Christian, the 100% figure shown by Towsafe is the 100% marker. Bear in mind also that a car manufacturers towing limit has got nothing to do with safety it is there as the maximum load for the brakes, transmission and other factors. Ralph
Zurmatt Silver, Diesel, Automatic, side steps, mud flaps, mats, boot liner, TomTom Start 60 installed, rubbing strips, removable Brink tow bar, after market tinted glass, front styling bar, Rear spoiler, Motorlicious tail pipe trim. Wood Company centre armrest

Manufacturers figure is nothing to do with how much the brakes etc can cope with. It is a figure of the max load the vehicle can start with on a 12% slope at sea level, hence why for some cars it is very high. Freelander 2.2e HSE , Privacy, Fully debadged, 19" Chrome SHadow alloys

So a Meriva weighs 1200kg ish ??? how much does a medium van weigh? At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

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Ralphk wrote:

Christian, the 100% figure shown by Towsafe is the 100% marker. Bear in mind also that a car manufacturers towing limit has got nothing to do with safety it is there as the maximum load for the brakes, transmission and other factors.

Surely the manufacturer's towing limit has EVERYTHING to do with safety that's the point of a limit. The 85% factor is about keeping well within safety parameters to compensate for inexperience of/ mistakes by the driver.

Back to reality a FL2 loaded with two adults and kit for a weeks holiday should weight more than 2000kg and a caravan with a MTPLM of 1750kg could actually only weigh 1600kg with awnings etc loaded this gives a 80% match. Who would load a caravan to its capacity and put no load in the towing car? Although putting the missus and kids in the van lost its appeal when i realised the quick release for the tow bar couldn't be operated from inside the car 

CG, a middle of the road 4 berth van of say 4.5-5.0 metres will have a maximum weight around 1200kgs to 1300kgs. This would make the Meriva on 100% ratio (ish!). Ralph
Zurmatt Silver, Diesel, Automatic, side steps, mud flaps, mats, boot liner, TomTom Start 60 installed, rubbing strips, removable Brink tow bar, after market tinted glass, front styling bar, Rear spoiler, Motorlicious tail pipe trim. Wood Company centre armrest

Now taken delivery of our new caravan and towed it back from gateshead. It towed like a dream and now been away for our first weekend to Grantown on Spey and again with loaded caravan it towed easily behind the car. The mtplm of the new caravan is 1800kg but with a user payload of 310kg i doubt we should ever be this heavy.

This will be tested in the summer when we go to Oban with a boat on the roofrack, 4 bikes, luggage and provisions for 4 for two weeks and four in the car.

Avoid the road to Oban on the 12th of July.

another one wrote:

Avoid the road to Oban on the 12th of July.

Unless you have a sherman tank  At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

[quote="another one"]The mtplm of the new caravan is 1800kg but with a user payload of 310kg i doubt we should ever be this heavy.

This will be tested in the summer when we go to Oban with a boat on the roofrack, 4 bikes, luggage and provisions for 4 for two weeks and four in the car.
quote]

I think you'll be surprised just how much everything you will load in the 'van weighs and, respectfully, suggest you actually weigh things you plan to take and do the sums accurately. I know in my case with just 2 adults that I've used up the entire 210 kg payload of our van and I must carry the awning and wheelclamp (and other stuff) in the car to avoid overloading the 'van.

Four bikes will have a not insignificant mass (c. 15kg each?). The FL2 has a max laden weight of 2505 kg and a mass in service (or Kerb Weight) of "from 1770" but your HSE mass in service will be well over 2 tonnes (my GS is 1970kg). Add the correct weights of the four occupants and boat and provisions and you might be closer to the limits of car and/or caravan than you think.

Even at MTPLM you'll still be around the 90% ratio and this would be fine if you're experienced.

Finally I assume you do have a B+E licence. If not you're not permitted to tow the combination you have.

On the caravan weights has anybody got one of those Reich caravan weight units

The ones where you roll over the unit with each wheel to get the vans weight

Been thinking of getting one for a while Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

there are many public weighbridges around the country that will weigh you for £10 at most

eg http://www.ts.wyjs.org.uk/downloads/Weighbridges.pdf At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

but that means towing a caravan which could be possible overweight to the towbridge to be weighed

I would prefer to do it on the driveway etc

Anybody know where I can buy one, cheapest i have found is £129 from riversway leisure Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

fine ignore my money saving advice who is going to recalibrate your diy scales over the years to prevent you overloading and turning your caravan into (more of) a death trap ? At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

i haven't seen the instruction manual on recalibrating the scales, if its required,

But I am sure i can keep an eye on it by putting a new 2kg bag of sugar on it if it make you feel safe  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Too recalibrate a scale you need a weight similar to the load you want to measure. So you'd better buy a lot of sugar

any scale is only as good as its last calibration even a new one may have lost its accuracy while in storage/transit. That is a CG fact  At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

Four bikes will have a not insignificant mass (c. 15kg each?). The FL2 has a max laden weight of 2505 kg and a mass in service (or Kerb Weight) of "from 1770" but your HSE mass in service will be well over 2 tonnes (my GS is 1970kg). Add the correct weights of the four occupants and boat and provisions and you might be closer to the limits of car and/or caravan than you

I have been thinking about this myself and we will probably end up taking two cars to keep the weight down.

The boat weighs 65kg plus launching trolley which will be about 30kg dagger board and rudder another 10-15kg.

Passenger weights of 95kg, 70kg, 10kg and 15kg plus awning of about 40kg and you get pretty close to 350kg.

I do have a B + E licence so this will be legal.

Thanks