Series 3 A Frame fitting

Hi all, Bought an old A Frame with Pads and Chains at the bottom.I guess the padded bottoms of the A Frame push up to the steering somewhere then you secure the chains around it. But Where on a Series 3 do you fit it. Has anyone any Idea don't want it falling off whilst towing? Thanks Adrian Ford

Reply to
Adrian Ford
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Thanks JD Saved me a lot of time I would have been laid under the landrover for hours trying to work out where it went. So if I turned it around and wanted to tow my Peugeot 806 with my Landrover would i have to take the Front bumper of the peugeot(low ground clearance) and attatch it to something solid..

Not really intending on doing any long distance towing its a "just in case" one or the other breaks down...

Thanks Adrian Ford

Reply to
Adrian Ford

A-frames for towing do not normally attach to the steering. They normally attach to the bumper on a Landrover. The A-frame constrains the front of the towed vehicle to following the towing vehicle, and the steering, which is left free, follows by castor action. Note that in most jurisdictions towing a Landrover with an A-frame and no driver is considered to be an unbraked trailer in excess of the maximum weight allowed, and hence illegal. But in many places you have a good chance of getting away with it. JD

Reply to
JD

Being Second hand I don't have over-run cable, is this in case the towed vehicle breaks from the a frame and it applies the towed vehicles brakes to stop it. Like on a caravan?

Reply to
Adrian Ford

Do not attach any part of the A-Frame to the steering gear - it goes up against the front bumper and is held to it by the chains.

The towed vehicle will follow the towing vehicle by the cornering forces transmitted through the A-frame when the leading vehicle moves sideways for a corner.

To conform to the law, you must also fit the rest of the kit, which is the over-run cable from the sliding hitch, in through the open window, and operating the brake-pedal of the towed car.

Don't be tempted to tow anything whose weight is close to yours, as it doesn't work! Darwin rules apply, and IANAL.

Mark

Reply to
Mark Gardiner

I've never, as far as I can remember, seen anybody using the full a-frame kit.

What's the position for a spec-lift? Surely that counts as an unbraked trailer as well.

Alex

Reply to
Alex

In message , Adrian Ford writes

No, it's because the trailer is in excess of 750kg so by law must be fitted with overrun brakes which act along with the vehicle brakes. What they actually do is a) allow you to stop in the first place and b) stop you running into the vehicle in front as your inadequate vehicle brakes fail ...

Reply to
AJG

Mark, Is the conversion kit expensive? Bought the A-Frame as a "just in case" item , also im looking for a spare series3 and if i found one I was going to use it to tow it home behind my series 3. If its just a case of a few miles would i get away with just using the a-frame unbraked or is it totally dangerous?.

Thanks Adrian Ford remove_nojunk to reply off group

Reply to
Adrian Ford

I went to the trouble of drilling a keyhole slot in the brake-pedal of my SIIA pickup so that it would work legally with the brake cable of the A-Frame, and when I started using it to tow my wife's SJ413, I couldn't use the same method because of the brake-pedal rubbers, so bought the conversion-kit that wedges in between the front of the driver's seat-base and the floor, and operates the brakes by pushing the pedal instead of pulling from below. Worked really well behind both my Hiace van and Range Rover. Spec-frames are a partial-suspend, or front-lift only, and don't become a trailer until they fall off and the lighting cable pulls them along! Also - Spec-frames can only be fitted to substantial vehicles. where the weight difference is not so much of a problem.

Mark

2002 KLR650 C7, 1989 KMX200, 1981 PE175 X, now sold,but without memories 1971 Range Rover ( mostly in bits! ) remove_nojunk to reply off group
Reply to
Mark Gardiner

It depends on for what purpose you are moving the vehicle. For emergency recovery the rules are different to the transit of a vehicle for general purposes.

Alex

Reply to
Alex

I expect there will be lots becoming available, my local 'dismantler' says you can only now use if towed vehicle has currently valid MOT, TAX, & INSURANCE, if not then all wheels now have to be off the road! Apparenly you can no longer treat a towed vehicle as a trailer in any circumstances.

Reply to
Warwick Barnes

Hi Mark, do you have any details of who sells or makes these over-run cable devices?

Does this device work only in emergency situation ie seperation of the

2 vehicles or for all braking?

Cheers

Phillip

Reply to
Phillip Simpson

In message , Warwick Barnes writes

I thought the towed vehicle has always had to be fully road legal ...?

Reply to
AJG

The message from AJG contains these words:

Quite likely you are correct, but new regulations are coming through faster than anyone can keep up, I not sure of the nuances, but i think you can only tow a vehicle with any wheels on road if currently in first class condition, wheras you used to be able to tow by lifting a broken axle off the ground. Any body in the broken car business is getting regulations at the rate of feet of shelf space per month, plus visits from inspectors who often have no idea what the thing they are whinging about even looks like. I expect it will all settle eventually to what everyone thinks is correct until bitten by the regs.

Reply to
Warwick Barnes

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