Getting transport and being road legal?? Help Please?

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PooJay

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Hi I wonder if anyone could offer me any shreds of advice please?

I am currently transportless and i am so desperate to get out and do some stuff with my girl so i'm looking at all of my options and the more i look into it, it seems like it's financially even less achievable than i first thought :(

I passed my test after 1996 so i have to take the HGV test to drive anything bigger than a 3.5t vehicle. My girl is a big 16.1hh and i would be taking another horse with me that stands at 16.2hh.

Looking at 3.5t vehicles that are for sale, there isn't anything that i can see that looks safe for under £10k to carry my beef cake and the slightly lighter but taller and longer companion - is this actually the case or am i missing something?

So, looking into the HGV license avenue for a 7.5t lorry, i'm looking at £1300 to get lessons and finish that course with the test? :eek:

Are there any sneaky ways i could do this to reduce the cost of the test part of the equation? Could someone that hasn't taken the HGV test but passed their test before 1996 teach me to drive it and then i just go for the test?

If anyone has any pearls of wisdom that could help me out i'd be much appreciative :)

Also posted in comp

Thanks
 
3.5 tonners will not carry your two.

A co-driver/trainer must have passed their HGV test, grandfather rights will no longer do.

The 1300 for test and lessons will be easily recouped by the lower price of a 7.5 tonner and above compared to a 3.5 tonner.
 
jemima_too said:
3.5 tonners will not carry your two.

A co-driver/trainer must have passed their HGV test, grandfather rights will no longer do.

The 1300 for test and lessons will be easily recouped by the lower price of a 7.5 tonner and above compared to a 3.5 tonner.
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That's what i thought :(

I think a few lottery tickets might get bought this weekend!

All i want to do is compete but the law and the cost is so restrictive!

Ladylina - the thought had crossed my mind but i speak with truck drivers through work quite regularly and even wanting to compete as much as i do, nothing would push me in that direction ;):D
 
Is it right that the test that needs to be passed is for an articulated lorry. On speaking with training company they said there is no longer a test for a 7.5 ton.

Longer and taller ;-) how polite lol
 
robthecob said:
Is it right that the test that needs to be passed is for an articulated lorry. On speaking with training company they said there is no longer a test for a 7.5 ton.

Longer and taller ;-) how polite lol
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I keep being told that it's the same price to do the 7.5t as the massive lorry test but i have found someone who i think (if i haven't got the email wrong) that does it for half the price for the 7.5t test in Worcestershire.

lol :D:D

in the comp forum, the guys offering advice in there said a 3.5t wouldn't pull both our heffers at once so 7.5t is our option, well, either that or a trailer and i think that would work out more expensive unless we buy a beaten up old landrover for very cheap :confused:
 
I doubt a trailer would work out more expensive when you take into consideration the cost of plating a lorry. They get expensive quite quickly!! Unless you use your lorry every single week a trailer is likely to be much cheaper. Don't see your car. Just buy a 4x4 to run along side it. Either way you have to have two vehicles after all.

Plus trailer lessons and tests are much cheaper.
 
jesstickle said:
I doubt a trailer would work out more expensive when you take into consideration the cost of plating a lorry. They get expensive quite quickly!! Unless you use your lorry every single week a trailer is likely to be much cheaper. Don't see your car. Just buy a 4x4 to run along side it. Either way you have to have two vehicles after all.

Plus trailer lessons and tests are much cheaper.
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excuse my ignorance (or stupidity - whatever lol) but what is "plating" - is it tax? :confused:

Yeah i guess ur right and 4x4's can't possibly be holding their value well atm so we could pick one up quite cheaply.....

hmmmmmm thanks! :)
 
plating is the lorry version of an MOT :)

Two girls on my yard have just had theirs done. One had a bill of £2000 and one had a bill of nearly £3000. That isn't standard but nor is it entirely unheard of either.
 
jesstickle said:
plating is the lorry version of an MOT :)

Two girls on my yard have just had theirs done. One had a bill of £2000 and one had a bill of nearly £3000. That isn't standard but nor is it entirely unheard of either.
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Oh right....thanks :o lol

:eek::eek: omg....trailer option is suddenly looking a hellova lot more appealling!
 
They have quite old lorries. I guess in fairness an old 4x4 could easily cost that much to MOT most likely. It's the cost of running a lorry that has always put me off. I'd much rather drive one than pull a trailer but the bills seem massive!
 
jesstickle said:
They have quite old lorries. I guess in fairness an old 4x4 could easily cost that much to MOT most likely. It's the cost of running a lorry that has always put me off. I'd much rather drive one than pull a trailer but the bills seem massive!
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To Mot yeah but to tax and insure etc, probably a LOT cheaper. Do you know if you have to tax a trailer please? (another bloody stupid question from me :D)
 
The test you need to do is for any size RIGID ie non-articulated lorry. Artics are a whole other world.

No you don't need to tax a trailer. My lorry for my daughter to drive is 330 quid, road tax is IIRC 165. Car is just under a grand to insure.
 
no you don't have to do anything with a trailer not even a basic road safety test which is why you need to keep your eye on it

I am doing my sums at the moment as I have recently bought a bargin trailer from a girl who was giving up - my dad who had a Navara then drank a load of beer and crashed ( I have disowned him now don't worry) So I was left hopeless with nothing to tow me about - I only used it once :-( So decent 4x4, I am looking at Nissan Terrano Ford Maverick and Discoverys for under 2k insuring the damn thing and getting my trailer test. I really can not afford to run a box aswell as a car + as my OH WAS a truck driver (no offense taken lol) we can practice together with L plates before I take the test ( and I can drag him out of bed at un godly hours on a Sunday morning until I pass)

You are going to have to pay another 2.5k for a trailer + say £120 to £600 for your test and lessons etc so that is around 5k - but worth it I think for the full use of your horse and the freedom to do what you want to do and when !
 
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Peeps - thanks so much for all the advice. It's definitely given me a lot to ponder.

I've found a place in Worcs that does the 7.5t test all in for £759 so my plan is to save for that and aim to be road legal by Spring next year. At least then I can rent a vehicle until i've raised the sums to buy myself. At that point i'll be in a position to decide what me and my friend can afford together.

Ace :) BD and BE beware, here i come lol (well, in 6 months lol) :D:D

Oh and Ladylina - glad none offence taken, ur ex truck driver must be a godsend to be able to teach you! i'm surrounded by haulage and still can't get any help. Rubbish eh :D
 
You would still need to sit a test for a trailer as you can only tow up to 3.5tonnes and the size of car that is required + the trailer + the horses would again put you over the 3.5 tonne.
There is a place just outside Edinburgh that does the 7.5T test for about £543, however if you sit your HGV you automatically upgrade all your other entitlements, however you also need to shell out on a medical form completed by your doctor for the HGV test (probably another £60.00 depending on your doctor).
 
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