Caravans being towed over the speed limit
Comments
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Agree Lutz - and for most car/caravan combinations these days it leaves a margin for error ie when a coach/lorry/car transporter blasts past you and the turbulance is manageable rather than catastrophic.
Quite agree regarding speed but isn't the efffect of turbulence also related to the towing ration of car/caravan. I find that I experience very little (if any) effect but my ratio is probably in the 80s, whereas those approaching 100% may have a different
tale to tell!0 -
not a caravan but a trailer. I got on a motorway the other morning going to work at 70mph (Smarts aren't happy at much over) and a transit-ish van with a triple axle flat bed trailer passed me in lane 2 at a good differential of speed. As he sailed off into
the distance I saw him move over to lane 30 -
It's 60 mph speed limit for a reason. It's simply not safe to go faster than that. There is a greater risk of snaking or tail wagging the dog as some would say at higher speeds. Below 60 is much safer.
So how does that rational that it is not safe to go above the speed limit, make a Clio towing on its limit at 81 mph still safe but a Disco 4 towing a caming trailer unsafe above 56 mph, using the French limits?
I don't think a lot of logic underpins the limits, though I do believe 60 mph is a sensible figure, for a soundly matched unit, but despite the actual limits the more so with a vehicle with a GTW under 3500 kgs.
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I am normally happy to tow at 60 given reasonable winds. Last outing when it was a little windy one day. I pulled out to overtake a car transporter. As I approached the rear I could feel that there was a great degree of turbulence and backed off and sat
behind until he turned off.Later on the holiday when towing I passed another transporter I was aware of some turbulence but it was a calmer day and not a problem. The car transporters can throw off some odd eddys
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I wish people could understand that 56mph is the european agreement for governers and not the maximum lorry speed limit which is as JVB states 50mph on single carrieageway and 60mph on dual and motorways. therefore it is perfectly possible if you are travelling
at an indicated 60mph you will get overtaken by lorries0 -
I wish people could understand that 56mph is the european agreement for governers and not the maximum lorry speed limit which is as JVB states 50mph on single carrieageway and 60mph on dual and motorways. therefore it is perfectly possible if you are travelling at an indicated 60mph you will get overtaken by lorries
I think I need some help understanding that?
If the lorries governer limits its fuelling to 56 mph, how does it get its fuel supply to overtake a 'van travelling at 60 mph? I can see running downhill where the governer will have chopped the fuel supply off when getting to 56+ mph that its mass could well take it over 60 mph on over-run, but without any fuelling only to die as soon as the adequate incline to support that speed eases.
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I wish people could understand that 56mph is the european agreement for governers and not the maximum lorry speed limit which is as JVB states 50mph on single carrieageway and 60mph on dual and motorways. therefore it is perfectly possible if you are travelling
at an indicated 60mph you will get overtaken by lorriesI think I need some help understanding that?
If the lorries governer limits its fuelling to 56 mph, how does it get its fuel supply to overtake a 'van travelling at 60 mph? I can see running downhill where the governer will have chopped the fuel supply off when getting to 56+ mph that its mass could
well take it over 60 mph on over-run, but without any fuelling only to die as soon as the adequate incline to support that speed eases...How sad is this,I have contacted RHA and Stobarts and got a do not know from both?
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I wish people could understand that 56mph is the european agreement for governers and not the maximum lorry speed limit which is as JVB states 50mph on single carrieageway and 60mph on dual and motorways. therefore it is perfectly possible if you are travelling
at an indicated 60mph you will get overtaken by lorriesI think I need some help understanding that?
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The law says that they can drive at 60. The agreement put a max of 56 ... a bit like the 'gentleman's agreement' of a max of 155mph for cars, though the car may be capable of more, the agreement was a max of 155mph ..... obviously not while towing!
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on the awful road up Loch Lomond to Crianlarich
I take you to task on that!
It is a lovely road that is interesting to drive and has very beautiful scenic views. It is however not suitable for drivers who think it should be an extension of the M6.
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..How sad is this,I have contacted RHA and Stobarts and got a do not know from both?
More like a "do not want to comment"!
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on the awful road up Loch Lomond to Crianlarich
I take you to task on that!
It is a lovely road that is interesting to drive and has very beautiful scenic views. It is however not suitable for drivers who think it should be an extension of the M6.
Sorry Nav but i,ve also driven up that road and i found it very unsuitable for towing.Too many tight bends with overhanging rock faces.Far too narrow in parts and not really suitable for passing HGV,s going in the opposite direction.Yes the scenery is great but thats about all that is good about that road.
v9
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i found it very unsuitable for towing.
This is what I do not understand. If one considers a road unsuitable for towing, then why ever tow along it?
Other road users may well present caravans travelling on such a road as their particular dislike. Mine is encountering road users who do not give the road and its other users the respect that they deserve. It is my feeling that they expect to be entitled
to travel at whatever speed they choose regardless of geology, geography, physics or the law of the land. [Back on topic at last!]0 -
i found it very unsuitable for towing.
This is what I do not understand. If one considers a road unsuitable for towing, then why ever tow along it?
Other road users may well present caravans travelling on such a road as their particular dislike. Mine is encountering road users who do not give the road and its other users the respect that they deserve. It is my feeling that they expect to be entitled
to travel at whatever speed they choose regardless of geology, geography, physics or the law of the land. [Back on topic at last!]I agree with what you say but the problem driving up past the top end of Loch Lomond is usually truck drivers mainly timber who do not consider other road users might be round the next bend.
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i found it very unsuitable for towing.
This is what I do not understand. If one considers a road unsuitable for towing, then why ever tow along it?
There are some roads out there that are in truly dreadful condition and whilst having to tow on them they are unsuitable for towing on. I have one exiting my property.
A lot of the cracked van's are evidence enough of these unsuitable roads.
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I have family living on that road (north of Loch Lomond) so its a heck of a journey to go round - but they do keep improving it - although in some instances I think that makes it worse - as the narrow bits now take you by surprise if you see what I mean.
Those timber lorries are very scary!0 -
Must be an optical illusion here.
From Bothwell (Strathclyde Park site) to Crainlarach (just north of Loch Lomond) is 66 miles via Loch Lomond and 72 miles via Callander. I make that only six miles longer and on a wider and straighter road/motorway. Bing Maps calculates it as seven minutes
longer.0 -
Must be an optical illusion here.
From Bothwell (Strathclyde Park site) to Crainlarach (just north of Loch Lomond) is 66 miles via Loch Lomond and 72 miles via Callander. I make that only six miles longer and on a wider and straighter road/motorway. Bing Maps calculates it as seven minutes longer.
Now you tell me
To be honest I had forgotten how bad this piece of road was until I was reminded in May. It wasn't so much the narrowness or twists and turns as the road surface itself
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Must be an optical illusion here.
From Bothwell (Strathclyde Park site) to Crainlarach (just north of Loch Lomond) is 66 miles via Loch Lomond and 72 miles via Callander. I make that only six miles longer and on a wider and straighter road/motorway. Bing Maps calculates it as seven minutes
longer.Another good example of why you should never set your sat nav to shortest.
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I wish people could understand that 56mph is the european agreement for governers and not the maximum lorry speed limit which is as JVB states 50mph on single carrieageway and 60mph on dual and motorways. therefore it is perfectly possible if you are travelling
at an indicated 60mph you will get overtaken by lorriesI think I need some help understanding that?
If the lorries governer limits its fuelling to 56 mph, how does it get its fuel supply to overtake a 'van travelling at 60 mph? I can see running downhill where the governer will have chopped the fuel supply off when getting to 56+ mph that its mass could
well take it over 60 mph on over-run, but without any fuelling only to die as soon as the adequate incline to support that speed eases.The idea of my post was to get people to stop mis stating the maximum permitted speed limit which as i stated is 60mph not 56mph and if you read the regs you will find there are several catagories of hgv dependant upon age and engine emissions that are limited
to 100kph not 56mph as the limit was brought in to help emmisions not speeding. sorry if you seemed to think iwas saying that they could exceed 56mph on the flat if speed regulated. However like any other device its only as accurate as the driver/owner wants
it to be,
if you get my drift0 -
Must be an optical illusion here.
From Bothwell (Strathclyde Park site) to Crainlarach (just north of Loch Lomond) is 66 miles via Loch Lomond and 72 miles via Callander. I make that only six miles longer and on a wider and straighter road/motorway. Bing Maps calculates it as seven minutes
longer.Write your comments here...That's very interesting Navigateur - although some of the family are nearer Ardlui than Crianlarich but a few extra miles is worth avoiding that particular trip down memory lane!
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Must be an optical illusion here.
From Bothwell (Strathclyde Park site) to Crainlarach (just north of Loch Lomond) is 66 miles via Loch Lomond and 72 miles via Callander. I make that only six miles longer and on a wider and straighter road/motorway. Bing Maps calculates it as seven minutes
longer.I knew it was very near the same both routes but the route through Callander has been a bit quicker when we have used it probably because of the better roads.
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Must be an optical illusion here.
From Bothwell (Strathclyde Park site) to Crainlarach (just north of Loch Lomond) is 66 miles via Loch Lomond and 72 miles via Callander. I make that only six miles longer and on a wider and straighter road/motorway. Bing Maps calculates it as seven minutes
longer.Now you tell me
To be honest I had forgotten how bad this piece of road was until I was reminded in May. It wasn't so much the narrowness or twists and turns as the road surface itself
Write your comments here...I have used this route twice this year,end of May.....very wet,very slow.......End of October.....Sprinter type van hit my Milenco mirror taking it clean off and through o/s front window of the caravan....I shall use the other
route next time.(sat.nav is always set for fastest route when I tow but is not infallible!0 -
I am not sure that sat navs really take into account the real speeds possible on the roads. They seem to look at speed limits and distance and just work on them.
And they don't normally take into account that one may be towing a caravan either, unless one has a a sat nav where you can stipulate this.
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