A Frame Spain Again
Hi Folks
Just found some info in the local paper here regarding the use of A frames here in Spain which I thought would be useful to those considering towing their car here. If you use facebook try the page N332-home, or http://n332.es/2015/05/23/motorhome-and-campervan-legislation/ It plainly explains how towing a car on an a frame is a no in Spain. I've spoken to 8 different people this winter who have had no issues at all while towing cars but I've also spoken to 15 people that have been stopped and fined.
We've had the Guardia Civil on site doing a talk about traffic laws etc, they're nice folk who value what us Brits bring here but they equally like the euros we give when breaking their traffic laws.
Thought this info might be useful.
Muchas Gracias Mes Amigos.
Comments
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Good point peedee, not so good for those arriving at Santander or Bilbao though unbeknown.
JK
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Hi
We live 8 miles in land from Guardamar/Torrevieja and since early January the amount of roadblocks set up by the Guardia on a daily basis as doubled ten fold, just today we passed three road blocks on the road too La Zenia before Torrevieja. They are bringing in extra officers from Orihuela and Elche to cover the coastal roads not just for people towing but also older Motorhomes to see if they are road worthy, last year they had a Swede in a really old Hymer end up in the salt lake off the N332 near Santa Pola. There does seem to be a lot more outfits this year and if you are thinking of visiting Holland now would be a good time.
Phil
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The rules elsewhere on the Continent are not much different from those in Spain. The car plus A-frame is treated as a trailer and since 2014 all trailers within the EU are subject to whole vehicle type approval, but no A-frame manufacturer has ever had a car/A-frame combination type approved, so towing as far as the Spanish border is just as risky.
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Hi
I had a quote last November from Portsmouth to Santander for a six meter trailer behind my van and it came at £230 extra. Not sure what the cost would be driving through France?
Interestingly, I've been pulled in a roadblock twice this winter for paperwork checks. The last time my van was weighed with a mobile weighing thing.
JK
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It cost me anything between £300 to £350, depending on the exchange rate, in diesel from Bedfordshire to the Costa Blanca which I understand is less than half the ferry cost and I am lucky if I get 19 to the gallon. I avoid toll roads unless necessary and stay on Aires in France when night stopping. My tolls this year amounted to £4.8 and 4 night stops cost £43.50, Zaragosa costing the lions share. The tunnel cost averages about £85. So total journey cost could be of the order of £485.
I passed at least one Spainish road block but was not pulled over.
peedee
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£485 is only marginally more expensive than the winter Portsmouth - Bilbao ferry cost for my motorhome. Given there is still the drive to the Med including a night stop there isn't a great deal in it. It is the summer rates which make the ferry the expensive option.
peedee
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For me personally, while I'm overwintering in Spain, driving from Cornwall to Portsmouth and then through France would probably save me £300 or so but would mean a few full days driving opposed to the 9 hours it takes me now, even towing a trailer would only increase that to 12 hours. So, it's not for me.
I hope someone finds the web pages in my op useful.
JK
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I accept your point Lutz but I have never heard of anyone being fined in France. They even sell A-frames in France.
JK, yes I hope others find the thread useful which is why I am happy to provide my input. I have made the Portsmouth Santander trip once and didn't care for it too much. Don't think I could persuade the wife, who is not a good sailor, to do it either.
peedee
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Towing a car makes little difference to my fuel consumption but it would increase ferry/tunnel costs by quite a bit.
Interestingly the referenced article makes it quite clear on a number of Spanish legal requirements for motorhomes which frequently crop up on forums including the requirement to carry a spare which some motorhomes don't have.
Peedee
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Thanks for the heads up, I see it didn't take long for your kind warning to turn into a debate on the cost of Ferry v Road to Spain I have noticed this before and wonder why! Just because someone thinks it's expensive to use the Ferry has NOTHING to do with the OP so once again thank you.
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We enjoyed the crossing from Portsmouth to Santander, and had a calmish crossing, not sure that i would feel the same if i had a bad one or was to do a winter crossing. When we took our 3 m trailer behind our mh it only cost another 45 euro (35) on the Caen crossing, so thought it worth it to have our trike with us for the 11 week trip.
Have met quite a few still taking A frames to Spain and good luck to them, not something we are about to do having been stopped by police in Belgium and Germany.
Thanks jk for the post.
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Hi
Thanks for the thanks pete57 but don't worry most forum posts go away from the original post during a discussion. Healthy debate and discussion is what it's all about. As an Rv owner I use a lot of american forums and trust me this one is like singing in a church choir in comparison!
AD, I agree driving through France I find a chore when I just want to "get there". Don't like Bilbao though, ferry times don't suit and it's a pain to get out of town and onto the motorway.
RE Roadblocks, I got stopped today in my PVC, the breatherlyser came out and they did a thorough van check. In my broken Spanish I learned that so many Europeans are ignorant of Spanish road laws the best way to educate is through the wallet. A popular earner for the Guardia Civil Traffico is the lack of headlight beam deflectors (they checked mine).
Funny, there was an advert in the info room onsite today by a French guy selling his A frame. Made me chuckle!
JK
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