Only 50kg noseweight on Skoda Roomster(TD). What 4/5 berth caravan options are out there for me to buy. I know most new caravans are heavy so thats fine, as looking for a early to mid 90's lighter model to start with. Can other users of this site suggest what make and model caravans come within the low 50kg noseweight range, the car has a kerb weight of 1260kg, so from what I know will pull about 850kg easily.
Only 50kg noseweight on Skoda Roomster
- Thread starter Ghostdancing
- Start date
The Caravan Club recommendation for 7% noseweight is impractical for many modern caravan and not permitted for any Al-Ko chassis'd caravan over 1428kg MTPLM as Ak-Ko hitches have 100kg limits!
I have seen reference to a minimum of 4% noseweight - this would allow a 1250kg caravan so I wouldn't worry unduly about the 50kg limit on your Roomster.
I have seen reference to a minimum of 4% noseweight - this would allow a 1250kg caravan so I wouldn't worry unduly about the 50kg limit on your Roomster.
Thanks Roger, but guess what, I'm now totally confused.
If I bought a Swift Challenger 540/5se which weighs unladen 870kg, then I load it with say 130kg of gear, the caravan weight would be 1000kg, using this new 4% rule, the noseweight would be 40kg, 10kg less than what the roomster officially allows. Trouble is what is the law, 7% or 4%, who makes these rules up, and what do the police go by. Plus I want to be safe with three children all under 10 in the back seats.
Facts are .....
Roomster is 1260kg KW, 50kg NoseWeight
Caravan is 870kg, unladen
I'm an experienced driver, but just want an arm around the shoulder and lots of advice !
19ft long, 7ft wide.
If I bought a Swift Challenger 540/5se which weighs unladen 870kg, then I load it with say 130kg of gear, the caravan weight would be 1000kg, using this new 4% rule, the noseweight would be 40kg, 10kg less than what the roomster officially allows. Trouble is what is the law, 7% or 4%, who makes these rules up, and what do the police go by. Plus I want to be safe with three children all under 10 in the back seats.
Facts are .....
Roomster is 1260kg KW, 50kg NoseWeight
Caravan is 870kg, unladen
I'm an experienced driver, but just want an arm around the shoulder and lots of advice !
19ft long, 7ft wide.
I have heard various stories about the police 'checking' noseweight's and also read ( mainly on here) about the difficulty of obtaining an accurate noseweight reading even if we knew, in the first place, what the reading should be. If the police can decide what the reading should be, and they have a device that can produce that reading, then someone in authority should be able to publish this information so that the rest of us can comply. Out of all of the 'correct weight's' debate, the noseweight issue seems to be the most complex, and I would think, the most difficult for the powers that be to enforce in a court of law. Perhaps more importantly than just trying to keep within the law, the caravanner's emphasis should be to ensure maximum stability and safety whilst towing, and to this end I keep to the nearest that I can to the car or van stated noseload max, whichever is the lower.
Good point brian, my book say 1000kg as i have the 80bhp version, not the 70bhp version. Anyways, am I safe towing a caravan that is 870kg unladen. Also.... one other thing, once hitched, how much weight am I allowed to load into the boot of my car then ??
you can tow a caravan which is plated as 1000kg fully loaded as long as you keep the nose weight to 50kg
You can load your car upto it's gross weight which will be shown in you handbook ( kerbweight plus payload)
Also just to confuse you there is a maximum train weight (kerbweight+payload+caravan)which can't be exceeded
You can load your car upto it's gross weight which will be shown in you handbook ( kerbweight plus payload)
Also just to confuse you there is a maximum train weight (kerbweight+payload+caravan)which can't be exceeded
Hello Ghostdancing
Don't get bogged down by the 7% or 4% or the 85% that are all misquoted as "rules" but they are only guidelines. Whilst I knock the actual figures, I do agree with the principal of careful loading, which is factor to aid safer towing.
The law requires a nose weight to be a minimum of 4% of caravan mass or 25Kg which ever is greater and not exceeding the lower of the two limit figures quoted by the car and the caravan manufacturer.
In your case the upper limit is 50Kg (based on the figures you quote) The actual nose load is nothing to do with the weight of the trailer, but how the trailer is loaded. It is archived by positioning loads either in front or behind the trailers main axle until the desired load is created - see saw fashion.
50Kg nose weight is quite low, but that is the figure you must work with. It is generally accepted the best towing configuration is with the highest nose load you can obtain (within the limits) so you should aim for the 50Kg if possible.
The data abase I use does not cover the Roomster, so I cannot of any figures, but you should be able to check the allowed max trailer mass either from your handbook, or the dealer/manufacturer - Do not rely on third party sites, some do contain errors.
Many modern cars have a mass plate which carries four figures, they are all maximums, and relate to front axle rear axle, max mas of the car, and the max combined mass of car and trailer. In essence the difference between the max mass of the car and the combined mass, is the available mass for the caravan.
It is not immediately obvious why, but the trailers real nose load is not part of the trailers MTPLM, but is part of the cars load.
As for what you can put in the car, you will have to check the cars specification, but the ultimate limit will the axle loadings.
I hope this helps
Don't get bogged down by the 7% or 4% or the 85% that are all misquoted as "rules" but they are only guidelines. Whilst I knock the actual figures, I do agree with the principal of careful loading, which is factor to aid safer towing.
The law requires a nose weight to be a minimum of 4% of caravan mass or 25Kg which ever is greater and not exceeding the lower of the two limit figures quoted by the car and the caravan manufacturer.
In your case the upper limit is 50Kg (based on the figures you quote) The actual nose load is nothing to do with the weight of the trailer, but how the trailer is loaded. It is archived by positioning loads either in front or behind the trailers main axle until the desired load is created - see saw fashion.
50Kg nose weight is quite low, but that is the figure you must work with. It is generally accepted the best towing configuration is with the highest nose load you can obtain (within the limits) so you should aim for the 50Kg if possible.
The data abase I use does not cover the Roomster, so I cannot of any figures, but you should be able to check the allowed max trailer mass either from your handbook, or the dealer/manufacturer - Do not rely on third party sites, some do contain errors.
Many modern cars have a mass plate which carries four figures, they are all maximums, and relate to front axle rear axle, max mas of the car, and the max combined mass of car and trailer. In essence the difference between the max mass of the car and the combined mass, is the available mass for the caravan.
It is not immediately obvious why, but the trailers real nose load is not part of the trailers MTPLM, but is part of the cars load.
As for what you can put in the car, you will have to check the cars specification, but the ultimate limit will the axle loadings.
I hope this helps
A couple of corrections to John L's last reply:
The law says 25kg minimum noseweight or 4%, whichever is the lower, not, as he says, whichever is the greater.
Also, he says, quote, "It is not immediately obvious why, but the trailers real nose load is not part of the trailers MTPLM, but is part of the cars load." This is not true. The noseweight is part of the MTPLM, but it is not part of the load that the car is towing (the car is only towing the axle load of the caravan). In this respect he is correct in saying that the noseweight is part of the car's load.
The law says 25kg minimum noseweight or 4%, whichever is the lower, not, as he says, whichever is the greater.
Also, he says, quote, "It is not immediately obvious why, but the trailers real nose load is not part of the trailers MTPLM, but is part of the cars load." This is not true. The noseweight is part of the MTPLM, but it is not part of the load that the car is towing (the car is only towing the axle load of the caravan). In this respect he is correct in saying that the noseweight is part of the car's load.
Thanks for everyone's help on this.
I'm fairly confident the roomster (company car) has enough oomph to tow the 1000kg caravan (max mass) that I will be buying. As long as I make the car/caravan combo balanced with neither fronts or backs pointing towards the sky, then I should be balanced.
The whole idea of a holiday is to get away from things, so the caravan will not be stacked with xbox's and three tv's, though how much bedding SHMBO will want to take is another arguement.
I have a PSV licence from when I was in my twenties so have the confidence of driving long vehicles, although not one that bends in the middle.
If anyone thinks the roomster / 1000kg Max caravan combo is not a good idea, please say so, and tell me why.
I'm fairly confident the roomster (company car) has enough oomph to tow the 1000kg caravan (max mass) that I will be buying. As long as I make the car/caravan combo balanced with neither fronts or backs pointing towards the sky, then I should be balanced.
The whole idea of a holiday is to get away from things, so the caravan will not be stacked with xbox's and three tv's, though how much bedding SHMBO will want to take is another arguement.
I have a PSV licence from when I was in my twenties so have the confidence of driving long vehicles, although not one that bends in the middle.
If anyone thinks the roomster / 1000kg Max caravan combo is not a good idea, please say so, and tell me why.
The skoda website shows the current Roomster as having a towing limit of just 450kg so maybe they think it's not ideal.
The figures for your model stack up as long as you accept it will probably struggle on hills.
have fun
Brian
The figures for your model stack up as long as you accept it will probably struggle on hills.
have fun
Brian
What car mag, shows the max tow at 1200kg, max kerb weight at 1260kg, so no reason why you can't tow 1000kg, ive towed with 177 pound feet, and less, so no problem there.
It's the low nose weight that would put me off, its not saying a lot about the cars ability to carry load?
I have never towed with less than 60kg, maybe others who have can pass comment?
It's the low nose weight that would put me off, its not saying a lot about the cars ability to carry load?
I have never towed with less than 60kg, maybe others who have can pass comment?
Thank you Lutz,
I You are correct, and I put it down to the time I was writing - I really must get to bed sometime.
I You are correct, and I put it down to the time I was writing - I really must get to bed sometime.
Permitted Tow weight
I have reviewed the Skoda Website http://www.skoda.co.uk/ and I find that it plainly states the max tow load (Braked/unbraked)is only 450Kg
The information on other third party websites differs and that must give rise to concerns about which (if any)is the correct figure.
I would give greater credence to the manufacturers web site over any other third party site or magazine.
The only certain way to establish the correct figure is to check with the dealer/manufacturer.
I have reviewed the Skoda Website http://www.skoda.co.uk/ and I find that it plainly states the max tow load (Braked/unbraked)is only 450Kg
The information on other third party websites differs and that must give rise to concerns about which (if any)is the correct figure.
I would give greater credence to the manufacturers web site over any other third party site or magazine.
The only certain way to establish the correct figure is to check with the dealer/manufacturer.
The cars manuel would decide for me. Dealers are generally useless for this task, as would nissan in my case.
The 450kg max. towlaod applies to all models except the 1.4TDI, the 1.6 16V manual and the 1.9TDI models. The 1.4TDI 70PS has a 900kg limit, the 1.4TDI 80PS is rated at 1000kg, the 1.6 16V manual at 1000kg and the 1.9TDI at 1200kg.
I must confess i missed the post where the power was quoted as the 80bhp version, with the quoted weight, the assumption was from the original post, that the 1.9 version was the tow car. And so the max tow 1200kg.
There is no way i would tow your van with a permitted 1000Kg limit.
With a family the 130kg load margin will be extremly difficult to meet.
There is no way i would tow your van with a permitted 1000Kg limit.
With a family the 130kg load margin will be extremly difficult to meet.
Reading this post GD i will agree with RAY,although if the handbook states 1000kg i would accept that and adjust the nose weight to suit.But i think the main problem would be engine size,admittedly most people have towed with low powered vehicles,including myself with the same weight as you.(astra estate 1.7d)It was a struggle,lots of gearchanging,very rarly getting into 4th nevermind 5th.Without doubt it,ll tow but may be leisurly.The figures i have suggest 155nm,or 114lbs ft of torque,personally i wouldnt recommend it.Does anyone know the advised power to wieght ratio for towing?
question for ghostdancing are you sure about the miro and mtplm for the swift challenger 540/5se. the reason I ask is because I have a 540/4 with fixed bed and the mtplm is 1500kg I can't believe the 5 berth is 500kg lighter when the current model 460 has a mtplm of 1350kg I should check the figures again mate to make sure by the way I tow mine with a rover 75 2.0ltr diesel and I can tell you in a bit of a wind it struggles, so I reckon with a 1.4 you should forget it.
ken
ken
ps the nose weight with the van empty is 90kg (no gas bottles) so I reckon 1/3 of your preposed pay load would have to be on the back end to get the 50kg you want and that would make the van unstable.
ken
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