I am considering buying a drawbar trailer and hauling it
Page 71
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
with a four-wheel i-ton-gross vehicle. Could you say what is e permitted trailer payload; can both the rry and trailer be loaded and what is the rmitted overall length for such an outfit?
The manufacturer's recornmended (or plated) gross train weight is a good ide to what the truck can pull. In any se, if this was exceeded a new-vehicle trranty would be invalidated.
The bhp /ton regulations which came into rce on April 1 do not apply to vehicles erating before that date. It is ommended, however, that you should serve the 6 bhp /ton limit in the interests operating efficiency. For example, if your hide has a 96 bhp (net) engine it would be fficient only for 16 tons gvw but a 144 engine would be suitable for 24 tons w. The Construction and Use Regulations do not stipulate that the truck must be loaded to pull a drawbar trailer. However, the result of using an empty truck to pull a loaded trailer might be poor traction and braking, and almost certainly instability.
A drawbar trailer can be up to 12 metres (39ft 3-fin.) long but the complete outfit must not exceed 18 metres (59ft Ofin.). The permitted gross weights of drawbar trailers are calculated in the same way as for rigid vehicles — eg 16 tons gvw, but there may well be a manufacturer's plated gross weight lower than this, and it is the lower figure which must be observed. No normal lorryand-drawbar outfit may exceed 32 tons gross train weight.