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Fat bum's other half here. I have to agree with snowy747 about dealers. At a branch of a chain of dealers with a branch on the A4 near Reading we were "assured" that our Picasso (max tow of 1300 Kg) could tow "most" caravans on display - including some that had indicated MTPLM's of up to 1500 MTPLM. When we went to Berkshire caravans they immediatly indicated which vans would be safe to tow.
To legally tow there are 4 limits that you must not exceed.
1. GVW - gross weight of your car including all passengers and luggage.
2. Max braked tow weight - set by the car / tow bar manufacturer. You need to check your manual as there are sometimes clauses that will reduce this if the car's load is high.
3. Gross train weight - total of the car, caravan, passengers and luggage. This will normally be stamped on the VIN plate.
4. Tow ball load - most manufacturers specify the max that can be applied on to the tow ball - usually between 60 and 80 Kg for hatch / saloon / estate, sometimes as high as 200 Kgs for large 4x4's. Do not use a tow ball mounted cycle carrier as this will limit your use.
Exceeding any of the above CAN invalidate your insurance as you will be using the car outside the manufacturers designed limits.
Using the kerbweight to guage a unit to car match has no basis in law (it is a guide only) but this is what is usually used to obtain the 85% match.
In the recent towcar of the year awards there were a few of those chosen that using the 85% "guide" of the kerbweight that would actually be illegal to tow with!
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Topic: another question about towing weights ect
