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Is this legal in the UK?
phelpsa - 4/9/05 at 11:35 AM

My dads asked me to find out if this is legal in the UK as hes looking for a way to tow his motorbike, so i thought id ask you lot!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=4572071878&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT

Adam

dave1888 - 4/9/05 at 11:40 AM

Who knows looks a bit dodgy at speed the only thing holding it to the car/van are a couple of racket straps on the handlebars.

Peteff - 4/9/05 at 11:42 AM

I can see one with the practicality. As he says you will have to remove the chain or you'll nadge the transmission big time. The other is a big flat in the middle of the rear tyre if you tow it a lot.

[Edited on 4/9/05 by Peteff]

phelpsa - 4/9/05 at 11:46 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Peteff
I can see one with the practicality. As he says you will have to remove the chain or you'll nadge the transmission big time. The other is a big flat in the middle of the rear tyre if you tow it a lot. Anything with a shaft drive would be impossible as it would mean removing the shaft so BMW is out.


Hes got a BMW 1200GS Would it not work in neutral?

EDIT: It says in the ad that BMWs can be towed with shaft left in place.

Adam

[Edited on 4-9-05 by phelpsa]

Peteff - 4/9/05 at 11:48 AM

He says Harley and Beemer are o.k. just Japanese shafties need removing. You should be alright with your car numberplate fastened to the back to be legal.

[Edited on 4/9/05 by Peteff]

daz - 4/9/05 at 01:03 PM

if you're a good welder and have the tools ready i say make your own and if you want it for a specific bike make the frame that it stands on so it grips atleast 50% of each side of the wheel. the one you showed doesnt look very stable to me, looks as tho it lacks in much needed support.

just my opinion tho, im sure it is stable enough but i certainly wouldnt trust it

[Edited on 4/9/05 by daz]

Triton - 4/9/05 at 01:45 PM

I wouldn't tow 1000's worth of bike behind a car like that .......far too dodgy and besides as said before it will wear a flat on the rear tyre...........Trailer much safer because people will hopefully see it!!!

Jonr - 4/9/05 at 01:52 PM

I can see one problem that may make it a no go. US towbars are made with Steel box section (2" or 1 1/4 receivers) your choice of hitch then (ball or pindle) fits into the box and is pinned. So this is designed with a piece of box that slides into the reciever, this takes the weight and is stable. So it won't fit a british ball, even if it did it would be a bit floppy to say the least.

That said, nothing to stop you welding a length of box on. Though there are newish restrictions on towbars etc( I think) that might prevent you making changes.

US system is great, means you can chuck a lot of interesting things on. Uncle booger

wilkingj - 4/9/05 at 10:34 PM

One BIG problem. A Legal issue on the device itself.

ANY towbar fitted to any vehicle (as of a couple of years ago) MUST have a EU approval plate on it.

ie ALL towbars now fitted must have been through the EU approval testing and have a plate on the bar to show this.

So if this does not have EU approval it cant be fitted. I wonder if this falls into that category?

steve_gus - 4/9/05 at 11:33 PM

AFAIK

its legal for a bike to tow a bike, but a car cannot.

that device looks to me like the law will consider its a bike being towed by a car. So, from that aspect, it wont be legal.

get your dad to fax a pic of it to his insurance co.....

atb

steve

NS Dev - 5/9/05 at 07:50 AM

quote:
Originally posted by wilkingj
One BIG problem. A Legal issue on the device itself.

ANY towbar fitted to any vehicle (as of a couple of years ago) MUST have a EU approval plate on it.

ie ALL towbars now fitted must have been through the EU approval testing and have a plate on the bar to show this.

So if this does not have EU approval it cant be fitted. I wonder if this falls into that category?


I don't think this is correct, but if you can post a link to verify the above then I may be swayed!

As far as I know, the new rules apply to "new" towbars on new cars only. Otherwise half of the older towbars around would be illegal............plus they are not checked at MOT so how does anybody know..................?????

phelpsa - 5/9/05 at 10:16 AM

Ok, as there is no way of fitting it to the car thats gone down the drain. Back looking for a cheap motorbike trailer!

Thanks for your help guys.

Adam

Peteff - 5/9/05 at 11:56 AM

It looks like it attaches to a towbar already fitted to the vehicle so it should be alright, just like the bike racks you see obscuring rear lights with 8 or 9 mountain bikes on them . Have you got a towing hitch fitted for the trailer Adam? If so you should be alright. Bring me some steel and I'll knock you one up from the ebay picture.

[Edited on 5/9/05 by Peteff]

phelpsa - 5/9/05 at 12:08 PM

If you looks at this pic it shows how it attaches.



And this is how the towbar attaches on the car (i think this about shows it):

Description
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