Creaking hitch

[brian_c]

I think I am able to post now after a few failures.
I am after a bit of advice re my Bailey Ranger caravan.
On our last outing we had just set off home when we heard a slight creaking from what we assumed was the hitch. Whilst travelling straight or through normal bends in the road no problem, but when making actual slow speed turn both left and right at road junctions we had the creaking sound.
We were able to stop within a short distance of hearing it and were also lucky to be able to pull onto a virtually deserted industrial area.
I unhitched the van and checked the stabiliser pads they were lined up ok no breaks cracks or grit and the tow ball was clean and dry.
I even pulled and tugged at the tow bar on the car having convinced myself that it was about to fall off but all was well.
I re-hitched the van but did not engage the stabiliser I then drove along the road making tight slow speed turns and again we had the creaking.
I re-engaged the stabiliser and then carried on home stopping about four times at various laybys to make sure everything looked ok.
The van towed fine other than the slight creaking a junctions.
I will have to take the van back to the dealer (100 mile round trip) because we are covered by warranty but would like to have some kind of an idea of what the problem could be.
I would appreciate any thoughts anyone may have.
I should have mentioned the van was serviced in January and has only covered about 400 miles since.
Best regards to all
Brian

 

[Sproket]

Did you check the nose weight before hitching up ?

If it is still creaking when the stabiliser handle is not down, i would be a bit concerned as to what is making the noise.
I would also be looking for tell tale signs of movement from the all of the bolts that secure the tow bar onto the car .
How long has the tow bar been fitted ?
Is your tug a Diesel ?

 

[brian_c]

Hello There Yes I checked the nose weight I have always had problems getting to the 75kg the cars limit so I load very little within the van. The tow bar has been fitted about a year now and feels has solid as a rock.
The car is a two litre focus diesel the whole outfit fits well within all the recomended towing levels. I have never had any problems previously and the Caravan is only 20 months old.
I presume the dealers may have an answer but I have a inbuilt mistrust of most main dealerships both car and caravan.
When I collected the van initially brand new they hadn't even carried out the initial PDI .
I will get under the car and have another check of the tow bar security but swinging my 16 stone on it in I suppose a crude way it feels solid. I believe to get at the fixings I need to remove the rear bumper.
Cheers for the reply
Brian

Cheers for now Brian

 

[Bluebird1]

Had similar noises with my bailey ranger. I solved mine by cleaning the tow ball
with some fine emery cloth I also used the emery cloth to remove the glaze off the friction pads

 

[Damian]

Creaking is almost always due to dirt on the towball and friction pads.
It is especially noticeable on diesel engined cars.
Before each hitch up, make sure the towball is thoroughly clean , bright metal with no paint at all on the ball.
Use emery paper followed by spray brake cleaner.
Use emery on the friction pads and give the whole inside of the hitch coupling a good clean with brake cleaner.

 

[Sproket]

The car is a two litre focus diesel

Brian,
Have a read of this :
Having had the problem previously drawn to their attention, Alko had carried
out detailed tests on the carbon deposits found on the pad surfaces. The tests revealed the carbon
to have been derived from exhaust emissions in particular those of diesel cars.
The conclusions drawn was that not all diesel powered vehicles will cause the contamination as
several other factors have to be considered, like the position of the exhaust to the tow hitch, the
design of the vehicle and air movements around such whilst travelling etc
Regular checks and cleaning should prevent noise re-occurence.

Page 4 & 5 servicing & cleaning

http://www.al-ko.co.uk/edit/files/handbooks/aks-3004-handbook.pdf

 

[brian_c]

Hello all thank you for your replies. I have given the tow ball and stabiliser a good clean with fine emery cloth and blown any dust out, I intend going to the car spares shop tomorrow for the spray break cleaner.
Then I shall have a bit of a test run. However It takes about 25 mins to get the caravan to the road at home I have to take out a section of fence and manoeuvre the van across the front of the house then up the drive.
A bit of a pain really but nice and secure and worth the effort to enable us to keep the van at home.
(Also after three years the mover costs will be covered by not having to use the local storage facilities that seem to raise their prices every year)
I did try on our way home last time a few turns with the stabiliser arm not lowered and the creaking was still there but obviously the hitch was still bearing down on the tow ball.
I may be a day or two before I actuall test the van but will report back.

Again thank you all for your comments
Best Regards Brian

 

[Mel]

hi brian. We have an ongoing creaking problem with our hitch (a winterhoff stabiliser). However the long tow to Harwich seemed to solve it! Assume it wore off the muck that I had failed to get to.

We used to have a van with an Alko stabiliser that had a creaking problem. Turned out we didn't have an extended neck towball and when we got one the noise stopped (funny that)
Mel

 

[Gagakev]

Hi Brian I posted the exact same question a couple of weeks ago Creaking Noise
Sprayed break cleaner back then and tomorrow it is going into temp storage
Going to take everyone's advice and give it all a good clean with fine emery paper, towball and hicth then spray again, also as there will be less weight in the van will do a nose weight check before the off, try with stabiliser in position then if it still creaks release it and see what happens.
I will report back tomorrow and let you know how I get on.

 

[brian_c]

Hello Mel. I am going to buy a tin of brake cleaner and give the ball and socket a good going over. I have the correct Tow ball fitted so no worrys there. It's just frustrating that towing to site on our last outing we had no problems but returning home the week after the creaking showed itself. I have just been reading an Alco link that Sir Sproket posted for me and they mention the greasing of the hitch shaft. I presume this should have been done at the service in January but I am going to ease the protective Gaiter back in the morning to see if there is any grease present. However others on the site have convinced me that the cleanliness of the stabiliser pads and tow ball are critical so I am going to concentrate on getting that right.
Thanks for your post.
Brian

 

[brian_c]

Thanks for that Sir Gagakev it appears my problem is not unique quite a few people have had it at one time or another.
Thanks for your comment and I hope your problem is resolved soon.
Regards Brian

 

[Damian]

With regard to the greasingof the drawbar, that should have been done during the service.
#Easing the gaiter back probably will not help you at all as the grease amount will not be evident on the drawtube as it is contained behind a seal at each end of the tube, so you may only see a thin smear on the exposed tube.

 

[brian_c]

Thanks for the advice Damion. I feel that the servicing was done correctly I used a guy who is mobile but registered under the approved workshop scheme and I did check with Bailey re-warranty cover and they confirmed that he was on their approved list.
I was very impressed with the way he carried out the service appeared to be very thorough.
As I have mentioned in previous posts and following you earlier advice I am going to get a tin of the brake cleaner and give the Ball and hitch socket a thorough clean tomorrow (Saturday)
thanks again for your comments.
best regards Brian

 

[Gagakev]

Hi Brian as promised a full run down, before I took the van to storage I ;

Checked the nuts were tight on the tow hitch
Checked the tow bar fixings to the tow vehicle
Clean tow ball with emery paper and brake cleaner
Clean hitch "as above"
Checked nose weight and got it to 80kgs (normally travel at 85kgs)
Travelled 3 miles to storage

And the result was brilliant no squeaks or creaks UNTIL the last corner to the storage site then a very minor one but I couldnt go any further as I was at the end of the site, so just hope it doesnt happen when I collect it
Let us know how you get on, good luck

 

[Robtel]

With regards to the contamination of stabiliser pads when towing with a diesel vehicle. I do clean the pads and towball before every journey and spray both with brake cleaner but have found on a couple of occasions that I still had the dreaded "groans" when towing. First time I removed the stabiliser pads I found they had glazed over, they were perfectly clean in as far as no grit was there and wiping and then spraying with brake cleaner made no difference. A gentle scraping with a sharp blade and the glaze came off in flakes, a rub down then with fine emery and spray with brake cleaner and all was well. I have had to do this a couple of times over the past few years, not more than once a year. Removing the pads is a straight forward job, takes no more than a couple of minutes, full details on the alko website. Hope this helps.

Robert

 

[brian_c]

Thamk you gents for your comments. I have carried out the cleaning and spraying but will not be able to have a test run for a few days yet.
I will remove and clean the pads as described if needed before returning the van to the side of the house, then I can have another test run.
I still have slight worries because when I first heard the creaking I did lift the stabiliser arm and tried a few turns with it disengaged and the creaking was still there.
Thanks again for your comments I will post my results when I have had another run.
Regards Brian

 

[brian_c]

Thank you to all for you valued advice. I set off this morning and towed over eighty
miles. Including quite a lot of tight junctions. No trace of creaking.
Regular cleaning and brake cleaning spray from now on.
Thank's again. Brian

 

[forestgump]

are you shaw its not your suspention creacking as i thought my tow ball was making a groan but found it to be creaky suspention in dry hot(the one day)conditions its ok now as the rain lubricates it.

 

[brian_c]

I Have never given the suspension a thought Forest. I presumed it was in some way due to the hitch either the greasing or the ball connection. And I must admit I have never really cleaned the stabiliser pads although I have always given the tow ball a quick wipe over with a cloth. Now following the advice from this post I have given them both a good clean with fine emery paper along with a good spray of brake cleaning fluid. My recent outing was "Creak" Free so I feel the advice from here has sorted me out.
I will keep in mind your comments re-the suspension although if rain lubricates it a little my recent outings have all been in pouring rain. It has got where my neighbours all moan and groan when I get the van out because I am noted for going away in the Rain.
Indeed our recent trip was to the York area during the recent flood conditions!
Thank you for your post and also all who have responded.
best regards Brian

 

[Merlin53]

Try this, I clean and spray the towball with a small amount of WD40 before I hitch up the 'van, this has 'cured' any movement noises when motoring. Another point to remember, you should lift up the Alko lock handle when reversing, I notice many people reversing without doing this! Perhaps this causes the problem of noise when you reconnect the 'van and then drive off!

 

[Sproket]

Try this, I clean and spray the towball with a small amount of WD40 before I hitch up the 'van, this has 'cured' any movement noises when motoring. Another point to remember, you should lift up the Alko lock handle when reversing, I notice many people reversing without doing this! Perhaps this causes the problem of noise when you reconnect the 'van and then drive off!

DO NOT USE WD40 YOUR TOWBALL !

It is a lubricant & not suitable.

That's the reason you don't get any

noises............

 

[WoodlandsCamper]

Another point to remember, you should lift up the Alko lock handle when reversing

Why? For what purpose?

 

[Damian]

Quote " Why? For what purpose?"

It makes it less stressful on the hitch head and towball to release the friction pads., and makes manoeuvering easier for the van to change direction.

When towing normally you want the van to remain in a straight line behind the vehicle, which is what the hitch damper helps with.
On site you want movement.

 

[WoodlandsCamper]

Thank you Damian, there's always something new to learn.

 

[Gagakev]

As in previous post reported slight creak after cleaning and checking and arriving at storage, collected van and still slight creaking so did what Rob-T suggested
remove pads and de-glaze them, amazing how stubborn it was to remove it, just done 149 miles both ways and not a squeak.
So thanks Rob.