My First Caravan

[stevie m]

 

 

 

I finally got round to buying one at last. I have been waiting for a while and have bought this one with my mate so we will share it. It's in superb condition with no stains or damp (floor is solid too) perfect interior with no rips or marks anywhere. All bits work as they hooked it all up so i could see it working. It's cris registered. I have the original receipt of when they purchased it and all the manuals for all apliances.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All i need now is the time off work !!!! and my kids to take with me !

 

Steve.m

 

 

NO the person in the picture is not me :D .

Edited May 13, 2008 by stevie m

[tdi90]

Looks nice and clean/tidy mate. Is it around the 1992 mark?

[stevie m]

Thanks for the comment mate. It's a garland 185 eb. It's 24ft and 1996 with two previous owners. 4 berth. The pictures seem to have turned out well considering i took them with my mobile phone. Edited May 13, 2008 by stevie m

[Mary]

Hi ya

 

Looking good Stevie. I am sure you will have great time when or if you get that time off work. Happy hols!!!!!!

 

Mary :D

[stevie m]

Thanks mary. My kids have seen photo's of the van but as yet have not been in it. They say they can't wait so we are all looking forward to it. I have no holiday at all as i work for myself. I may try to go on a bank holiday weekend. I have 2 free nights at one of 4 campsites in the uk as i spent Edited May 13, 2008 by stevie m

[mumof4]

Looking good there hun!! taking it to the renault world series??:D

[stevie m]

No Maz. I hoping to take the campervan. My mate is going too so he needs that.

[RADIOTWO]

 

 

 

I finally got round to buying one at last. I have been waiting for a while and have bought this one with my mate so we will share it. It's in superb condition with no stains or damp (floor is solid too) perfect interior with no rips or marks anywhere. All bits work as they hooked it all up so i could see it working. It's cris registered. I have the original receipt of when they purchased it and all the manuals for all apliances.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All i need now is the time off work !!!! and my kids to take with me !

 

Steve.m

 

 

NO the person in the picture is not me :D .

 

If you are towing it with the volvo,just be carefull , looks a bit heavy !

check out your weights!

Radiotwo

Edited May 14, 2008 by RADIOTWO

[searcher]

If you are towing it with the volvo,just be carefull , looks a bit heavy !

check out your weights!

Radiotwo

 

 

Hmmm just what i was thinking.

 

Fleetwood build a very good van but they dont come light.

[Emily's dad]

All I was thinking was another caravan towed by a Volvo :D

 

Only joking, I have to say I don't know much about caravans but that looks mighty impressive, I'm sure you'll enjoy some quality time with the kids in it.

[stevie m]

If you are towing it with the volvo,just be carefull , looks a bit heavy !

check out your weights!

Radiotwo

 

 

Hmmm just what i was thinking.

 

Fleetwood build a very good van but they dont come light.

 

 

Yes i had worried about the weight of it. I looked in to it before i got it and it's fine.

 

Thanks for all the comments.

 

Happy holidays me thinks :wacko:

[RADIOTWO]

If you are towing it with the volvo,just be carefull , looks a bit heavy !

check out your weights!

Radiotwo

 

 

Hmmm just what i was thinking.

 

Fleetwood build a very good van but they dont come light.

 

 

Yes i had worried about the weight of it. I looked in to it before i got it and it's fine.

 

Thanks for all the comments.

 

Happy holidays me thinks :wacko:

 

Hi Steve

 

what is the ULW of the car, and the weight of the caravan, I bet its over 85% !!

 

Radiotwo

[stevie m]

I have just looked again and yes it has worked out to 87.252 %.

 

I thought it was just under but i am wrong.

 

Looks like i will be towing it with my mates 4x4.

 

What is the 85% rule ?

Edited May 14, 2008 by stevie m

[tdi90]

85% is a guideline NOT a rule!

 

It is ADVISABLE that the caravan weighs no more than 85% of the cars kerb weight (Just driver and car fluids)

Dont forget, the more stuff you put in the car, the heavier it will become to counter act the caravan :wacko:

 

Also, if you passed your test after 1st Jan 1997, the max weight of the caravan must not be heavier than the kerb weight of the car, and the total weight of the car and caravan combined must not weigh anymore than 3500kg. To tow over these limits you must pass another test (B+E).

 

I have towed my caravan with a 4ltr V8 L/rover discovery, a 2ltr Di vectra estate, and now the Gal. Have to say the gal is the most stable of the 3, no contest.

[stevie m]

My previous post please ignor ! Internet weight was wrong for my car !!!

 

 

Right reading off my plate which i found on my passenger wing (underneath bonnet :wacko: :lol: ). Right here goes....... Total weight of car 2030 kgs. Permissable train weight 3630kgs. In my book the only weight it refers too is the weight that the car can tow which is a maximum of 1600kgs. Now my caravan from it's plate say's it is 1400kgs. So now i am a bit worried about the fact that i can't tow it please can someone work out if i can. If i can't then i am going to upset my mate and use his !

 

 

I must add that the percentage i had earlier came from my mates working out from the net with weights that were wrong ( i won't be asking him again).So due to the fact that we are both new to this wonderful world of caravaning both of us want to tow safely. I have my passengers to think about . So if i need a bigger car i will use one.

Many thanks for responses.

 

Stevie.m

Edited May 15, 2008 by stevie m

[searcher]

Have a look here and see what you think

 

Not sure if your van will be listed but if not pick one of the same weight and it will work out your towing limits.

 

http://www.whattowcar.com/

[RADIOTWO]

My previous post please ignor ! Internet weight was wrong for my car !!!

 

 

Right reading off my plate which i found on my passenger wing (underneath bonnet :lol: ;) ). Right here goes....... Total weight of car 2030 kgs. Permissable train weight 3630kgs. In my book the only weight it refers too is the weight that the car can tow which is a maximum of 1600kgs. Now my caravan from it's plate say's it is 1400kgs. So now i am a bit worried about the fact that i can't tow it please can someone work out if i can. If i can't then i am going to upset my mate and use his !

 

 

I must add that the percentage i had earlier came from my mates working out from the net with weights that were wrong ( i won't be asking him again).So due to the fact that we are both new to this wonderful world of caravaning both of us want to tow safely. I have my passengers to think about . So if i need a bigger car i will use one.

Many thanks for responses.

 

Stevie.m

Hi again

 

As td90 says, its not law, but its a good guide line, but the best thing to do is fill the tank with fuel, and look for a weigh bridge, and weigh it, that's you ULW, so use that figure, and also weigh

The caravan, poss with some bits in, i.e. Bedding clothes etc, and again weigh it, and then do the calculation to get you 85%

 

But the heaver the car/lighter the caravan the better, and don't forget, you might put awnings and extra's in the van, and this will add to the weight, and don't forget your "nose" weight, that's the

Pressure you put on the towball (on average its 75kgs) but check you cars figures.

 

If the setup looks overweight, the police will be sure to pull you, and if not all correct will fine heavily and poss confiscate.

 

So as you say might be better using a 4x4

 

Radiotwo

[MadBaz]

Stevie, I assume you passed your test before 1997, otherwise you can't pull a trailer heavier than 750kg!

 

Nice van BTW, just hope I'm not in the Q behind you :lol: ;)

Edited May 15, 2008 by MadBaz

[stevie m]

Have a look here and see what you think

 

Not sure if your van will be listed but if not pick one of the same weight and it will work out your towing limits.

 

http://www.whattowcar.com/

 

I have looked at this site but the weight for my car on there is not correct. I have looked at the plate on mine and it is 2030kgs. The caravan is 1400kgs as that is what it says on the plate. Calculating this i am towing at 69% well under the 85% rule of thumb. God the volvo is deceptively heavy and since volvo test them in extreme situations they make great towing cars. I will however go to a weigh bridge and check. Got to get a towbar first :lol: . Hence the blue car in my pictures.

 

Madbaz. Yes i can mate. I bet there are plenty others out there doing it tho.

 

Cheers for the responses.

 

Stevie

[tdi90]

Stevie, I assume you passed your test before 1997, otherwise you can't pull a trailer heavier than 750kg!

 

Nice van BTW, just hope I'm not in the Q behind you :lol: ;)

 

Drivers (like me) who passed their test after 1997, can tow at a max combined weight of 3500kg as long as the kerbweight of the car does not excede the weight of the trailer/caravan.

 

 

 

Stevie, you sure the volvo is 2030kg kerb weight? A galaxy is around 1600kg kerb weight and its bigger than the volvo.

[stevie m]

 

This is what i found on my cars plate. I took this photo just now. I do understand the legalities of towing. Due to the field that im in for my work i will however be taking a towing course anyway because i have never towed anything other than a trailer and there will be a big difference. Others when first towing a caravan should take it upon themselves to do the same. It would be good if people had to do some sort of familiarisation course (cbt style maybe ?) that would surely help them and other drivers on the road because more people would understand how to tow safely resulting in less accidents. :lol:

 

Stevie.m

Edited May 16, 2008 by mumof4

[big_kev]

To simplify this for any normal vehicle.

 

2030kg...maximum total vehicle weight of the car....if you exceed this you are overloading the suspension/steering/engine...take your pick.....

The kerb weight...( normally laden vehicle ) is normally around 300-350kg less than this.

 

3630kg....maximum permitted train weight...vehicle + trailer....

 

From this you can determine the maximum towing weight of the vehicle to be 1600kg.

The maximum permissible fully laden weight of the trailer should be on a plate ( I know 1400kg was mentioned).

The actual empty weight of the trailer will be considerably less than this.

 

If you exceed this you can be done by the cops....no excuses.

This figure should also clearly in your vehicle manual....if you have one.

 

All this assumes that you trailer has brakes....if not then it can't be more than 750kg.

An exception to this is if you are towing a trailer to a point of safety, eg if the trailer brakes fail you are allowed to move it to somewhere sensible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

However if you passed your test after 1997 things get complicated.

 

If the trailer exceeds 750kg (fully laden) then the train weight cannot be more than 3500kg and the trailer must not exceed either the maximum trailer weight or the kerb weight of the car.....you will have to find the kerb weight of the car.

 

I think for the Volvo mentioned the kerb weight is around 1650kg and therefore you could tow a 1600kg trailer, however if you fully loaded the volvo up to its maximum 2030kg then you would have exceeded the train weight....throw some passengers out. :lol:

[RADIOTWO]

 

This is what i found on my cars plate. I took this photo just now. I do understand the legalities of towing. Due to the field that im in for my work i will however be taking a towing course anyway because i have never towed anything other than a trailer and there will be a big difference. Others when first towing a caravan should take it upon themselves to do the same. It would be good if people had to do some sort of familiarisation course (cbt style maybe ?) that would surely help them and other drivers on the road because more people would understand how to tow safely resulting in less accidents. :lol:

 

Stevie.m

Hi Steve

 

That plate shows the gross car weight, i.e.:

 

2030 Kg gross vehicle weight

3630 Kg Gross Train weight (car and trailer)

1120 Kg Gross front axle

1010 Kg Gross Rear axle (max weight on each axle)

 

So you need to weigh the car, and that is the unladen weight of the car, but the 2030 is the maximum weight of the car and all its passengers and load(i.e. In the boot)

 

Hope that makes sense?

 

Radiotwo

[big_kev]

Land Cruiser Amazon Auto + Pageant Series 5 Champagne

 

The match between car and caravan is perfect in accordance with a mix of European standards. However, according to the British Towing Code the percentage (loaded caravan / kerbweight tow car) is 49%

 

Amazon---@ 2500kg.....how many mpg :lol:

Pageant---@ 1400kg.......very,very nice caravan...look it up.

 

Train weight---@ 3900kg.......

 

I assume you passed your test before 1997 :D

[RADIOTWO]

Land Cruiser Amazon Auto + Pageant Series 5 Champagne

 

The match between car and caravan is perfect in accordance with a mix of European standards. However, according to the British Towing Code the percentage (loaded caravan / kerbweight tow car) is 49%

 

Amazon---@ 2500kg.....how many mpg :D

Pageant---@ 1400kg.......very,very nice caravan...look it up.

 

Train weight---@ 3900kg.......

 

I assume you passed your test before 1997 :lol:

 

Hi Kev

 

Amazon @ 2750kg 30 mpg

Pageant Champagne @ 1362kg as you say nice van

 

Train weight 4112kg

 

and yes passed my test way back in 1976, and also have class 1 HGV,

 

Radiotwo