Ty said:
Good afternoon all
I have just change my car and i am struggling to find out the noise weight and towinig capacity ,
I think its towing capacity is 1800kg but i am not sure ,i have searched the internet and i keep coming up with different numbers
The car is a Mercedes estate 220 d sport 9 tiptronic auto 2017
The plate says
2190 kg
4050 kg
1 -1045
2- 1175
The tow bar is a witter showing 135kg which i am presuming is the max weight of the tow bar not the noise weight
Any advice appreciated
Thanks
Ty
Hello Ty
The first two figures from the cars weight plate "2190 kg & 4050 kg are the cars Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) and Gross Train Weight (GTW) respectively These are absolute limits and neither must be exceeded at any time.
GTW - GVW = the cars maximum trailed weight weight when the car is fully laden = 1860kg
Most manufacturers use that as the maximum figure full stop but some allow you to tow more but as the GTW is the absolute limit , you must therefore reduce the loading in the car to keep the whole outfit within the GTW.
A further point which is catching some younger drivers out is their driving licence entitlements. Light vehicles such as domestic cars fall under Cat B entitlements. The detail of the entitlements has changed over the years and the crucial date is for drivers who passed their basic test on or after 1st January 1997. IF you passed before this date you will automatically have been awarded entailment "Be" and you have no problem with towing a caravan.
But if you passed after this date then you will not have "Be" but only "B" This restricts you to driving a car and caravan where the combined MAM does not exceed 3500kg for braked trailers. Bearing in mind your cars GVW of 2190kg, which is the cars MAM, that leaves a difference of 3500 -2190 of 1310kg for the MAM = MTPLM for the caravan.
The MAM stands for the Maximum Authorised Mass, and is based on the weight limits of vehicles not what they actually weigh. You can take the "E" extension test to raise your limits to effectively unlock teh your towing potential.
That is legal situation, but there are other considerations when it involves a caravan or other large trailer. The greater the length and surface area of a trailer make it more vulnerable to the effects of inertia and windage, so bigger trailers tend to push and pull the tow vehicle more than small ones. In recognition of this the UK caravan industry has issued guidelines about matching caravan to cars,and advice is that subject to not exceeding the manufactures stated limits, novice caravan's MTPLM's should not exceed the 85% of the cars kerbweight and only as experience is gained should the caravanner consider increasing the MTPLM but should not exceed 100% of kerbweight. This paragraph has no legal enforcement but it does represent a sensible starting approach to caravanning.
Nose loading is important as it does directly affect the towing stability of an outfit. Too little nose load will tend to make the outfit less controllable, and too much nose load will increase wear and tear on couplings and may damage parts of the car or caravan. The UK caravan industry also make recommendations about nose load. The static vertical nose load the caravan should apply to the tow vehicle should be between 5 and 7% of the caravans MTPLM. Again this should also respect the limits set by the manufacturers.