Motorhome Manoeuvring Courses

Trailer Reversing

I was given some excellent advice many years ago when reversing with a trailer.

Worry about where the trailer is going when reversing and the vehicle will usually look after its-self.
Instead of holding the steering wheel near the top and pushing it in the wrong direction when reversing, hold the wheel at the bottom and the movement of the trailer will be natural following the steering wheel movement.

Hope this makes sense. Try it and see.
 
My wife contacted a driving school that does HGV training. She had 2 hrs with an experienced instruction in our van.
Wonderful confidence boost and close to home.
 
Lots of advice so i may as well add mine.

Practise on your own.

Take your time.

Never ever let anyone pressure you.

You will be fine, especially now you've had a little skirmish. It's not something you will forget so you will be extra careful.

I'm speaking from experience cos I had a slight run in with a gatepost, forgot I needed a bit more clearance. Never done it again.
 
No use trying to teach your wife I have a hard job to get her to drive with me in the cab I only just got to suck air in thru my teeth twice and I'm back in the driving seat at next safe stopping place :lol-049:
 
when you think you can reverse a trailer attached to a car with windows its time to try a van and traler and learn to reverse the trailer just using the wing mirrors. tip ,, only ever reverse round corners on the drivers side.


when youre really cocky its time to try a trailer with an axle at each end, the old agricultural 4 wheelers with the steering on a centre pivot turntable can be a tad tricky , easy to turn over if you turn too tight on rough ground.
 
Caz said:
Don't take him with you. Do it on your own as he will destroy your confidence.
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Good idea but if you saw where we lived you'd see that we have serious narrow lanes to get through in every single direction, with tractors, stock lorries & the occasional artic. coming in the other direction.

He's not that bad.
Yes he is!
 
in seriously narrow lanes i realised a couple of years ago that i HAD to learn how to reverse accurately because in Seriously Narrow lanes... no one could get into my van to do it for me as the doors wouldn't open to let them in ...... reverse slowly slowly .... you'll get there sharon.. i think the idea of having a couple of hours professional tuition would give you a lot of confidence....
 
Hi Sharon.

I seem to remember we have reversed down this road before?

I remember once in France taking a 'Motorhome Manoeuvring Course' I parked up for the night in a village square/market place camping aire. During the night I was disturbed by fellow campervans parking up near me. When I opened the curtains in the morning the fair had arrived in town and set up all around me. Took me two hours to pick my way off of the market place.
Driving down narrow lanes needs a bit of bluster, don't think you are the one that has to reverse all the time.

As we said then practice makes perfect. reverse up and down your drive just to get used to using mirrors.
 
delicagirl said:
in seriously narrow lanes i realised a couple of years ago that i HAD to learn how to reverse accurately because in Seriously Narrow lanes... no one could get into my van to do it for me as the doors wouldn't open to let them in ...... reverse slowly slowly .... you'll get there sharon.. i think the idea of having a couple of hours professional tuition would give you a lot of confidence....
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Yes, this is it. I know that I have to get a handle on the manoeuvring.
I know for a fact that if I tried to drive away from here that I would end up in trouble.

I'm not going anywhere for a while as we have a skip on the drive.
Percy II is literally sardined into his slot & that took Phill a few back & forward shunts too because there are stone walls on 3 sides of him.
 
hairydog said:
SNIP
Remember that when you turn, going forward or backward, the van pivots round the back axle. So remember that's the bit you are manoeuvring round each obstacle.
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Yay Hairydog! Thanks you this is exactly the sort of pointer I was looking for.
If I keep this in mind it will be great help to me.
 
Having had a blue (previously orange) badge most of my life I have never really had to reverse on public roads so never been particularly good at getting in to small spaces. When we had a caravan I could reverse in most of the time but not always then one day I just thought why worry, it can be unhooked and push it in place :)

I have had to reverse vehicles in workplaces so not completely useless lol. I find the van easy to drive backwards to forwards than the car, I can see much more in any direction due to higher seating and far better mirrors. Once you have your mirrors set the only problem you have is practice and confidence in your abilities. By the sound of it I think you will benefit from an instructor who knows what they are on about to help you. Family is not always best option, just go with what you think will give you the confidence boost you need :)
 
Sharon the Cat said:
Thanks for the replies.

Funnily enough I learnt to drive a car in the garden at the tender age of 8.
My Dad put bamboo canes in the ground to manoeuvre around & my Mum taught me to drive.

Perhaps we'll have to find a big car park somewhere & give it a go.
But who's going to come out & pick me up once we've had the serious domestic, I've lost my temper with "the expert" (Phill) & he's driven off in a huff?
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Sharon when we got our van a few months ago I was adamant I was going to drive it,I saw a friend of mine an instructor she said that she would sit with me,if I needed her to and I still haven’t taken the plunge so to speak, when we went to Scotland we were going to find a big car park or other large area we couldn’t because there was always someone else there so I just sat back and enjoyed the view, I did and do still want to drive it but we’re the same as you and Phil it’s practically world war three! :rolleyes2::danger:
 
Sharon the Cat said:
Has anyone been on one of these?
The Caravan & Motorhome Club charge £190 for a 6 hour course & theirs is the nearest to us. The C&CC is £175 for 1 day & further away.

Following is an extract from an email I have just sent the lovely Alf of WC & explains why I might have to ask Phill for one of these courses as my Christmas present.

I had to drive our new van in for some warranty work a week ago. It takes 2 to get it off the drive because of a restricted view & I had Phill drive it to my parents because I couldn't face single track roads with passing places. From there I drove off no problem at all & really happy on 2 lane roads. I stopped in Hereford where I knew I would have lots of room to park.

I had to leave a note on an immaculate Skoda saying I've scraped your bumper & will pay for the damage. I have problems with the long overhang at the back when manoeuvring. This is why I won't drive it through the lanes, I don't think my reversing would be good enough.

At least the couple who own the Skoda aren't cross and said they appreciated my honesty. I'm still waiting to see how much my stupidity will cost me. The van has a very small mark on the wheel arch & the hook-up cover, so I nearly missed! I think it will clean off OK.​


:eek::eek::eek:

Discussing manoeuvring techniques with Phill has already caused one domestic, because he of course can manoeuvre any vehicle with or without trailer to within 5mm of where he wants it.
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Do what I do and just shut your eyes.

Bernie
 
You have had a couple of bad experiences, IMO what you need now is someone who is experienced in teaching to show you the ropes and install a bit of confidence. As well meaning as those who have replied with tips, reading a few posts on a forum is hardly likely to practically help. Take the lessons and then drive your van as often as possible.
 
The main difference I've found from a car, apart from overall size of course is always be wary of the back end swing out the OPPOSITE direction of where your steering to when turning sharply going forwards. A lot more so if you have a long overhang at the back.

This is particular true on a motor home having a long rear overhang on a relatively short wheel base.
 
once i realised that if i had driven up a narrow lane then i could reverse back down it i recognised that i played with the steering wheel far too much in reverse. But eversing slowly and using my drivers mirror and not using too much steering wheel, (except round tight corners of course) i trained myself to reverse for a considerable distance.

having a 25 year old van helps... if i scrape or scratch it - what the heck.....
 
Hi Sharon.
You are already far better than my wife as she won't even get in the driver's seat as she thinks the van is too big.

When I left school many decades ago I worked on a farm.
The manager put me in a field with tractor and trailer and left me for about 5 hours.

When I started there were 6 empty oil drums.
When I finished just 1 was intact and the rest were squashed!
But I could put that trailer wherever I wanted to. 😁

Best of luck, Pete
 
GF was driving tractors and trailers for the grain harvest when she was still at school.
 
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