hi pete and tris here.... have decided to perchase a motorhome and a frame a light vehicle behind it ...have been doing as much research as possible by reading your forums from what i can gather there are laws and costs for trucks from 4500kg -12000kg about 500$ yearly rego..... drivers required to fill out log books ...over 12000 kg reg is about 800$......there are separate rules for omnibuses...is that a passenger bus?
so far see no mention of motor caravans except in the under 4500kg section have moslty been checking the west oz and south oz government departments as that is where i am going
i hope to find some advice on the tow vehicle i need a 4x4 for the beach ...so it seems that any vehicle with a high -nuetral-low transfer box is suitable either auto or manual...as the nuetral gear selection separates the wheels from the gearbox and motor
Welcome to the gang Pete and Tris, enjoy here and out in the playground.
I might leave the answers to your questions to those that drive similar vehicles as I tow a van.
Quickly though, with the weights you mention, you will need a heavy licence and with trucks, yes a log book is required, however I'm not sure about "motor caravans" (motorhomes). Yes, Omnibuses are passenger vehicles and require a separate licence again, to cover passenger carrying.
Keep Safe out there.
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Pete a visit to your local Transport Department would be a good move ,In Queensland there is no longer a Bus licence all you need to drive a bus is a HR licence but if you carry paying passengers you need to apply for an indosement to do so which requires a Police check and health check , You find out from Transport dept fe need for log book but I would think you would not need a log book .
hi brickies and thanks for your help ..i have a truck license in new zealand the equivalent of your light road and aparently can drive in australia untill that license expires...suprised me as well
the switchover to aussie license is a written refresher no driver test needed heavy combination is more strict
as far as i can tell from research log books are to prevent excesive driving hours cant see that applying to many grey nomads
thanks again and hopefully will be cruising the sunburnt land soon
thanks for the welcome doug i see most aussies have vans in fact we had a white egg in west oz the old man towed behind his xm falcon those were the days one strip of buitumen on the nulabore and no air con
And it's welcome from us two 2
I can't help much either I have a b-double licence so I have pretty much covered all I'm ever going to drive
Brickies advice I think is the way to go and I wish you luck navigating these websites half the time I can't find what I'm looking for on VicRoads web site
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Log books are not required for motorhomes, irrespective of weight, but a MR or HR licence will be required, depending on the GVM. Get yourself a 4WD motorhome and you won't need to tow anything. There are a few here, depending on your budget. www.cmca.net.au/component/sobipro/1
Cheers, Peter
EDIT... Rego and insurance for "busses" is typically much higher than for exactly the same vehicle configured as a motorhome. These costs vary from State to State.
-- Edited by Peter_n_Margaret on Monday 5th of October 2015 12:18:52 AM
Even though I have a hr license my motor home has an atm of 4490kg. Therefore you only need a car license. And car rego costs. With regard to towing, as it is a 3litre v6 turbo diesel rear wheel drive, it can tow up to 2 ton. So a 2 door 4wd is way under 2 ton. No a problem with towing. Hope this helps.
hi phil and thanks for your helpfull reply ...about the licence i have a new zealand light truck licence which apparently is legal to use in australia so in nz that is rated to 18,000 kgs ....the motorhomes i am looking at are around 10 tons so weight on towing wont be an issue ...but here is what i have found out about towing by a frame and vehicles that are suitable well suzuki are very popular the 4x4s can be towed with the steering lock off and drive train needs to be run independently every 2-300 ks aparrantly subarus are ok pre ctv transmission vehicles over 600 kgs need to be self braked
but for me i need a van for work and play so 4x4s are very limited in fact only the mitsi express 4x4 sems suitable ...i have contacted the a frame suppliers and no one wants to commit an opinion on this vehicle and weather it can be towed 4 wheels on the ground ...apparantly they are the paero chassis