towing

hi i have a hobby 650 and was wondering if my F/L1 TD4 would tow it ok? she is a twin axle braked unit weighing in at a hefty 1900KGs?
Cheers
Andy

i believe you can tow 2000 kg max.

You can tow it. But it may be happier with a lighter van. Try it and see what you think. Also consider hills in the equation.

I tow plenty of weight now n then you should be fine but depends on ya load I spose

roodini said:

hi i have a hobby 650 and was wondering if my F/L1 TD4 would tow it ok? she is a twin axle braked unit weighing in at a hefty 1900KGs?

Cheers

Andy

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Time to get the calculator out (again)

The Max gross train weight is on the plate of your car. Mine is 4080kg

The GVW of mine is 2505kg

So the difference is the amount you can LEGALLY tow, which is different to what the manufacturer states.

Which for my '06 Facelift TD4 auto is 1575kg.

For earlier TD'4's their GVW is less, so you can tow more as their Max train weight remains the same.

If i get stopped and the trailer GVW is more than 1575kg, then I would be prosecuted.

A Freelander 1 towing a twin axle caravan is a good start for somebody to have reason to pull you.

Best get a bigger car. Disco would be perfect.

that makes good sense so i will continue to use my 3.5 gdi shogun to tow it. but would have been nice to get rid of 1 of the cars (shogun) and save some money
Thank you
Andy

I think that the 2000Kg towing rating for the Freelander is what Land Rover state it to be structurally capable of towing, but each countries regulations can differ.

When towing a trailer, the plated maximum gross weight of the trailer is always used in law, so if you are towing an empty trailer with a MGW which exceeds the limits of the car - it is an offence.

The VIN plate is usually stamped with four weights in order - Gross vehicle weight (maximum weight of car fully loaded), Gross Train Weight (maximum weight of car and trailer fully loaded), Maximum Axle weight 1, Maximum Axle weight 2. It is an offence to exceed any of these.

I am not sure if under UK law the towing vehicle is weighed or if the maximum GVW is taken for the calculation. In the latter case you could not tow 2,000Kg. Another point to mention is that when towing large, bulky things (caravans) the recommendation is that the trailer should not exceed 80-85% of the towing vehicle to keep stability in wind etc. but this isn't law.

Most Police are oblivious to towing law but the laws have changed and tightened recently and more and more Police are enforcing them. In some ways about time too - I passed a loaded horsebox on the M18 last month being towed by a young girl in a Peugeot 307... but its frustrating for experienced towers who know what they are doing.

i agree that when towing the car should be able to cope with the load, my freelander is a second car only to use every day instead of the shogun, but was just considering its limits. it may be ok to drag the caravan out of the barne i store it in to the farms CL site.
Thanks everyone
Andy

I have towed another Freelander behind mine L-series on a boggy car trailer. 2000(+50)kg wasnt a very big problem. I was a little worried about some steep hills, but it managed okey.

I would have no worries towing with the TD4.

I'm not saying the TD4 can't cope, just that it may be breaking UK law. I did a city & guilds in off road driving and towing a trailer recently and they went into this in great detail.

Hi most hobby vans can only be towed by a truck over 3500kg due to them being 2.5m wide. How much your car can tow is illrelavant. This is from the caravan club advice section on there website (This van is 2.5 metres wide and therefore needs to be towed by a vehicle with a Gross Vehicle Weight or Maximum Authorised Mass as it is now known in excess of 3.5 tonnes. Vehicle such as Dicoveries and Range Rovers don't really come anywhere close to this figure.) to tow legally you would need a transit or similar to legally pull it. Google hobby van legal towcar.

How large a caravan can I tow legally in the UK?

roodini said:

hi i have a hobby 650 and was wondering if my F/L1 TD4 would tow it ok? she is a twin axle braked unit weighing in at a hefty 1900KGs?
Cheers
Andy

Click to expand...

Its too long and its too wide according to this

I wish more people out there would pay attention to their towing weights a few years back when I was ferrying paramedics around due to floods ,we cam across a van (escort) size and he had been towing a car transporter trailer with a big car on the back ,the only trouble was he was down an embankment and on its side , he had gone around the bend and as he did he applied his breaks needless to say the did not stop him , the trailer must have been the same weight of the van never mind the car on the back , how many times do you see it a small car towing a big caravan or trailer with a car on will they never learn .

Badgerroy said:

Hi most hobby vans can only be towed by a truck over 3500kg due to them being 2.5m wide. How much your car can tow is illrelavant. This is from the caravan club advice section on there website (This van is 2.5 metres wide and therefore needs to be towed by a vehicle with a Gross Vehicle Weight or Maximum Authorised Mass as it is now known in excess of 3.5 tonnes. Vehicle such as Dicoveries and Range Rovers don't really come anywhere close to this figure.) to tow legally you would need a transit or similar to legally pull it. Google hobby van legal towcar.

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The law changed in 2010 - as I interpret it the maximum width of any trailer is now 2.55M regardless of what is towing it (Mini, Defender, etc). The maximum length varies with MAM (7m below 3.5t, 12m above).

i will just drag the caravan round the farm but use the bigger shogun for road towing
Andy

Tannaton said:

The law changed in 2010 - as I interpret it the maximum width of any trailer is now 2.55M regardless of what is towing it (Mini, Defender, etc). The maximum length varies with MAM (7m below 3.5t, 12m above).

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Im just quoting from the caravan club site, they are normally very good and up to date.
If I'm wrong i stand corrected.

Actually if you have a hobby caravan you need to do tarmacing or tree surgery......

In which case none of the above laws really apply..........

roodini said:

i will just drag the caravan round the farm but use the bigger shogun for road towing
Andy

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It aint allowed on the road. Dunno how that happened though.

ZDomZ said:

Actually if you have a hobby caravan you need to do tarmacing or tree surgery......

In which case none of the above laws really apply..........

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There is a maximum size though for the brackets to which you can tether the horse and the maximum amount of lead you can carry is limited to 2 tons (or enough to cover 2 church roofs...)