Got my drift car sat in the garage, e36 stripped out to death and ready to skid. I recently got myself a 406 diesel as a daily and with its 1500 kg braked towing capacity I was hoping to tow on my licence as im allowed 3.5 ton combined. Ive done weeks of research and even contacted the transport department on other ways to move the car as I cannot find a trailer hire in the northwest that has a trailer with a gross weight of 1500kg, any more and im illegal as that's the max braked load the car can pull. Been looking into the option of a braked dolly as ive got the PDF from the transport agency that says you can tow a car that's not broken down as long as they are braked, and this is also true for braked A - frames, but there is no wording for whether or not that towed car needs to have tax, test and insurance, all the law says is that they are classed as a trailer and that the whole tow car and towing car is classed as one unit. I know id be very unlucky to be caught but has any1 any actual advise on other options rather than fork out for a transporter, or pay for tax n test for the car? Please don't post advise if "you've heard" or "my mate does this" as most of the time from my research it seems that a huge amount of towing on a licence without the trailer test if you've passed after 1997 is illegal. Im awaiting back an email from the transport deparment as it seems a grey area on wether it needs it, as the legislations says its to be classed as one unit so im unsure, but its doing my head in having the car sat there. i can really afford to run 3 cars or pay for a transporter for every drift day at £125 a pop
to save you the bother of reading 100s of replies. in short, if you have grandada rights.. you cant if you are younger.. ie, passed after 1997 I think... you can't people will piss and moan till forever but the bottom line is you cannot. do ya liscence or hire a flatbed for 100 quid.
Passing my trailer licence wont make any odds, this is why I said ive done my research as that's the most obvious but unhelpful statement?? My car can pull 1500kg whether i can drive an arctic lorry on my licence or not, the bmw weighs around 1100kg so yea i can tow it as long as i can find a trailer with a 1500kg gross load, however brain james only do 1400kg and 2000kg so is either too much load for the trailer or the trailer is too heavy for the car.
I reckon you need a heavier tow car mate. Trailer + Driftcar combined is always going to be over 1500KG, we bouyght a Range Rover to tow the missus horse about for similar reasons
Yea it seems the obvious thing to do but I need a high mpg daily as I do a lot of miles to to work. That's why I'm hoping this option of either a braked dolly or a frame will work out, as a braked a frame is like 100kg, so I will be easily within my rights to tow my BMW, only question is wether the car I'm towing needs tax n test as it actually doesn't specify anywhere in the legislation, just says its to be classes as a trailer. Hopefully il have a better answer when the transport agency get back to me
Also you gotta think about having legal tyres on it going home which means carrying more rubber. Im having the same issues as you and think im just gonna by a transit
I'm not that worried out that, never burn through the fronts and sure I can take one spare set or legal rears. Doing my head in and I'm trying not to accept defeat lol
You can have a trailer downplated for the weight. ie, a 2000kg trailer and have it replated as a 1500kg max weight. https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-weights-explained
Thanks for the reply but as usual with the government is doesn't really explain much. So who has the orthority to downplate a trailer? Does this have to be checked by a body or re stamped on the vin plate? If I can re plate a trailer then I may be able to just get in the weight limit
The trailer manufacturers will be able to do it for you, maybe charge a wee something for it. They'll probably make you up a new plate to replace the one on the trailer.
Tbh it's looking grim, It's the weight of the trailer itself that would kill it or me on a 2000kg trailer. If if it was re stamped to 1500kg, the trailer itself would weigh 500kg plus, so I'd be back to square one. There is one trailer I can hire but it only allows for 1050 kg of weight to be out on the trailer. I'm trying to sort out a weigh bridge to weigh the car itself but could any1 say how much a Completely stripped e36 323 weigh noting that I have zero fuel in the tank. I've removed AC and Matrix and almost everything possible to get the weight down but doubt il be able to get it to 1050kg dry
No matter what license you have It would be illegal to pull a e36, even if it is 'stripped out' due to trailer and car combined being over 1500kg Need something which tugs 2000kg min IMO Even a light weight trailer, which is strong enough to carry a 1300-1400kg load will be 500kg.. Basically, you need a towing license and heavier tow car Or a lighter drift car like a starlet or ae86 etc I tow with a 530d manual, 2000kg tow capacity and total train weight of 4300kg. brain James trailer which weighs 550kg and total MAM of 2000kg I'm just in. Watch out for transits... Unless a x bt/rac etc.. As run of the mill ones have a proper shit train weight. Mate got done pulling a s14 with one.. 1000kg over weight!!
Bear in mind that if you're towing on a dolly, your e36 will need to be insured. The law states that anything with any wheels on the road must be insured, and that'd have two wheels on the road. I looked into this recently and my plan was exactly as Clive has said/does. BMW 530d + do your trailer test. For reference a 530 petrol can also tow 2000kg, although the diesel would probably be a bit better at it. Cheapest way for me was just to insure the beemer and drive it to/from drift days! If you're going to do this, get AA with relay cover too as if it breaks, you'll need it to get home
Pretty much as Clive said. Even a little single axle 1400kg Ifor williams is 400kg unladen, seems your drift car is just a little too heavy. The biggest towing capacity transit I've seen is the 140ps version that can tow 2500kg, our 90ps mk6, (I think, 2001-06 model), can tow an amazing 1500kg! I've always been led to believe if the towed vehicle wheels touch the road it needs to be road legal, (MOT'd and taxed). I would definately want it in writing from VOSA if I was gonna be doing it though. Alex B
Yea I think Il give up the fight for a solution that didn't involve a different tow car I was wondering how heavy the e36 would be but it is 1100 kg plus so I'm probs 100-150kg too heavy. I'd be fine with an mx5 sized car but yea it will probs be too much. I just don't know what to do though. I want to learn to drift properly, and just generally not have to worry about the car or how I'm guna get it home if I damage it. That's why the trailer seems a good idea. Duno wether to sell the e36 and get a lighter car as I don't really fancy taxing, mot and insuring another car
Woods, a couple of points for you.... Your licence says 3.5T max. But if you dont have a trailer licence the biggest trailer you can tow is 750kg irrespective of what your tow car says. Ive towed my s13 and 2 racks of wheels&tyres for 10-15,000 miles with a huge merc sprinter 2T tow weight and a 3T payload 16ft trailer and still had some moments. Running at max weight (which ive done in many large cars) is bloody scarey once it gets a snake on!!!!! I think dollys/A frames are only legal to "clear the queens highway" like the RAC do after a breakdown and not a preplanned drift day. If the car & A frame is under 750kg its classed as a trailer incuring the same rules (tyres, lights and generally its not falling apart)
As I was corrected a few months back. New trailer laws: https://www.gov.uk/towing-with-car/driving-licence-rules-and-what-you-can-tow So if you had say a 1800kg kerb weight tow car and a 1700kg mam braked trailer you're ok But it would be very hard to balance the figures. IMO if you want to tow an average size car you need to do your license.
Completely wrong. The biggest trailer any1 in the uk weather you can drive a tank or your King Charles UNBRAKED, is 750kg. That the limit, braked trailers you can carry up to your driver limit. The laws from 1997 onwards says I can drive a vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes, towing a 750kg trailer unbraked. So the actual combined is 4250kg total. Usually most cars are the limiting factor of a tow as my 406 diesel is as big as most people drive and and a common caravan car and can only pull 1500 braked. So the cars laden weight is 1800 + 1500 max braked load = 3300kg so I'd actual be well under the limit. It's just a bit gutting that I'm just too far away from the limit with an e36. With a lightened mx5 which weighs easy 1000 kg, on a 1400 kg gross load trailer I'd be complety legal to drive it as 1800 + 1400 = 3400kg. It's a complete mine field with so many variables and been so difficult to find details as the gov website isn't very clear
Correct but it also goes by the braked load as per the vehicle handbook, loads of cars, vans have a high Gross load but varying levels of max braked loads
It doesnt matter if its braked or not. No licence equals 750kg trailer max!!!!! I dont have grandad rights to trailer, i have truck and trailer (c+e) which gives me car and trailer.
