Towing

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LandyBen

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Hi All

I am really confused about this so can someone please help me

i passed my test in 99 so after the new rule they brought in allowing me to tow upto 3.5ton car and caravan together so can tell me how this works before i buy my next Landy

looking at a classic range rover TDI or a discovery TD5 and with a caravan that weights about 1300kg

thanks

Ben
 
Not quite as simple, but yes you are limited to a max combined vehicle+trailer/caravan weight of 3.5 tons.

Combination also needs to be safe, and within capabilities of your towing vehicle.
Typically caravan shouldn't exceed 80% of towing vehicles weight.

Lots of advice on Towsure website - IIRC.

So if your caravan weighs 1300kg, towcar shouldn't be less than 1625kg.
This would also give you a total weight of 2925kg, (ie less than 3.5 ton)

Mark
 
also, as far as I know, the maximum weight of trailer you can pull without taking another "trailer test" is 750kg... this is regardless of combined maximum weight. So for me, my 700kg caravan is the limit, pretty much!
 
http://towbar-fitters.co.uk/usefulPages.aspx?id=34

DRIVING LICENCE

You must have a full driving licence for the class of vehicle and trailer which you intend to tow. Existing car driving licence holders will retain their entitlement to tow a trailer up to a combined mass of 8.25 tonnes including a minibus with a trailer up to 750kg. Existing lorry drivers (category C & D) will be restricted to towing trailers less than 750kg until they pass a test for category C+E or D+E. From 1/1/97 all new drivers will be required to pass an additional test for trailer towing in various categories. There are also age limits for certain classes of towing vehicle & trailer. The new mass limits depend on the category of licence held.
 
With effect from 1 January 1997 the second EC Directive on Driving Licences (91/439/EEC) came into effect, affecting new drivers passing their test after that date and HGV drivers who obtained their licence after 31 December 1991.

The net result is that new drivers will only be allowed to drive and tow the following combinations:

Vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes (category B) with a 750kg trailer (4.25 tonnes total MAM).
Category B vehicles with larger trailers i.e. > 750kg, provided that the combined MAM does not exceed 3.5 tonnes and the gross MAM of the trailer does not exceed the unladen weight of the towing vehicle. To be able to tow combinations outside this ruling requires the passing of an additional test.
Click to expand...

See above
 
fishsponge said:
also, as far as I know, the maximum weight of trailer you can pull without taking another "trailer test" is 750kg... this is regardless of combined maximum weight. So for me, my 700kg caravan is the limit, pretty much!
Click to expand...

Err... not if i understand it correctly, total MAM needs to be under 3500kg, but you can tow a trailer heavier than 750Kg

750Kg is the key figure for breaked and unbreaked trailers
 
Ben, have a look at the official stuff on the DVLA website but at the end of the day, look at the categories on your own licence, look at the weights of the vehicle and what you're towing and satisfy yourself that its legal. As can be seen above, there is plenty of confusion out there and threads on internet forums contain a lot of misleading advice.
 
Bump said:
Err... not if i understand it correctly, total MAM needs to be under 3500kg, but you can tow a trailer heavier than 750Kg

750Kg is the key figure for breaked and unbreaked trailers
Click to expand...

Wrong, you can tow any trailer up to 750kg, so long as the MAM of the car and trailer doesn't exceed 3500kg.

So for example if you had a 4x4 that weighed 3,000kg, you could only tow a trailer weighing 500kg. If your car only weighed 2000kg, you can only tow a 750kg trailer. As stated, you need a B+E for bigger stuff ;)
 
Langers said:
Wrong, you can tow any trailer up to 750kg, so long as the MAM of the car and trailer doesn't exceed 3500kg.

So for example if you had a 4x4 that weighed 3,000kg, you could only tow a trailer weighing 500kg. If your car only weighed 2000kg, you can only tow a 750kg trailer. As stated, you need a B+E for bigger stuff ;)
Click to expand...

nope you is wrong any one of any weight upto 3500kg can tow a trailer upto 750kg.

And there is a complicated formula for working out the exact weight of trailer you can tow It is possible to tow a braked trailer upto 1749kg on a newer type licence without taking the B+E test


Edit just been and grabbed this from the link in me font of all knowledge. (very usefull poast on exactly what ya can and can't drive/tow etc. definitions of MAM GTW etc etc..

ith effect from 1 January 1997 the second EC Directive on Driving Licences (91/439/EEC) came into effect, affecting new drivers passing their test after that date and HGV drivers who obtained their licence after 31 December 1991.

The net result is that new drivers will only be allowed to drive and tow the following combinations:

* Vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes (category B) with a 750kg trailer (4.25 tonnes total MAM).
Example: If you have a full licence you can tow any trailer without brakes.
* Category B vehicles with larger trailers i.e. > 750kg, provided that the combined MAM does not exceed 3.5 tonnes and the gross MAM of the trailer does not exceed the un-laden weight of the towing vehicle. To be able to tow combinations outside this ruling requires the passing of an additional test.
Example: If your vehicle weighs 1200kg you can tow a braked trailer up to our equal to 1200kg, if your trailer and load exceeded 1200kg then you will need to take an additional test
* New HGV drivers and those who have passed their HGV tests since 1 January 1992 will be restricted to towing trailers up to 750kg until they pass an additional test.
 
Last edited:
you could only tow a trailer of 1749kg (loaded) with a car with a loaded weight of 1749kg on the newer licence as the loaded weight of the trailer cannot exceed the loaded weight of the car and combined they must not excwwd 3500kg
 
So when I had me Disco and I towed a car transporter trailer (a heavy one) and I passed my test in 98, was I legal or illegal?

I never can understand all that weights this, weights that ****.
 
aaron1980 said:
you could only tow a trailer of 1749kg (loaded) with a car with a loaded weight of 1749kg on the newer licence as the loaded weight of the trailer cannot exceed the loaded weight of the car and combined they must not excwwd 3500kg
Click to expand...

yep that's what I said and it isn't the loaded weight. it the MAM MAxium authorised Mass or GVW as it used to be called and because a 90/110 has a MAM of 3500kg you can only tow an unbraked trailer with a mam of 750kg on a new licence.
 
redhand said:
Illegal
Click to expand...

Thought so, had plod behind me for most of the way too.

Also used to tow a big livestock trailer behind Rangie classic not long after passing me test.

I had half an idea it was illegal, so did boss but it didn't worry me.

The law is an ass though. I can't tow a trailer behind a car but I can hook a 18 tonne silage trailer onto a tractor, fill it and drive down the road legally. Where is the sense in that?
 
If I was to hit something with 18T of silage, a 4 tonne trailer and a 5 tonne tractor at 28mph I'd do a hell of a lot more damage than I would with 4 tonnes of car and trailer at 50.
 
We get loads of enquiries about this one at work; brownie points to Bump in post #6 and Redhand in post #13 who have it right - incidentally so does DirectGov at this link

You can tow trailers heavier than 750 kgs without a full B+E licence providing you meet the requirements on DirectGov.
 
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