Towed van front wheels not turning

[Uncle_Grumpy]

Big class c pulled in next door. She is pulling a full size van. I notice that the front wheels of the van are not following the tow rig. They are skidding on turns. After two conversations she admits something may be wrong. This women is towing for the first time as she is recent widow. On her way from tx to WS. Any one have insight to what may resolve this?

[Oldme]

She needs to keep the Steering wheel is in the unlocked position.

[dodge_guy]

I would then also ask her if she disengaged the driveshaft?

[j-d]

I agree with the above IF the van doesn't steer to follow the RV. If the steering is locked, that's what will happen.

Although we're 99% sure that's what "skidding" means, it is also possible for a towed vehicle to follow the RV Into a turn then not steer back Out of it. In that case the wheels would be full Left or full Right with the RV pulling it forward. This happens because the RV turning Left swings its rear to the Right. Towed steers Right. Sometimes when RV straightens out, Towed doesn't and wheels turned full Right get dragged Straight but Sideways. This is more likely to happen on unpaved areas, but I've had it happen on paved roads.

EDIT: I started out replying in RV.net but the posting timed out. Same thing happened yesterday. I copied my text and went to Woodalls then pasted it there. That worked. So if you can't reply, try another flavor of the same forum(s). They're all Marcus... Same logons work.

[DougE]

Ascertain if her husband had any mods done to the van for towing. Ask if husband pulled any fuses for towing. Advise about unlocking steering wheel. Go online, find owner's manual and download sheet giving towing instructions to share with her.

[Bobbo]

mkirsch wrote:
If this is the rig she traveled in with her late husband, the van is rigged to tow already. No need to complicate things. Maybe just have her show you the procedure she follows.

She just forgot to put the ignition switch in the unlocked position.

This is the answer that I think hits the nail on the head. If she is towing 4 down, her husband probably had it rigged for 4 down. She probably didn't unlock the steering and/or has brakes on.

[mkirsch]

If this is the rig she traveled in with her late husband, the van is rigged to tow already. No need to complicate things. Maybe just have her show you the procedure she follows.

She just forgot to put the ignition switch in the unlocked position.

[BarneyS]

Moved to Dinghy Towing forum from Towing.

[tonymull]

She needs to fix that problem or just rent a tow dolly or she's going to need a new transmission, not to mention tires.

[enblethen]

Steering wheel is in the locked position.
make and model of van?

[dodge_guy]

I don't think any fullsize van can be towed unless the driveshaft is disconnected. And the key needs to be in the unlocked position to allow the wheels to turn.