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Subject Topic: Towing Advice
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Personchrism2015
26/7/2016 at 1:06pm
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Hi

Very new to all this and struggling a bit. We have acquired a 2 berth caravan its a 1996 brightstar xl. We want either a small van to tow this but confused re the weights etc can anybody help


Personpaulr5604
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Ideally you want the Maximum weight of your caravan to be around 85% of the kerbweight of the tow vehicle. This is recomended for people new to towing caravans you can go over the 85% but should never exceed the kerbweight of your car. Another consideration is if you passed your driving test after 1997 you will be restricted to a combined weight of 3500kgs (this is the maximum weight of caravan + weight of tow vehicle when fully laden) Hope this helps a little.


Personchrism2015
26/7/2016 at 3:18pm
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So i think the weight of the caravan is 1300 kgs so the car needs to be heavier?


PersonRob and Tina
26/7/2016 at 3:31pm
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Yes, the kerbweight would have to be 1530kg or higher to achieve a good match of 85% which is recommended for novices.

Rob


Personchrism2015
26/7/2016 at 3:57pm
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ok thank you, i passed my test in 1999 so i am ok to drive on my normal one then am i


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PersonRob and Tina
26/7/2016 at 4:54pm
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You need to keep to a gross train weight under 3500kg unless you have a B+E licence, have a look at the thread at the top of the page about driving licence restrictions or check with .gov website about licence groups. The Caravan Club probably has a fact sheet you can look at for more information.

What car do you have at the moment? You may not need to change your car.

Rob


Personchrism2015
26/7/2016 at 10:15pm
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I currently have a Seat Ibiza i know this will not do. WE are going to buy a car just for towing we will not be going far at first as never towed. Was looking around 1500.00 what would you reccomend?


Persontango55
26/7/2016 at 10:26pm
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Quote: Originally posted by chrism2015 on 26/7/2016
I currently have a Seat Ibiza i know this will not do. WE are going to buy a car just for towing we will not be going far at first as never towed. Was looking around 1500.00 what would you reccomend?




1500.00 in money (£'s) or weight of towcar (kgs.) ?


Personchrism2015
26/7/2016 at 11:12pm
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In Money sorry


Personblueexpo97
27/7/2016 at 3:41pm
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No need to apologise, I thought it was kinda obvious.

-------------
XVI yes?

As well is two words!
How does a sage know everything about everything? or does he? or does he just think he does?
Remember, if you buy something you bought it, not brought it.


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Persontango55
27/7/2016 at 9:04pm
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Quote: Originally posted by blueexpo97 on 27/7/2016
No need to apologise, I thought it was kinda obvious.


Well blueexpo97, if you had noticed that the OP has a caravan of 1300 kgs. in weight then an 85% match would be a car in the region of around 1500 kgs. so not so obvious as you portray me as being a bit thick. Although it was just a piece of information that was absent in the OP's reply an apology clarified exactly what they were referring to so what's the problem?


Personchrism2015
28/7/2016 at 10:41pm
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Would an MG ZT be a decent choice diesel?


Persontango55
28/7/2016 at 11:21pm
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You would need to be a bit more specific on the engine size and model so you can look online for the appropriate kerbweight as different models can vary. Once you know the kerbweight all you have to do is work out the percentage of the vehicle kerbweight and caravan.


Percentage Calculator


Personchrism2015
28/7/2016 at 11:24pm
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just found an 04 plate vectra 2.0 dti and has tow bar on. where is best to look as the site i use dosent have a 1996 model listed


PersonRob and Tina
29/7/2016 at 9:57am
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Morning Chris. Trying to find the right car can be hard as most sellers don't have a clue what they are selling, they may say eg MG ZT but there are probably 2 different diesel versions and as a caravanner you really want the more powerful one if possible.

I use parkers.co.uk for car specs, it gives you a good idea of different versions so at least you know to check for the exact version you want. Parkers gives you the kerb weight and max tow weight for each model but you still need to check that the car you are thinking of buying matches the spec you have seen online. The kerbweight is usually shown on the V5 and the max weight and gross train weight are shown on the weight plate which should be fitted to the car, usually inside the passenger door.

The towing ratio you are aiming for is that the max weight of the caravan should be around 85% of the kerbweight of the tow car. If your caravan has a max weight of 1300 kg then a car with a kerbweight of 1500kg would give an 87% match which would be fine.

From memory the Vauxhall you have mentioned is probably a bit light but is probably still ok and the fitted tow bar will save you a bit of cash. I'd look at the MG but that's because i've always liked them but some of the spares might be harder to find these days.

Good luck with whatever you go for.

Rob


Personchrism2015
29/7/2016 at 11:51am
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these are the stats that i found for the caravan what number to i go off?

Year - 1996
2 berth
Single axle
Mass in Running Order (Kg) - 988
Maximum Allowable/Authorised Weight (Kg) - 1300
Internal Length (metres) - 4.64
Shipping Length (metres) - 6.19
Width (metres) - 2.16
Awning Size (cm) - 874
Layout - EW



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