tonyg3nwl Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 Hi, A while ago , whilst arguing with Peugeot re judder issues, they wante me to weigh the empty van. It came in at 2973 kg with full diesel but otherwise as delivered (awning already fitted) but no gas bottles. Just before setting off at the end of May, fully loaded, full tanks, bikes on rear, 3 camping gas 907 bottles ,a trip to same weighbridge showed 3475 kg with no passenger or driver on board. Stargazer is rated 3500 kg all up, but both other half and myself are normal adult sizes and would cause van to be over 3500 kg all up, so before departure, a careful look at payload caused a debate about what to dump and leave at home. Out went the new director chairs, groundsheet, and off came the bikes.. we have to walk. My amateur radio portable mast was kicked out, and spare aerials reduced to 3 whips by PROAM. Radio mains PSU was abandoned, and decision to run on leisure battery instead. Hopefully that saved enough to be legal, and no further time to recheck before departure so off we went, and enjoyed the holiday. Just returned after 6 weeks and unloaded the van, and in doing so queried the weight of the wardrobe contents, which had been loaded to cater for any weather conditions. Didnt weigh it all, but next time we will have to make do with a lot less.! Books for reading if weather inclement need to be carefully selected, boule balls need a severe diet, one camera not 2 with gadget bag contents reduced need attention,, and shoe choices need revision. Fridge contents, and emergency rations will have to be reassessed, as well as bedding etc. I was under the impression that a payload availability around 400kg was more than adequate, but I wonder what others say. How many of you out there actually know what the van actually weighs when you set off to the sun, and how close is it to the approved payload for your van (and 3500 limit for your driving licence if appropriate) tonyg3nwl PS, Camos crank up satellite aerial, and avtek tv with sky minibox are added by us , so have to be considered paylod items. tonyg3nwl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 Payload and MAUW are regulary discussed on here, with many having weighed their vans, but I suspect the majority of people especialy those who don't read forums, don't give it a second thought believing "it's a van I can load what I want in it", certainly when we where tent camping we never weighed car but sometimes I would look at how low the suspension was and wonder.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 why full water while travelling? We manage with 4 of us (2 adults 2 teenagers) and thousands of other European family's manage within 3500kg. It is a struggle and we have a similar 400kg available, manage to take bikes as well........ Our e bikes make our holiday!:-D my daughter has just returned from 3 months is s/e asia and her bag weighed 12kg....think about it :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 I know what my van weighs empty and fully loaded, empty it is 2950KG and fully loaded with full water tank, full fuel tank, full gas tank, awning, TV, sat dish, aerial and pole, walking boots, cameras, two laptops, food for us, food for the dog, clothing etc, etc, etc, it weighs in at 3560KGs. MAM is 4200KGS so I've still got plenty of scope for more gear :D :D . D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philjp Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 I had my van weighed after spotting m/homes being pulled in at Ross on Wye and the M4 at Newport. I was surprised how close to the limit we where so we sat down and worked out what we did and did not need for the next trip. When you sit down and think about the unnecessary things we take or stuff you leave in for winter and its summer. I now have a list of things we take and their approx weight. So I know that if I take something out and put something in, I will still have room for my Ham radios or my diving kit. Must admit we have a top box that takes a stand alone awning and walking shoes. The top box now comes off if just the 2 of us are away and Klingon stays at home …but back on when we head for France the wine needs to go somewhere. I have told the wife she needs to go on a diet OOPS... I weighed the Awning and it came out at 12.5k, 2 full gas bottles 15kg when full, and ground sheet 3k wind break 4k. 3rd person around 75k, BBQ and Charcoal around 6k…We are lucky in that the van is parked at home in my garage and juggling around the contents is no problem. We weighed the van again last week and it came in at 2290k that’s with a full diesel tank and fresh water tank (filled it up so if we did go over weight I could dump the water) driver and passenger. Top box and awning. We now think about the stuff we took and never used it. Tony I carry a small solar panel that keeps my battery that I use for my radio charged 2 whips on the roof and 2 ali poles and a small dipole .Need to get a small auto atu. My manual tuner does weigh a bit….. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fred grant Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 Dave Newell - 2010-07-07 6:41 PM I know what my van weighs empty and fully loaded, empty it is 2950KG and fully loaded with full water tank, full fuel tank, full gas tank, awning, TV, sat dish, aerial and pole, walking boots, cameras, two laptops, food for us, food for the dog, clothing etc, etc, etc, it weighs in at 3560KGs. MAM is 4200KGS so I've still got plenty of scope for more gear :D :D . D. so add in yer good selves then my biddies, then you be overloaded!!!!! frigidfred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyg3nwl Posted July 7, 2010 Author Share Posted July 7, 2010 Dave Newell - 2010-07-07 6:41 PM I know what my van weighs empty and fully loaded, empty it is 2950KG and fully loaded with full water tank, full fuel tank, full gas tank, awning, TV, sat dish, aerial and pole, walking boots, cameras, two laptops, food for us, food for the dog, clothing etc, etc, etc, it weighs in at 3560KGs. MAM is 4200KGS so I've still got plenty of scope for more gear :D :D . D. So presumably you are not restricted by driving licence/age over70 rules.? tonyg3nwl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Dwight Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 We downsized last Dec from 3500 to 3300, whilst away a month ago we were camping near a weighbridge so decided to get weighed. We were loaded for a 2 week trip plus bikes, full tank fuel and about 40ltr water no waste, 2 calor light bottles both of us on board and dog. We were very pleased we came out with 80kilo spare so not at all worried about our long trip later in the summer. We never travel with a tank of water seperate container with 5ltr in. Yes there will be a few more clothes but only about 10-15kilo. David. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 fred grant - 2010-07-07 7:12 PM Dave Newell - 2010-07-07 6:41 PM I know what my van weighs empty and fully loaded, empty it is 2950KG and fully loaded with full water tank, full fuel tank, full gas tank, awning, TV, sat dish, aerial and pole, walking boots, cameras, two laptops, food for us, food for the dog, clothing etc, etc, etc, it weighs in at 3560KGs. MAM is 4200KGS so I've still got plenty of scope for more gear :D :D . D. so add in yer good selves then my biddies, then you be overloaded!!!!! frigidfred That is with us on board you cheeky beggar :D D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted July 7, 2010 Share Posted July 7, 2010 tonyg3nwl - 2010-07-07 7:32 PM Dave Newell - 2010-07-07 6:41 PM I know what my van weighs empty and fully loaded, empty it is 2950KG and fully loaded with full water tank, full fuel tank, full gas tank, awning, TV, sat dish, aerial and pole, walking boots, cameras, two laptops, food for us, food for the dog, clothing etc, etc, etc, it weighs in at 3560KGs. MAM is 4200KGS so I've still got plenty of scope for more gear :D :D . D. So presumably you are not restricted by driving licence/age over70 rules.? tonyg3nwl If I were limited by licence/age would I own a 4200KG van? I wouldn't be much of a motorhome technical journalist working within the industry if I was driving a van that I wasn't licenced for would I? :-S D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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