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I am having difficulty finding out what weight I may legally tow with my 4WD. I need to tow a trailer carrying my cherished 'ancient' and do not want to fall foul of the safety regs. The local library has been unable to help and the local police seem unsure! Saturday's column gave the relevant information for a non 4WD tow vehicle, where can the relevant regulations be found?
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If your 4x4 is a current model the towing limit should be listed in 'What Car?' and 'Practical Caravan', etc. Towing limits for 4x4s are usuall much higher than for cars and the 85% caravan limit does not usually apply.
HJ
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Mr Hoyle,
You should let your Mother in Law ride in the car, I have tried every option including strapping her to the roof.
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They are in the motor handbook
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Do you know Michael's mother-in-law, then, Gwyn?
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no - sorry comes from being brought up on Dawsonesque humour///.......
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> Dawsonesque humour///.......
God rest his soul!
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We have 2 4wd Vehicles at work - a Discovery TDI and a Mazda Crew Cab pickup both have 2.5 litre engines and are mechanically very similar with a seperate chassis.
The Discovery can tow up to a 3500kG braked trailer, whereas the Mazda has written on the rear bumper " Towing limit 950KG " there doesn't seem any logic for this.
I suspect that the USA is Mazdas usual market for these vehicles and therefore wary of their Draonian liability laws, Mazda are reluctant to advise owners to tow any more .
any thoughts on this ???
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As some of the other guys have said the max towing weight will be in the manual. The 'recommended' maximum for safety, and something the police will bear in mind, is 85% of vehicle weight. Just having 4wd makes no difference, as owners of RAV4 and Freelanders will note, as the towing capacity of these is little more than a regular car, because they are little more than regular cars. The max is based on a number of factors, not least the weight of the vehicle, but also strength of chassis, suspension type etc. That is why large 4wd's with a ladder chassis have higher towing limits. But if you look in the manual, they usually has a number of caveats, ie. must be braked, evenly loaded, max speeds, not off road etc.
Tell us what you have, and weight you are towing, and I'm sure you'll get some constructive comments.
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Regarding towing a small livestock trailer from muddy fields by, say a Discovery. Is it better with a manual box or will an automatic do just as well?
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