JB Caravans adopts world-first safety tech

Melbourne dirt road specialist JB Caravans is the first Australian manufacturer to adopt the ground-breaking new Tow Assist ABS and sway mitigation technology as standard equipment on some of its caravan models.

Launched earlier this year, the new Tow Assist trailer safety technology is a joint project between Melbourne-based Bosch, AL-KO Australia and Dexter in the USA, and delivers anti-lock braking (ABS) for the first time on electric-braked trailer chassis, together with sway mitigation and a towable odometer via a smart phone app.

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.

“We‘re extremely pleased that JB Caravans has recognised the significance of Tow Assist by making it standard on upcoming models in their 2022 range. We believe this is a new era in towing safety, and a technology that will ultimately save lives," AL-KO General Manager - Sales & Marketing, Ergun Kirmaci said.

JB has not announced which upcoming models Tow Assist will be fitted as standard equipment, although AL-KO has previously said that Tow Assist will initially only be available for fitment on AL-KO-built caravan chassis, including AL-KO-owned G&S and Preston chassis.

JB said that Tow Assist is also currently available for optional fitment to suitably configured new JB caravans that include AL-KO suspension. The big-selling Melbourne manufacturer currently fits the popular Cruisemaster suspension to many of its off-road caravans.

“JB Caravans always strive to be at the forefront of caravan design and we take the safety of our customers very seriously," JB Caravans National Marketing Manager, Wayne Coleman, said. "We felt the safety benefits of Tow Assist were too significant for us to ignore, so we are pleased to include the technology as standard fitment on some of our upcoming caravan models.”

JB is yet to announce any pricing details around the extra cost of fitting Tow Assist to any of its models. However, AL-KO previously stated that the cutting-edge new safety system 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.

AL-KO Australia has also said that Tow Assist will be available for fitment to other caravan chassis and older caravans down the track.

The Melbourne-based company expects other caravan manufacturers to follow JB's lead and offer the Tow Assist feature in 2022.

"We are currently working with a number of other major caravan manufacturers to finalise fitment of Tow Assist to their 2022 models," AL-KO Australia marketing manager Brad Hooper told caravancampingsales.

"There is broad interest and despite the long lead times on caravans at the moment, we will soon see a significant amount of caravans on the road fitted with this life-saving package."

Hooper said AL-KO expects up to a third of all new Australian-built caravans to feature Tow Assist in coming years.

"Most caravans currently on the road have some form of basic sway mitigation fitted," he said. "We expect that over the course of the next three years, consumer demand will drive 20-30% of all new caravans featuring this advanced safety package."

Related:

Anti-lock braking first for caravans