towing with a humble saloon car - does any one else do it?

I tow my 16.3 horse in a double Cheval Liberte with a BMW 540 which has a maximum of 2000kg. My loaded weight is around 1550kg so we are well inside. That includes people, hay, water tack etc. I never take a second horse.

I have unfortunately had to do an emergency stop with horse loaded. I had no problem tbh. No I wasn't going very fast, but I did have to stop whilst going round a corner in the rain. Up and down steep hills is no problem. I would obviously only take it on to flat grass on a dry day otherwise I might not get out. I make allowances for the fact that it's not a 4WD.

Fortunately most places I go have car parks so it's not a problem.

Horsey travels well and I specifically chose the Cheval Liberte as it was so lightweight. I actually had two ponies when I bought it, but I am lucky neddy just fits. If she grows anymore I'll have to re evaluate. A few people who have borrowed my trailer absolutely rave about what a good ride it gives. People seem a little biased against them but I am thrilled with mine.

Obviously mine is a pretty weighty, beefy car. I don't think I would want to tow with a saloon. At the same time I don't think a 4WD is always neccesary. Depends on your circumstances really.
 
Thats the thing Persephone....as you say you have a beefy/weighty car and a very lightweight trailer.

I'm more thinking of the combinations that really push it to the limit with about an ounce to spare ( oops, showing my age there - should have been gramme
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Yeah, I think the difference is we went out knowing what we needed and wanted and bought everything to suit.

I think the worst thing is when people buy an old, cheap and heavy trailer and try to make do with the family car.
 
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It is entirely up to you. The likelihood is your trailer and horse will end up pushing you and your car down a hill, but if you think it's worth the risk...

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Really? Would that happen with a trailer with its own brakes? I towed an unbraked trailer once with my 2l Volvo and it was an utter nightmare. I was only moving some furniture but I will never do that again!
 
we have a very heavyweight car and lightest weighing trailer and we had to do a last minute break when a lawn mower fell off the back of a lorry infront of us and the car and trailer coped perfectly, and it was very smooth with no rolling/skidding.
I appreciate that it would be a really bad idea if the person towing was inexperienced etc and we did a lot of research before purchasing and spoke to many people and if we felt it was unsafe in any way we wouldn't do it
 
I would never tow a trailer with a horse in it with a car as it is far to dangerous.

You have got a living load that moves and if anything goes wrong such as a burst tyre or you have to suddenly brake or swerve then you will have a serious problem as your car is just not designed to pull this type of load.

Your horses are far too valuable.
 
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for those with cars take a look on here
http://www.towinghorsetrailers.co.uk/index.htm
and go to the section towing vehicles.Put your tow vehicle into the top bit your trailer into the bottom part and the weight of your horse/horses and you will find out if you are exceeding the law or not. That site covers most makes of car and trailer

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Hi

thank you for this.

I did this and my car can comfortably tow the type of trailer I am after. Just discovered that Batesons factory is 10 mins drive from my new office. So I am off shortly for a tootle round to see their light weight trailer (derby?).
 
I read somewhere that VOSA do checks and your vehicle should be capable of towing the gross weight of the trailer (by that I mean the maximum weight it is allowed to be...not what it actually is...a 510 is 2700KG gross). I've read it a couple of times in different places. Didn't believe it to be honest as I always thought so long as you were pulling under the max tow weight of vehicle it was legal but willing to be corrected!
One thing I will say about using a lighter vehicle is it does put a heck of a lot of wear and tear on the car. It is not good for the clutch or the brakes. The gearing on a 4X4 and a goods van (which is what I use...a big Sprinter) is different and better suited to pulling weight. You also have to consider how much influence the trailer will have over a smaller vehicle.
You could argue that pulling 2 big Horses with a 'big' vehicle is the same as a lighter weight with a 'small' vehicle but your bigger ones are designed more for the job. It is of course a lot to do with how you drive as well. Providing you drive carefully and keep it under the max tow weight it's fine.....just so long as you are prepared to accept that it will mean quite a bit of wear on the car. I also would not tow on a motorway or down a steep hill (lorries overtaking is one of the most common ways of causing snaking). The 85% thing is a caravan recommendation which they increase to 100% if you are experienced. A lot of people towing 2 big Horses are pulling something heavier than their vehicle but within its max tow weight.
I think caravans flip more easily as most are single axle whereas Horse trailers are twin axle. I may be wrong there though!
 
I tow an IW505 with a saloon car and I tow legally. How? I have had the trailer downrated to 1800kg by my local dealer (cost about £18 and involved sticking a plate on it). I totally disgree that you need a 4 x 4 to tow safely. I tow with either a Mercedes E class or S class saloon. The E class has a 2.2 litre engine and its kerb weight is 1750kg and it is rated to tow 1900kg. The S class's kerb weight is 1950kg and it is rated to tow 2100kg and it has a 3.2 litre diesel engine. I only ever carry one horse, my 16.1 mare, as she needs to stand slightly diagonally to fit in, without the partition.

I am going to buy a 3.5 tonne lorry, but thats only because I am going to fit some very basic overnight accom and I do hundreds of miles each week competing BSJA. Both my cars are diesel and tow this weight extremely easily, ie they can accelerate uphill joining a dual carriageway to 60mph. The S class is sheer luxury for towing and also means I have the comfort of arriving at shows in my S class instead of a bumpy old 4 x 4. However the E class does the job well too and has not needed a new clutch or anything really and I've been using it for towing on and off for 5 years. Its now done 216,000 miles so I don't think it can be putting that much wear and tear on it.

I did have a rather nice Jeep Grand Cherokee 2.7 CRD, which is less powerful than my E class, however I didn't really like it. I found it overpowered for towing and almost jerky as a result, whereas the E class in particular gives a smoother ride. And last year when my 4 x 4, which I've now sold, was stolen just before Blair Horse Trials, I towed there with my E class and no-one said anything negative about it. In fact, I must have been about the only person who was able to drive out of that place, out of all the mud, without their vehicle being towed, although my trailer was towed out seperately.

Not that long ago, people towed all the time with saloon cars and I remember the Volvo Estate was the most desireable vehicle. I don't agree that it has suddenly become dangerous.

Might I suggest, if you do not get a very lightweight trailer, get one downrated, travel only one horse and choose an old BMW or Mercedes as your family car. You can get an older S class for about £500 (yes I have an older one as well!), with few electrics to go wrong. But yes, I am sure a Saab would do the job too.
 
thank you guys for your further comments, I do appreciate the comments re wear and tear had a peugot 405 blow up on me and had to hitch hike the remaining 20 miles to endurance ride with pony!

My theory such as it is that as my towing will be 1 to 2 per month that I can balance that cost against better day to day fuel consumption of my car. i have towed a lot in the past and confident with that side.


As stated earlier I tow one 14.2 Hh welsh cob weighing 450 k, he travels alone as he hates partions. the light weight trailers I have looked at are plated to 1600 same as my car and alas alak my licence well predates any need for an additional test to tow....


headless horsewomen i too remember the era of the volco 740, they now are much the same to buy as a 4x4 and about as fuel efficient! Good luck with the box it would be lovely to sleep away rides in something other than a tent!
 
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for those with cars take a look on here
http://www.towinghorsetrailers.co.uk/index.htm
and go to the section towing vehicles.Put your tow vehicle into the top bit your trailer into the bottom part and the weight of your horse/horses and you will find out if you are exceeding the law or not. That site covers most makes of car and trailer

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What a load of rubbish - I entered daihatsu and my pony and trailer weights - it suggested i tow with a
>

>
> A TERIOS!!!!!!! HIGHLY ILLEGAL!!!!!!LMFAO!!!
 
Oh, I forgot to say - when towing one horse in an IW505 I got around 19mpg when towing with a diesel Jeep Grand Cherokee, which I believe is pretty standard for a 4 x 4. I've heard around 30mpg or more is standard for a 3.5 tonne box. And with the E class I get about 24 mpg, with the S class about 28!

Also, I should point out there are some saloon cars out there with some 4 x 4 capabilities. The Audi Allroad for example (though I saw one stuck last year at Blair when my E class got out) and depending on the age of the S class, some of them have limited slip differential or ASD, which helps prevent the wheels slipping when the going is treacherous. Tyres also make a big difference.

Gosh, I sound really obssessed by cars now, don't I lol?!
 
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for those with cars take a look on here
http://www.towinghorsetrailers.co.uk/index.htm
and go to the section towing vehicles.Put your tow vehicle into the top bit your trailer into the bottom part and the weight of your horse/horses and you will find out if you are exceeding the law or not. That site covers most makes of car and trailer

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What a load of rubbish - I entered daihatsu and my pony and trailer weights - it suggested i tow with a
>

>
> A TERIOS!!!!!!! HIGHLY ILLEGAL!!!!!!LMFAO!!!

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I just typed in daihatsu and for some reason it only brought up the terios but it usually brings up more models than that.I think the site isn't working properly by the looks of it which is probably why it didn't give you the correct answer.I think you need to put in either the trailer and combined weight of the load you are carrying and it will suggest vehicles legally capable of towing the weight or the type of vehicle you are considering and it will give you the legal towing weight of the vehicle. It worked correctly for my tow vehicle which is a ford maverick and is capable of towing 2.7 tonnes when I checked on there.
 
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