Hi All
Apologies in advance as I guess its been talked about a million times. So I have entered into the exciting world of caravanning . The first thing I thought of doing was , to upgrade my car to something bigger, I found a MG HS 2023 and it states on the vin plate it can tow unto 1750kg so I thought that's fab as the caravan weights TMPLM 1643. After reading more about cars and towing I find out my new car doesn't match up with the caravans 85% !!. So my question is ! can I adjust the figures by calculating weight without any personal effects in it, My caravan has a TMPLM of 1643 of which 156kg is allowable personal payload. So I use the new figure of 1487 and my kerb weight is 1539 but add my personal effects in that bring it to 1800kg that gives me a match of 85%
the car and the caravans weight together are well within the cars maximum vin plates legal weight.
Oh one last Q, when loading my car with payload should I allow unto 100kg for nose weight of the caravan ?
The 85% is a recommendation, not a legal requirement. As long as you are within the car's legal limit that is fine as far as the law is concerned. If you have not towed before though I would take it easy at first and possibly consider going on a course, such as those offered by the two major clubs.
that car is only any good for upto 1470kg fully loaded, rediculous comments about trying to manipulate the figures, it will end in disaster if you even try that.
A kerb weight of 1539kgs and an mtplm of 1643kgs,how come none of you that have already answered haven't picked up on this? It's so wrong with a caravan and heaven only knows what an insurance company or maybe the police would do if you have an accident whilst towing. Realistically nobody is going to tow a caravan empty and transfer all the bedding, crockery, pots and pans etc etc every time you set up and pack down it would tow like a pig if you did that. My suggestion is to get a bigger car with a kerb weight of about 1900kg or change your caravan. It doesn't matter how much you try to massage the figures it doesn't make it right or a safe tow.
Quote: Originally posted by Rob and Tina on 14/7/2023
A kerb weight of 1539kgs and an mtplm of 1643kgs,how come none of you that have already answered haven't picked up on this? It's so wrong with a caravan and heaven only knows what an insurance company or maybe the police would do if you have an accident whilst towing. Realistically nobody is going to tow a caravan empty and transfer all the bedding, crockery, pots and pans etc etc every time you set up and pack down it would tow like a pig if you did that. My suggestion is to get a bigger car with a kerb weight of about 1900kg or change your caravan. It doesn't matter how much you try to massage the figures it doesn't make it right or a safe tow.
Tina
Must admit I somehow missed that! As I said, the 85% is only a guideline, but towing with a car with a kerb-weight lower than the caravan could invalidate your insurance, and you cannot manipulate the figures to change that. I always err on the side of caution and tow with a car that is more than adequate for towing my caravan. I tow a caravan weighing under 1 ton with a 2 litre diesel X Trail and I hardly notice it on the back. Towing my caravan empty, as it was when I brought it home from the dealer, it did not tow that well. The nose-weight was too low. Once loaded up with our usual gear it tows like a dream.
I repeat, it isn't the kerb weight it is the actual weight of the towing vehicle that VOSA recommend to be 80/85% of the towing vehicle.
Some Ins Cos may add a clause as they do with many things.
The police would not be interested as provided the max weight for the car and the caravan are both within the manufactures figures and the total mass is within the vehicles capabilities.
A Land Rover can tow 3500 kg but it only weighs, depending upon the model, between app 2050Kg and 2500Kg
saxo1
I personally still wouldn't tow with that combination, but that's me and I used to tow various trailers for a living. If the tow-vehicle was a Landrover, that would be different as that is a 4x4 vehicle specifically designed to tow heavy trailers.
In any case, if a person isn't used to towing it is far better to have a tow vehicle that has power and weight in reserve, rather than one that is on or over the recommended limit of 85%.
Never mind the 85% guideline as most 2023 MG HS can only tow a maximum of 1500kg and its kerbweight is 1775kg. It is too light overall for the OP's caravan and cannot tow the caravan as the MTPLM is over 1500kg. The basic 2023 Excite and older MG HS can tow up to 1750kg. Kerbweight for thsoe 2 models is under 1500kg.
The mg has a kerb weight of up to 1750kgs and has a max tow of up to 1750, we don’t actually know which model the op has.
Me personally I’d buy a bigger car, it’s asking a lot of either1500 petrol or Diesel engine, legal yes put really pushing it
If you haven't bought the car yet I can give you my advice in one word: don't.
The car's towing capacity is based largely on the weight of a trailer - not a high-sided caravan - that the car can physically move from a standing hill start. It has absolutely nothing to do with whether the car will be capable of managing said caravan if it became unstable at 60mph. It's for this reason that the caravanning industry give their recommendation not to tow more than the car's kerb weight - even if it is legally permissible to tow more - and to limit the weight of the caravan to roughly 85% of the kerb weight if you're new to towing.
You're correct to some extent in that in reality, the car will weigh considerably more than its kerb weight when loaded for a holiday. However, the more you try and manipulate the advice the greater the risk you're taking, especially if you don't have towing experience.
Performance is also a consideration, particularly if you're planning on towing over any sort of distance. You're asking an awful lot of a 1.5 litre (petrol?) engine to cope with over 1.6 tonnes of caravan in addition to the weight of the car itself.
As far as the weight of the caravan goes, frankly I think you'll be doing well to keep it below the MTPLM. A payload of 156kg is very small. If the caravan has a motor mover, that alone can weigh 40kg and then you have the leisure battery, gas bottles etc in addition to your personal belongings.
Sensibly, you should be looking for a car with a kerb weight of about 1850kg or more. This is typically large MPV or SUV territory such as Ford Galaxy or S-Max, Volvo XC60, Audi Q5 etc. The best engine for towing is the most powerful diesel you can afford, but many - though not all - modern petrol hybrids should also manage if they're better suited to your solo needs.
------------- "Don't wait for the perfect moment. Take the moment and make it perfect."
That's a really heavy caravan for your car, we tow a 1600kg Swift Celeste 560 with a Ford Edge with a kerb weight of around 1915kg, I wouldn't want to tow with anything much lighter
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Topic: Towing a Caravan
via mobile 14/7/2023 at 6:00pm
