ALANSUE Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 Hi. Sue and I are thinking of having a tow bar fitted to our Autotrail Dakota so we can tow our Ford KA. In your experience did the car or motor home or both insurances increase and if it did was it excessive? Also, any thoughts on how the motor home handles the extra load with regard to safety etc. Any advice very much appreciated. Thanks. Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJM Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 A quick reply before the flack on towing starts. I tow a 108 and you hardly know its there. Almost impossible to reverse but tows easily. Informed insurance and car is covered as for a trailer when being towed i.e. if it breaks away and causes damage third parties are covered. Motorhome insurance covers any potential damage to motorhome. Negligible increase of insurance costs. We enjoy the freedom to use any sites regardless of location. For those who would scorn, my wife has balance problems and cannot cycle, public transport is okay in the right location but a toad works for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 Presumably the intention is to tow the Ford Ka using an A-frame rather than the car being transported on a trailer? If so, the Motorhome Matters forum threads (over the last 10 years) in this listing included the term “A-frame”. https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/search/query.asp?action=search&searchforumid=all&keywords=A-frame&author=&days=&Submit=Search (Please don’t revive the tedious perennial argument about A-frame towing’s pros and cons - it’s all be said before and not just once.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 ALAN&SUE - 2021-01-29 7:08 PM Hi. Sue and I are thinking of having a tow bar fitted to our Autotrail Dakota so we can tow our Ford KA. In your experience did the car or motor home or both insurances increase and if it did was it excessive? Also, any thoughts on how the motor home handles the extra load with regard to safety etc. Any advice very much appreciated. Thanks. Alan It depends a bit on whether you intend "flat towing" the car (i.e. on its own wheels) or towing it on/in a trailer. If a trailer, apart from insurance for the trailer itself (damage caused by or to, or theft of, the trailer) you will be OK more or less wherever you go. If flat towing, the car will require modification for the trailer "A" frame attachment, and to provide trailer braking, and it will need to carry a rear number-plate/lighting board that should obscure its own number plate while being towed. The car insurer will need to be told of these modifications. In this case, be aware that although flat towing a car is "deemed legal" (i.e. there is no law against it) in UK, it is illegal in various European countries (definitely in France and Spain), so you would be wise to check the legality of flat towing in other countries you might visit before you buy/travel. Note that these restrictions are imposed by each state individually: there is no blanket "EU" law on this. In either case the van insurer will need to be told that a towbar has been fitted. Above all, first verify that the van towing limit is sufficient for the car, or car plus trailer. The original base vehicle "VIN plate" on the Dakota may mislead in this respect, as this may have been superseded by the Auto-Trail plate. This is not uncommon on larger motorhomes, as converters "nick" some of your towing capability in favour of van payload. Also, be aware that although the Gross Train Weight (GTW) (i.e. the combined weight of van (A) plus trailer (B)) is taken to be the sum of their Actual Laden Weights (ALW) (weighbridge time! :-)) in the UK (which allows some degree of load redistribution between tow vehicle and trailer), it is usually calculated as the sum of their Maximum Allowable Masses (MAM) (i.e. the plated maximum weights) of both elsewhere. This is most likely to be problematic for the trailer option where, to be sure it has sufficient MAM for its self-weight plus that of the car, you will invariably end up with a trailer MAM that exceeds its ALW. If this becomes critical, it can be remedied by having the trailer down-plated so that A + B do not exceed GTW, for which you will probably need the cooperation of the trailer manufacturer. However, if doing this, do remember that legal overload applies GTW just as much as to both van, and trailer, individually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 The UK’s Department for Transport’s guidance on A-frames can be read here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-frames-and-dollies/a-frames-and-dollies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter davies Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 Hi have towed a car in the uk since 2011 on a tow a car a frame best thing i have done don't know it's on my vantage fiat,buy the best one you can d'ont buy a cheap a frame i told my insurance now charge. I have never been stopped by the police/vosa i have never used it in europ ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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