Help me buy a trailer please

I know zilch about trailers but I do know we need one to pick up life's essentials like a wooden kiddies garden plaything our friends are giving us.

Can anyone tell me what i need to know and where to buy a trailer either online or in North Wales?

cheers

sally_in_wales

have you asked on Freecycle? I occasionally see trailers being rehomed there.

Round here, people generally reckon that Ifor Williams trailers are the ones to go for, but I would guess a lot will depend on how often and how hard you intend to use it.

RichardW

Loads

Have you got a licence to tow a trailer? You need to have passed your test before about 97 I think to tow anything. After that you are limited to a small unbreaked trailer till you take a test so horse boxes & cattle trailers are out.

Check your insurance incase they exclude them.

How big & heavy will the biggest / heaviest thing you want to move be?

How big / heavy is the tow car?

Is the car fitted with a tow bar?

Can the car legaly tow a trailer as some new small cars can not as they are not type aproved?

Will you need to protect it from the weather?

Where will you store it?
(some can store on end using casters to move it about)

Justme

Nick

Quote:

Car licences obtained before 1 January 1997

If you passed a car test before 1 January 1997 you keep your existing entitlement to tow trailers until your licence expires. This means you're generally entitled to drive a vehicle and trailer combination up to 8.25 tonnes maximum authorised mass (MAM). You also have entitlement to drive a minibus with a trailer over 750 kgs MAM.
Car licences obtained on or after 1 January 1997

If you passed a car test on or after 1 January 1997 you're limited to vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes maximum authorised mass towing a trailer up to 750 kgs, or a vehicle and trailer combination up to 3.5 tonnes MAM providing the MAM of the trailer doesn't exceed the unladen mass of the towing vehicle. You'll need to pass an additional driving test in B+E if you wish to tow a caravan or trailer combination which exceeds these weight limits.

Got me worried (as I didn't read Justme's post properly) so I went and checked.

RichardW

So post 97

big car (<3500kg) small trailer (<750kg)
or
small car with big trailer as long as total weight is under 3500kg & car weighs more than trailer still.

But using your tractor licence you get with a full car licence you can still drive & tow very large weights. But must be agri registered vehicles. Infact even tractor learners can tow about 8 ton trailers. Odd but true.

Justme

Jonnyboy

8 x 4 is a good practical trailer size. Makes it easy to reboard as well. Wink

npsmama

So with my license I'm OK to tow - thanks for pointing out the issue as it never would have crossed my mind!

We'll be towing exciting stuff like manure, odd bits of furniture etc...
basically we need to pick up a large item at the end of this week and rather then forking out money to rent a van, we thought it would pay us in the long run to buy a trailer.

We'd love to have a reason to tow livestock around but unfortunately we haven't reached that point - yet - maybe when we win the lottery and buy more than 3/4acre!

The car is a Kia Carens. We would need to get a tow bar fitted. I presume I get the garage to do this, is that right?

Will be stored in the garage/outhouse.

Tried freecycle but to no avail.

Jonnyboy

your local free ads will have plenty

judith

Try the noticeboard at ag. merchants too. They occasionally appear there.
You might also have a place that does recons in the area - much cheaper than buying new.

RichardW

£89 plus del here http://coventry.gumtree.com/coventry/59/20609859.html

or my prefered supplier (I buy lots of tow bars)

http://www.towbarsdirect.co.uk/Kia.htm

Easy to fit yourself to most cars.

Justme

Justme wrote:

Have you got a licence to tow a trailer? You need to have passed your test before about 97 I think to tow anything. After that you are limited to a small unbreaked trailer till you take a test so horse boxes & cattle trailers are out.

Check your insurance incase they exclude them.

How big & heavy will the biggest / heaviest thing you want to move be?

How big / heavy is the tow car?

Is the car fitted with a tow bar?

Can the car legaly tow a trailer as some new small cars can not as they are not type aproved?

Will you need to protect it from the weather?

Where will you store it?
(some can store on end using casters to move it about)

Justme

and of course make sure that you have enough power to tow it

RichardW

JB wrote:

and of course make sure that you have enough power to tow it

Oops

Justme

boisdevie1

If you can hire a van for 30 quid for an afternoon why shell out hundreds for a towbar and trailer on the off chance that 'it might come in handy'.
Seems like an awful waste of money to me.
Why not hire a van now and then keep your eyes open for cheap stuff on freecycle/ebay?

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