Towing experts and an Audi A3

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Carrots&Mints

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Hello towing experts!! Ive just bought an Audi A3 2.0L disel, now I was wondering what you can tow with it.

I didnt buy the car to tow, but then thought being such a decent car.. could it tow?! lol


Thanks :)
 
I towed with an A4 estate a few times and I would say don't do it!

I'm not sure about the legal towing capacity of it although I doubt it's able to legally tow a trailer and horse - someone will probably advise about that.

The A4 just wasn't man enough, I used it twice when I needed to get my horse somewhere and the 4x4 was off the road, it was ok on the flat but really struggled uphill and the brakes were no good on any slight downhill.

The second ( and last ) time I used our Audi I had to stop on an uphill because a wagon came down too fast & I just couldn't get going again. I had to unload my horse & get the wagon driver to hold her, drive up the hill and then lead her up and load up again.

I really don't know much about the A3 but based on my experience with the A4 I'd really advise against it even if it's legal, it's just not enough car for the job and potentially dangerous.
 
ROG would be best placed to confirm regarding weights etc is it a new car? I 'think' the new models have a towing capacity of 1.6 tonnes so it can tow although you'd be limited to one horse and it also depends on your licence.

To be honest I wouldn't tow with it, I think they are too small

Completely unrelated but last week I saw a Corsa towing a rather large caravan on the motorway, very scary!
 
I tow a single trailer with an Audi a3 and its perfectly safe and legal. ROG has been out to give me a lesson and the set up works great. If you look into the power and towing capacity of the car it's actually more powerful than things such as the qashqai etc which people would assume would tow better. It's all to do with people's perception but in reality it's fine. I have never struggled on hills or muddy ground and have managed to get out fine when the lorries, horse boxes and big heavy trailers have been towed out!
 
KarlyHT said:
I tow a single trailer with an Audi a3 and its perfectly safe and legal. ROG has been out to give me a lesson and the set up works great. If you look into the power and towing capacity of the car it's actually more powerful than things such as the qashqai etc which people would assume would tow better. It's all to do with people's perception but in reality it's fine. I have never struggled on hills or muddy ground and have managed to get out fine when the lorries, horse boxes and big heavy trailers have been towed out!
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What model do you have? :)
 
We have an Audi A3 and I personally wouldn't tow with it. I believe ours has a max kerb towing capacity of 1500kg. My horse weighs 640, so the trailer would need to be less than 800kg in order to be legal. From the weight of my horse he's quite a big boy, so for us to use something substantial and braked, we'd be looking at more like 1000kg of trailer for a typical Ifor.

Also I believe that ideally you should not exceed more than 85% of your max towing weight, so on the basis that my car can two 1500, 85% (if my maths is correct) would be about 1275, so on that basis I'd need a trailer that weighed around 600kg.

So really it's all dependent on the weight of your horse, and the weight of your trailer, whether the trailer is braked or not, and whether you are prepared to take the risk of going down a hill and not being able to stop as your brakes aren't up to the job, or if you got a wobble on, having the power and the weight to avoid flipping your trailer and car!

I am not sure if it's VOSA, but there is a legal body that can pull you over and inspect you if they feel you are over laden. If you aren't sure of your kerb towing capacity, check on Parkers guide for your car, or there are many websites which explain everything in detail.
 
Carrots&Mints said:
It says max towing weight (braked) 1700kg
max towing weight (unbraked) 700kg
minimum kerb weight 1380kg :)
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B+E licence
You can tow an actual weight of 1700 which is the empty trailer plus its load providing the trailer plated MAM is 1700 or higher

B licence
Add Vehicle GVW to the trailer plated MAM and if that is not more than 3500 when totalled then its legal
 
mmel001 said:
Also I believe that ideally you should not exceed more than 85% of your max towing weight, so on the basis that my car can two 1500, 85% (if my maths is correct) would be about 1275, so on that basis I'd need a trailer that weighed around 600kg.
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KarlyHT said:
Every model is different - my towing capacity is 1700 so am well within the 85%. Do your research OP and get Rog to check your set up! ;)
Click to expand...

85% advice is for caravans only
 
Hi ROG tried to send you a PM but didnt work lol,

What I was going to ask was that my car weighs less just less than 2000kg, so technically speaking if I could get a trailer that weighs 1000kg and my load being 500kg therefore 1500kg i wouldnt need to get my b+e license?

cheers :)
 
Carrots&Mints said:
Oh thankyou ROG :) Will need to get my licence but at least I know I can tow if the worst comes to the worst :)

Thankyou for your help :D
Click to expand...
Do you have a B but no B+E licence?

Which model is it from this list - http://carleasingmadesimple.com/business-car-leasing/audi/a3/towing-weight-limit/

Lets say your model has a GVW of 1960 and a towing capacity of 1700

On a B licence you could tow one horse in a lightweight trailer but the trailer might need down plating by contacting manufacturer

with a 1960 GVW you can have a trailer plated at 1500 and weighing say 800 empty which then leaves 700 for the horse/load
 
Carrots&Mints said:
Hi ROG tried to send you a PM but didnt work lol,

What I was going to ask was that my car weighs less just less than 2000kg, so technically speaking if I could get a trailer that weighs 1000kg and my load being 500kg therefore 1500kg i wouldnt need to get my b+e license?

cheers :)
Click to expand...
Lienencing goes on potenetial legal weights not actual weight so you need the vehicle GVW and the trailer plated MAM as well as the towing capacity for the vehicle

GVW + MAM must not be more than 3500 and the towing capacity needs to be able to caope with the actual weight being towed
 
ROG said:
Do you have a B but no B+E licence?

Which model is it from this list - http://carleasingmadesimple.com/business-car-leasing/audi/a3/towing-weight-limit/

Lets say your model has a GVW of 1960 and a towing capacity of 1700

On a B licence you could tow one horse in a lightweight trailer but the trailer might need down plating by contacting manufacturer

with a 1960 GVW you can have a trailer plated at 1500 and weighing say 800 empty which then leaves 700 for the horse/load
Click to expand...

I think its this one http://carleasingmadesimple.com/business-car-leasing/audi/a3-diesel-saloon/61780/technical-data/
 
ROG said:
Gross vehicle weight 1865 kg
Max towing capacity 1800 kg
Max trailer plated MAM = 1635 for B licence towing

Trailer example - Ifor williams HB401/403
MAM 1600 without the need for doown plating
Unladen 770
Max load for trailer = 830

Legal for B licence towing
Click to expand...

Woo thankyou so much ROG!! :D
 
ROG said:
GVW 1940
Towing 1700
Max trailer plated MAM for B licence towing = 1560

If using same HB trailer as in last post then it would need down plating to a max of 1560
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Oh thats great :) At least I know if the worst came to the worst I would be able to tow :) Thanks allot :)
 
Using a vehicle which is not a 4x4 means you have to plan carefully where you are actually going to use it and will probably be limited to hard surfaces
 
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