Trailer choice advice

[Mgibson]

My speedex special is coming on so now time to think about a trailer. I would like to hear recommendations , experience , pros and cons for the various types for sale , as well as any potentially for sale in the north west . I have seen advertised small two wheel braked and unbraked, four wheel braked . My preference is for one that is less than 15ft long to fit in the garage , also have seen motorbike trailers offered . I plan to visit various race tracks so up to 200 mile round trips , many thanks

[Howard Wright]

Hi

Trailers are a nightmare!  Well the legislation is.  Briefly.....

With an unbraked trailer the maximum you can tow is 750 kg.  A Ruby approaches this and possibly more with the weight of the trailer itself included.  Even your Speedex may be close once the weight of the trailer is taken into account.

Also check what your car can tow.  Unbraked tow capacities can be very low.  It may seem easier and cheaper to buy an unbraked trailer but they can be a bit difficult to manoeuvre off the hitch and can sometimes be the tail wagging the dog if the tow car is not quite heavy.

With a braked trailer you can tow much more and you should have no problem finding a trailer car combo that works.  My Audi A1 can tow 1200 kg  braked!  Holding the loaded trailer on its brake means that you can unhitch and move the loaded trailer around easily.  

Now to more legality.  Theoretically home made trailers are increasingly difficult to make legal.  Especially if you tow abroad. Trailers should have a vin plate, just like cars and, I believe, be made by a registered fabricator.

Personally I would go for a two wheel braked trailer.  One for a Smart car is ideal and there are lots about as the Motor caravan fraternity use them.  I started with an unbraked trailer, towing my special with a Mazda Bongo. I soon changed to a braked version for the reasons above.

On the other hand there are many home made jobs out there that seem to be used with impunity but I wouldn't like to argue the toss with an insurance company with one! Check out the DVLA web site for confirmation on all I have said above.

Cheers

Howard

PS Check your licence to ensure that you are legally allowed to tow!

[Stuart Joseph]

Hello. I would echo every word of Howard's reply. Trailers are a grey area, someone was recently stopped on the nearby M6 whilst towing a lightweight kit car - the police officer commented 'it's your misfortune to have encountered the only PC in the area who knows the trailer regs'. This resulted in a prosecution for towing a marginally over weight unbraked trailer.

My son and I have three trailers, the autojumble trailer is 4 wheeled and braked, the car trailer is a Brian James 4 wheel Clubman trailer which is large enough for A7's but too small for moderns, the lad's original mini will just fit. Not cheap but beautifully built, tows like a dream, a problem of owning a large trailer is that you get a lot of 'friends'.............."could I borrow your trailer?"
They do appear on ebay but don't seem to depreciate like the cars that tow 'em.

A local trailer company no longer builds trailers because of the requirement to have them 'plated' and they don't encourage customers to build their own although they do sell parts for repair - make of that what you will?

Regards from the creative county - Staffordshire.

Stuart

[Mike Costigan]

Howard's suggestion of a Smart car trailer is a good one, but be aware the ramps are only just narrow enough - ideally the trailer needs adapting with, say, 3" wide extensions on the inner faces:

   

[Chris Garner]

I have a Brian James 2 wheel braked Smart car trailer which is excellent but I struggle to carry a LWB Seven, such as my Speedex or my 65. If the bed was just a couple of inches longer it would be fine.

[Charles P]

Howard's suggestion of a Smart car trailer is a good one, but be aware the ramps are only just narrow enough - ideally the trailer needs adapting with, say, 3" wide extensions on the inner faces:

Nice number plate Mike. 
Mr Griffiths by any chance?

I bought a small 4 wheel trailer custom built years ago by Nev Farquhar for the Dixon Riley. Yes, I've now replaced all the running gear (maintenance m'lud) but a twin axle trailer tows so much better if you can get one that is smaller than an aircraft carrier.

Charles

[Tony Griffiths]

Mike is right - and these trailers are easy to widen: the outer section of the tracks have bolt-on widening pieces; these can be removed and fastened to the inside, or the sections bought from the makers if you want to keep the track width original. This type of trailer  http://www.smart-trailers.co.uk/ trailer cost between £1600 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/smart-car-tra...SwUnJcglzH and £2350 new - but lots appear on the used market at between £900 and £1250. I bought mine, conveniently, just a few miles from Folkestone on a return trip from the continent; I could have had an almost new one for the same price, but that was in Norfolk, a day's journey away and I just did not have the time to spare.
This type of modern trailer is galvanised (obviously), fitted with powerful brakes, plated, completely legal and has convenient features like built-in slide-in-and-out-snap-retained ramps, hinged rear-mounted loading supports, number-plate holder, spare wheel mount and all the correct rear and width lighting front and rear - and they tow very well indeed.
When researching this subject it became obvious that once the price dropped below £800 you were in home-built, worn-out, damaged, stolen and "dodgy" territory - though of course, you might just get lucky and find something soundly built for less. However, my advice would be to invest a reasonable sum in something modern and you should get most of the money back when you come to sell.
Winches: most of this type come without, but they can be retro-fitted by the makers - or just get your own: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00D...UTF8&psc=1  However, shop around, I paid £83 delivered, from Amazon. The local ornamental gate and fencing fabricator made me up a 10mm thick mounting plate with three tapped holes for £20 - and it all just bolted together on the right-hand side of the A bracket.

[Mgibson]

Many thanks for your time and thoughts two wheel braked it is then .

[Charles P]

I agree with Tony that cheap trailers bought on EBay and similar may either be lots of trouble or possibly liberated without the owners consent. However they do come up frequently in places like the VSCC ads section (for those who are members) and buying off someone you know is a reassurance.

Here's my trailer - yes, it was built in someone's garage but done well, to a plan. 


  FB_IMG_1559082244248.jpg (Size: 114.39 KB / Downloads: 693)

   

[Stuart Giles]

Now to more legality.  Theoretically home made trailers are increasingly difficult to make legal.  Especially if you tow abroad. Trailers should have a vin plate, just like cars and, I believe, be made by a registered fabricator.


On the other hand there are many home made jobs out there that seem to be used with impunity but I wouldn't like to argue the toss with an insurance company with one! Check out the DVLA web site for confirmation on all I have said above.

Perfectly legal to run a home made trailer as long as it complies to construction and use regulations; which are largely common sense requirements. I can't see how an insurance company could wriggle out of a claim on a trailer that complies with the regulations no matter who built it. Mandatory testing for IVA  came in in 2012  for trailers IIRC -it applies to trailers built after that date, the IVA requirement is not retrospective.

Nobody seems to know how VOSA would be aware of when a home made  trailer was actually built; I haven't seen anything saying that modifications to an existing trailer carried out after 2012 would trigger an IVA requirement.

I have built a couple of car trailers. For transporting a car I would want a four wheel trailer, if you have a trailer tyre disintegrate at motorway speeds on a 2 wheel trailer with a car on top, the result can be quite dramatic.  On a four wheel trailer you really shouldn't need all three lanes when a tyre lets go.

It's not a great shot, but this is my current car trailer, It took three days to build for my home made modern racer, but it has also carried my Sevens without any problems. The axles and suspension on this are the rears from 2 written off Mk3 Escort vans, the trailer is braked on all 4 wheels (there is a C & U requirement for all wheels to be braked on any "braked" trailer) 

This trailer has been abroad through France and Italy without incident (or any problems from Gendarmes, Carabinieri etc.) But I have heard that the German authorities want to see a TUV or such data plate on trailers that travel on their Autobahns.