Towing a camper or caravan safely isn’t just about hooking up and hitting the road — it starts with having your tow vehicle correctly set up to handle the load. Whether you’re heading off-road or planning long highway hauls, getting your vehicle towing-ready is critical for safety, comfort, performance, and compliance.
Here’s what you need to consider to ensure your vehicle is truly up to the task.
Factory suspension often isn’t designed for the extra weight of towing a fully loaded off-road camper or caravan. When the rear of your tow vehicle sags under load, it affects:
Steering response
Braking performance
Headlight alignment
Stability and sway control
That’s why we strongly recommend upgrading your suspenion such as that provided by Tough Dog Suspension – Australia’s trusted suspension brand built for off-road performance and towing stability. Aftermarket Suspension offers:
Heavy-duty springs
Load-rated shock absorbers
Airbag kits for extra rear-end support
🟢 Goal: Your vehicle should sit level when hitched to your caravan. This ensures balanced weight distribution across all axles and safer towing on all terrains.
When towing, you must stay within your vehicle’s legal weight limits. Key terms to know:
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass) | Max weight of your vehicle (including passengers, fuel, cargo, tow ball weight) |
| GCM (Gross Combined Mass) | Max weight of your vehicle AND caravan combined |
| ATM (Aggregate Trailer Mass) | Max loaded weight of your caravan |
| Axle Loads | Max weight allowed over each axle (front & rear) |
Tow ball weight (the downward pressure the caravan places on your vehicle’s hitch) typically at 10% of the caravan’s total weight.
Too much or too little ball weight can lead to:
Poor handling
Increased sway risk
Uneven wear on suspension and tyres
🎯 Tip: Load your caravan properly — heavy items over the axles, lighter items to the front and rear — and weigh your setup for balance.
If you’re new to towing or upgrading to a larger van, a professional towing course is a great investment. These hands-on sessions teach:
Reversing and maneuvering
Safe braking and turning techniques
Emergency handling
How to correctly load and balance your caravan
📍 Many insurers and clubs offer discounted towing courses – ask us for recommendations near you.
We highly recommend a professional mobile weighing service before your first big trip. This ensures:
You’re compliant with GVM, GCM, and axle limits
Your vehicle and caravan are balanced
You’re not carrying unnecessary gear
🛠️ A small investment in weighing can save thousands in fines, wear, and insurance complications.
At SCT Off Road Campers & Caravans, we want every customer to hit the road safely and confidently. That’s why we encourage:
✅ Upgrading your suspension for strength and stability
✅ Staying within weight limits with professional weighing and correct loading
✅ Level setups for comfort and control
✅ Ongoing education through towing courses and expert advice
📞 Not sure if your vehicle is ready? Talk to our team and we’ll help you get your setup right before you tow.
The Irdium camper has lived up to all our expectations, we have just completed our first 3 week sojourn doing some off grid and some on grid camping, I highly recommend this camper to whoever wants comfort and practicability, it has towed like a dream.
Very professional from start right the way through . Before and after service is brilliant. Love our Deluxe II camper extremely happy thanks to all staff at signature .
We brought a elite X camper trailer. Love the camper trailer has heaps of storage. Would highly recommend Signature Camper Trailers. As there service is A1.
Great variety of campers on display. Love the Hybrid caravan/camper. Staff really helpful and not pushy.
A big thanks to the boys in the workshop they were professional but more than that really nice guys they took their time and explains everything to me once again thank you.
Placed the order in May, expecting 12 month wait. Picked up 7 months later and its everything we hoped for. The hand over from Greg was great and gave me all the information I needed. Looking forward to hitting the road and giving it a good test. Thanks Signature.
Great showroom and very friendly and helpful service by Greg, Mark and team. I am much looking forward to taking our new Signature Elite Forward Fold to its virgin camping trip!
Great showroom, with all options on display. One can explore and ask questions. Definitely worth visiting if you’re in the market for a camper trailer. Friendly, knowledgeable staff. The Iridium 13 just won most affordable camper trailer of the year 2022.
My wife and I just picked up our 2023 signature elite x from the guys at thornleigh. The whole process was fantastic. Cooper and the rest of the team there are 2nd to none for their customer service! Very knowledgeable about all aspects of the camper. Would highly recommend! Best campers around!
We’ve built our trailers from experience both travelling and extensive R&D of our products. By only using named brand components and accessories, we are building our Camper Trailers to last and provide trouble free travelling.
Signature Camper Trailers has worked very closely with brands like Toughdog, Lovells and Dobinson to ensure our trailers suspension is up to the task of combating the Australian outback and New Zealand off-road tracks. We have tweaked many of the parts in the swing arms, shocks, grease points, and more.
We noticed that many camper trailers currently available are not built to last. We started Signature Camper Trailers to buck that trend. We decided to offer a locally assembled great quality camper trailer product built for Australian and New Zealand’s tough conditions.
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