I was considering ,as a replacement tow vehicle, a cab (crew) chassis to tow my twin axle upplated to 2000kg caravan such as a Mercedes Sprinter 4x4 dual axle. Although the Mercedes website states that the towing capacity is 2000kg braked, I thought a 4x4 normally has a higher towing capacity. I don't want to consider a pick up truck, Discovery or Mercedes ML and I think this something different. My only concern is the legality and if I end up with a longer unit that I already have. I would be interested if anyone has a similar units. The bonus would be if the resulting unit ended up being shorter and more manoevourable.
Dual axle? Is that a twin wheel? 4 wheels on the rear axle 2 each side? Or just a way of describing a 4x4 with 2 axles?
Dual axle to me is 2 sets of wheels at the rear.
Odd choice of vehicle, but if its what you want then why not. I wouldn't like to tow at the vehicles max weight though. If its the occasional trip them OK, but longer journeys or lots of touring and i would want something that will tow more though.
There is a wide range in the towing capacity of 4x4's.
Some can tow 4000kg (with the correct braking facilities) while others, that might be described as "soft roaders" can only tow 900kg.
If the capacity for what you are looking at says 2000kg, that's it!
You are the only one who has understood what are dual wheel vehicles are. I potentially would like a unique tow vehicle. Perhaps you understand that as well. We tow a 7.88m twin axle caravan with a Hyundai Santa Fe so getting on to a campsite can be a challenge but I just have to be careful. My dream is a Mercedes Sprinter 190BHP 4x4 crew cab that may have the chassis shortened to give me a smaller turning circle. So I don't want an American behemoth or a pick up truck. Thank you for carefully reading my post. I have been driving dual wheel Sprinters for 15 years and they are super reliable even with automatic gearboxes.
A 3.5 ton breakdown truck sounds like it would do the job for you..crew cab and twin rear wheels..not too long.Take the spec lift off and fit a hitch if not already fitted and youre off! 4x4 might be hard to find though. Have a look on the commercial side websites of big auction houses eg BCA.. These types of vehicle are used by the utility companies ..railways etc and are usually disposed of through auctions. BCA at Measham in midlands worth a look.
Quote: Originally posted by phil swarbrick on 18/7/2018
You are the only one who has understood what are dual wheel vehicles are. I potentially would like a unique tow vehicle. Perhaps you understand that as well. We tow a 7.88m twin axle caravan with a Hyundai Santa Fe so getting on to a campsite can be a challenge but I just have to be careful. My dream is a Mercedes Sprinter 190BHP 4x4 crew cab that may have the chassis shortened to give me a smaller turning circle. So I don't want an American behemoth or a pick up truck. Thank you for carefully reading my post. I have been driving dual wheel Sprinters for 15 years and they are super reliable even with automatic gearboxes.
being a 4x4 ,no matter how long or short the chassis is, the front axle steering hubs can only turn a small amount due to the drive shafts, the turning circle will be rubbish
Quote: Originally posted by freeatlast on 22/7/2018
Eh? So all front wheel drive vehicles automatically have rubbish turning circles according to your theory.
i don't have a theory about anything, i know from experience that a 4x4 sprinter has a rubbish lock, my son has 1 as he works with the electric supply company who have dozens of sprinter vans, i have a 4x4 skoda which has a good lock .