Sick to death of my horsebox, swap to big trailer?

kerilli

kerilli

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Advice please, has anyone else done this?
I have a 3-horse 04 Eurocargo, my third, with lovely living etc etc. Unfortunately the engine has just blown up, in spite of just being serviced and plated, regular runs, me spending fortunes on the effing thing) and I have just HAD IT with it. I very rarely stay over in it anyway, and would be happy slumming it in a trailer (or finding a local b&b tbh, if it was freezing) anyway!
So, am very seriously contemplating selling it, selling my nice little car, and probably getting a Landcruiser and either a 3-horse or a 4-horse Fautras Oblic trailer (herringbone travel for horses etc etc.)
The thing is, that way i'll have tons of room for horses and kit, be legally able to carry 3 (unlike in horsebox), it should cost waay less per year, etc etc.
Got to shell out for new engine in ****ing horsebox first, obviously. Argh. Argh. Argh.
Comments, thoughts, anything, please?!
 
Ouch, I feel your pain. Firstly, I do envy the lorry owning horse owner, but there is a flip side to everything. IF you say you dont stay overnight much, and you will have much more room with a big trailer then why not? You will save a total fortune on it. OK I have to get my 4 x 4 serviced etc, and we have my trusty Ifor Williams 510 serviced each year, but I am sure it is far cheaper than running a lorry plus a trailer does not (usually) have too much to go wrong on it. We even managed to take Mini TX, her best mate, myself, horse and masses of kit to the PC National Champs a couple of weeks ago with just my trailer and my Shogun SWB piled high. We did stay in a nice hotel though.

Saying that though, I am seriously having to consider a lorry, but will resist the urge for as long as I can.
 
I guess you need to add up the running costs of a jeep day to day and compare it to you lorry plus smaller car?

I have a big 4x4 (Nissan Patrol) and a big trailer (Equitrek ShowTrekka L) and love it, I like having a jeep day to day for feed runs and general driving though
 
We are just going exactly the other way selling big Ifor looking for 6T 2 horse lorry, but that's mainly a safety issue, fed up of idiots overtaking us dangerously, and high winds in trailer not much fun, also it's cheaper to have 1 lorry between me and my mum, me pass my HGV then have several 4x4s and insurance going on etc....

I think you would copy very well with a big trailer, we have and like you said b&b or slum it or even pitch a tent! :)

Hope the new engine doesn't cost too much
 
One of my colleagues is thinking of ditching her lorry for exact the same reasons and just running a trailer (already has the 4x4) so I can see the logic (having been with her in the lorry).

I just loathe trailers for the over-turning risk but having had a quick google they look pretty sturdy compared to an Ifor.
 
Do you really want to be able to carry 3? I ask because I seriously considered a lorry but could not make it add up versus my LPG Jeep and Equitrek. The horses travel really well, it tows beautifully and contrary to HHO urban legend, I've not had any problem with the build quality. The nicest thing is that I can pick it up and put it down without it seizing or going flat. No contest in my opinion.
 
We have done the lorry thing and have gone back to a trailer. In the end it was the cost of maintaining the lorries that finished us of with them - every time they went to be plated there was always something that needed doing and always seemed to cost around 1k despite regular servicing etc etc. :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Between my sister and I we now have a lovely new trailer and we each have a car we can tow with. I have an old Trooper which is great and can easily tow trailer, two big horses and all the tack etc without breaking a sweat! It cost me £400 for a sevice, MOT and a few repairs this year instead of 1k!:)

Good luck with sorting your lorry out.:)
 
Yes, being able to carry 3 would be perfect tbh.
i've been told the stabilising bars make things much better with trailers, never used one though.
I do very low mileage in my car (work from home, often do higher annual mileage in lorry!) so am not worried about running costs of a big car. Even the high road tax of the Landcruiser would be a doddle compared to the cost of getting the horsebox through its plating every year, plus its own road tax, etc etc. i'll have a look at the Equitreks at Burghley, kit, thanks!
 
A brief further comment. Watching the 6-wheeled EquiTrek in front of me and the lorries in front of that on the slow crawl out of Blackwater Farm today I was appalled at the quality of the ride in the EquiTrek. It wriggled and jiggled and rocked and rolled in a way the lorries just didn't seem to. I was in a normal car at the time.
 
I have an EquiTrek....I've been (locked) in the back while shifting it around the yard (the joys of a younger brother with the keys!)....I found it very hard to discern if it was being pulled forwards or reversing due to the smooth ride. Mine has 4 wheels though, don't know if it makes a difference
 
I've been desperate for a lorry for years, and my husband (a mechanic) says it would cost loads more! We have a livery with an equitrek, and he has fixed bits and bobs on it for her, and says its not very well made, or half as strong as an Ifor - thats how they can get a bigger trailer (ie with living and tackrooms etc) to weigh the same as a smaller one..

We looked at 3 horse trailers at an agricultural show (ifor) but it wouldn't take 3 large horses - only 3 under 15h I think, which was no good for us. I'd be interested to hear of any others you have looked into..x
 
jemima_too said:
A brief further comment. Watching the 6-wheeled EquiTrek in front of me and the lorries in front of that on the slow crawl out of Blackwater Farm today I was appalled at the quality of the ride in the EquiTrek. It wriggled and jiggled and rocked and rolled in a way the lorries just didn't seem to. I was in a normal car at the time.
Click to expand...

Sorry but would have to disagree, we have the 3 axle one and it does not do that at all. The one you were following probably had either incorrect tyre pressures or a vehicle not up to pulling it.

We used to have an Ifor and although it was much lighter to tow it did snake a bit but our Equitrek does not do this.
 
Hi Kerelli,
I am sort of swithering about the same thing but I am going from an equitrek (which has been fab) to something that will carry three horses.Mentioned to my mechanic who is excellent and very experienced, that I was thinking of changing it for a 3 horse trailer (fautras or similar) and he was horrified. Told me if I did he would have nothing to do with servicing it for me - reason being he says that no matter the legalities of it - if you get into trouble with a fully laden three horse trailer, no 4x4 on the planet he says is going to brake properly or get you out of the s*** with that much weight behind it. Reckoned that they were very unsafe and that I would be nuts to go down that route. Quite put me off so he did.
Now back to square one in my thinking and thinking its going to have to be a lorry * sighs
 
Thanks Kerilli. Very interesting. We've decided to stick with the 510 anyway - son is rapidly growing out of his pony, so we hope to get him onto horses next year, and share two horses, which makes life much easier!

I remember seeing some American 3-horse trailers on display at Kelsall Hill BE a couple of years ago. They were heavier duty (and much stronger said husband-mechanic) and attached to a pick up truck with a hydraulic (Ithink) link. The attachment was in the middle of the pick up truck (one of those american trucks with two rows of seats that are really popular now..) and hubby said that it would be much more powerful, and stable that way - his mechanic head was quite impressed with it. I used to be on a livery yard that parked caravans too, and someone had a huge long cravan that attached in the same way. Sorry I can't remember the name - not much use really!!
 
ah, tantallon, that's interesting. must admit, i thought the Landcruiser Amazon could hold it, friend has one and uses it to tow his big JCB on a trailer everywhere... god knows what that weighs.
Honey08, i'm considering those too, i know they're hugely popular in the States and attach much more securely than with a tow ball. I'll keep looking. Thanks! I might even contact the Kelsall organisers and see if they have the details...
 
now ok...although the wheel fell off my equitrek last week-currently being looked into! I have to say I love my trailer and so does every horse, even a few bad travellers and loaders that have ridden in it.
I originally wanted an Obliq3 but went to look at them and they were so dark inside and quite claustrophobic that we went for the equitrek.
I am unsure of legalities and weights etc but have to say I much prefer the french 3 horse trailers- is it cheval liberte or bateson? very wide and much brighter in a strange way.
its a shame that although pick ups are becoming more popular as work and commercial vehicals that we dont have any gooseneck trailers nor mounts in this country.
 
Kerelli if you do get a contact for gooseneck trailers over here could you post it please as have also looked into those a little. Can't just import one though as most of them are wider apparently than is legal over here. This could be rubbish of course but have reliably been told that by a couple of folks. But I also think that they are a great idea.
 
Hmm . . . I come from the land of giant trailers ;) and I would be VERY leery of pulling a 3 horse tagalong (what we call a ball hitch in the New World). I wouldn't pull a 4, tbh. You do see tagalong stock trailers that long and I have seen slant load 3 horse ones but generally, you never see anything larger than a 2 as you lose a lot on stability and safety. Anything larger (and quite a lot of 2 horse ones as well) are 5th wheel or gooseneck, pulled with a pick up. I don't know what the towing regs would allow here but generally, if you're pulling 3+ you're also looking at at least a 3/4 ton truck as well. (Given shorter distances, fewer long gradients here, there might be a bit more leeway.) No idea how a Land Cruiser would compare as have only seen them pulling 2 but they might be rated for more.

All that said, as above, I think a lot of gooseneck/5th wheel trailers would simply be too big to be practical in the UK. There are some smaller ones to be had, to be sure, but obviously North American "standard" might not mean the same here!

(I miss my Dodge pick up and the extra high/wide gooseneck with tack room sooooooo much. :( )
 
Most gooseneck trailers are illegal in the UK (too wide/heavy).

There is a company that is having a 'bumper pull' trailer built on the same lines but UK legal (HUT I think they're called) but this is with luxury living and just 2 horses.
A friend had the 3 horse Equitrek (Multitrekka) and liked it a lot, but it does need a big Disco or Landcruiser to pull it and the fuel is pricey - plus she never had more than 2 horses in it.
There's a Fautras Oblic for sale on Tally Ho's website but it has had living built in the front and is 2 horse.
Sadly I'm inclined to agree that if you want to transport 3 or 4 horses a lorry is the only way forward.
We've just sold our lorry - a tough decision cos I loved it and now I'm panicking about fitting everything for this weekend's show into the equitrek and disco
But the running costs for even our lorry - which was really reliable - just didn't stack up for one or two horses.
 
This post is very intresting and I'm sorry if I am hijacking it but it looks like a good place to ask?

My mare hates my friends very nice bateman trailer and refuses to get in, infact I am sure that she just dislikes trailers full stop. I also think she doesn't like travelling forwards and that she feels claustophobic as we have no trouble getting her into a lorry?

My OH has suggested that I get a cheap lorry. What would you guys reccommend please?

Small 2 horse, cheap to buy and to run please.
I'm an ambitious happy hacker:D.
 
Last edited:
kerilli said:
Advice please, has anyone else done this?
I have a 3-horse 04 Eurocargo, my third, with lovely living etc etc. Unfortunately the engine has just blown up, in spite of just being serviced and plated, regular runs, me spending fortunes on the effing thing) and I have just HAD IT with it. I very rarely stay over in it anyway, and would be happy slumming it in a trailer (or finding a local b&b tbh, if it was freezing) anyway!
So, am very seriously contemplating selling it, selling my nice little car, and probably getting a Landcruiser and either a 3-horse or a 4-horse Fautras Oblic trailer (herringbone travel for horses etc etc.)
The thing is, that way i'll have tons of room for horses and kit, be legally able to carry 3 (unlike in horsebox), it should cost waay less per year, etc etc.
Got to shell out for new engine in ****ing horsebox first, obviously. Argh. Argh. Argh.
Comments, thoughts, anything, please?!
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear your engine gone bang :(

My friend has a Fautras Oblic 2 and a Mitsubishi L200 Animal and is JUST legal weight wise....(but thats with 2 chubby cobs :P ) Not sure on weight limit on a landcruiser, the only 4x4s I know can tow alot are Discoverys.
Good luck trailer and 4x4 hunting!
 
For engines a cheap option is www.findanengine.co.uk

I did this recently when my car engine (renault clio- so to be expected really) blew up - only 2 weeks out of warranty :o despite owning from new with proper renualt full servicing and maintenance etc. Couldnt be bothered with a fight with Renault so sourced the engine for £250.00 via above had it delivered to local and trusted garage on a pallet- they then fitted - I know it was for a car but it worked out at just under £900.00 including engine and labour to fit - it took them 3 days -which I was able to live with. Renault conicidently wanted to charge me closer to £5,000.00! For a car that has three main journeys - to the station, to the yard, to horse shops - I wasnt prepared to do it.

The bonus was the new engine only had 20,000 miles on it when it was fitted. :).

I dont know how easy it is to source Iveco engines but may be worth a try.
 
I'm afraid I wouldn't even contemplate towing a large 3 horse trailer.

I fully understand your reasons for downgrading but if you genuinely will be travelling 3 on a regular basis then I'd stick with a lorry.

My friend has a 2 x 17.2hh rear facing equitrek with living for sale (she is actually upgrading!) and can pass on details of that if interested.
 
thanks everyone, that's really helpful. I didn't realise the American/Canadian type trailers (floats? is that what they call them?) are so wide. Drats.
i'd usually only be carrying one or two, maybe 3 in exceptional circumstances... but no, obviously not a good idea. Drats.
Right, big 2 horse trailer with living and tons of space I guess. Or, a full 3 horse trailer but only ever put 2 horses in it? My 'stuff' won't weigh loads but will take up lots of space!
As far as I can see, the Landcruiser Amazon weighs about 2.5 tonnes unladen kerb weight, and has a towing capacity of 3.5 tonnes (they say...)

the Fautras trailers have their own braking system I believe, and special suspension...

I wish i'd never sold my last lorry, it was such a good runner and never let me down. this one is a chuffing nightmare, it's NOT old and has already cost me thousands this year, it had full diagnostics a couple of months ago and they couldn't find anything, and now this happens... argh.
 
Mrs_Wishkabibble said:
Sorry but would have to disagree, we have the 3 axle one and it does not do that at all. The one you were following probably had either incorrect tyre pressures or a vehicle not up to pulling it.

We used to have an Ifor and although it was much lighter to tow it did snake a bit but our Equitrek does not do this.
Click to expand...

Have you followed yours following lorries in order to observe the difference?

OneInAMillion said:
Plus the driveway at Blackwater Farm is fairly hideous!
Click to expand...

Precisely, and from my viewpoint the Equitrek looked really shaky and rolly whereas the lorries - 7.5 tonners - looked quite reasonable. I've mainly been up there in a lorry before and haven't noticed the track anything like as much as in a vehicle with small wheels.

Of course mainly one would be towing on smooth roads, unless you live in the Fens near me where the roads are often dreadful, but should you hit a bumpy patch the ride on the EquiTrek does not look good to me.

But each to their own, life would be so boring if everyone agreed:)
 
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