors, the only time I see that back corner is when I go around a bend or a corner. Warren |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2017 11:40:38 GMT 10
Well that IS interesting I have in fact asked the local plod about this when pulled in on the way to a vv event at Evans Head and their answer was, so long as you can see the rear corners of the van in the mirrors it is fine Now if owned an Olympic you would be trouble as they are curved along the side and the back is 60mm narrower than the middle. Towing with my late model Falcon, fitted with flat glass legal tow mirrors, the only time I see that back corner is when I go around a bend or a corner. Warren I was keen on an Olympic originally but they are way too heavy for my old girl in fact the reason the previous owner sold it was because he had an Olympic and it struggled with towing it , one we looked at had a rego tare of 680kg and empty over the weighbridge went 1025 , I was told later they were often rego'd and sold as a lock up shell and the owners finished them inside this way rego was much cheaper |
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Post by 78466noM on Jan 7, 2017 9:23:23 GMT 10
Retired John your police officer would be right your mirrors forward on the front guards would give you much better vision rearward with van on than if they were mounted on the doors. I had a pair of towing mirrors in the eighties that either sat on the window frame edge or on the edge of the guard under the bonnet the ends were coated in thick plastic though it was still better to put a small bit of cotton rag under them to be safe and it had an adjustable arm that sat under wheel arch or bottom of door depending on where you set it up.I don't know if you can still get them but they did work well.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2017 10:40:12 GMT 10
www.ebay.com.au/itm/302046924450?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AITLike these ? I like the idea but I have no clearance between the bonnet and guard strange as it seems the Zephyr's panels are all very close tolerance  what we are considering is a mesh stone guard which will fit to the front by a slide in mount under the front bumper bar so when removed the bracket is not obvious then have a set similar to those or the over bonnet type fitted across the top of the stone guard , it would be ugly but save the front from stone damage and be effective to see more to the rear 
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Post by 78466noM on Jan 8, 2017 15:37:47 GMT 10
A modern take on what I had.
sounds like a good idea for your mirrors and the zephyr's where made well maybe too well with tight body fittings.
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Post by tasmillard on Jan 8, 2017 22:08:50 GMT 10
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
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Post by doublechevron on Jan 9, 2017 18:39:16 GMT 10
Just for you Shane  That is spectacular ... I can see it from home. The network at work hides your pictures! It sure looks nice and level .... and well setup. I wouldn't have expected any issue with that Lets face it, were not towing at any high speeds with old cars! As an extra "safety" thing, you can't beat electric breaks too. If you fit electric brakes you can apply just the caravan brakes from the car.... So if she starts getting out of shape, you floor the towcar and apply the caravan brakes ..... pulling it instantly straight (especially so if your towing with a front wheel drive). seeya Shane L. |
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Post by Warrenk on Jan 9, 2017 18:52:43 GMT 10
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Theres a draw just waiting to break, but on a brighter note there no shortage of ball weight. Warren |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2017 18:57:43 GMT 10
We rebuilt the suspension and fitted 10" electrics but left the over ride slide coupling on for authenticity so when towed by the Z which has a tekonsha controller fitted we flip the stopper and if towed by the Honda flip it open and it has over ride brakes :- the problem was the 185/80 radials on 4 1/2" rims the rims moved within the balloon now we have 175 8ply LT tyres all round van and car and it travels at the speed limit with ease
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Post by Warrenk on Jan 9, 2017 19:58:45 GMT 10
When we bought our Olympic the previous owner had replaced the overide brakes with electric brakes, but kept the over ride coupling and he told me that he leaves the lever up on the coupling so he as the best of both worlds, mechanical over electrical. I have replaced the axle and brakes with a new drum to drum axle. I was talking to the person taking my order at trailer place and I mentioned how our caravan was set up. He then said that using the hand brake as mechanical brakes was not a terribly smart idea as the backing plates on electric brakes a not as strong as mechanical brake backing plates. There is the possibility of the backing plates distorting and reduce their effectiveness. I don't know how true this is, but it sounds feasible. Warren |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2017 20:25:20 GMT 10
Fair enough but the van is unlikely to be towed by anything other than the Z it is just to keep it looking original and give some safety to IF we need to move it with another car sans controller anything would be better than the old 8" over rides |
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Post by 78466noM on Jan 10, 2017 8:21:22 GMT 10
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2017 8:50:16 GMT 10
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Post by 78466noM on Jan 10, 2017 9:12:51 GMT 10
retired john it is cheaper your way leaving the original hitch with the latch flipped is probably much stronger than the electric brake coupling and like you said looks the part on your set up I probably wouldn't have thought of doing it your way. But if I change my van to electric brakes which will probably happen just waiting to see how well the new 9inch work or not I will do the same as you with the hitch just so it looks better.
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The difference is the old '68 Viscount is only 7' wide not 8' like many new units , however saying that a set of wider mirrors would be nice if it were possible to fit them without damage to the vehicle . I do believe the plod view H plate cars and vans differently because for a start we do not even have seat belts 
some do not have indicators and other vintage models have brakes on 2 wheels only or a band on the tailshaft and all are legal to drive on the road . I agree however re modern units we see many d/cab utes towing blocks of flats with standard mirrors which is madness and not just because of the mirror situation 
what we are considering is a mesh stone guard which will fit to the front by a slide in mount under the front bumper bar so when removed the bracket is not obvious 
