Using A 205 To Tow A Trailer. Any Tips?

[johnnyboy666 195 1 Cars]

I'll be using my 205 to tow a small motorbike trailer to fetch a motorbike on friday, and was wondering if anybody had any tips before I set off.

 

I'll be collecting a trailer, driving about 60 miles to fetch said bike, plonking it on, towing it about 50mile to my house, then another 10 or so miles with the empty trailer back to where it lives.

 

It's a basic single axle motorbike trailer, with the channel up the middle to hold the bike straight. the bike weighs approx 230kg.

 

I've just finished fitting the towbar and will be doing the wiring for the trailer light plug on thursday.

 

Just looking for a few tips on using the 205 to tow really as I havent done it before.

 

I've already raised the rear beam up a bit to account for the extra weight. Would it be worth changing the front ride height at all or leave it as normal? Its on height adjustable coilovers so can lower it or raise it in about 30 seconds if need be.

 

I'll obviously be taking it easy and leaving plenty of braking room at all times.

 

Im wondering if, even though I've raised the height, the 205 might be quite low for the trailer still. I want to avoid the trailer nose pointing down to avoid extra stress on the rear of the car, so would it be wise to use a riser plate to bring the towball up a little?

 

for holding the bike in place I'll be using plenty of beefy ratchet straps, along with some smaller ratchet straps to avoid any wobbling etc.

 

John

[ORB 227 1 Cars]

I would have borrowed a van!

 

Seems a lot of hassle to me for one trip!

[johnnyboy666 195 1 Cars]

worked out a shagload cheaper, thats the main reason! I'd never realised how cheap trailers are to hire compared to vans. Although I'm still under 25 so most van hire places slap a rediculous young person fee on top.

 

And it should be a bit easier to hold the bike steady on a purpose built trailer. Getting the bike off the trailer by myself should be easier too with a bit of luck

[omega 82]

alow extra breaking room

dont forget the breakway chain

spare wheel for trailer?

if you havnt got a spare number plate take the one of the back of the car and use that

rear lights on trailer that should include red triangles

do nor ratchet strap over the bike seat as you never get the mark out,the best way is round the handel bars one strap on each side then through the wheels

if you cant reverse a trailer dont mess about just unhitch it

Edited January 30, 2013 by omega

[Batfink 201]

Omega covered it well enough.

The biggest issue with towing an unbraked trailer will be the poor braking compared to standard. Give yourself plenty of room.

Take a spare wheel, check all tyre pressures. Take a tyre pump.

[johnnyboy666 195 1 Cars]

lots of good advice there thanks yeah I don't intend on reversing it so will unhitch it to turn round. it's a hired one so should be well maintained, and I've got a spare number plate.

a footpump is part of the toolkit I keep in the car anyway.

overall I'll just take it steady. I'll probably be on dual carriageways most of the journey so I should be alright

[Tesstuff 222]

What a woman

 

Don't forget to nip to the Gonads shop before you set off and buy a set

[Wes 86 1 Cars]

what sort of bike is it, road or off road? i used to put a block of wood between the tyre and mud guard on the front of my crosser to secure the suspension, otherwise it bounces about and the straps come lose and it falls over! pretty scary when you look in the mirror and the bike has dissapeared, lucky i was only doing about 20 on a quiet road. and as said above don't strap it over the seat, do it over the rear wheel.

Edited January 30, 2013 by wes205mi

[johnnyboy666 195 1 Cars]

its a road bike; honda gl500. Yeah I had already planned to avoid lots of suspension movement, should be able to acheive it with ratchet strap with a bit of luck.

 

What a woman

 

Don't forget to nip to the Gonads shop before you set off and buy a set

Well I figured that the bike wouldnt fit in the back of my personal chauffeur's 405 diesel, however nippy it may be, so unfortunately I have to learn to tow!

[mogsman 2]

As Omega says and take your time.The gl is heavy, I have a cx500. Just don't drop it, they're a pain to pick back up being top heavy.

Ian

[omega 82]

What a woman

 

Don't forget to nip to the Gonads shop before you set off and buy a set

 

part of being a man is knowing when to ask for help/advice

another part of being a man is takeing that advice

part of being a boy is talking gonads.

[TooMany2cvs 65]

I've already raised the rear beam up a bit to account for the extra weight. Would it be worth changing the front ride height at all or leave it as normal? Its on height adjustable coilovers so can lower it or raise it in about 30 seconds if need be.

If you've loaded it correctly, there should be next to no extra weight on the car's suspension - maximum nose weight (the downward load on the tow ball) is usually about 50kg max. You want some noseweight, though, to stop it snaking. Snaking's bloody scary, and if it gets out of hand, it WILL get very messy. I once misloaded a car trailer, and had a pair of HGVs sitting side-by-side 200m behind me on the M42 doing a rolling roadblock with their hazards on keeping everything else away from me... Still not sure quite how I managed to get it back in shape...

Im wondering if, even though I've raised the height, the 205 might be quite low for the trailer still. I want to avoid the trailer nose pointing down to avoid extra stress on the rear of the car, so would it be wise to use a riser plate to bring the towball up a little?

Using a drop plate as a riser is a "somebody else's bargepole" - drop plates on 4x4s are OK, because the bars are designed for them - but risers change the loading on the bar mounting points too much.

 

A quick google finds a whole bunch of "Run away!" comments - this is typical... http://www.youngcaravan.org/forum/index.php?topic=4365.0

 

If it does put too much noseweight on, just move the bike back a bit on the trailer if you can.

Edited January 30, 2013 by TooMany2cvs

[Tesstuff 222]

 

part of being a man is knowing when to ask for help/advice

another part of being a man is takeing that advice

part of being a boy is talking gonads.

It is a joke between good friends, chill out, nose out, I won't tell you again.