Weight distribution
14 replies
Lutz replied on 13/06/2022 16:55
Posted on 13/06/2022 16:00 by JohnM20The maximum load on my caravan's Alko hitch is 100kg and 7% of the MTPLM is 94.5kg. The maximum load on my towbar is 90kg and I load the caravan to achieve about 87 / 88kg. I'm assuming that the maximum loads of both the car and caravan are static loads and there will be a safety margin to allow for the dynamic loads caused by pitching of the caravan (not pitching on site) on Britain's super smooth roads
. After 7 years of both our current car and caravan this seems to be right as I sometimes almost (but not quite) forget that I have a caravan in tow behind me.
eribaMotters replied on 13/06/2022 21:03
Posted on 13/06/2022 21:03
NutsyH, the % is only a guide. It is a useful starting point and no more than that. As mentioned above we must not exceed max hitch or towbar limit. A mathematician would be technical and tell us we should be looking at moments of force and axle to hitch distance. Foreign vans traditionally had a longer drawbar and as such axle to hitch measurement. This meant hitch loads could be less, ie a lower % and still offer a stable tow. We all have to experiment and then make a note what works for our individual situation.
Colin
NutsyH replied on 14/06/2022 08:39
Posted on 13/06/2022 21:03 by eribaMottersNutsyH, the % is only a guide. It is a useful starting point and no more than that. As mentioned above we must not exceed max hitch or towbar limit. A mathematician would be technical and tell us we should be looking at moments of force and axle to hitch distance. Foreign vans traditionally had a longer drawbar and as such axle to hitch measurement. This meant hitch loads could be less, ie a lower % and still offer a stable tow. We all have to experiment and then make a note what works for our individual situation.
Colin
Lutz replied on 14/06/2022 13:53
Posted on 14/06/2022 08:39 by NutsyHEribaM - Yes, I know they are only guidelines but as I said can be confusing for newbies - as per the original post here.
Posted on 14/06/2022 13:53
The 5% to 7% recommendation originated at a time when there were no plated limits and therefore nothing better to go by. Now that we have plated limits it would be appropriate to drop the recommendation as it stands and simply advise to stay as close as reasonably possible to the plated limits without exceeding them.
Ron1953
Caravanner