First look: Hitch-Ezy 3.5T

Retired Melbourne surgeon John Allsop tossed the gauntlet down a few years ago when he introduced his new 5-tonne Hitch-Ezy as an off-road market alternative to Vehicle Components’ established Hitchmaster DO-45 pin coupling.

Now he’s challenging the Queensland off-road market leader again with a new 3.5 tonne version that’s lighter and more affordable, but comes with the same unique self-locking feature as its big brother.

Although initially available online for $550 plus GST and shipping, the new model from early-2018 is likely be offered only via chassis and caravan manufacturers as an extra-cost ‘upgrade’ to a basic, articulated off-road hitch.

For an extra $150 or so (the actual upgrade price is in the hands of individual caravan manufacturers and their dealers), end-users will get a beautifully-machined and built coupling that features several advantages over others currently in the market.

For a start, the 3.5t Hitch-Ezy, like its big brother, is beautifully made by Melbourne’s Yann engineering, which has partnered with Allsop in the hitch’s development, manufacture and marketing from the outset.

Compared with the original steel-bodied 5t Hitch-Ezy, the newcomer features a new main body fashioned from aircraft-grade aluminium to make it 4kg lighter at 11kg versus 16kg. It’s also drilled to fit the standard four-bolt mounting plate of most chassis draw-bars, whereas the 5t coupling initially had six bolt holes.

More significantly, the 3.5t Hitch-Ezy retains the unique automatic double-locking mechanism of its big brother that activates as soon as the main sleeve is lowered onto the tow-pillar.

There’s no need to open the locking mechanism at the time of engagement and distracting the operator during coupling cannot cause partial coupling/locking.

As we discovered during a demonstration at Trailblazer RV’s Braeside, Victoria factory, you simply tilt the spring-loaded rotating cap towards the tow vehicle, reverse until the coupling’s dedicated ‘pillar’ engages and then lower it into place.

The patented three-ball locking system then automatically secures the hitch into a groove in the pillar, which replaces the 50mm ball on a standard tongue.

Somewhat like Vehicle Components’ DO-35 and DO-45, the coupling doesn’t have to be directly above the pin/pillar to engage, but unlike the Hitchmaster, it locks on securely without any human intervention, once lowered fully.

The pillar on the Hitch-Ezy is unique to the coupling and Alsop says it’s deliberately been made larger than a conventional 50mm ball to avoid anyone using it to attach a regular drop-on coupling.

De-coupling is not automatic, but easily done once you release a lever on top of the Hitch-Ezy’s cap. An extension bar is supplied with the Hitch-Ezy for older users who may have limited hand movement, or arthritis.

As with the 5t Hitch-Ezy, the engineering of the smaller version is first class, with all components either forged or machined from a solid, so there are no potentially brittle castings and no welded components.

The 3.5 tonne model uses the same aluminium bronze bushes and stainless-steel yoke pivot bolts that are deployed in the larger model. The tow-pillar is also common to both models and is case hardened by oxy-nitrocarburizing at Hardchrome Industries.

All couplings are supplied complete with tow-pillar, aluminium tow-pillar cover, Hitch-Ezy’s own handbrake made from marine grade stainless steel, dummy tow-pillar, spacer element for under the tow-pillar if using a weight distribution/torsion bar/level ride system, mounting bolts and an aid to hold the coupling unlocked, so both hands are free to operate the jockey wheel when disconnecting.

Allsop says about half of all Hitch-Ezy production to date has been going to Lovells, which packages the 5t version as part of its ADR-approved Toyota GVM upgrade kits.

A number of manufacturers of large off-road caravans have also embraced the Hitch-Ezy, with Allsop saying that Hitch-Ezy is now offered as standard on all Bushtrackers, Van Halens and optional on many other major brands including Kedron and Trakmaster.