Recovery traction aids aren’t anything new in Australia, but a multi-purpose one that doubles as a levelling accessory for your vehicle and RV certainly is. While GoTreads have been in the North American market for more than 40 years and were originally designed specifically for military use in desert and beach landings, they’ve recently become available here in Australia. We got our hands on a pair to test them out.
WORDS AND IMAGES GRANT HANAN AND LINDA BLOFFWITCH
GO WHERE OTHER TRACTION AIDS DON’T
A traction aid crossed with a levelling device means you’re getting two for the price of one
REVIEW GoTreads
National Factory Backed Warranty
2YR Factory Warranty
4YR Structural Guarantee
* Drive away no more to pay
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WHAT ARE THEY
The GoTread is a flexible, high-strength, five-piece plastic device that’s made of a polypropylene-copolymer blend. Each piece has a scalloped pattern and is hinged and held together with galvanised steel rods. Once all the pieces are extended it becomes a board that’s 1160mm in length. So unlike other standard recovery boards that are long and bulky, the GoTreads can be folded away for storage. It’s strength also allows it to be used as a levelling tool for caravans, campers and vehicles. Packed up, the GoTreads are about the size of a stack of dinner plates as it folds onto itself, measuring 300mm x 230mm wide. They have a fold-up height of 100mm and weigh 2.6kg.
Sometimes you only need to kick your caravan up a bit on one side, so the GoTreads came in handy here
Each GoTread is ribbed on either side to assist with grip. Unfold each one as many times as required for levelling
HOW THEY WORK
When using the GoTreads as a traction aid, you unfold the board and place it on the ground with the two smaller end pieces flat side down. As with other types of traction aids, you then use a jamming motion to wedge one of the GoTreads under the wheels before proceeding to drive out of the bog using gentle acceleration. But herein lies the difference from other traction aids...
GoTreads can also be unfolded multiple times and now cleverly double as a levelling device for your RV or vehicle. There’s a choice of heights depending on how many times you unfold it, starting at 80mm, then 70mm and 50mm, to a minimum of 25mm. Once you’ve reached the desired height, face the two flatter pieces forward to drive up onto it.
The GoTread’s length suits either a single or tandem caravan
Ready to drive up onto the GoTreads to level our caravan
“Packed up, the GoTreads are about the size of a stack of dinner plates”
Insurance is issued by the Hollard Insurance Company Pty Ltd ABN 78 090 584 473 AFSL No 241436 (Hollard). Club 4x4 Pty Ltd ABN 41 606 776 274 AR No. 1235616 (Club 4x4) acts as Hollard’s Authorised Representative. Any general advice provided does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. Terms, conditions and exclusions apply. Please consider the Product Disclosure Statement available at www.club4x4.com.au, to decide if the product is right for you.
Save the insurance conversation for when your insurance is due. Simply tell us what month and what vehicle you’d be interested in quoting, and we’ll get in touch at the relevant time.
WHAT WE THOUGHT
We used the GoTreads with our caravan and Pajero and found levelling the caravan to be a simple process when we only needed to lay them out and drive on up. At no point did we ever have any reservations that their construction wasn’t up to the challenge of our weighty tandem-axle caravan. We also like how the GoTreads, unlike other traction aids, pack away nicely inside the vehicle rather than having to mount them on the roof rack. They’re an accessory that takes up next to no space in the vehicle and are easy to access when we’re out touring on a sandy track or beach run. Another positive – GoTreads can be bought separately (as opposed to in pairs) unlike other brands. And for a business to back their product with a lifetime guarantee and offer a replacement in the unlikely event one breaks, well that’s simply music to our ears.
A one-piece hinge allows the GoTreads to fold
The shaped scallop ribbed design aids in centring your tyre
Galvanised steel rods help keep the GoTreads together
“At no point did we ever have any reservations that their construction wasn’t up to the challenge of our weighty tandem-axle caravan”
WHY LOOK AT A SIX WHEELER CONVERSION FOR YOUR RIG?
For Bob & Lesley, converting their Isuzu D-Max meant staying safe and legal while towing their larger caravan...
- Improved safety & legal compliance
- Increased GCM - up to 8,995kg*
- Up to 4.5t towing capacity
- Better fuel economy
- Improved ride
- Better off-road ability in most conditions
CONVERT TODAY! TOW MORE. CARRY MORE.
Call the 6 wheeler experts today on 07 4662 5424 or visit www.sixwheeler.com.au
FINAL WORDS
The unique folding, compact design of the GoTreads means we have very little trouble finding a spot to store them. And being an easy-to-use, lightweight yet strong, multi-purpose accessory that’s well-suited to a range of applications, we think they’re a handy bit of gear to have around.
Available in orange or black.
RRP $109 each
For further info, check out a247.com.au
Each GoTread opens out to more than one metre in length
The ends fold down to make a ramp for ease of use
GO WHERE OTHER TRACTION AIDS DON’T
WORDS AND IMAGES GRANT HANAN AND LINDA BLOFFWITCH
Recovery traction aids aren’t anything new in Australia, but a multi-purpose one that doubles as a levelling accessory for your vehicle and RV certainly is. While GoTreads have been in the North American market for more than 40 years and were originally designed specifically for military use in desert and beach landings, they’ve recently become available here in Australia. We got our hands on a pair to test them out.
REVIEW GoTreads
A traction aid crossed with a levelling device means you’re getting two for the price of one
National Factory Backed Warranty
2YR Factory Warranty
4YR Structural Guarantee
* Drive away no more to pay
SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT
ADVERTISEMENT
WHAT ARE THEY
The GoTread is a flexible, high-strength, five-piece plastic device that’s made of a polypropylene-copolymer blend. Each piece has a scalloped pattern and is hinged and held together with galvanised steel rods. Once all the pieces are extended it becomes a board that’s 1160mm in length. So unlike other standard recovery boards that are long and bulky, the GoTreads can be folded away for storage. It’s strength also allows it to be used as a levelling tool for caravans, campers and vehicles. Packed up, the GoTreads are about the size of a stack of dinner plates as it folds onto itself, measuring 300mm x 230mm wide. They have a fold-up height of 100mm and weigh 2.6kg.
Each GoTread is ribbed on either side to assist with grip. Unfold each one as many times as required for levelling
Sometimes you only need to kick your caravan up a bit on one side, so the GoTreads came in handy here
HOW THEY WORK
When using the GoTreads as a traction aid, you unfold the board and place it on the ground with the two smaller end pieces flat side down. As with other types of traction aids, you then use a jamming motion to wedge one of the GoTreads under the wheels before proceeding to drive out of the bog using gentle acceleration. But herein lies the difference from other traction aids...
GoTreads can also be unfolded multiple times and now cleverly double as a levelling device for your RV or vehicle. There’s a choice of heights depending on how many times you unfold it, starting at 80mm, then 70mm and 50mm, to a minimum of 25mm. Once you’ve reached the desired height, face the two flatter pieces forward to drive up onto it.
Ready to drive up onto the GoTreads to level our caravan
The GoTread’s length suits either a single or tandem caravan
“Packed up, the GoTreads are about the size of a stack of dinner plates”
Save the insurance conversation for when your insurance is due. Simply tell us what month and what vehicle you’d be interested in quoting, and we’ll get in touch at the relevant time.
Insurance is issued by the Hollard Insurance Company Pty Ltd ABN 78 090 584 473 AFSL No 241436 (Hollard). Club 4x4 Pty Ltd ABN 41 606 776 274 AR No. 1235616 (Club 4x4) acts as Hollard’s Authorised Representative. Any general advice provided does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. Terms, conditions and exclusions apply. Please consider the Product Disclosure Statement available at www.club4x4.com.au, to decide if the product is right for you.
SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT
ADVERTISEMENT
WHAT WE THOUGHT
We used the GoTreads with our caravan and Pajero and found levelling the caravan to be a simple process when we only needed to lay them out and drive on up. At no point did we ever have any reservations that their construction wasn’t up to the challenge of our weighty tandem-axle caravan. We also like how the GoTreads, unlike other traction aids, pack away nicely inside the vehicle rather than having to mount them on the roof rack. They’re an accessory that takes up next to no space in the vehicle and are easy to access when we’re out touring on a sandy track or beach run. Another positive – GoTreads can be bought separately (as opposed to in pairs) unlike other brands. And for a business to back their product with a lifetime guarantee and offer a replacement in the unlikely event one breaks, well that’s simply music to our ears.
The shaped scallop ribbed design aids in centring your tyre
A one-piece hinge allows the GoTreads to fold
Galvanised steel rods help keep the GoTreads together
“At no point did we ever have any reservations that their construction wasn’t up to the challenge of our weighty tandem-axle caravan”
Call the 6 wheeler experts today on 07 4662 5424 or visit www.sixwheeler.com.au
SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT
ADVERTISEMENT
FINAL WORDS
The unique folding, compact design of the GoTreads means we have very little trouble finding a spot to store them. And being an easy-to-use, lightweight yet strong, multi-purpose accessory that’s well-suited to a range of applications, we think they’re a handy bit of gear to have around.
Available in orange or black.
RRP $109 each
For further info, check out a247.com.au
The ends fold down to make a ramp for ease of use
Each GoTread opens out to more than one metre in length