Towing

Conor_3

harveybobbles wrote: »

Could you not borrow a bigger car to tow the van? As the little 1.4 Jazz with a hoist, mobility scooter, luggage, people and a van on the back might not make it a safe journey. Plus you will annoy Conor...

Yeah because we legally HAVE to stop for a tacho break only to find the HGV parks are full of bloody caravans. So we're faced with having to break the law by parking illegally or breaking drivers hours regs to try and get to somewhere where hopefully we can park.

MSAs have clearly labelled caravan parking. Use it and stay out of ours. We need to use ours, you're not restricted to when you can stop.

Quite a few of us now are sick of it and make a point of blocking caravans in. If that happens, don't bother asking the driver to move because you'll get told that he's on a tacho break so can't move for 45 minutes and you shouldn't have parked in a HGV park.

bunking_off

I haven't got a caravan, but my motorhome's double the length of an average car parking space. I wouldn't get involved in arguments with truckers because we trundle along pretty much at the same pace.

Have to disagree with you on the MSA parking, though, Conor. At many MSAs there's no caravan parking signposted, at others where it is signposted it's done so poorly (e.g. at one I stopped at last week, first signpost was just about on the sliproad out of the services...are we supposed to be telepathic?). Also, there's been a few occasions where I've parked in the HGV bays because they were half empty while caravan bays were full of lorries...

...on the plus side, having a motorhome and being able to reverse, I don't take up 2 lorry bays....

Wig

Hintza wrote: »

Depends on when you passed your test, but check your licence.

Just to be pedantic,

If it is an older licence then it is still listed (and required to be) on the licence eg, B+E best advice is to check your licence for this.

Wig

What's the most powerful or some of the most powerful of everyday cars in terms of Max Towing Weight (kg)?

goldspanners

blue-kat wrote: »

it was a serious query, I didn't realise this was a joke forum.

you hijacked this thread and call everyone else jokers.

read your owners manual,it will give you all the answers you need about towing and max weights of your vehicle.
if you dont have one well buy one,thats what you need.

goldspanners

Wig wrote: »

What's the most powerful or some of the most powerful of everyday cars in terms of Max Towing Weight (kg)?

not sure but i would make a guess at mercs and bmws (rear wheel drive) or maybe 4wd subaru legacy or something like that.
other than that a land rover defender.
just guessing no real facts here so i must be joking.

shandypants5

minimoneysaver wrote: »

Can you tow a small 2 berth caravan with a Honda Jazz 1.4 automatic?

Are they front wheel drive?

I just have this mental image of the Jazz straining away up a hill, with the back wheels off the ground.:rotfl:

Sorry I have no caravan experience at all (just an overactive imagination).

vikingaero

A 1.4 Jazz auto and a caravan aren't exactly a match made in heaven. The 1.4 Honda engine isn't the torquiest on the market.

Nutty_Tart

Have you tried https://www.whattowcar.com ? You will need your car info - make, model etc and you caravan info - make, model, weight (this can be found on the plate on the A-frame - from memory I think there are two weights - use the heaviest one). When you have put in all the info, the calculator will tell you if you have a good car/outfit match and give you the statistics etc. As someone else said, don't forget the extra weight on the car if installing a hoist. As an alternative, have you looked at trailer tents? I don't know your circumstances, but these can have much more space than a caravan & awning.

Hope you find all the info you need & happy caravanning...:D

NTx

scbk

Conor wrote: »

Yeah because we legally HAVE to stop for a tacho break only to find the HGV parks are full of bloody caravans. So we're faced with having to break the law by parking illegally or breaking drivers hours regs to try and get to somewhere where hopefully we can park.

MSAs have clearly labelled caravan parking. Use it and stay out of ours. We need to use ours, you're not restricted to when you can stop.

Quite a few of us now are sick of it and make a point of blocking caravans in. If that happens, don't bother asking the driver to move because you'll get told that he's on a tacho break so can't move for 45 minutes and you shouldn't have parked in a HGV park.

Pity there aren't any LCV or LCV+trailer bays though eh?