Off-Road Couplings

Extreme off-road couplings are designed to handle some of the toughest terrains and conditions encountered while towing trailers in the back country, mountains, deserts or wherever you run out of road.

Typically used by adventurous campers, explorers, nutters and off-road enthusiasts who need to tow trailers across rugged and challenging landscapes, this type of coupling can replace a standard coupling, and in most cases and be used as a multi purpose, everyday coupling if price (and sometimes a little bit of inconvenience) is no object.

A couple of key points with offroad couplings that make them differ from standard trailer couplings -

Can articulate to a greater degree than standard towball mounted couplings, allowing the trailer to follow the tow vehicle over undulating and steep terrain without the risk of trying to snap the towbar off your 4WD.

Off-road couplings have a lower profile than standard lever style couplings, which prevents contact with the rear of the tow vehicle when traversing drops and canyons. It also gives better clearance for opening the rear door on your 4WD.

In most cases, the towball is replaced with a proprietary post or pin dedicated to the brand of off-road coupling. This can make towing the boat trailer to the ramp a little more difficult unless you change out all your couplings or can be arsed replacing the ball/pin each time you tow a different trailer.

Most coupling manufacturers state their couplings can rotate 360 degrees which is not where you want your trailer to end up, but at the end of the day, if your trailer does decide to flip over in the middle of nowhere, with a fully rotating coupling, there is less chance of the trailer taking the tow vehicle over with it.

Below are a couple of the more popular couplings available, a quick search on-line will provide you with many other options

Hyland off-road couplings

Hyland off-road couplings were designed and manufactured in Australia, specifically for extreme off-road conditions. They were engineered to provide maximum articulation and flexibility, allowing the trailer to follow the towing vehicle through the roughest terrain.

 The Hyland coupling design allows them to pivot in all directions, providing more stability and control on uneven surfaces.

One of the big advantages was its ability to fit any standard 50mm 3500kg towball without any modifications needed to the tow hitch and towing vehicle. Good regular maintenance on this type of coupling is required to keep it functioning correctly.

Hyland couplings stopped manufacturing around 2016 and copies of this style of coupling are now manufactured by Al-Ko Australia - The photo above is the Al-Ko off-road coupling that utilises the best of the original Hyland design with a modern updated styling.

Treg off-road couplings

Treg off-road couplings are another popular choice for extreme off-road use. They are designed to handle heavy loads and provide reasonable articulation and flexibility, even on the toughest terrain. Treg couplings feature a unique design that allows the trailer to move independently of the towing vehicle, reducing stress on both the vehicle and the trailer.

Treg couplings use a polyurethane block in the coupling head. The coupling mounts to the tow vehicle by sliding over a pin, which replaces the standard tow ball.

The poly block does a good job of reducing vibration and road noise, and allows for good flexibility off-road.

Maintenance is relatively low, but lubricants and UV can over time, break down the plasticisers in the poly block and reduce its useful life.

This coupling can also be difficult to line up and slide down the pin when connecting to the tow vehicle especially where the ground is not level.

DO35 off-road couplings

DO35 off-road couplings are designed and manufactured in Australia by Vehicle Components. They are designed to provide maximum articulation and flexibility, even on extreme off-road conditions. 

OzHitch off-road couplings

OzHitch off-road couplings are another Australian designed and manufactured coupling, specifically for extreme off-road conditions. They are engineered to provide good articulation and flexibility, allowing the trailer to follow the towing vehicle through the roughest terrain. OzHitch coupling design allows them to pivot in all directions as per the previous couplings, providing more stability and control on uneven surfaces.

The coupling uses a pivot plate to replace the tow vehicle tow ball and with the horizontal mount pin, allows for ease of lining up the coupling to the pivot plate. Maintenance is relatively low and replacement components are easily fitted as required.

In conclusion, extreme off-road couplings are designed to handle the toughest terrains and conditions encountered while towing trailers in most harsh environments. Hyland, Treg, DO35, and OzHitch are some of the popular brands of off-road couplings that are designed and manufactured for these conditions.

When choosing an extreme off-road coupling, it is important to consider the weight and size of your trailer, as well as the towing capacity of your vehicle. Make sure to choose a coupling that is compatible with your towing vehicle and meets the weight and size requirements of your trailer.