Alko secure

[spj]

Hi all,

how good are these wheel clamps, I am due to collect my new twin axle next weekend which has the Alko secure wheel clamps fitted to two wheels, I know I will have to jack up the van to fit both units which I can live with, but does anyone know of a van being stolen with these fitted?

spj

 

[Earlybird]

spj I have not herd of one lost so far i work my mover to put them on but the big + is Insurance cc@c give A good discount on them William

 

[Mikey1]

Just a thought on these Alko locks,surely its not a good idea to keep jacking up your van?The sides are only bonded together and they do flex.

I rememeber changing a punture on the front wheel of a twin axle and the van did creak abit,whilst jacked up i opened the door to get the step out and the door was out of line.

If you caravan a lot i wonder what long term damage you are doing?

 

[JimC]

Good point Mikey, I also have the receivers on my twin axle van. But even with a good 2 tonne jack its very difficult to lift just for maintenance work let alone every time you pitch up.They are also a massive price to buy, and why do insures insist you fit a pair on a twin axle. It would not make it easier for a thief to remove just the one surely.

Jim

 

[paul_374227907]

very good point mikey, i have just got a brand new twin axle van and i didnt even know you had to jack it up to install the clamps when i did this for the first time it creaked like crazy, think ill keep an eye on this matter might even contact al-ko and the van Manufacture see what they have to say about this, i will post any reply that i get form them

paul

 

[metz]

Hi Folks, I attended a training course at Alko last week, they said as far as they know no caravan had been stolen when fitted with the secure wheel lock, in fact when they get called out to remove one they have to cut it of with gas cutter, the lastest model is being modified to prevent this. It is vital that you register your clamp,otherwise you will not get a replacement key,if you buy a used van with one fitted make sure the seller de-registers and then you have to reregister.

 

[spj]

Hi all,

we picked up the new van at the weekend, and the Alko Secure locks look robust and are easy enough to use.

I jacked up the van with a trolley jack at both sides as I needed to remove the front wheels to nose the van into its space and it didnt creak at all, the door also opened and shut as normal when jacked up, I did use the Alko jacking points behind the second axle but if the door would not line up when jacked up it would worry me although the sealers used are flexible it must have some long term effect on the structure of the van.

spj.

 

[paul_374227907]

Hi all,

we picked up the new van at the weekend, and the Alko Secure locks look robust and are easy enough to use.

I jacked up the van with a trolley jack at both sides as I needed to remove the front wheels to nose the van into its space and it didnt creak at all, the door also opened and shut as normal when jacked up, I did use the Alko jacking points behind the second axle but if the door would not line up when jacked up it would worry me although the sealers used are flexible it must have some long term effect on the structure of the van.

spj.

hi all

just to let you know i spoke to....alko, coachman and my dealers service department they all said the same thing "there are know issues what so ever regarding jacking up your caravan to install the alko wheel clamps (even regular) as long as you use the alko jacking points" a tip also they said was to install the front wheel first and jackup the rear wheel then you dont need to jack as high as the rear wheel raises first.

paul

 

[paul_374227907]

hi all

just to let you know i spoke to....alko, coachman and my dealers service department they all said the same thing "there are know issues what so ever regarding jacking up your caravan to install the alko wheel clamps (even regular) as long as you use the alko jacking points" a tip also they said was to install the front wheel first and jackup the rear wheel then you dont need to jack as high as the rear wheel raises first.

paul

 

[Mikey1]

hi all

just to let you know i spoke to....alko, coachman and my dealers service department they all said the same thing "there are know issues what so ever regarding jacking up your caravan to install the alko wheel clamps (even regular) as long as you use the alko jacking points" a tip also they said was to install the front wheel first and jackup the rear wheel then you dont need to jack as high as the rear wheel raises first.

paul

I think time will tell on the effects of continualy jacking up your van.

I wonder what the manufacturers and dealers think is the average time the vans are used in the year.?

I did hear that they think its 5-6 times a year,i use my in excess than that.Quite a few vans in my storage area are brand new and only used once a year.

 

[sylv_374228951]

Good point Mikey, I also have the receivers on my twin axle van. But even with a good 2 tonne jack its very difficult to lift just for maintenance work let alone every time you pitch up.They are also a massive price to buy, and why do insures insist you fit a pair on a twin axle. It would not make it easier for a thief to remove just the one surely.

Jim

Its pretty obvious really. If you only have one lock, a thief can the let the tyre down on the wheel that has the lock then tow away on three wheels. And of course it would take longer to remover two locks than one, which is surely the idea of putting security devices on in the first place, that is to cost a thief as much time as possible.

 

[Thorpedo]

Imagine, driving 300 miles with your double axle van, It's dark heaving with rain, grass is boggy. I've reversed a tight angle onto my pitch. I'm ready for food and loads of wine!

Now, to meet insurance (and basic security) requirements, I need to jack up 1.8 tons of van, chock the wheels, take off handbrake, rotate the wheels to fit Alko wheel locks machined to almost millimeter perfect fitting to the wheel vents.

All before I can connect up, get the cooker on or go to the pub, unload the car and the fammily.

I carry a trolley jack and extra wood as a stable base for the jack.

Is it me? is it dangerous ? does anyone else have the same prob ?

If I use locking wheel nuts could I remove the Alko red casting and just use the stainless locking part ?

 

[spj]

Hi all,

After collecting the new van in November we have now had 43 nights away, we did not use it in December or January and apart from the last two weeks we have had no time off from full time work, so most use has been weekends on rallies. Every time the van is parked the locks go on, this is at home and on site, we stopped for a couple of hours sleep at a motorway services in the van and the locks went on. Our caravan came with the Alko Secures as standard and also came with an Alko jack with jacking points to locate the jack, this is very easy to use and on soft ground I put a corner steady pad under the jack, it takes less than five minutes to align and fit both locks and when still coupled to the car it is perfectly safe, I also use an Alko hitch lock as I kept it from my previous caravan, five minutes at the end of each journey is a small price to pay to keep my caravan and meet the insurance requirements although none of this should be necessary but even if caught the law will do little to a theif. If the red casting is removed, access to the lock will be easier with burning gear and it wont be as effective, the tight fit makes it harder to get into. With what looks like such an effective lock, it surprses me that all caravans dont come with them as standard, all the aftermarket wheel clamps can be cut off in seconds quietly with no damage to the wheel and are simply a waste of money, with caravan theft so common I believe the manufacturers should make every effort to prevent theft. Then again some dont even have a spare wheel, but who in the right mind would travel without one? My previous caravan was an Avondale, this came standard with a spare wheel but no jack! some manufacturers seem to cut costs in stupid places.

spj.