Discovery detachable towhitch clonking when towing

[dallavalle]

We tow an Elddis Crusader Cyclone twin axle caravan with a Discovery 3. We have a detachable towball and when hitched up and travelling we get a knocking and clucking noise from the hitch. We have been back to the Landrover dealers who fitted from new and they say there is no problem with the hitch. Has anybody experienced similier.

 

[MichaelE]

I think its to do with the Winterhoff hitch seems a common problem, check the pads on the hitch and make sure the bolts that hold it on are tight.

 

[dallavalle]

We have changed all the pads but to no avail. The problem we believe is with the detachable towbar as we hitched the caravan onto another tow vehicle and no clonking.

 

[Oldsalt49]

Hi,
I have a Discovery 3 also. When I bought it there was no detachable hitch included, I managed to get a new one on ebay. However when I first fitted it didn't seem to very well, the orifice was quite cruddy. I gave it a really good soak with WD40 and managed to soften and scrape to crud out with a screw driver. The detachable towbar fits tightly and no clunking. It is worth giving the latching mechanism on the detachable part a good soak too, just in case it is binding.

OS

 

[MichaelE]

The only way the car would clunk is if you had play in the towbar,my 2 last 2 Elddis's have clunked and i have heard talk about it as well .

 

[Oldsalt49]

The only way the car would clunk is if you had play in the towbar,my 2 last 2 Elddis's have clunked and i have heard talk about it as well .

Michael Hi,
The towbar on the Discovery 3 is actually built into the chassis during manufacturing. The only removable part is the goose neck, which is a tapered fit into the fixed mounting.

OS

 

[MichaelE]

So its unlikely the towbar which is what the dealer has said

 

[Oldsalt49]

I think you have hit the nail on the head. If the caravan coupling has been serviced and a new damper fitted, maybe the weight of the caravan is high enough to nudge forward under braking. Although Dallavalle says its knocking and clunking when travelling. I imagine there could be a bit of free play between the detachable towbar and its housing. Even a few thousanths of an inch could create a knock.
Dallavalle, is there any free play at the towbar in an upward - downward direction? A twin axle caravan can give a pitching effect which could amplify a few thousanths of an inch movement into a knock or clunk?????

 

[MichaelE]

If you had any play at all over time this would only get worse due to the forces involved,my experience is a detachable is made to exact standards

 

[Robtel]

Hi,
I have a Land Rover Freelander 2 bought new this January with detachable towbar fitted by dealership. I experienced the same clunking and thumping noises and after a little online research found that it is a known fault and was repairable under warranty. I duly contacted my dealer who took the car back in without quibble and fixed it. Don't know if the Discovery problem is the same but does seem to be a bit of a coincidence not to be. The link below will take you to the Freelander forum where I found out about the remedy for the problem, you will need to read through the "humerous" get rid of the caravan replies amongst the genuine questions and answers.

http://www.freel2.com/forum/topic4454.html

 

[dallavalle]

Thanks for your comments.There is only movement from side to side.As a detachable I presume there will be play in the housing otherwise how would you be able to take on and off.

 

[dallavalle]

Will try the link now thanks

 

[ValA.]

We had a clonking noise from our towbar (Mondeo, not a detachable towball, but fixed) and found the problem was just the tiniest amount of play in the bolts which secured the towbar fixings to the car itself. We investigated thoroughly, and somewhere on this forum are my responses to all the helpful suggestions which people put forward and the solution to the problem. Only after we towed another caravan with our towcar, and towed our caravan with another towcar, did we find the problem with the towbar fixing bolts and tightening them to the correct torque with a proper torque wrench resolved the problem.
All this was prior to our last holiday, and we had absolutely no problems afterwards, nor since.

 

[Collin]

Dallavalle, I think you are wrong to assume there is likely to be free play in a detachable. I have had two different detachables on two different models of cars and the detachable tow ball has locked in solid. You wouldn't want it any other way!!