Tell me about lorries please

[jellybean09]

Hi all

I currently have a truck and trailer and I am debating about selling these and buying a lorry. I have looked at the 3.5T but to be honest they are out my budget and I have a 16.2hh with a youngster who I would start to bring out next summer and with both in I am sure I will be over weight.

I was looking at either upgrading my trailer (currently have a 505 with no partition) to a 510 or 511 or to take my HGV and purchase a 5 - 7T lorry.

Please can anyone tell me the cost involved & pros/cons in owning a lorry over a trailer? I know they will need plating but that's about it.

Thank you in advance

 

[Jnhuk]

Sure there are plenty of these threads on here if you search

In my experience, trailers are cheaper to maintain and keep on the road as well as holding their value well. Downside is that you need a suitable towing vehicle which some can be costly to service etc... so really depends on if you need this vehicle to be an every day car too or just a second vehicle as towing does put a lot of wear and tear on the vehicle.

Think we have spent approx £1500 per year for maintenance/issues since we had our 7.5 truck and that is with nothing major going wrong.
Lorries do better if also used often esp in winter and if have nice living, then they are more sociable and more suited to overnight shows if you do such things.

Basically, the right choice for you will depend on:
- your size/weight/number of horses that you wish to transport at one time
- if you need to stay over at shows
- need to get HGV etc...
- need for an everyday car than easy to park/fuel efficient or having a suitable towing vehicle

If I had just one horse and not doing overnight shows then I would be looking at a trailer and good 4x4 towing vehicle

 

[ROG]

Hi all

I currently have a truck and trailer and I am debating about selling these and buying a lorry. I have looked at the 3.5T but to be honest they are out my budget and I have a 16.2hh with a youngster who I would start to bring out next summer and with both in I am sure I will be over weight.

I was looking at either upgrading my trailer (currently have a 505 with no partition) to a 510 or 511 or to take my HGV and purchase a 5 - 7T lorry.

Please can anyone tell me the cost involved & pros/cons in owning a lorry over a trailer? I know they will need plating but that's about it.

Thank you in advance

Curious - do you have a B+E licence ?

For LGV training + test please see the HHO LGV CLINIC link in my signature below

 

[jellybean09]

My apologies, I do not know how to do a search on here? I'm much more of a lurcer than poster

I currently have a grand Cherokee which is my everyday car but I am finding it is costing a lot driving everywhere. I have my trailer test but I will need to take a form of hgv test if I got a lorry.

Do you have a restriction on weight (over as long as truck can safely tow) as you would with a lorry?

I am looking to get an idea of cost of running both but by the sounds of it it is cheaper to keep my truck and upgrade my trailer?!

Thanks for your replys

 

[turnbuckle]

As a broad rule, if your everyday car is up to pulling the right sort of trailer, it's usually cheaper to stay with that.

But....how many mpg does it do and how many miles a year do you do? If the Cherokee does (at a guess) 17mpg and you do 15,000 miles a year, that's about £4,400 in fuel. Switch to (say) a Ford Focus like mine which does a real world 40 mpg, that's £1870 or a saving of over £2500.

Insurance and tax will all drop on your everyday car, but you will have pay those for a lorry, allow about £500 for that. Add in another £1000 pa (generous) in running costs. And there's the one off cost of the test. You can get a C1 which only allows you to drives 7.5T, for around £1000 (someone please pick me up if I'm adrift on that) or for a little more go for a proper HGV C licence which allows you to drive BIG BEASTS!

So on balance you're unlikely to be saving by going lorry. On the other hand, lorries offer more flexibility and space, better comfort for you and there's a strong body of (anecdotal) opinion which says they're more comfortable and safer for horses. And they're fun!

Hope that helps as a start......