17' Series Driveway From Hell

[Klugerclan]

In preparation for our November delivery of the 56.1, we are currently preparing a good level spot for our van to live. Unfortunately in Eltham this is hard to come by and we have one level spot next to our garage. Our 2 wheel drive Kluger was not up for the job of getting the current Swan up the hill, and proved tough getting angles right in the old man's Kia Sorento which did the job well, but the clutch will not last forever and we had to re-hitch four times which was no fun on the slope.

In preparation we have now had the area smoothed and additional driveway concreted. The yellow cross between the rocks is where a Ridgerider 4.5 tonne winch is going to be attached to a 6 foot RSJ we are cementing into a big hole.

The plan is then to winch the van up the hill backwards into it's lovely new home. Jayco are going to drill 2 holes into the chassis so we can attach 2 D-clamps, chain together and then away we go. This way we can drive straight out when it is holiday time (with the Kluger).

My concern at present is that will the van ground out or what is the best way to get the van set up to attach the winch. The winch is 26m long so sufficient to reach the bottom. Any thoughts or feedback how to do this will be greatly appreciated.

 

[cruza driver]

When winching the 1st thing to remember is safety first. Keep all onlookers well clear of the van and the winch cables.

Also make sure you have a cable dampener on the cable for if the worse thing to happen was the cable to break it will not go flying through the air and hitting someone or the rear of the van.
Along with using rated ''D'' shackles to connect the cable.

As for the grounding out of the van at the bottom could you get some metal plates to act like a bridge over the gutter, if that make sense.
Have you thought about getting a tow hitch mounted to the front of the Kluger if at all possible and push the van up the hill?

 

[Klugerclan]

Cheers for that, yes we have a dampener too. We love the Kluger and have bought a van that fits the car so to speak, however I would have bought the AWD if I knew we were going to buy an Expanda. Our reason for the winch is to try and keep the wear and tear of the hill off the car, it really is a very steep hill.

With the grounding I am hoping that by getting a gradual turn onto the drive we may get away with it, but metal plates may be something we have to explore further. There is our Swan sitting out there for sale at present, so when the concreting is done (meant to be today) we can have a play with that first. By the way, the 3 conifers at the side of the property met their demise at the weekend as we were told the acid from them would mess to roof of the van.

 

[cruza driver]

I know what you mean by the steepness of Eltham my Uncle and Aunty lived there for years before moving. There driveway was a steep one also.

Hopefully the rain has stopped enough for the concreting! Your right about the conifers they are a great screen but could cause staining.
I guess anther thing to take into consideration is the ability to ''steer'' the van into position, maybe a double clamped jockey wheel so there isn't to much pressure on the one clamp.

 

[Klugerclan]

What is a double clamp jockey ? I was planning on changing the standard jockey for a pneumatic tyre. The plan is that the winch will pull the van straight in (maybe with a small amount of steering), how hard do you think it be for me to steer the van as is twin-axle ?

 

[cruza driver]

By a twin I mean a clamp that is just 2 jockey wheel clamps located on the drawabar with one above the other if that makes sense to eliminate the pressure on one clamp when steering.
I would maybe lean towards a jockey wheel like this one as an eg
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/EZIMOVE-...0608636224?pt=AU_Trailers&hash=item20bced8540
Then you can steer the jockey wheel and have more leverage, without pulling on the drawbar amd maybe making it easier to manouvere the tandem?

Like the 2 clamps on this EG

 

[Matty4]

Personally if it was me, I'd be getting a more appropriate car to tow with, but that's probably not what you want to hear....lol
Anything with low range would push it up that incline without any issues whatsoever.
I drive a FWD Kluger at work and to put it bluntly, it's a bit scary, especially in the wet.
I'd hate to have close to its 2000kg rated towing capacity on the back and then try to steer and stop in a hurry, IMHO.

Matty

 

[Moto Moto]

Wow i thought my driveway was bad...............
I hate my driveway, i have to get the angles mm perfect, plus there is only about 20mm clearance between the low hanging spare wheel and gutter cross-over. I feel your pain trying to find a solution.


Good luck with finding the right answer to your problem:noidea:

 

[drewy]

I totally agree with Cruzer Drivers safety concerns and solutions, my other concern would be is if the winch or cable was to fail you would have a 2000kg+ caravan flying out of control down your driveway. If it were my driveway I would consider leaving the Kluger attached to the caravan to aid the winch, solve the steering issue and keep the van under effective control. You would need to then coordinate you’re driving and winch speed, this could take some practice.
Good luck!

 

[boots33]

I'll never complain about my driveway again !! Another thing you may want to consider is getting a breakaway switch fitted to the van as well. It would add another level of safety just in case it somehow got loose while winching you could pull the trip wire and activate the brakes. see a pic here http://easyrv.com.au/tekonsha-electric-breakaway-switch-p-2113.html you can find them on ebay as well.

 

[salsimo]

I think it makes storage look cheap and easy ,I go with storage !!!!!!!!

 

[drewy]

Thats a good idea boots, the tandem axle vans have them fitted standard. An extra switch could be fitted to the rear and tethered off some how creating safe break away control.

 

[Moto Moto]

I'll never complain about my driveway again !! Another thing you may want to consider is getting a breakaway switch fitted to the van as well. It would add another level of safety just in case it somehow got loose while winching you could pull the trip wire and activate the brakes. see a pic here http://easyrv.com.au/tekonsha-electric-breakaway-switch-p-2113.html you can find them on ebay as well.

Good idea boots, this would definitely be worth exploring further.

 

[boots33]

the tandem axle vans have them fitted standard. An extra switch could be fitted to the rear and tethered off some how creating safe break away control.

Yes if the 17 already has one fitted to the front it should be an easy job to install an extra one on the back and just wire it in parallel with the front one.

 

[Klugerclan]

Thank you all for your informative responses. It has been tough for us. We spent a lot of yesterday looking at alternative cars, Patrols, Pathfinders, Prado's etc. Trouble is we love the Kluger, it suits our needs really well for all times other than pushing a van up the hill. We use the 3 rows where you can walk through the middle which is perfect for its usual life of school runs etc. I think we will definitely look into get another switch for the rear brake control. The reason we really want to gert the van next to the house is that it doubles up as guest accommodation and a bit of a playroom for the children. A few months back we were looking into extending our house (3 bedrooms and 3 children) but we put on ice for a few years and have bought the van instead. Holidays and travelling more worthwhile, the kids are only young once. We love the sense of independance they get when we are camping and the safety of the surroundings. The concrete is arriving today, then I have to dig the hole for the RSJ. I will load up some more photos when we are ready for the next stage. Will someone please buy our Swan !!!!!

 

[Klugerclan]

I dug the hole for the winch over the weekend, it was no fun. 20 kg crowbar, Eltham rock / clay - nightmare. Neighbour very kindly jumped over fence to help, then his neighbour turned up and said sod the winch he has a 4.3L Merc 4WD company car, just leave the van outside the house and he will push it up ! Great neighbours.

 

[cruza driver]

Thats sounds great and probably a lot safer :smile:

Its amazing what company cars can do

 

[Klugerclan]

Agreed, the 3 of us were talking and trying to work out what will happen when the van hits the flat whilst the vehicle is still on the gradient ? We had no idea and the conclusion was you don't know till you try, go slow !

 

[cruza driver]

I guess another thing to consider is who is going to back it up there you or the guy in the Merc? Does he know how to back a decent size van into that postion?

 

[Moto Moto]

Also have you measure that it will clear the eaves and gutter when its being reversed? The bum will be pretty high in the air.

Hope it all works out well for you.