Towing a caravan - the law?
 

We (me and my mates) are looking at hiring a caravan for 2 weeks this summer for our annual holiday in the Scottish Highlands. We are however running into difficulties regarding the law for pulling vans and also good safe practice. The Landranger van we are looking at hiring is a total beast with twin axles and the company recommends a car with a kerb weight of 1660kg but this is based on the caravan being fully loaded up. We have potentially available to us at this time my pug 406 V6 which is at best 1400kg with a 3.0 V6 engine and no tow bar fitted at present. My mate has access to his old mans Saab 9000 2.0 cd which has a towbar and as best as I can find on the net a kerb weight of about 1430kg. Firstly are these cars remotely suitable for pulling a van of this size and would the 10 year old saab likely run into bother with its 2.0 engine pulling a van for 500-odd miles including some major steep scottish hills? What are the exact laws and is there anyway we can distrubute the load between car/van to ensure maximum safety and compliance with the law.

My initial searches seem to suggest the neither the 406 or Saab would be heavy enough and I'm also guessing the saab would struggle powerwise as well.

Any and all advice welcome :)

You've always been short on pulling power anyway mate :p ;)

Sorry can't help :D

Would have thought the pug V6 would be better

Try a caravan forum!

I'm nowhere near sad enough to register with a caravan forum ;):D

YHPM :)

Sorry wouldn't tow it with either.

If you don't have an experienced tower as a driver the laden weight of the caravan should be less than 85% of the cars kerbside weight.
If you are experienced then laden weight of the van should never be more than the kerb weight of the car. That's not the law but the caravaners bible for safe towing.

I should have thought you will run into trouble with the nose weight as well. A van of that size is probably going to have a nose weight of around 100kg's. Most cars will be limited to around 75kg's.

Loading of the van is very important, get most of the weight low and across the axles.

On the law issue its very vague. Police can do you for having a dangerous outfit and for exeeding the manufactures maximum towing weight and nose weight.

Have a look at the Caravan Club website as I think there is a downloadable towers guide.

Cheers
Lee

a van that size is always going to be a pig to tow m8. get a smaller van with an awning, and either car should pull it no problem. just take it easy though as it can get v scary.

why don't you all club together & buy a tent. You'll save loads on petrol. When you've had the holiday you can always sell the tent after the hols.

It just so happens also, I have a HUGE tent in the loft NEVER been used. Seriously though, my advice would be ditch the hiring the caravan idea, cost ya a fortune in petrol and hiring costs. Get a tent and do it that way.

We have a big tent, etc but we really need a van or something solid where we can sit on an evening and play cards, exchange ghost storys and drink booze :D It seems from what I can gather that 85% kerb weight of the car is a good rule of thumb and given that muggins here would likely get the task of driving the bloody thing I'd not feel comfortable pushing the boat out on my first tow. Short of finding a dirty great X5 somewhere to tow it with I'll look at the other options!

Hire a 12 Seater minibus to tow the caravan with?

Might sound a bit extream, but... a few years ago some of the lads here organised an sponsored bike ride from Whitehaven to Sunderland, i went for the easier option of support crew :D. Think we had a 17 seater minubus and a huge trailer for the bikes and gear. Speed was a problem even on the slightest hills but we got there eventually....
Caravan isnt going anywhere with an equal sized brick pulling it :)

Of course you then have the added cost of minibus hire... just a thought anyway.

Just hire a smaller van - we have a 14ft 2+2 berth which is great fun - just the right size for us. But maybe a decent 4 berth would be good for you guys.

Hire a nice Bailey or Swift.

Hire a motorhome instead?

Believe it or not the beefy caravan is a two berth - its got lots of sitting and cooking space and a full sized toilet which suits our needs as it will be used for cooking and chilling out in by about 6-8 of us and we will use the mother tend for sleeping and storage. I looked into motorhomes but they are mega expensive for anything that is of a reasonable size - far more than a caravan and far more than I expected them to be!! Looks like we might just have to go for a small lighter van and make do :)

if you want some practice, I need my caravan shifting, you can have an experimental tow with that, and at the same time I get mine shifted. ;)

:D :D :D I'd go with 85% kerb weight though. It's not that bad towing really, just stuck to 60mph max, no outside lane, and remember it's on the back when you take the corners !!! Have you thought of a trailer tent ??

why not rent a static when you get there? the novelty of towing soon wears off.

the power of the car is'nt much of an issue it the weight of the car pulling it. as you will discover when a lorry or it get windy, the caravan will move the car:eek: . the caravan should be 85% of the weight of the car when the caravan is fully loaded. so it sounds like you need a "bigger boat" ;)

mike ex caravan fitter:D

All the statics are booked up year after year - there is no hope of getting one unless some regulars die :D

Wanted - a gun and some bullets ;)

rent a cottage then ffs;)
loads of space to sit, and it won't blow away or crash on the motorway:D

Kenny contact Kev Sharp - he owns a caravan company, he could you advise you. Put an FAO for him in Scotland forum

Most modern twin-axle jobs are only really suitable for towing using a 4x4 or transit style vehicle.
If you MUST use one of those cars you list, take the V6. Its higher torque output will help.

I wont say much as everyone above has said it all and they are all right.
Only thing that hasnt been touched upon is that if you have passed your test within recent years you wont be legal to tow unless you sit a trailer-test. iirc the date is 1998ish. if you passed prior to this you will be ok.

If you do tow, have some consideration for other road users behind you. Im sure you know how frustrating it is being in a queue behind some **** pulling his caravan with a clapped-out old Sierra for miles and miles along twisty roads without him pulling over to let people pass, so bear this in mind when yuu are on the road.

Oh, and if you need any bits while up this way, pop in and see me where I work in Aberdeens Premier (only) caravan dealership ;)

Quote:

Towing a caravan - the law?

It should fecking well be against it:mad: Anyone caught doing it in daylight should be summarily shot;)

make sure whatever you are towing with has a nice fat torque band & a low 1st gear, big capacity V6's are ideal, even with just front drive. Make sure you put plenty of folding aside for fuel, you're gonna need it;)

Well my dad does own one and a van but they are all booked out, everything is booked out year after year :rolleyes:

I'm not taking on a van that big in the pug its just too risky when all I've pulled behind me is a small trailer once and a dead cat that got caught in the mudguard ;):D It would be interesting to see how much pulling something like that would feck fuel economy. I get about 28mpg on a run with just me and no stuff it must be horrific with one tonne of van behind you and a fully loaded car!!

Why not buy one of the new Gazebo based marquees? Will give you all the room you need to chill, and flat back to go in the boot.

With all the kit you are carrying sounds as if you will need at least 2 cars anyway!

I think we should come to an arrangement with Kenny.

He lets us publicly dynamite the caravan and be happy in the knowledge that there's one less blocking the roads - and we club together and buy him a big tent.

Whaddya reckon? :D

Driving at 50mph with a chain of frustraited scoobys behind me is the bit I'm most looking forward to ;):D

why not go the whole nine yards and publically dynamite kenny?

then we can all be happy in the knowledge that there's one less civil servant.

:)

ooooh PC, you'll never get your conservatory approved now!

"if a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well"

PC has a point :D I'm not proud of what I am but your guys taxes pay the mortgage whilst I build my poker game ;)