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Trailer question
joemotion - 19/1/11 at 08:45 PM

What is the typical weight of say a twin axle trailer suitable for moving the kit car around? I.e can these be manhandled to say sit on the trailers side when space is tight. I have an open entry down the side of my house that could be used to store one.

Reason being is that my garage is tight and the small trailers that just fit in a garage seem pretty expensive however there are quite a few cheaper ones out there which are slightly too big for a single garage.

It may not be possible but worth asking the question.

Also what's the deal with towing trailers on a standard car licence? Passed my test in 1997 if that makes any difference

big_wasa - 19/1/11 at 08:53 PM

In a word NO.

Mine is a single axle ex caravan chassis and I cant turn that over on my own to finish welding it. I had to use the engine crane.

Dangle_kt - 19/1/11 at 08:55 PM

you might be ok, but personally I'd struggle to lift the trailers I've owned up onto their side and move against a wall on my own.

Mine was an old caravan chassis though, so may be a bad example.

joemotion - 19/1/11 at 08:58 PM

was just a thought - will have to keep an eye out for a garage fitting trailer when the time is right!

GMPMotorsport - 19/1/11 at 08:59 PM

We have a Brian James twin wheel trailor and you would never tip it on its side, don't know the weight without looking at the plate but I do know it's heavy!

lsdweb - 19/1/11 at 09:48 PM

There's a guy i know who keeps his trailer 'on' the ceiling! The trailer is winched up using two electric winches! It's a brilliant space saving idea :-)


W

JoelP - 19/1/11 at 09:55 PM

IRO 400kgs empty.

Your license is borderline being 1997 - you need to check your photocard and see if category E is present.

With a BEC, it is *just* possible to make a car and trailer under 750kgs, hence no brakes needed so much cheaper components.

Ninehigh - 19/1/11 at 10:11 PM

They changed it on 1997..

dhutch - 19/1/11 at 10:14 PM

Mine is covered and weights 580kg, you could get a bit of out of that, but its not even close to being something you could tip on its side without a lot of thought and design. Certainly not manhandlable without being very much designed for it etc.

You can tow a fair bit without a ticket, a trailer with a MAM upto the curb/dry weight of the car as long as the whole train MAM is below 3500kg.


Daniel

joemotion - 19/1/11 at 10:28 PM

My licence says B,BE,C1,C1E,D1,D1E, fklmp

Its valid from 1996 which seems weird as i didnt pass till 1997. Maybe its valid from you first provisional licence date.

JoelP - 19/1/11 at 10:31 PM

good news then, c1 is the 7.5t class and D is i believe minibuses too.

ChrisW - 20/1/11 at 12:55 AM

I'm mid 1997 and I don't have the trailer entitlement.

The regulations are really complicated, but my interpretation is that:

1. Car, trailer and whatever is on it mustn't exceed 3.5 tonnes

AND

2. Car must be heavier than the trailer and load combined

AND

3. You must be within the manufacturer's specified towing limits, which is where the maximum weight for braked and unbraked comes in.

It's actually a lot harder than you'd think to stay legal when towing a car on a trailer. If we assume a small 'brian james' style weighs about 400kg, there are only very few combinations of tow car and towed car that are allowed.

For example, my Audi weighs 2 tonnes, and my MR2 1200kg. I technically can't tow that, as the train weight would exceed 3500kg.

But, if I was to get a lighter tow car to reduce the overall weight, there's only a small window in reduction I can go to before the loaded trailer becomes heavier than the tow car.

However, I've heard that people do 1000's of miles with slightly overloaded trailers and never have any problems with the Police.... *whistle*

Chris

[Edited on 1/20/2011 by ChrisW]

Ninehigh - 20/1/11 at 08:14 AM

Yeah and then you drive your SORN'd car round the corner for an MOT and they find you...

cliftyhanger - 20/1/11 at 08:28 AM

I have a feeling the regulations are even more complicated than that. The MAM thing refers to the maximum weight, so if the trailer is plated to carry 1000kg and weighs 500kg, it counts as 1500kg even if empty. Add to that the MAM of the trailer must be less than the UNLAIDEN weight of the towing vehicle. But for the 3500kg bit they use the MAM of the car. Dead confusing!
A matey got caught with an empty trailer behind his landy on the motorway. Got points........ plus the trailer hire company didn't even undersand the rules.

[Edited on 20/1/11 by cliftyhanger] typos!

[Edited on 20/1/11 by cliftyhanger]

dhutch - 14/2/11 at 11:53 AM

quote:
Originally posted by cliftyhanger
I have a feeling the regulations are even more complicated than that. The MAM thing refers to the maximum weight, so if the trailer is plated to carry 1000kg and weighs 500kg, it counts as 1500kg even if empty. Add to that the MAM of the trailer must be less than the UNLAIDEN weight of the towing vehicle. But for the 3500kg bit they use the MAM of the car. Dead confusing!

Yes, this is my understanding also. (in conjuction with what chris said)

quote:

A matey got caught with an empty trailer behind his landy on the motorway. Got points........ plus the trailer hire company didn't even undersand the rules.

Can I be cheeky and ask how many points/fine he got? Was it just a FPN or more?

Slowly but surely the majority of my landy freinds are getting trailer tickets but i think this is a good reminder for the stragglers. Need to do it myself next as although i can just about tow the field behind the 306 while remaining in the rules im again stuck bay the fact a larger car would put me over, and most newer cars of the size have lower manufactore limits.


Daniel

lsdweb - 14/2/11 at 05:29 PM

I'll have this trailer up for sale soon - it has a folding A frame and fits in a normal garage (the car's not mine!)

Regards

Wyn




cliftyhanger - 20/4/11 at 08:27 AM

quote:

A matey got caught with an empty trailer behind his landy on the motorway. Got points........ plus the trailer hire company didn't even undersand the rules.

Can I be cheeky and ask how many points/fine he got? Was it just a FPN or more?

Slowly but surely the majority of my landy freinds are getting trailer tickets but i think this is a good reminder for the stragglers. Need to do it myself next as although i can just about tow the field behind the 306 while remaining in the rules im again stuck bay the fact a larger car would put me over, and most newer cars of the size have lower manufactore limits.


Daniel


Sorry, just caught up.

It was a while ago, he has since had a kiddie and moved away..
But I think he got 3 points and a fine. Same as speeding IIRC.

owelly - 20/4/11 at 09:34 PM

I have to ask: What size was the trailer to be too big for the Landy??
I do know that a Landy with a 3500kg trailer that's being used for business needs a tacho fitted but there's not many plated trailers, other than agricultural, that are over 3500kg! My Series three states the 'towload' as 6000kg but that is a throwback from it's military days!