Hi I'm a newbie, I was wondering if my car was able to tow any trailer tent or something similar, I have a reliant rialto 1984. This may completely put me out on any t.t but I was wondering if I made my car heavier would I then be able to tow one? It weighs 485kg approx but I was hoping if I put most of the stuff inside the car to add the weight would it then be possible? If so how much weight would I need to add? (I don't have rear seats so there is plenty of space and it only needs to be for 2 adults) Thanks.
I once bought a Robin Reliant that had a 1.3/4 inch towball on the back of it and it towed a camping trailer. As I have since never come across that size of towball, I would guess that it was specifically made for the Robin.
My guess is that while you can tow up to the Kerb Weight of the car, you should aim to tow no more than 85% of the car's kerb weight.
IE the car with half a tank of fuel and the weight of the driver.
Adding weight to the car will not alter the official kerb weight of the car.
I think the examples may be before the days of Type Approval. I would be vaguely surprised if you can get a legal towbar. I have been wrong before though.
You could tow a small unbraked camping trailer but that's about the limit really but the biggest problem is where to mount the 7 pin socket to operate the rear trailer lights. Because the body is made of a fibreglass construction it would be difficult to attach the 7 pin electrical socket therefore you would be best to mount the towing socket via a 'L' shaped bracket fixed to the side of the towbar.
Pre '97 cars don't need type approved towbars. You can make your own if you wish. So should be feasable with light trailer. Towbar wiring must be doable with wired earths.
You're right, I had overlooked the age of it. I still don't really see how you can tow much with it anyway. Even a trailer tent would surely be as heavy as the car.
I've had a couple in the past, and they were a lot of fun, but I wouldn't want to tow more than a small camping trailer.
The Kerb Weight of a Reliant Rialto is stated as 436kg, so legally you can tow up to that weight.
However as the recommended towing capacity is 85% of the car's kerb weight, then, for safety, you should aim to tow no more than 370kg.
That suggests something like a loaded camping trailer.
Well I was hoping to get some form of easy set up t.t as I'm rather ill, I might struggle to set up even a simple tent however my partner should be able to put up a t.t. I only have a full bike licence hence the 3 wheeler, plus it has a lot of character and a personality.
Have a look at a Cabanon Venus T/T. Max Gross weight is 500kg, but I don't know the basic weight. Phone Camperlands at Manchester and ask if they can help. They do have one in stock but it's a bit overpriced.
I'm nearing 70 and easily managed to erect it on my own.
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