fesspark Posted March 7, 2017 Share Posted March 7, 2017 I ordered at the NEC October from Chelston m,homes a new drop down bed burstner .Paid my deposit arranged the part ex and after studying the weights regards to roll out awning small sat dish,small solar panel,my wife food and other items put us over the 3.5 t limit. I spoke to Chelston who agreed with me and refunded my deposit, This had caused the company a lot of time and costs and I salute them for the attitude they took.It is obvious to me that the new drop down beds put these vehicles out of reach Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted March 7, 2017 Share Posted March 7, 2017 Wouldn't it be nice if there was something like a magazine that did reviews on motorhomes, and instead of driving them straight to a pretty location they went couple of hundred yards out of their way to the weight bridge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archiesgrandad Posted March 7, 2017 Share Posted March 7, 2017 This is such a thorny problem, and whilst I understand the heartache and distress when our fellow forum users set out to change their motorhome, but, respectfully guys, you are the lucky ones. You have your years of experience, backed up by all the advice and knowledge that can be gleaned from this and other forums. My feelings are with those who set out to buy thier first motorhome., and please don't tell me that they should do their research and find out about weights and licences etc. They have done their research, or at least they have looked up any information that they found, but nothing in their experience leads them to know that motor vehicles have defined weight limits, most won't realise that their driving licence restricts the weight of vehicles that they are entitled to drive. God bless them, most do not realise that manufacturers and dealers are willing to sell them a vehicle that they are not licenced to drive, that does not have the capacity to carry the people and other things that will be required, and is simply not suited to their purpose. Please don't just dismiss this, All those overwieght motorhomes on the secondhand market were at some point bought, overloaded with goodies, and ultimately sold by people like us. We all put our case on forums etc, but that information is not easily accessed by novices, they only see the glossy features in the magazines, the shiny dreamboats on the dealers forecourts. I have never been asked if I have a suitable driving licence, never been given any advice about the weight capacity. When selling my vans I have not advised anyone about weight issues, or other shortcomings, and I have never mentioned driving licence restrictions, it was not until I had to get my Pilote registered in France that I realised that this van has in the past been overloaded by several hundred kilos at times, and that in the state in which I bought it it , it was already over it's plated weight before I even climbed into the drivers seat. I have now removed a lot of weight, and should be able to use it legally simply by adjusting the contents of the water tank. When I recall my journeys between England and France when we were restoring our house and bringing the motorhome down with a loaded trailer, I am quite ashamed, and relieved that nothing went wrong There must be thousands of vans out there which are not fit for purpose in this way, and most will be bought by novices or people of limited experience, and if the response to this problem is to change licence categories, or vehicle legislation, it will not help these people. At the very least the law should require that any person or company selling a motorhome must ensure that the buyer is specifically made aware of the weight matters, it should be a legal requirement and quite unequical. AGD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogerC Posted March 7, 2017 Share Posted March 7, 2017 There is a simple solution to this as there is to any number of so called 'intractable' issues. Simply issue a certificate with each and every motorhome/caravan stating: This conveyance/vehicle has an unladen weight of ****kgs.Unladen weight qualifies as the weight of the vehicle with xyz amount of fuel/oil as required by the service manual only. Any additions above these items are deemed to encroach on the 'payload' maximum weight of xyz kgs. Clearly by this simple method purchasers know what weight they have to play with when looking at the vehicle as it stands before them? AUW, MIRO, GROSS WT etc etc only goes to make understanding of the weight issues a minefield for the average motorhoming/caravaning Joe. ....and off on a bit of a tangent....if 'road tax.....RFL'....call it what you will was calculated and applied correctly to the price of fuel, say 1/2/3 p per ltr then surely one could do away with a level of bureaucracy (money saving for sure) and more pertinently ensure 'every road user' was paying their dues freeing up police time and court activity consumed by chasing evaders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted March 7, 2017 Share Posted March 7, 2017 RogerC - 2017-03-07 9:01 PM There is a simple solution to this as there is to any number of so called 'intractable' issues. Simply issue a certificate with each and every motorhome/caravan stating .This conveyance/vehicle has an unladen weight of ****kgs. Unladen weight qualifies as the weight of the vehicle with xyz amount of fuel/oil as required by the service manual only. Any additions above these items are deemed to encroach on the 'payload' maximum weight of xyz kgs. That's what I have with my Campscout, I was surprised at how heavy it was until getting it weighed when it became apparent that the 'unladen weight' was in fact the MIRO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monique.hubrechtsgm Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 This is misinformation.Just read the rules in the EEC. RREG2007/46 EG and his amendments.Now it should be 13:Mass ready to drive. 13.2 Mass as delivered from the factory. In my case 3100 and 3282 kg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monique.hubrechtsgm Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 That is already in effect for years. They have to show mass ready to drive, and mass as delivered from the factory. The last one including factory options ordered. If your dealer fits an awning it should be added. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteH Posted March 11, 2017 Author Share Posted March 11, 2017 Hi The "flip" side to that coin would be that the vast majority of current vehicles have already been "so loaded" with the "Necessities" we take for granted that to a great extent saturation point has been reached already?. "We" are now at (or beyond) the point where the only increases would be Food or clothing Ie "personal effects" (as we called them in the 60`s). The current trend for manufacturers to plan and design with weight reduction in mind is already so far under way that only the "bespoke" marques would be tempted to build to a higher limit. Which leads me to believe that part of the issue would be no real "issue". I have no expectation that this will "fly" but I thought it would be an interesting exercise to judge reaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david lloyd Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Pete, I have to agree with your (and others) concerns regarding the whole issue of manufacturers turning out heavier Motorhomes that become increasingly heavier with the extras added and the subsequent, but increasing, likelihood that new entrants to the motorhoming life will either not be able to drive such vehicles or, worse, be ignorant of the regulations and find themselves driving illegally. However, in my honest opinion, time and effort would be wasted trying to get the government to change a legislation that already provides a remedy (the availability of a second test to allow those with just a Cat B licence to drive up to 7.5t) for these particular problems and safeguard motorists who wish to drive heavier vehicles. Any time and effort would be better spent aimed at trying to get manufacturers and/or dealers to provide an up to date weight certificate at the point of sale for private light goods and private heavy goods vehicles. I applause anyone who is willing to do something about an identified problem but would not wish to see them step down a route that takes years of commitment to achieve a result and, believe me, to change the legislation would. Regards David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 How about a government petition to alter the current law? I can’t see it doing any better than the ‘aires’ petitions https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions?q=motorhome&state=all but it woiuld at least test the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldi Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Good morning, Now that we are heading out of the EU it will be a lot simpler for the British government to change the law without the encumbrance of the EU. All people with a valid driving licence should be able to drive up to 4 tonnes. This would also take many white van off the road thus helping the environment and reducing traffic congestion. Other countries would soon follow suit to remain competitive as the British government had to do with HGV,s. I brought this matter up last summer soon after the referendum. Vehicle safety especially vans has improved enormously over the past forty years particularly the braking performance. norm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougal Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Hi all I agree with all that has been said, BBBBBBBBBBUUUUUUUUUUUUUTTTTTTTTT in all my considerable travels I have never met anyone who has had their Motorhome weighed on the road, or ever seen a weighbridge 'open'. Do not mention being 'gassed'. Perhaps it is easier for me as my Majestic is well under 3500kgs. and over the years we find we travel with less and less 'stuff'. If you do not use it on a long trip - dump it! *-) or :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david lloyd Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 dougal - 2017-03-12 1:21 PM Hi all I agree with all that has been said, BBBBBBBBBBUUUUUUUUUUUUUTTTTTTTTT in all my considerable travels I have never met anyone who has had their Motorhome weighed on the road, or ever seen a weighbridge 'open'. Do not mention being 'gassed'. Perhaps it is easier for me as my Majestic is well under 3500kgs. and over the years we find we travel with less and less 'stuff'. If you do not use it on a long trip - dump it! *-) or :-( BBBBBUUUUUTTTTT, with the increasing spread of smart motorways and in-motion axle weighing there will soon be no need for VOSA weighbridges or people to manage them, just the fluttering of a PCN through your letterbox...... As far as increasing the weight limit on a Cat B licence to 4t I still remain of the opinion that the existing issues will remain. Manufacturers will continue to play with all the available MAM at their disposal without due regard to leaving sensible user payloads. Sales staff will still sell vehicles that are at or near their 4t weight limit (not to mention individual axle weight limits) if they wish to sell that vehicle in the forecourt to an unsuspecting customer and SvTech will still be called upon to uprate the 4t motorhome to gain more payload. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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