Question for everyone....

Do you know if you can buy trailor kits ???

Make your own chassis from metal tubes, etc. But buy the axle's, lights, connections to the car, etc etc etc

Cheers

Your building a car from scratch - how hard can a trailer be? surely an axle off anything suitable down the scrappie and the rest is simple - only part you may need to shell out for is the towing eye.

I have seen some plans somewhere - I'll see if I can dig them out

[Edited on 11/9/03 by protofj]

yes please.... plans would be brilliant.

Just wondering if anyone had got plans. or suggestions on axles, etc.

Have to see these plans mate... and do some measuring round the scrappies

Old caravan + chain saw = instant flat bed

Worked for me! Grand total £0.00.

Chris

quote:

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Originally posted by Ben_Copeland
Question for everyone....

Do you know if you can buy trailor kits ???

Make your own chassis from metal tubes, etc. But buy the axle's, lights, connections to the car, etc etc etc

Cheers

---

Fiat Pandas had a tube rear axle, which was handy for light trailers.
Any left over there, or have they all disentigrated?

quote:

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Originally posted by thekafer

Do you mean a trailor to pull with your locost or haul it?

I have seen a trailor somewhere that was just a seven from the trunk(boot?) on back being pulled by a seven.

Fletch

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quote:

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Originally posted by Rorty
Fiat Pandas had a tube rear axle, which was handy for light trailers.
Any left over there, or have they all disentigrated?

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pug 205 use torsion beam suspension at rear make up some mountings and then make chassis of trailer to fit else do a google on indispension for trailer parts but they are expensive

or alternatively try HERE

Under classifieds there is a single axle car trailer with winch going for £100.. you can't say fairer than that!

or:

http://www.towsure.co.uk/

they do all the individual bits. Using a caravan is a good idea though, thats where my trailer came from i think.

Pug 205 sounds like a plan !!!

Was thinking the fiat axle would be too narrow anyway. Want to find something suitable to start, rather than extending one.

Have to keep an eye out for abandoned 205's

Cheers for the links chaps !

Escort vans mk3 mk4 etc. have a rear beam axle and single leaf cart spring, got to be cheaper than pug and wider than panda. Also more plentiful in scrapyards.

yours, Pete.

I looked at a news group on this about a year ago.
There was some talk about making sure you've 'balanced' it properly during construction.
As a consequence I started looking at the converted caravan idea as it strikes me as being a bit safer! Would be a pity to dump ones' pride and joy along the motorway at 60mph!

Cheers,

James

dont want to be the bearer of bad tidings, but arent there construction regs for trailors????

and some form of inspection???

plus if the designed weight of trailer and load is too large, then it must be a braked trailor by law

ie you cant just drag anything betind your car, tho a chopped up caravan should be ok

one of the problems in construction is that balance thing, position of the axles etc. get it wrong, and it will swing side to side as you go along the road, get it badly wrong, and you can end up with somthing that will tip your pride and joy on its side.

finally i believe that if your car you intend to tow with, is newer than a certain date, then it must be designed to take a towbar, and you must use an approved tow bar and hitch (the ford KA isnt designed to tow and it would be illegal to tow with it)

[Edited on 12/9/03 by eddie]

SVA for a bleedin' trailor!!

There will be mot tests for wheel barrows next

I'd go with the caravan idea, cos looking at new parts on my link they are way too expensive for a budget idea.

Caravans are a tried and tested theory, so maybe look around for one. dunno where though.

Piece of wee to smash or cut one off its mount.

Alternativly buy my trailer for 400 bucks!

try those nutters who race caravans for a laugh, they will definately have a couple of spare one's loafing around, and on the plus side its already been hacked up for you.


chris

Kiwi,

I think you've been spending too much time up at Charter House, that sounds like the sort of thing they get up to!

Kingr

[Edited on 14/9/03 by kingr]

Plenty of caravans on ebay at the mo, search caravan and put in order of price, scroll to sub100 and theres a selection of lengths to choose from.

caravan is not such a good idea, if you want to be legal, though most car carrying trailors on the road are either ilegal or ilegaly towed.

The trailor has to be braked to carry a car and also has to have the carrying capacity clearly stamped on a proper plate, there are a lot of laws relating to what you can tow.

If you are towing an unladen trailor that has a maximum laden weight of more than your car can tow, you can be nicked because the trailor is capable of carrying more than you are allowed to tow.

Does it have to be braked below 750kgs? I thought this was the limit and assumed that a locost would be less even including the trailer.

dunno about plates though, wouldn't be suprised...

can't remember what the min weight is but i would be very surprised if a loccost and trailor came up under 750kg

only takes one jobsworth copper to pull you.

here is a link to a site about trailor design....

http://www.synthx.com/articles/trailer-design.html

its from america, but quite neatly explains all you may need to considder, if you are wanting to build your own.....

Viper is spot on with this, we went to a race meet at Cadwell Park a couple of years ago and the coppers were handing tickets out like confetti to almost all the guys dragging racecars into the circuit


Cheers

Chris

Cheers guys... looks like I'll have to do some more research into this matter

Let you know if i find anything new!

It's relative to the vehicle doing the towing so varies in different cases. I once followed a small caravan near Lincoln which was doing some very strange things going downhill. It pulled up and as we passed it we noticed the towing vehicle was a Reliant Regal. If you obtain a copy of the Towsure parts catalogue it explains the ins and outs of trailering.

yours, Pete.

yes, i know the regulations are on the towing vehicle... just have to look in your car's user manual, or haynes for towing weights. i'd like to make a braked trailor, bit safer for my pride and joy