A couple of times this year questions have come up about using your hitch.

This is a very important piece of kit

After all it keeps your precious Eriba fixed to your car at anything up to 60 miles an hour and failing to operate it correctly could have dire consequences.

So with that in mind I am writing this to make forum members aware of the types you might have

basic hitch
basic hitch.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

AL-KO AK300
AL-KO AK300 Hitch.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

AL-KO AKS1300
AKS 1300.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

AL-KO AKS 3400
AKS 3400.JPG - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

The first two are basic non stabilizer hitches found on older models

The second two are stabilizer hitches mainly found on later models.

A note here on towballs................stabilizer hitches need a towball with enough clearance to avoid fowling the hitch....worth checking yours is ok if you have a stabilizer hitch.
AL-KO towballs are available from a number of outlets......................if you need to replace yours please don't forget to use the correct high tensile bolts and tighten to the correct torque.

Notes on the basic hitches...........not many as they are pretty basic but one thing worth a mention is the AK300 that comes with a lever on the side and a small metal plate on the hitch
These were made before anti-lock reversing brakes were invented and the idea was to pull forward until the hitch is fully extended and engage the lever before reversing thus stopping the over-run brakes from being engaged

Notes for stabilizer hitches................look in the paperwork that came with the van to see how your hitch works
read and understand it

If you don't have any paperwork click the link below to go to the AL-KO download page and collect a copy of your hitch instructions

AL-CO download page

Be safe hitch correctly and have a great 2015

hob

Edit to add another note about towballs ............stabilizer hitches need a paint and grease free towball to operate correctly so something like white spirit will remove any grease and 100\120 grit sandpaper will remove paint and any rust that may be present.

My hitch is the AL-KO AKS1300

The method of operation as advised by my caravan service agent is as follows

Once the tow hitch is on the towball and the green indicator shows it is on correctly wind in the tension knob until it clicks once or twice .........that is sufficient further winding may not be good for the pads ............after that lower the red handle which applies the pads at the correct pressure

Removal of the stabilizer element of the hitch is similar in reverse
First raise the red handle then turn the handwheel to move out the pads ..............important only wind out until you start to feel a slight resistance................further winding will damage the mechanism and can jam the pads open

The rest is as for a non stabilized hitch

Note if you ever need to replace the pads in an AL-KO AKS1300 there is a "how to" here

How to: Change the Pads in an AL-KO AKS 1300 STABILISER

History of Al-Ko

History of Alco

Another spolling mistook by hobgoblin how to's