Towing

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Codyarthur

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Hi all,
My car has a towing capacity of 1900kg. My question is could it tow a hb506 which I know could be loaded to over 2000kg? I have one small point and would still be no where near 1900kg with a 506 and a pony on board but is it legal to tow that sort of trailer with a car that has a towing capacity of 1900kg? I hope this makes sense and any advice is welcomed!!
 
Codyarthur said:
Hi all,
My car has a towing capacity of 1900kg. My question is could it tow a hb506 which I know could be loaded to over 2000kg? I have one small point and would still be no where near 1900kg with a 506 and a pony on board but is it legal to tow that sort of trailer with a car that has a towing capacity of 1900kg? I hope this makes sense and any advice is welcomed!!
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As long as your total weight is under 1900kg then you can tow it legally.

HB506 is just under 1000kg if I remember correctly. A pony would usually be under 500kg. Therefore you would come under the maximum tow weight.

Personally I prefer not to tow at the maximum and allow myself some leeway.
 
NR88 said:
As long as your total weight is under 1900kg then you can tow it legally.

HB506 is just under 1000kg if I remember correctly. A pony would usually be under 500kg. Therefore you would come under the maximum tow weight.

Personally I prefer not to tow at the maximum and allow myself some leeway.
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Thank you for replying I’ve asked a few other places and people have said the same so I feel like I’ll be ok to get a double 😊
 
Don't forget to add in all extras, water, tack etc although you may be legally in the weight limit it's also about braking safely. Personally I would only tow with a decent 4x4 3.5 ton weight limit.
 
Boring I know, but load everything you would normally take into trailer and vehicle, Google nearest legitimate weighbridge go along and get officially weighed…..then you will know if A you are legal and B if you are safe…..
 
Sorry to jump on the thread but I’m after similar advice! I can tow 1800 but I’m looking at an hbx506 which is 865kg and my horse is 500kg. We only will be towing locally so won’t ever be taking lots of water, just minimal tack and only ever one horse. I think I should be ok but just wanted to get people’s views. We also live in Suffolk which is fairly flat generally. Any advice appreciated please
 
Jjv1990 said:
Sorry to jump on the thread but I’m after similar advice! I can tow 1800 but I’m looking at an hbx506 which is 865kg and my horse is 500kg. We only will be towing locally so won’t ever be taking lots of water, just minimal tack and only ever one horse. I think I should be ok but just wanted to get people’s views. We also live in Suffolk which is fairly flat generally. Any advice appreciated please
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Yes, you can legally tow up to 1800kg. Your trailer and horse combined are under that. Tack etc would be in the car I'd imagine so not a concern.
 
The car manufacturers know much more than we do, and whatever is in the handbook is what the car is designed to tow.

I disagree with the 3.5 tonne thing - my current car is a Q7 with a 3.5t capacity, I previously had a Q5 with a 2.4t and they tow exactly the same. The load hasn’t changed I have the same trailer and tow the same horse. In fact the Q5 drove nicer and towed better than the two Jeep Grand Cherokees I had- both 3.5t

Braking is not the issue - trailers are braked loads and have their own brakes. A car couldn’t stop 2.5t of horse and trailer by itself. It’s the damage you would do to your chassis, gearbox and everything else.

Agree completely on the pulling part- my Q5 had a lower towing limit of 2.2t at gradients above a certain %

Do not go over the cars capacity - a pony and Ifor is within the limit. Haynets don’t weigh much and you can put your tack in your boot if worried there- but the horse carries the tack so it’s not that heavy!
 
For all of those giving advice on tack/extras etc.
Please be aware your TOTAL weight includes you, engine lubricants fuel etc.
The chances are put on a weighbridge most of you would be over weight.

Weights are a bit like speeds limits they are there as a very maximum/guidence not a target.

The only way to ever know is get the set up fully loaded and weighed.
 
jhoward said:
For all of those giving advice on tack/extras etc.
Please be aware your TOTAL weight includes you, engine lubricants fuel etc.
The chances are put on a weighbridge most of you would be over weight.
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No it does not. It is the max braked towing limit that matters when assessing towing capacity.

Please check your "advice" before accusing others of spreading misinformation
 
NR88 said:
No it does not. It is the max braked towing limit that matters when assessing towing capacity.

Please check your "advice" before accusing others of spreading misinformation
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I think your find the gross train weight is in fact the total weight of everything

There are several weights to be considered from kerb weight to mam etc.

All of these need to be considered and for those thinking they are 100 or so kg under chances are they don't know/havnt considered other things and are intact over weight.

Which is exactly why I said the only way to truly know is get on a weighbridge.
Even if as a starting point it's car/trailer without horse.
 
If the towing capacity of my car is 3.5tonne, then my trailer loaded with everything, horses included cannot be more than 3.5 tonne.

My car weight and loading capacity is separate and a lot more difficult to go over, not many people are transporting horses with bags/blocks of cement in the car. But yes, it is technically possible.
 
jhoward said:
For all of those giving advice on tack/extras etc.
Please be aware your TOTAL weight includes you, engine lubricants fuel etc.
The chances are put on a weighbridge most of you would be over weight.

Weights are a bit like speeds limits they are there as a very maximum/guidence not a target.

The only way to ever know is get the set up fully loaded and weighed.
Click to expand...
The car and trailer are separate. Every car has its own gross vehicle weight. so what is in the car is separate. My car is 1.8t unladen, with a MAM of 2.4t. That’s a lot of passengers, load, fuel and tack

Likewise, the trailer was its own GVW. From memory my Ifor 511 is about 2.7 or something like that and 1t unladen.

To further complicate, there is a legal train weight which is the two connected together. This used to apply before they took the trailer test away that the GVW of both together meant you couldn’t two basically a horse and trailer unless you took the test to tow as it goes on Gross allowance mass

This is for car and trailer, lorries are a bit more simple
 
Just to add on- worth checking horsepower of the car too (bhp) all fine saying it can tow 1800/2000kg but it has low horsepower or torque.

Cars which have those towing capacities are definitely worth checking everything as they're on the lower end of towing capacity for a horse trailer (in my personal opinion) and probably not specifically built with towing in mind as it's main purpose. That's not to say they don't do it absolutely fine though. I have a pony and tow a single ifor with a BMW with capacity of 2000kg but it has a beefy amount of bhp and a pretty good engine. My last car was the same BMW but the older model and it towed over the Highlands of Scotland. I know someone who tows a big horse with a Dacia Duster and it gives me the absolute fear, not to mention I think its probably overweight but that's another matter. Anyway worthwhile checking BHP and torque too.
 
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