Why is it so hard to get nose weight info from dealers - they...

[HomerMarge]

We are having real trouble getting nose weight of some vehicles we are looking at, the salesman's eyes just roll and say 'have you not got access to the internet'....Surely they should know these details, we cannot be the first person on this earth who has asked the question..but sadly this seems to be the case, certainly for the dealers we went to yesterday. My Rover 75 is high (100Kg) and consequently wrongly or rightly our van (even though loaded as best we can) does come out at 80-90kG. Now either we are doing something wrong or have a very heavy nose weight van (Abbey Aventure 316 - Michael Jordon Version). I seen an abundance of 4x4's that I like, but want to explore the other suggestions and possibles on the larger car front before we decide. Most cars seem to be 75Kg. Infact yesterday we were told one car (Peug407) is dropping from 80kg to 60kg on the latest car. The salesman thought this was a safety issue and his opinion was forcing people to use 4x4's for towing?

Does anyone have or know where we can obtain a list that tells us the noseweights of vehicles in general to save waisting time trawling the net and visiting showrooms where the salesman has not got a clue. Likewise if anyone has the sam van and is getting much lower nose weight than please shout as we could be ruling out some good cars here, simply because we beleive the nose weight to be in the 90's on our van.

Thanks

 

[graham_5040474]

I don't want to appear cynical, but I am perfectly sure that most salespersons would rather not tell you the unladen noseweight of a van if they think it will put you off! They may give you a spiel on how it can be achieved by careful loading/weighing/balancing etc.

If the van is on display, you could always ask them to stick a noseweight gauge under the hitch, and watch them writhe (even better if you take a gauge or a pair of bathroom scales with you).

The honourable exception to all this is Bailey (I don't have a Bailey van)who,if you email them, will give you the ulnw of any of their vans with or without a rear-mounted spare wheel and carrier.

Best of luck,

Graham

 

[graham_5040474]

Err.........sorry; misread your post slightly. However, my reply does describe a valid experience!

Graham

 

[Lutz]

There is no database for noseweights. Unless someone takes the trouble of putting something like that together, there never will be. As you rightly say, most of the manufacturers' websites give details of the max. permissible towload but few quote noseweights so this information is hard to come by readily.

Some exceptions aside, many car manufacturers have adopted 75kg as an industry standard for most models other than 4x4's. They do not feel themselves responsible for providing higher noseweights simply because the caravan manufacturers are not doing their job correctly. After all, higher noseweights require corresponding additional structural measures than cost money, i.e. the car will be more expensive, not only for those who wish to tow but for all customers.

 

[Jo-AnneFairway5402010]

im having the same trouble. seat alhambra and vw sharon have a 85kg nose weight but on the cuddles website the 407sw has a 60kg nose weight.

we are trying to change from a grand cherokee keep to a more economical car/mpv not much choice.

 

[George_374224949]

im having the same trouble. seat alhambra and vw sharon have a 85kg nose weight but on the cuddles website the 407sw has a 60kg nose weight.

we are trying to change from a grand cherokee keep to a more economical car/mpv not much choice.

Jo-anne

If you go to the peugeot web site you will 407sw goes from 65kg to 76 depending on model. You need to go to the specification downloads (pdf) as it is not in the brochure.

Cheers

George Mc

 

[tomtom1]

www.bodyshopwarehouse.co.uk....click on Bosal Tow Bars...Pick your vehicle...click again on the model within the box....look for the vertical load figure for your vehicle....Job done!!

 

[antrimboy]

Tom, that site only quotes the capacity for Bosal tow-bars, for each particular vehicle, and not the car manufacturer's limit.

eg., Seat Alhambra, Bosal quote 100 kg. - Car manufacturer's figure is 85 Kg.

CC members can go online and obtain manufacturer's figs for all cars.

 

[RogerL]

For cars built from '98 onwards the towbar must be type-approved. A type-approved towbar may have a noseweight limit LESS than the car manufacturers limit but never MORE.

 

[ProfJohnL]

The problem with quoting nose weights is that as soon as you put an item into a caravan, it affects the nose weight. The only figure that caravan manufacture can reliably give you is the maximum permitted nose weight of their caravan,

By the same token, the car manufactures can only quote the maximum permitted figure for their vehicles. The towbar manufactures should be matching their products stated capacity to that of the car manufacturers.

It is up to the driver to ensure that none of the stated maximum capacities are exceeded, even though this can mean that the either the car or the caravan may not be using its full capacity.

 

[scottironsbtinternet.com]

im having the same trouble. seat alhambra and vw sharon have a 85kg nose weight but on the cuddles website the 407sw has a 60kg nose weight.

we are trying to change from a grand cherokee keep to a more economical car/mpv not much choice.

Hi Jo-Anne

I have an old style Galaxy(same as your alhambra)Tows great would buy another one when the time comes but Ford has dropped the nose weight to 75kg,like you this has narrowed the filed for a new car.The best alrounder I can see is the nissan Pathfinder.