03 Sep 2011 |Police are targeting van and tow vehicle weights with hefty consequences, warns Tony Allsop.
A POLICE OFFICER revealed to us last year that there was going to be a blitz on overloaded tow vehicles and caravans.
Now that police have access to data on vehicle manufacturers specifications regarding towing and ball weights and the ATMs of many caravan models, instead of checking heavy trucks, the emphasis is reportedly shifting to caravans.
Many people do not seem to realise that loading the tow vehicle decreases the amount it can legally tow. Although we haven't been stopped, we have spoken to drivers who were pulled over in heavy truck bays near Elliot, NT, and Longreach and Maryborough in Qld. Both vehicle and caravan were weighed, including ball weight, and any vehicle or caravan that was overloaded was put off the road immediately.
ONE PERSON WE spoke to had been towing his large ensuite caravan with a Holden Commodore. The van was found to be over the weight he could legally tow, and he was no longer allowed to move his van with the car. He tried to trade in his car at nearby Longreach, but could not get what he considered a fair price, so put his car on road transport back to Victoria and bought an old Nissan Patrol to tow his van.
We have seen a large number of rigs where people have added a heavy tool box, an extra spare wheel, or even a motorbike on the A-frame. This changes the whole picture of the manufacturer's specifications.
Be warned, police could be in any town. If in doubt, put your vehicle and van on a public weighbridge. Knowing your rig is compliant could save you a lot of inconvenience, and it also improves your safety.
Have you been pulled over this year? Share your story.
WORDS AND PICS Tony and Denyse Allsop
ken thomas said
05:44 PM Sep 7, 2011
About time. A lot more control needs to be put on the manf also Ken
Cruising Granny said
07:26 PM Sep 7, 2011
At last! It will put some of those cheap-skates in their place when they tow a large van with a Hyundai or similar and wonder why they break down and end up on a tilt-tray tow truck with a blown engine or transmission/gear box. A park neighbour has a 3 litre turbo Iveco delivery van with which he tows a 20ft Coramel van. The transmission is one of those dual transfer boxes. It cost him $6,000 to replace it on his last towing trip. These vehicles are built to handle just so much. They are not invincible. And the little economical all wheel drive suburban commuter is not designed to tow an 18ft van, nor are they so economical under load, fuel, motor and transmission. As far as I'm concerned the cops are doing these guys a favour getting them off the road, for their own good.
Beth54 said
07:49 PM Sep 7, 2011
Totally agree. I saw a few on my recent trip, where the back of the vehicle was sitting way too low.
I was assured my i30 was fine to tow the Little Nipper(590kg), as long as I'm careful how I load it, and not overload. Oh, and I'm in the process of getting sturdier springs put on.
I don't know about other states, but my local tip has scales that I can take it over when I'm ready.
rockylizard said
08:20 PM Sep 7, 2011
Gday...
Yes, this will put the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons ... and about time.
The main problem with towing a van that is "overweight" is the safety factor - rather than the tug's longevity from my point of view.
Towing a 2,000kg van with a vehicle rated to tow 2,000kg is asking for trouble. No reserve at all if someting goes wrong - and quite probably the vehicle itself will be overloaded - roofrack, full boot/rear of wagon, long range tank etc.
I love to travel on back roads where there are fewer vehicles - particularly caravans. Every van coming toward me, or from behind, on the major highways are usually hooting along. Something causes them to move quickly, brake or swerve, (it doesn't have to be their fault) and I will have a windscreen full of someone else's disaster.
Next step needs to be the van manufacturers who build vans with suspect compliance plates ... and sell the 2,000kg van to someone with a 2,000kg tow limit vehicle and tell them "it'll be orrite mate - off ya go"
Cheers
John
Beth54 said
08:29 PM Sep 7, 2011
rockylizard wrote:
Gday...
Yes, this will put the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons ... and about time.
The main problem with towing a van that is "overweight" is the safety factor - rather than the tug's longevity from my point of view.
Towing a 2,000kg van with a vehicle rated to tow 2,000kg is asking for trouble. No reserve at all if someting goes wrong - and quite probably the vehicle itself will be overloaded - roofrack, full boot/rear of wagon, long range tank etc.
I love to travel on back roads where there are fewer vehicles - particularly caravans. Every van coming toward me, or from behind, on the major highways are usually hooting along. Something causes them to move quickly, brake or swerve, (it doesn't have to be their fault) and I will have a windscreen full of someone else's disaster.
Next step needs to be the van manufacturers who build vans with suspect compliance plates ... and sell the 2,000kg van to someone with a 2,000kg tow limit vehicle and tell them "it'll be orrite mate - off ya go"
Cheers
John
My assurance wasn't from a salesman, it was from my son, who's very experienced in such matters. His Dad is a mechanic, and his Uncle and b-i-l are truckies. He also studied the specs of the i30, so I trusted his word.
I'd be interested if anyone thinks I've made the wrong choice.
rockylizard said
08:33 PM Sep 7, 2011
Gday...
Beth ... you are OK ... I would suggest with the weight of the Nipper you are well within the specs and abilities of the vehicle.
Cheers
John
Beth54 said
08:38 PM Sep 7, 2011
rockylizard wrote:
Gday...
Beth ... you are OK ... I would suggest with the weight of the Nipper you are well within the specs and abilities of the vehicle.
Cheers
John
Oh thanks John. You had me worried there.
Cruising Granny said
08:39 PM Sep 7, 2011
I don't know how they control the tow vehicle when there's no weight on the steering. Everything is so unbalanced how do they control the rig? I too have seen some scary configurations wandering all over the road.
rockylizard said
08:47 PM Sep 7, 2011
rockylizard wrote:
Gday...
Beth ... you are OK ... I would suggest with the weight of the Nipper you are well within the specs and abilities of the vehicle.
Cheers
John
Gday...
And to make sure ... I just checked the specs of i30 - at 590kg you are WELL WITHIN the specs fo the vehicle - rated to tow 1200kg braked.
Cheers
John
Beth54 said
08:48 PM Sep 7, 2011
Cruising Granny wrote:
I don't know how they control the tow vehicle when there's no weight on the steering. Everything is so unbalanced how do they control the rig? I too have seen some scary configurations wandering all over the road.
The few that I saw were going quite slow, so I figured they knew it wasn't right.
-- Edited by Beth54 on Wednesday 7th of September 2011 08:48:56 PM
Beth54 said
08:52 PM Sep 7, 2011
rockylizard wrote:
rockylizard wrote:
Gday...
Beth ... you are OK ... I would suggest with the weight of the Nipper you are well within the specs and abilities of the vehicle.
Cheers
John
Gday...
And to make sure ... I just checked the specs of i30 - at 590kg you are WELL WITHIN the specs fo the vehicle - rated to tow 1200kg braked.
Cheers
John
Yes, I'd read it too, so to me, even though I'm not all that knowledgeable, it seemed right to me. It's self braking,,a gadget towards the front of the draw bar,,but Dan said down the track, it might be a good idea to put electric brakes on.
rockylizard said
09:04 PM Sep 7, 2011
Gday...
All's good Beth - and with override brakes (as you described) you should have no problem - especially as you are sensible, informed and have a strong wish to have longevity of life.
And I would put 'electric brakes' in the basket marked "something to buy when I have excess cash I don't know what to do with".
Cheers
John
milo said
09:46 PM Sep 7, 2011
weve seen a few sus set ups, like a falcon ute or similar towing s smallish fith wheeler type van??
justcruisin01 said
10:16 PM Sep 7, 2011
The problem is it changes from state to state.
I just had this conversation the other day with a guy who has just retired from the RTA, NSW.He was involved in heavy vehicle checks & accident investigation.
His words were that the RTA has no powers to pull over caravans for a random weight check, A motor home built on a truck can be checked.
The police cannot put you off the road for a overloaded van as they are not engineers or mechanics to be able to make that judgment. there for you cannot receive a ticket from them alone.
The only way that this can happen to a van is it has to be a combined RTA & police check point. The police have the power to pull you over & then the RTA can check you.
I agree that there is a need for things to change as some rigs are beyond the point of being ridiculess.
We just had a WA, van of 30ft body , triaxle behind a 200series cruiser, that does not look right then in rolls a 28ft twin axle on a 100 cruiser.
Below is a result of the tail wagging the dog. 23ft van behind a rodeo..
Beth54 said
09:23 AM Sep 8, 2011
rockylizard wrote:
Gday...
All's good Beth - and with override brakes (as you described) you should have no problem - especially as you are sensible, informed and have a strong wish to have longevity of life.
And I would put 'electric brakes' in the basket marked "something to buy when I have excess cash I don't know what to do with".
Cheers
John
Well that's never gunna happen!
gubby said
10:03 AM Sep 8, 2011
milo wrote:
weve seen a few sus set ups, like a falcon ute or similar towing s smallish fith wheeler type van??
Milo, just because it's a fifth wheeler doesn't mean it's any heavier than an equivilent sized standard caravan, the difference is the fifth wheeler would be far easier to control.
Cruising Granny said
07:03 PM Sep 8, 2011
Wow Cupie, that looks like a mess. The problem is some of these people who want to pursue the nomad lifestyle believe that a 4WD, any 4WD will be powerful and strong enough to tow anything anywhere they want to tow it. We the educated know that doesn't work, but these uninitiated retire from the urban office job, pop down to the local car to get the cheapest, most economical 4WD, fuel it up, hitch up and away they go. That picture is the result. I learnt a lot about packing and stacking when I worked on prawn trawlers. Everything from the freezer up to the wheelhouse had to be loaded evenly. Things went horribly wrong when a trawl net got bogged on the bottom. We listed severely to starboard (right) and motored around in circles. We rocked and rolled a little, and suddenly the net let go, and we were left with a large bag of mud. Thick, slimy Kimberley coast mud. Pack evenly and low, weight low and over the wheels.
Gerty Dancer said
09:36 PM Sep 8, 2011
We've met people with obviously overweight rigs who had such a blase attitude. It scares me to think how many of them are on the road with us.
Beth54 said
09:42 PM Sep 8, 2011
Gerty Dancer wrote:
We've met people with obviously overweight rigs who had such a blase attitude. It scares me to think how many of them are on the road with us.
Yes Gerty, as they're not only endangering themselves, but everyone else on the road too.
wendyv said
10:02 PM Sep 8, 2011
Any such checking of vehicle and van weights, and tow capability, is doing the rest of us road users a huge favour. We have seen so many scary rigs, over the years. One doesn't know whether it is ignorance, or whether people know but think things like towball weight and overall tow weight limits don't really matter. Way back, when we were looking for a tow vehicle to go with the van, a major reason for buying the Defender was its rated tow capacity - well above what our van came in at - but I have always been glad we had that margin, rather than being right on an upper limit.
blaze said
11:01 PM Sep 8, 2011
wendyv wrote:
Any such checking of vehicle and van weights, and tow capability, is doing the rest of us road users a huge favour. We have seen so many scary rigs, over the years. One doesn't know whether it is ignorance, or whether people know but think things like towball weight and overall tow weight limits don't really matter. Way back, when we were looking for a tow vehicle to go with the van, a major reason for buying the Defender was its rated tow capacity - well above what our van came in at - but I have always been glad we had that margin, rather than being right on an upper limit.
Hi Wendy
The got the margin over all the others with a fender, the fenders a bit tough for me, I like the old range rover classics
cheers
blaze
glassies said
06:28 PM Sep 14, 2011
yes we are going to have to weight our winnebago its 13 foot floor plus the bed over the gooseneck, we havent had it made yet as its still sitting on the back of the old 85 ford model truck ,but we are intending on getting it made into a fifth wheeler, and towing it with a nissan str that we purchased specifically for this reason.
Hubby is pretty sure it will be aloud to be towed, but we will be going to weigh it anyways and that will not be full but certainly have stuff in it that we know we will be using for a camp out.
its hard if it changes state to state too i reckon ,good to hear your story just cruisin ,hope you guys are travelling well ,next time im down that way ill catch up cheers for now
A POLICE OFFICER revealed to us last year that there was going to be a blitz on overloaded tow vehicles and caravans.
Now that police have access to data on vehicle manufacturers specifications regarding towing and ball weights and the ATMs of many caravan models, instead of checking heavy trucks, the emphasis is reportedly shifting to caravans.
Many people do not seem to realise that loading the tow vehicle decreases the amount it can legally tow. Although we haven't been stopped, we have spoken to drivers who were pulled over in heavy truck bays near Elliot, NT, and Longreach and Maryborough in Qld. Both vehicle and caravan were weighed, including ball weight, and any vehicle or caravan that was overloaded was put off the road immediately.
ONE PERSON WE spoke to had been towing his large ensuite caravan with a Holden Commodore. The van was found to be over the weight he could legally tow, and he was no longer allowed to move his van with the car. He tried to trade in his car at nearby Longreach, but could not get what he considered a fair price, so put his car on road transport back to Victoria and bought an old Nissan Patrol to tow his van.
We have seen a large number of rigs where people have added a heavy tool box, an extra spare wheel, or even a motorbike on the A-frame. This changes the whole picture of the manufacturer's specifications.
Be warned, police could be in any town. If in doubt, put your vehicle and van on a public weighbridge. Knowing your rig is compliant could save you a lot of inconvenience, and it also improves your safety.
Have you been pulled over this year? Share your story.
Ken
A park neighbour has a 3 litre turbo Iveco delivery van with which he tows a 20ft Coramel van. The transmission is one of those dual transfer boxes. It cost him $6,000 to replace it on his last towing trip.
These vehicles are built to handle just so much. They are not invincible. And the little economical all wheel drive suburban commuter is not designed to tow an 18ft van, nor are they so economical under load, fuel, motor and transmission.
As far as I'm concerned the cops are doing these guys a favour getting them off the road, for their own good.
Totally agree. I saw a few on my recent trip, where the back of the vehicle was sitting way too low.
I was assured my i30 was fine to tow the Little Nipper(590kg), as long as I'm careful how I load it, and not overload. Oh, and I'm in the process of getting sturdier springs put on.
I don't know about other states, but my local tip has scales that I can take it over when I'm ready.
Gday...
Yes, this will put the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons ... and about time.
The main problem with towing a van that is "overweight" is the safety factor - rather than the tug's longevity from my point of view.
Towing a 2,000kg van with a vehicle rated to tow 2,000kg is asking for trouble. No reserve at all if someting goes wrong - and quite probably the vehicle itself will be overloaded - roofrack, full boot/rear of wagon, long range tank etc.
I love to travel on back roads where there are fewer vehicles - particularly caravans. Every van coming toward me, or from behind, on the major highways are usually hooting along. Something causes them to move quickly, brake or swerve, (it doesn't have to be their fault) and I will have a windscreen full of someone else's disaster.
Next step needs to be the van manufacturers who build vans with suspect compliance plates ... and sell the 2,000kg van to someone with a 2,000kg tow limit vehicle and tell them "it'll be orrite mate - off ya go"
Cheers
John
My assurance wasn't from a salesman, it was from my son, who's very experienced in such matters. His Dad is a mechanic, and his Uncle and b-i-l are truckies. He also studied the specs of the i30, so I trusted his word.
I'd be interested if anyone thinks I've made the wrong choice.
Gday...
Beth ... you are OK ... I would suggest with the weight of the Nipper you are well within the specs and abilities of the vehicle.
Cheers
John
Oh thanks John. You had me worried there.
Gday...
And to make sure ... I just checked the specs of i30 - at 590kg you are WELL WITHIN the specs fo the vehicle - rated to tow 1200kg braked.
Cheers
John
The few that I saw were going quite slow, so I figured they knew it wasn't right.
-- Edited by Beth54 on Wednesday 7th of September 2011 08:48:56 PM
Yes, I'd read it too, so to me, even though I'm not all that knowledgeable, it seemed right to me. It's self braking,,a gadget towards the front of the draw bar,,but Dan said down the track, it might be a good idea to put electric brakes on.
Gday...
All's good Beth - and with override brakes (as you described) you should have no problem - especially as you are sensible, informed and have a strong wish to have longevity of life.
And I would put 'electric brakes' in the basket marked "something to buy when I have excess cash I don't know what to do with".
Cheers
John
The problem is it changes from state to state.
I just had this conversation the other day with a guy who has just retired from the RTA, NSW.He was involved in heavy vehicle checks & accident investigation.
His words were that the RTA has no powers to pull over caravans for a random weight check, A motor home built on a truck can be checked.
The police cannot put you off the road for a overloaded van as they are not engineers or mechanics to be able to make that judgment. there for you cannot receive a ticket from them alone.
The only way that this can happen to a van is it has to be a combined RTA & police check point. The police have the power to pull you over & then the RTA can check you.
I agree that there is a need for things to change as some rigs are beyond the point of being ridiculess.
We just had a WA, van of 30ft body , triaxle behind a 200series cruiser, that does not look right then in rolls a 28ft twin axle on a 100 cruiser.
Below is a result of the tail wagging the dog. 23ft van behind a rodeo..
Milo, just because it's a fifth wheeler doesn't mean it's any heavier than an equivilent sized standard caravan, the difference is the fifth wheeler would be far easier to control.
The problem is some of these people who want to pursue the nomad lifestyle believe that a 4WD, any 4WD will be powerful and strong enough to tow anything anywhere they want to tow it.
We the educated know that doesn't work, but these uninitiated retire from the urban office job, pop down to the local car to get the cheapest, most economical 4WD, fuel it up, hitch up and away they go.
That picture is the result.
I learnt a lot about packing and stacking when I worked on prawn trawlers. Everything from the freezer up to the wheelhouse had to be loaded evenly. Things went horribly wrong when a trawl net got bogged on the bottom. We listed severely to starboard (right) and motored around in circles. We rocked and rolled a little, and suddenly the net let go, and we were left with a large bag of mud. Thick, slimy Kimberley coast mud.
Pack evenly and low, weight low and over the wheels.
Yes Gerty, as they're not only endangering themselves, but everyone else on the road too.
Way back, when we were looking for a tow vehicle to go with the van, a major reason for buying the Defender was its rated tow capacity - well above what our van came in at - but I have always been glad we had that margin, rather than being right on an upper limit.
Hi Wendy
The got the margin over all the others with a fender, the fenders a bit tough for me, I like the old range rover classics
cheers
blaze
its still sitting on the back of the old 85 ford model truck ,but we are intending on getting it made into a fifth wheeler, and towing
it with a nissan str that we purchased specifically for this reason.
Hubby is pretty sure it will be aloud to be towed, but we will be going to weigh it anyways and that will not be full but
certainly have stuff in it that we know we will be using for a camp out.
its hard if it changes state to state too i reckon ,good to hear your story just cruisin ,hope you guys are travelling
well ,next time im down that way ill catch up cheers for now