Anti-lock braking first for caravans

Australian caravan buyers can now order a caravan with a similar suite of potentially life-saving electronic safety features as their tow vehicle.

A joint project between Melbourne-based Bosch and AL-KO Australia and Dexter in the USA, the new Tow Assist trailer safety technology delivers anti-lock braking (ABS) for the first time on electric-braked trailer chassis, together with a sophisticated multi-phase stability control system.

Electronic stability control (ESC) has been available on electric-braked, Australian-built caravans for around eight years, but it’s the first time Australian buyers will have access to a trailer safety system that combines both anti-sway mitigation and anti-lock braking features.

Already available in North America, the new Bosch-developed Tow Assist is claimed to be more advanced than rival products, in being able to brake individual wheels in the event of sway as well as prevent the wheels from locking up.

As well as basic trailer sway correction like that provided by AL-KO ESC, the new system offers more advanced Lane Change Control technology that mitigates trailer sway when the tow vehicle is forced to swerve to avoid an obstacle.

The sway mitigation and ABS are designed to kick in only at more dangerous towing speeds above 60km/h, with the Lane Change Control feature calibrated to act more “aggressively” given the greater chance of losing control when swerving.

Speaking at a demonstration event held at Victoria’s Sandown Racecourse this week, Bosch Australia and New Zealand, Regional President - Chassis System Control Division, Chris Woods, said the Australian-spec Tow Assist is “designed, developed and manufactured right here in Melbourne” and uses technology adopted from Bosch automotive ABS systems fitted to around 500 million vehicles since the late-1970s.

The Tow Assist package includes an automotive-grade ‘black box’ ECU that mounts on the centre line of the trailer axle, a ‘plug and play’ wiring harness and sensors fitted to all braked wheels.

There’s also an indicator-style lamp that mounts on the front of the van, flashing green or amber to provide a visual ‘system status’ update to the driver. The 12V system is powered by either the tow vehicle battery or caravan house battery.

Tow Assist also includes a smart phone app with odometer and diagnostic feature to help owners calculate things like service intervals or discover if and where there’s a fault in the system.

AL-KO Australia General Manager – Sales, Ergun Kirmaci, said the timing was perfect to release the next-generation caravan safety technology down under, with caravan roll-overs on the rise and up to 80 per cent of new caravans now purchased by first-time caravan buyers.

“Many of these newbies have never even towed a box trailer, and now all of a sudden they want to buy a three to three and a half tonne caravan… (The aim is to) give them confidence in their towing capabilities through this product,” Kirmaci said.

He also claimed Tow Assist could “reduce the severity of accidents by up to 90 per cent”.

The Tow Assist technology will be on display at the Victorian Caravan Supershow at Sandown Racecourse from May 13-16, and AL-KO plans to install video game style simulators in caravan dealerships that will enable consumers to better understand how the safety features work in practice.

Tow Assist will initially only be available for fitment on AL-KO-built caravan chassis, including AL-KO-owned G&S and Preston chassis, with fitment to other caravan chassis and older caravans available down the track.

At a retail level, Tow Assist is expected to add $2500-$3000 to the cost of a new caravan, compared to around $1000 for AL-KO’s more basic ESC system.

While ABS and ESC have been mandatory on passenger vehicles sold in Australia for a number of years, AL-KO said it will now combine forces with the Caravan Industry Association of Australia to push for regulatory changes including mandatory fitment of ABS and ESC on all new caravans.

AL-KO is also banking on insurance companies offering reduced premiums to owners of Tow Assist-equipped caravans, due to the reduced risk of a roll-over.

Also read:

Battle of the black boxes

Call for tougher towing laws