BIG hello fron North Wales but with a question.

[Parksy]

First let me say hello,

Second my question,
i have just had a new car a VW PASSAT CC GT 2LTR DEISEL
and own a caravan with the weight on the side of the van saying,
MTPLM 1320
MASS IN RUNNING ORDER 1060,
is this van ok to tow with my new car i just want it right as i will have my little daughter of 4 traveling with me.
The garage i purchased the car from said it is fine but thought i would ask people who know this type of question.
Many thanks in advance,
Sorry to ask such a silly question but my head goes in a spin with all this kerbside weight.
Craig.
,

 

[Parksy]

Hi Craig, welcome to the Practical Caravan forum.
First of all let me stress that there are no silly questions where caravanning and this forum are concerned because towing safety and the safe enjoyment of your caravan are paramount.
The only silly question is the one that you should have asked - but didn't!
First of all you will need to look in your VW handbook to find the maximum Kerb-weight of your vehicle.
Both the Camping and Caravanning Club, the Caravan Club and all authoritative advisers on towing safety recommend that somebody who is new to towing keeps the towing weight ratio to a maximum of 85% (The caravan MPTLM is the caravans maximum weight limit and maximum kerbweight is the maximum car weight limit.)
To find the 85% ratio as recommended simply use a calculator to multiply the cars maximum Kerb-weight by 85/100.
As you will know I have moved this topic to the Towing, Driving and Safety message board so that more forum members will see it and be able to offer advice but before anybody tries to blind you with science Click Here to have a look at what advice is given by the Camping & Caravanning Club about towing weights, driving licence requirements etc.

 

[Lutz]

Parksy's reference to the Caravan Club's and Caravan & Camping Club's recommendation is all very fine, but it must be stressed that it is only a recommendation and it is far more important to ensure that the towing limits specified by the car manufacturer are not exceeded as these are legally binding and therefore carry more weight (please excuse the pun).

 

[Craigmac]

Duplicate Post

 

[Craigmac]

Thats my problem i am 300 miles away from my car owners book and i am finding different readings on Kerb-weight for my car on the internet the car is a 2009 VW PASSAT CC GT if anyone knows of a place to look and save me from looking anymore as they seem to change everywhere i am looking.

 

[Craigmac]

I have managed to get these reading below but not sure if they are correct,
Gross Vehicle Weight 1980 Max. Loading Weight 495 Max. Towing Weight - Braked 1800 Max. Towing Weight - Unbraked 750 Minimum Kerbweight 1485

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Carig,

Welcome to the world of caravanning.

Parksy is correct when he points out that most UK caravan organisations make a reccomendation of not exceeding 85%, there is no legal basis for this recommendation, however it does make good sense to keep the trailer (caravan) weight as small as possible relative to the tow vehicle. But a few percent higher is unlikley to make a big difference.
Good towing is the result of getting an satisfactory balance between a range of criteria of which weight ratio is but one. Other factors include nose weight, good maintenance of both car and trailer, loading within both the car and caravan to keep the centre of gravity as low as possible, But in my view the biggest factor is the driver and their habits.
From a technical point of view, the data base I use lists the VW PASSAT CC GT 2LTR DEISEL as having a akerb weight of 1473kG and a maxium towed weight of 1800kG. So the car is legally capable of towing your caravan.
The towing ratio calculates out at 1320 x 100/1473 = 89.6% HIgher than the industries reccomendation but not unreasonable.
Towing always requires the driver to take great care.

Have fun

 

[Craigmac]

thanks for that so how much leeway will i have to load the caravan up with.

 

[dougie201]

Hi Craigmac.

If your car has a kerbweight of 1485kg then the 85% towing weight would be 1262kg. Your car can leagaly tow this van. You must not load your van to give it a weight of more than 1320kg as that is your MTPLM it would then be over weight and you would be breaking the law. So whatever your unladen weight is to your MTPLM weight that is the amount you can load into your van.

Hope this helps.

Dougie............

 

[Craigmac]

Thanks i just wanted to make sure i will load my car as much as i can.

 

[dougie201]

Hi

Remember if you have anything in the van that is heavy store it over the axle. Also keep an eye on your noseweight.

But most of all enjoy your van.

Dougie...

 

[Parksy]

Thats my problem i am 300 miles away from my car owners book and i am finding different readings on Kerb-weight for my car on the internet the car is a 2009 VW PASSAT CC GT if anyone knows of a place to look and save me from looking any more as they seem to change everywhere i am looking.

The problem with the internet Craig is that you can obtain as many different statistics and figures for as often as you click the mouse.
Our fellow forum members who pointed out that the 85% figure are quite correct, you are legally allowed to tow to the limits set by the vehicle manufacturer which will exceed the 85% recommendation but it's usually best to try to keep the weight of your caravan at a minimum whilst ensuring that you are as close as possible to the noseweight limit without knowingly exceeding it.
To avoid further confusion and to reassure you as regards doubts about your initial towing weight limits Lutz, Prof John L and Dougie are absolutely correct, you can tow your caravan safely with your car.
You should now take on board the good advice offered, be careful how you load both vehicles as suggested by Doug and enjoy all aspects of your car and caravan whilst bearing in mind the points raised in this topic.
If you have further questions about correct noseweights, train weights, MIRO etc this is the best place to ask so don't be shy!
The best advice of all so far came from Dougie 45 where he wrote:
'But most of all enjoy your van'