Towbars, Legality & Tech Specs

[lowson_i]

OK.

 

I think I'll buy a caravan but being practical I best fit a towbar to my car (2005 Ford Galaxy Silver 1.9 TD 85kW[115ps?])

 

Well I went down to the local garage

 

Turns out I needed to check my driving licence to check the towing capacities and MAM and ... and ... and ... and came out confused!

 

Well to save confusion and I've checked the forum and to no avail anyway.

 

1 - Your licence

Seems that on 1st of January, 1997 things changed with regards to cars (category 'B') and towing trailers (category 'E'). Here is a useful link. Turns out I've got B, BE, B1, B1E, C1, C1E, D1, D1E. And from what I can gather this means I can drive a vehicle with a trailer not exceeding a MAM (Maximum Arthourised Mass) of 8.25 tonnes in weight. Few first hurdle down I can at least tow a trailer above 700kg.

 

2 - The car

Acording to information I found on the V5C. This has a Mass in Service of 1736 kg (1.7 tonnes) and Maximum Permissible Mass (exc. m/c?) 2510 kg and a Technical permissible maximum towable mass of 700kg for an unbraked trailer and 2000 kg (2 tonnes) braked. Few, seems I'll be within the MAM figure with the family and "luggage" on board. Just need to adjust tyre pressure!

 

3 - The Caravan \ trailer

Looking at the Mass of some of the caravans they appear to be over 700kg. Also found this on my spidering the web. Seems any caravan would be ok. Have a look here.

 

So my questions:

Are they braked? If so, how?

Do I need a special tow bar for these caravans over 700kgs?

Any suggestions for the selection of towbar?

[lowson_i]

I've also found this website which states 85% as a safe maximum towing weight.

 

So my car is 85% of the kerb weight (Mass in service?) of 1736. 1736 * 0.85 = 1475.6 kg

[lowson_i]

Done some more spidering and found this forum post. Seems that caravans over 700 kg are braked.

So which towbar?

[Willie Krashitt]

Hi,

 

Caravan brakes are activated by an 'overrun' linkage on the drawbar/hitch. As you brake the car, the caravan pushes forward on the hitch, which slides a small amount pushing a lever to activate the brakes. When you pull away, the caravan moves back letting the brakes off again.

 

Any towbar will be ok, the choices come down to whether you want detachable or fixed. If you go for the fixed / flanged towball option, make sure your towball is of the 'Alko' type (spaced out further, more slender neck) as the majority of caravans seem to come with an 'Alko' hitch which needs more clearance. Fixed 'swan neck' towballs are fine.

Me? I have the Westfalia oem detachable one and it is fine. When wiring up the electrics, make life easy for yourself and order a vehicle specific wiring kit with either the twin sockets (messy looking) or the 13 pin socket (much better) and make the fitter aware that you need the fridge wiring connected ( you will need a 'smart relay' and a wire running from battery to socket via this relay) as most wiring kits do not include this.

 

Hope that this helps,

 

George.

[gregers]

Done some more spidering and found this forum post. Seems that caravans over 700 kg are braked.

So which towbar?

 

 

ive got a mk2 towbar for sale,if your intrested?

[bofus]

From practical experience ... 1500kg mtplm caravan( max technical permissible weight) is towable behind a healthy 115ps shalaxy, whilst a 1000kg caravan will barely cause te car to breakout in a sweat..... As for towbars and wiring... I have used the vw approved westfalia bars, both acquired on the cheap as surplus dealer stock...very good fit and very sturdy, although any 'E' marked bar should be of similar standard. The big choice is detachable, flange or gooseneck....and 13 pin or 7 pin.

 

For me, detachable and 13 pin wins... For both looks, convenience and reliability...obviously if your caravan is 7 pin then it makes sense to wire for that and not have to use an adaptor.....either way make sure that the additional wiring for a fridge is included along with either a smart relay or other device to only apply power to the fridge when the car engine is running.

 

Another top tip...if you have never towed before, enrol on a towing course, and then take it steady at first...too many first time tuggers end up ruining family holidays by rushing and end up facing the wrong way on the motorway with the caravan on its side...

[glyndwr]

well said bofus

[MadBaz]

If you passed your test after 1st Jan 1997 the max trailer/caravan that can be towed with a 1.9 TDI Gal (without passing B+E) is 1030kg MAM/GVW (3500kg combo MAM rule, 3500 minus 2470kg Galaxy MAM = 1030kg). (the rules change in January 2013, to a max of 750kg for towing).

 

If you passed before 1997 then the max is 2000kg (1800kg for DOHC engines) Manufacturers max permissible weight.

 

Max unbraked trailer is 700kg, all trailers over 750kg (MAM) must be braked anyway by law.

 

Max nose weight is 85kg.

 

The 85% of laden vehicle, is a recommendation only, for post 97 license holders the MAM of the trailer can't exceed the laden weight of the vehicle any way, but with the gal that's irrelevant anyhow as the lightest kerb weight at around 1670kg (depending on spec/variant) already exceeds the max of 1030kg (MAM) that can be legally towed.