Weight Puzzle???

[Red_Mick]

I've just been to look at a caravan, Sterling Europa 2 berth 1998. The plate on the side says max weight 980 payload 177. Does this mean the MTPLM is the sum of these?

Second question. Are the 240V electrical items, kettles, heaters etc. anything special? I was looking in a 'caravan' shop and they look the same as domestic items, but with double the price on the ticket??

 

[JohnGriffiths]

No the MTPLM is the same as the Max Weight, i.e. you can load approx 177kg into the van but whatever happens you must not exceed 980kg. I say approximate because you don't know what the van actually weighed when new or what previous owners have added. there might be obvious additions such as motor movers or others not so obvious such as extra shelves in cupboards. Only way to check for sure is to go to a weighbridge.

Second question, correct. We bought a toaster in Tesco for around £4, saw the exact same thing rebranded in a well known tow shop for £11 but labelled as a "low wattage camping toaster". Lower wattage models are of benefit on sites where you may have restricted power, but the cheaper supermarket offerings are usually just that!

 

[NigelDonnelly]

No the MTPLM is the same as the Max Weight, i.e. you can load approx 177kg into the van but whatever happens you must not exceed 980kg. I say approximate because you don't know what the van actually weighed when new or what previous owners have added. there might be obvious additions such as motor movers or others not so obvious such as extra shelves in cupboards. Only way to check for sure is to go to a weighbridge.

Second question, correct. We bought a toaster in Tesco for around £4, saw the exact same thing rebranded in a well known tow shop for £11 but labelled as a "low wattage camping toaster". Lower wattage models are of benefit on sites where you may have restricted power, but the cheaper supermarket offerings are usually just that!

Last bit is very interesting. Am going to conduct a very unscientific survey on this at Tesco tomorrow!