COUPLED UP
WORDS: MAX TAYLOR
THE RV MARKET HAS NO SHORTAGE OF
OPTIONS WHEN IT COMES TO CARAVAN
COUPLINGS. THESE ARE MY THREE
FAVOURITES…
1. CRUISEMASTER DO35
Without a coupling, a caravan or camper
trailer is, at best, a bungalow on
somebody’s property. Or perhaps an
expensive cubby house.
There are myriad couplings available, from
small suppliers selling a handful of units here
and there to trailer manufacturers, to the big
players whose couplings you’ll find on family
vans and offroaders everywhere.
Over the years, I’ve tried many of these
offerings on a large range of trailer types,
towing on various types of terrain, from
smooth bitumen to gnarly offroad tracks.
These are three of my favourite RV couplings.
Cruisemaster has recently released a revised
version of its popular DO35 offroad coupling,
known as the DO35 V3Plus.
Launched in 2009, the DO35 is arguably the
most popular offroad coupling in Australia,
with around 1000 sold every month to trailer
manufacturers and aftermarket suppliers.
This product has undergone multiple revisions
in its lifespan. The latest V3Plus iteration is
not an overhaul of the previous version; rather,
Cruisemaster considers it an update, with
changes to the dust cap (to make it seat
better) as well as the bumper moulding
(recessing the reflector strip to increase its
longevity). Changes to the coupling’s housing
allow it to now be mounted to the underside
of a drawbar, too.