Nosey Lesson
Comments
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In the olden days
single axle caravans tended to be nearer to a 'balance' front to rear and I too tested the weight simply by lifting the hitch. If I could lift it it was about right.Bailey did their epic review of caravan design resulting in the Alu Tec construction and also tested various layouts to improve towing safety etc. The end result was that the axle was moved rearwards. I bought one of the early efforts and the adjustment was readily apparent.
The noseweight was also much heavier (on my Olympus 464 it was 84kg as delivered - Bailey's figure). The result as far as I was concerned was that we carry very little in front of the axle and balance the outfit by loading carefully aft.
Interestingly Bailey moved the gas storage point to a central location, presumably to help the noseweight. That seems to have resulted in overloading the Alko axles!
I still have that van and it tows like a dream behind my 2009 Mondeo (noseweight 90kg).
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Most of my cars have been 75kg nose weight. Never had any issue with any of them.
Interestingly, when watching people leave sites, I have never once seen anyone check the noseweight before hitching up. Even those more experienced. Makes you wonder just how many outfits are driving around illegally.
I suppose lifting it up by hand is a good way of telling the weight, rather than using a calibrated nose weight gauge. "rolls eyes"
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I suppose lifting it up by hand is a good way of telling the weight, rather than using a calibrated nose weight gauge. "rolls eyes"
Lifting by hand was a good way actually. With caravan weights now maybe not any longer.
Interestingly, when watching people leave sites, I have never once seen anyone check the noseweight before hitching up. Even those more experienced. Makes you wonder just how many outfits are driving around illegally.
No reason to think anybody is driving illegally. And perhaps those 'more experienced' have realised that if they carry the same things in the same locations the nose weights never carry by more than the odd kg. Isn't it 'insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result'?
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When you say "Makes you wonder just how many outfits are driving around illegally" are you referring to exceeding the noseweight limit? If so, what piece of legislation makes it illegal? To the best of my knowledge, exceeding the limit only affects the manufacturer's product liability and warranty coverage, but it's not illegal unless it results in axle load limits being exceeded at the same time, too.
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Generally speaking surely most of us load within the car/caravan limits, usually storing and packing pretty much the same every time depending on having had a trouble free towing experience.
A new van or new car will require more careful checking until everything is in order but after that it becomes a drill.
I usually load up at the beginning of the year and check the noseweight to make sure that all is OK. After that follow the trusted pattern.
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The construction and use regulations could apply to using the vehicle (caravan) in a dangerous or unroadworthy condition
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If you start with a large noseweight on a caravan with a limited payload (and a lot are) its not that easy to reduce the noseweight unless you start putting stuff in places its not designed for. Manufacturers ought to be obliged to publish the noseweight leaving the factory, in fact they should be obliged to produce a certificate of weight overall, its not actually rocket science more like smoke and mirrors.
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The Construction and Use Regulations only state technical requirements, they don't actually say that exceeding those limits amounts to an offence. The Road Traffic Act does that, but what is dangerous and unroadworthy is open to debate. If the noseweight limit is, say, 80kg it would be totally unrealistic to claim 81kg or even 85kg is dangerous or unroadworthy. The violation of the limit would surely have to be more significant.
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I don't know what would be achieved by publishing the ex-works noseweight. It still means that the noseweight may have to adjusted to suit the limits of the caravan itself and of the towing vehicle. Besides, by the time the caravan is handed over to the customer and fitted with things like battery, gas bottles, motor mover, etc. it will already have changed.
As regards weights in general, the manufacturer does produce a certificate showing all these (and a lot more) details. It is the Certificate of Conformity to type approval requirements. It must be made available upon request.
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As I said before, I would be exploring every possible loading combination (of car and caravan), before despatching a perfectly capable 3ltr 4wd estate towcar and spending thousands of pounds unnecessarily.
Or set the speed limiter to 55, and arrive 10 minutes later with 2-3 mpg saving and feeling more relaxed
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I absolutely agree. The Audi should be more than capable of towing a caravan well below its towload limit with ease. There must be something else wrong somewhere if it's a real problem. A substantial difference in wheel load on the caravan between left and right might be a possibility.
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This topic is always going to generate debate.
I am one of those who checks the nose weight with a gauge on a regular basis (providing I have a relatively level pitch) before leaving a campsite. It takes about 5 mins max. Why do I do it? We tow about 10,000 miles a year. I know the caravan is absolutely stable at all speeds and inclines/declines between 90kg and 95kg - max towball limit according to Hyundai is 100 kg. Less than 90kg, the caravan is skittish. Yes, I load the caravan roughly the same way, but all sorts of things can affect the balance depending how long we have been on a particular pitch; a fortnight's worth of laundry, restocking the wine supply, using more tins in cooking etc etc. Most of the time I am within my weights but, just occasionally, I have to do a little adjustment to my loading.
That is what works for me. However I think everyone's combination is different with different stability criteria. In my mind, providing you don't exceed the vehicle's maximum towball weight, the rest is down to trial and error to find the optimum nose weight for stability. Once you have found that weight, it doesn't matter how you check it as long as it works for you.
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