P E Jennings Posted November 9, 2011 Share Posted November 9, 2011 Has anyone experienced problems of towing a car on a trailer behind a motorhome in Spain. Do the Spanish police only target "A" frames. Any advice would be appreciated as we have not yet towed with our motorhome & the articles on "A" frames have scared me witless even though that was our preferred option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big olga Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 HI, It is illegal to tow in Spain; [except a caravan] You never see a broken down car being towed because if the police come across it a big fine is handed out! We saw a very large Motorhome parked in SPAIN with a smart car behind; I said how are the doing that? Then my wife pointed out that the smart car had it,s own garage in the rear of the large Motorhome! Best Wishes Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onecal Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Hi,,,Yes quite a few EU States have made it illegal to tow with an A frame,,Trike, Car,or Motorbike,,,(wheels must be off the ground) unless for recovery( they made the call,,,and they do fine you),,,,you will see it in the States and they work quite well,,,but that is the law I am afraid within most EU states at present,Towing with a Motorhome a car/trike/motorbike with a trailer is allowed in EU States,,,,subject to weight conditions,Regards,Brendan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brit_Stops Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Apologies, have no experience towing in Spain (or Britain for that matter), but am just wondering if I was the only one with a mental image of a motorhome and trailer careering around a skid pan after reading the thread title... :-D Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peedee Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 I think you will find it is legal to tow a car on a trailer in any of the EEC countries and that includes Spain. peedee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John J Thompson Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 peedee - 2011-11-10 7:54 AM I think you will find it is legal to tow a car on a trailer in any of the EEC countries and that includes Spain. peedee We took our Smart to Spain last winter on a Bantam trailer. There are no problems with trailers. Quote Consultations have also been made on the possibility of a motorhome being allowed to tow a car, that possibility is prohibited by Article 9.3 of the General Rules of vehicles that will not allow circulation of a motor vehicle dragging another. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the circulation of a combination composed of a motor vehicle and a trailer or semi trailer on which another vehicle is transported, is allowed if the combination meets the conditions for driving on public roads and is approved according to Directives 70/156/EEC and 94/20/EC and also does not exceed the maximum permitted length for these combinations which is that of 18.75 meters for trailers and16.50 meters for semi trailers. End Quote The full instruction on towing is below. INSTRUCTION 08/V-74 FROM THE SPANISH DIRECTOR GENERAL OF TRAFFIC RELATIVE TO MOTORHOMES MINISTRY OF INTERIOR 8. - AUXILIARY TRANSPORT VEHICLES It is very common for motorhomes to transport auxiliary vehicles, usually bicycles, a motorcycle or a moped of small cylinder capacity. This practice is authorised provided an approved cycle carrier or platform for this purpose is used and when this overhangs the perimeter of the motorhome, the following conditions are met in accordance with the provisions of Articles 15 of the General Rules of Circulation: If it protrudes from the projection in plant of the motorhome, at the rear, up to 10% of its length and if only one vehicle (indivisible load), 15%. All appropriate precautions should be taken to prevent damage or hazard to other road users, and the protruding element should be protected to minimize damage by possible rubbing against it or collision. The carrier should be marked by the signal V-20 referred to in Article 173 and whose features are set out in Annex XI of the General Rules of vehicles. This signal is placed at the rear of the cargo so as to constantly be perpendicular to the axis of the vehicle. Consultations have also been made on the possibility of a motorhome being allowed to tow a car, that possibility is prohibited by Article 9.3 of the General Rules of vehicles that will not allow circulation of a motor vehicle dragging another, except that this is damaged or broken down and cannot be towed by another specifically intended for that purpose, in which case it is allowed to tow to the nearest town or village where it can be detained without hindering the traffic and always provided they are not travelling on a motorway or highway. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the circulation of a combination composed of a motor vehicle and a trailer or semi trailer on which another vehicle is transported, is allowed if the combination meets the conditions for driving on public roads and is approved according to Directives 70/156/EEC and 94/20/EC and also does not exceed the maximum permitted length for these combinations which is that of 18.75 meters for trailers and16.50 meters for semi trailers. To be made public for general knowledge. Madrid, Jan. 28, 2008 THE DIRECTOR GENERAL Pere Navarro Olivella Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 P & E Jennings - 2011-11-09 11:55 PM Has anyone experienced problems of towing a car on a trailer behind a motorhome in Spain. Do the Spanish police only target "A" frames. Any advice would be appreciated as we have not yet towed with our motorhome & the articles on "A" frames have scared me witless even though that was our preferred option. As far as I’m aware no EU country has SPECIFIC motoring regulations that prohibit motorcaravanners from towing a car on an A-frame. What many do have, however, are general national regulations with which the A-frame towing practice may be considered to conflict by those countries' police authorities. Regarding towing a small car on a trailer behind a motorhome, this practice should normally be perfectly acceptable to the police authorities of any EU country. The Caravan Club’s advice is given here http://www.caravanclub.co.uk/planning-your-trip/overseas-trips/overseas-advice-leaflets/general-legal-requirements/ and goes as follows: "A-FRAMES If you would like to tow a car behind a motor caravan in Europe, our advice would be to use a trailer with all four wheels of the car off the ground.??Although most countries in Europe do not have a specific law banning A-frames they do have a law which prohibits 'a motor vehicle towing another motor vehicle', and it is down to the local police how they interpret their own laws.??We have been contacted by a small number of members who have been stopped and fined for using an A-frame (particularly in Spain), and the fines range from €42.00 to €250.00. We have also been contacted by members who have travelled thousands of miles in Europe and not had any problems at all, however, if you want 100% guarantee that you are legal, you need to use a trailer with all four wheels of the car off the ground." I vaguely recall a reader’s letter in MMM a while back saying that he had been stopped (and fined?) for towing a car on a trailer and I think that was in Spain. If I recall correctly, the ‘offence’ had something to do with the overall length of the motorhome + trailer and/or the weight of the trailer and/or the fact that the trailer wasn’t registered separately from the motorhome. The Editorial advice (I think) was that, as long as the motorhome + trailer combination was legal in the UK (and there seemed little doubt that this was so), then there were no legal grounds for prosecution in any other EU country. Basically, that the decision of the foreign police had been wrong. So, for anxiety-free towing of a car by a motorhome anywhere within the EU, putting the car on a trailer would be your safest bet. You will, of course, need to have the appropriate driving-licence entitlement to permit you to tow a car, but that will be true whether you towed the vehicle via an A-frame or via a trailer. Some other links just to indicate that the practice of ‘trailer towing’ a car behind a motorhome is commonplace and should be uncontroversial. http://www.pod-ium.com/trailer-smart-car.html http://www.pod-ium.com/gallery.aspx?Lang=en http://www.labissonnette.fr/ http://www.brianjames.co.uk/pdf/BJT_UK_2011q3A-max_1.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Although A-framing has been seriously mauled over on this forum, it may still be worth reading through ALL the pages on this recent-ish MHF thread: http://www.motorhomefacts.com/ftopic-115465-days0-orderasc-0.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Tuckley Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 We take a motorbike on a trailer every year to Spain and have even had the Guardia Civil behind us on the motorway for a while. No problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ips Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Well I am sorry but I have to say that the thought of towing anything all the way to Spain legally or not does not float my boat. Thought the idea of a MH was so you didnt have to tow a caravan :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 ips - 2011-11-10 4:09 PM Well I am sorry but I have to say that the thought of towing anything all the way to Spain legally or not does not float my boat. Thought the idea of a MH was so you didnt have to tow a caravan :-DExactly how does this reply answer the o/p's question? Which in case you haven't read it is below. Has anyone experienced problems of towing a car on a trailer behind a motorhome in Spain. Do the Spanish police only target "A" frames. Any advice would be appreciated as we have not yet towed with our motorhome & the articles on "A" frames have scared me witless even though that was our preferred option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ips Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 It doesnt its just my thoughts thresds are like conversations they drift Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P E Jennings Posted November 10, 2011 Author Share Posted November 10, 2011 Thank you all very much for taking the time to reply. All your advice has been taken on board & I'm very grateful for it. Apologies also for my poor typing but you all knew that I did mean Spain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 P & E Jennings - 2011-11-10 9:06 PM Apologies also for my poor typing but you all knew that I did mean Spain. Oh I don't know, I think this whole subject appears to have a lot of people in a 'spin' doesn't it! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Old Derek said he's pee'd off with all this A Frame stuff, but he keeps on wading in there. Can't help himself. (lol) (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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