Slightly OT - Buying a trailer for my Discovery

Hi Gavin,

What is the weight of the 110 ?

You will then need to know is the gross train weight ( thats the total of the towing vehicle, the trailer, and the load) I cannot remember what the disco is.

I would poss look for a three axle trailer !

Dont normally have paperwork unless its a Ifor Williams then theres are regestered

The only other thing are you using it for commercial purposes ? if so you will need a tachograph !

Steve.

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.co.uk came up with the following;:

Can't help directly, but beware of buying a 'converted' caravan chassis, especially a new looking one. A mate of mine found out, the hard way, that caravan chassis are not really up to carrying another vehicle unless substantially, and correctly, beefed up.

Look for an Ifor Williams, they can be registered, I dunno if any others are.

so snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.co.uk was, like...

Don't know if this is any help, but I have a Brian James A-series twin-axle, which carries a 110 easily. I think the load limit on mine is 2500kg. The trailer itself is about 500kg, so it's all well within a LR's towing limits. Well made, easy to use, good quality kit. AFAIK, they don't have a VIN as such, but they are plated with max loads etc. Only problem is that with twin axles it needs to ride level, and my towhitch was too high, so I had to get an adjustable hitch bracket. Got it nearly new for a grand on eBay - money well spent, and I would buy the same again. They are also really helpful on the phone.

The only way you will know that it's not nicked is to buy new. Otherwise, the usual precautions apply.

- although it seems the A-series has been updated with a new range. HTH

In news: snipped-for-privacy@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com, snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.co.uk blithered:

You could do worse than look on ebay. Specify car transporter under category cars othervehicles trailers.

You'll probably get VWs but you can refine the search to exclude them.

"Richard Brookman" wrote >>

Richards comments about the towing hitch height is important, I was recently given a trailer but it's for a low car hitch not a 90 so it would ride at a crazy angle and tip everything out the back. Got to pass it onto someone else, shame.

Many thanks everyone for the advice - will let you know how I get on....

Gavin

Don't buy anything "home-made" or converted from a caravan chassis - it won't be up to the job.

Be wary of trailers with rubber suspension (indespension, Avonride, etc). The engineering of these suspensions is crude, and once they start failing the wheel alignment goes to pot and they wear tyres out very quickly. Ifor Williams used to use multi-leaf springs, and now use parabolics. My next trailer will be an Ifor Williams.

Wheel bearings have a hard life, and often seem minimally-specified. Taper rollers are usually wrongly adjusted, inadequately maintained, and can fail spectacularly and rapidly. Brake parts are ludicrously expensive, even simple bits like shoes. If a trailer has been neglected (most have), the hitch can be badly worn, both the coupling head and the shaft.

Car transporter trailers usually need to use proper, commercial tyres, not a few odd 155x13s that weren't quite good enough for the Escort. Learn about load ratings (the "94" or whatever bit in the tyre size) and use at least a high enough rating for the load you're imposing. A disadvantage of the "wheels-under" layout is that tyre sizes tend to be a bit odd, and may be relatively hard to find and expensive, but if trailer storage is a problem, they are a bit narrower than the "wheels outboard" type, which are usually 7'6" wide.

Tiltbed trailers are easy to load, but as you're towing with a Disco, watch out for where the tilt mechanism (or other gubbins such as the winch) sits in relation to the Disco rear door. I imagine it's quite frustrating to have to unhitch the trailer if you need to load anything sizeable into the Disco. That's an advantage of Rangeys.

I find the low sides on my Bateson tiltbed give me a bit more confidence in the security of the load, particularly when I'm carrying something close to maximum width, but they can call for a bit more ingenuity if you're using the trailer for more general purposes.

Make sure there are enough strap hooks for securing the load (the Bateson is poor for this) and always secure the load's wheels or axles, never to anything above the suspension.

All trailers should have a maker's plate with an id and maximum weight details, but there's no equivalent of a V5. If it's not got a plate, it's probably nicked. Since this is supposed to be so common, it's worth thinking about your own security precautions.

Nope, sorry. Try Yellow pages, and perhaps consider an ex-hire one.

Last thought - make sure you're OK with the laws on towing - max speeds, lighting, and so on.

That depends on how you use it. It you were (for example) taking a mini-digger to a site, using it for your work, and then taking it back to base/next job then no tacho is required. If you drop the digger off then go somewhere else and return later to pick it up then you do need a tacho. What happens if you privately own the trailer and move things around for yourself is anybodys guess. The above info came from (I think) the FSB news letter - and the gist of the article was the whole area (unless you are a plant-hire firm or something) is completely clouded, foggy and has poor visibility. You don't (apparently) need a tacho for a horse trailer as it's assumed you are moving your own horse(s), and you don't need one to take cattle to market, but you may need one if you are moving hay/straw/haylege etc.

The best bet is to get a written statement from someone official regarding your use for your trailer and hope that will put off the men from the Ministry when they stop you.

Richard

On or around 19 May 2005 06:39:10 -0700, snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.co.uk enlightened us thusly:

I've noticed that my big trailer (which will carry a disco or 110) is noticeably less stable behind the disco than it was behind the 110. I reckon it's to do with the relationship between overhang and wheelbase - the disco is longer overhang and shorter wheelbase.

Once I set up the new vehicle (hopefully be collecting it tomorrow) to tow it, I can report what it's like behind that...

New Vehicle? What dod you get in the end?

P.

Ifor Williams do a three-axle trailer that will take a 110 - they are perfect for the job. Their dealers do s/h ones as well. Large trailers are much sort after - if someone offers you a good one cheap then be suspicious, *very* suspicious.

Richard

On or around Fri, 20 May 2005 12:37:02 +0100, "Paul S. Brown" enlightened us thusly:

13-seater LDV convoy - transit diesel engine and box, twin rear wheel, short wheelbase (compared with the 17 seater, that is). S reg, 44K miles from new, direct from the MOD.

the only things against it were I might, one day, maybe want more than 13 seats, and it's not a turbo engine. However... there's always the possibility of fitting a 2.9 V6 and gassing it. Or even gassing the 2.5 NAD.

the transit Di is quite a grunty engine anyway, though - "proper" diesel with rafts of low-end torque.

Is this under the bit about carrying tools necessary for work? I've never really been sure about this when towing my small tractor.

FSB?

Yes private use is exempt from operator's license or tacho.

I think this is because transporting animals is outside the driving hours legislation.

Tacho but not operators licence if you are the occupier of the land the crop is going to or from AIUI. Mind this is open to interpretation as a big user of Fastracs has just found out.

AJH

Federation Of Small Businesses - a must in my book for small businesses with free legal cover, monthly updates on the latest raft of daft legislation etc etc. A very useful tool when having a dispute with the Inland Revenue, large firms etc etc.

In message , beamendsltd writes

The tri axle Ifor is a tad over engineered for a 110. It was built for farmers and machinery dealers who seriously overload their trailers on a regular basis.

I use the CT166 which is a 2 axle 3,500kg tiltbed. It is excellent.

Really would recommend.

Be very wary of any second hand trailer.

A friend of mine recently sold his 17 year old Ifor on ebay listing it needing work...and it needed brakes, tyres, floor etc. He got 200 quid less than he paid for it 17 years ago.

If you can run to it get e new one.

It is because agriculture is exempt but a haulage contractor that hires for reward is not exempt even when carrying livestock.

No tacho, operators license or plating/testing is needed by the farmer transporting hay etc. as agriculture is exempt. However if the stuff is moved from one business to another by a third party then that third party is deemed to be doing the job for reward and is not exempt. A private householder can shift anything for his own use up to the vehicle towing limit while being exempt in the same way as agriculture.

Huw

I regularly tow both a twin and a triple 16ft Ifor Williams. The twin tows better at higher load weights and I would never bother or go to the expense of purchasing another triple.

Huw

No, whilst agricultural use is exempt under EU legislation, ratified by HMG, the community driver's hours and recording equipment exempts

*all* carrying of animal waste or carcasses unfit for human consumption and all carriage of animals from farm to local market or onward to slaughterhouse.

I was interested in the bit about moving machines for non agricultural uses. Which may come under UK legislation for drivers hours (keeping of records) regs.

AJH