What should I do, Sell it or drop off all the Goodies??????

[GWAYGWAY]

I have had a bypass operation which will require a lot of requirements to get a medical for my C1E. I have seen others having to run through hoops to get their medical and then taking months more to get a decision and get back on the road. this has left me with a quandary and a few options.
1. Sell my Hymer, MLI 580 as is, and lose so much money.
2. Reduce the weight down from 4200kgs where I raise it to carry a motorbike and anything else my heart wanted without worry, Was 3860kgs when I bought it.this would require a pile of things to be dropped off it to comply with the lower weight. I weighed it with a load of stuff off it and no water and little fuel , just me and it was 3300kg.which is not a good margin.

The things that would need to go are the ones that make it usable as below.
One gas bottle.
One battery.
Remove the tow bar. 69 kg
Remove the awning. 32kg
Remove the spare wheel.22 kg
Leave out the tools and spares.12 kgs
Remove the drop down bed.????? 75kg??
Remove the side seats and cupboard 20 kgs
Change the main table.12kgs
Forget about ever carrying more than 20litres of water. save 80 kgs
Travel with half a tank of fuel. 60 kg.
Leave most the food behind. 20kg.
Leave the EHU cable. 10kg
TV and satelite dish10kg.
Leave wife behind. 75 Kgs plus a hoard of clothes???????

It was listed by Hymers as being a 3500kg model but the things on it make the weight too close to be able to carry anything. Automatic gearbox , left side door, cooker,
and everything that they could fit in as an extra.
I do not know the best place to sell it now as the bottom has fallen out of the market and no dealer will look at it even though it is a Mercedes Automatic, and as such still desirable to most with taste.

Any ideas for me to do? Drop the weight for a weigh-bridge ticket then carry on as before.
I have a feeling if it goes then DVLA would promptly up the licence weights that no longer require a medical.

 

[trevskoda]

Not sure but one think i must say is not legal to carry a m bike in a camper, out back or trailer ok.

 

[GWAYGWAY]

Not sure but one think i must say is not legal to carry a m bike in a camper, out back or trailer ok.

I sold the bike, and the garage doors were always closed anyway. they would need a search warrant to open it.

 

[trevskoda]

I sold the bike, and the garage doors were always closed anyway. they would need a search warrant to open it.

Nop customs and excise can go anywhere any time, they normley have cops with them, you can reg it as a showmans van and then it becomes legal,
All a lot of tosh if you ask me.

 

[Fazerloz]

Getting that down to a workable 3.5 is a no go you will hate it. All you will say is if, if, if.every time you use it.

 

[Wully]

Can a 3.5 ton motorhome tow a wee trailer up to a certain wait or is the 3.5 ton the total wait with a trailer ?

 

[trevskoda]

Can a 3.5 ton motorhome tow a wee trailer up to a certain wait or is the 3.5 ton the total wait with a trailer ?

Up to 750 with no brakes, just under half the weight if braked, you will have to look into this if going over 750kg.
I can pull 2 tons with mine if brakes fitted & have done so, car on trailer.

 

[exwindsurfer]

Can a 3.5 ton motorhome tow a wee trailer up to a certain wait or is the 3.5 ton the total wait with a trailer ?

you can still tow a trailer Wully

 

[guerdeval]

Can a 3.5 ton motorhome tow a wee trailer up to a certain wait or is the 3.5 ton the total wait with a trailer ?

It can tow a trailer ‘up to’ the gross train weight printed on the vehicle plate

 

[r4dent]

It can tow a trailer ‘up to’ the gross train weight printed on the vehicle plate

Just to clarify. for those who don't know...
a) the Gross Train Weight is the max weight of the loaded MoHo plus the loaded trailer
b) the max weight of an unbraked trailer is 750kg including load,

i.e with a loaded MoHo of 4000 kg and a MGT of 5000kg you can tow
a braked trailer upto 1000 kg including load (4000 MoHo +1000 trailer = 5000 GTW)
or an unbraked trailer upto 750 Kg including load..

 

[wildebus]

I have had a bypass operation which will require a lot of requirements to get a medical for my C1E. I have seen others having to run through hoops to get their medical and then taking months more to get a decision and get back on the road. this has left me with a quandary and a few options.
1. Sell my Hymer, MLI 580 as is, and lose so much money.
2. Reduce the weight down from 4200kgs where I raise it to carry a motorbike and anything else my heart wanted without worry, Was 3860kgs when I bought it.this would require a pile of things to be dropped off it to comply with the lower weight. I weighed it with a load of stuff off it and no water and little fuel , just me and it was 3300kg.which is not a good margin.

The things that would need to go are the ones that make it usable as below.
One gas bottle.

One battery.

What batteries have you got? If you have lead Acid, you could remove both and fit a single Lithium - that will save you the weight of around 1.5 worth of batteries.

Remove the tow bar. 69 kg

Will you ever tow or use a towbat mounted carrier?

Remove the awning. 32kg

Some people apparently never use the awning. Do you? if not, lose it

Remove the spare wheel.22 kg

Lots of folk don't even have a spare wheel (I don't)

Leave out the tools and spares.12 kgs
Remove the drop down bed.????? 75kg??

Is the drop down bed ever used? removing it would really hurt resale and likely be hard to store for the new owner.

Remove the side seats and cupboard 20 kgs

Getting silly now?!

Change the main table.12kg

Use the table?

Forget about ever carrying more than 20litres of water. save 80 kgs

Lots of folk do that. Many Motorhomes have a 20L travel valve

Travel with half a tank of fuel. 60 kg.

fuel weight drops on every mile. staying max of 60kg is still filling to around 3/4?

Leave most the food behind. 20kg.
Leave the EHU cable. 10kg

if you never plan on plugging in, why not.

TV and satelite dish10kg.
Leave wife behind. 75 Kgs plus a hoard of clothes???????

It was listed by Hymers as being a 3500kg model but the things on it make the weight too close to be able to carry anything. Automatic gearbox , left side door, cooker,
and everything that they could fit in as an extra.
I do not know the best place to sell it now as the bottom has fallen out of the market and no dealer will look at it even though it is a Mercedes Automatic, and as such still desirable to most with taste.

Any ideas for me to do? Drop the weight for a weigh-bridge ticket then carry on as before.
I have a feeling if it goes then DVLA would promptly up the licence weights that no longer require a medical.

I reckon you have around 200Kg of weight you could shed there with minimal disruption. Throw in the wife and clothes and maybe got an extra 100Kg payload overall?

 

[Robmac]

Not sure but one think i must say is not legal to carry a m bike in a camper, out back or trailer ok.

Trev we've been through this so many times before, I even have a letter from the DVSA saying the following;

Dear Robert

Thank you for your email enquiry dated 21 August 2023, concerning motorhome laws.

DVSA are only able to assist from an MOT perspective and this would not be something identified as part of the MOT.

You could address your enquiry to the Department for Transport.

And then from the DFT;

Carriage of motorcycles in campervans

Thank you for your e-mail to the International Vehicle Standards division of the Department for Transport about the carriage of motorcycles in a garage area integrated into a motor caravan.We do not believe that there are any regulations which specifically prohibit the carrying of motorcycles in the integrated garage area of a motor caravan however, there are certain regulations which may be relevant and with which you should be familiar and comply. Regulation 100 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations1986 (as amended)(1) requires that the load carried by a motor vehicle shall be secured, if necessary by physical restraint other than its own weight, and be in such a position that presents no danger. If you intend to carry small amounts of fuel for use with the motorcycle, you should also be aware of the provisions of the Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations 2009 (as amended)

So it is perfectly legal to store a motorcycle in the garage of a motorhome and anybody wishing to carry a copy of the email from the DVSA or DFT with them please PM me and I can send it on.

 

[Beldea]

Sorry to hear about your bypass op, I hope you’re making a good recovery.
Maybe you should concentrate on regaining your fitness so you can pass the C1 requirement test? Could your wife drive the MH?

 

[trevskoda]

Trev we've been through this so many times before, I even have a letter from the DVSA saying the following;

Dear Robert

Thank you for your email enquiry dated 21 August 2023, concerning motorhome laws.

DVSA are only able to assist from an MOT perspective and this would not be something identified as part of the MOT.

You could address your enquiry to the Department for Transport.

And then from the DFT;

Carriage of motorcycles in campervans

Thank you for your e-mail to the International Vehicle Standards division of the Department for Transport about the carriage of motorcycles in a garage area integrated into a motor caravan.We do not believe that there are any regulations which specifically prohibit the carrying of motorcycles in the integrated garage area of a motor caravan however, there are certain regulations which may be relevant and with which you should be familiar and comply. Regulation 100 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations1986 (as amended)(1) requires that the load carried by a motor vehicle shall be secured, if necessary by physical restraint other than its own weight, and be in such a position that presents no danger. If you intend to carry small amounts of fuel for use with the motorcycle, you should also be aware of the provisions of the Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations 2009 (as amended)

So it is perfectly legal to store a motorcycle in the garage of a motorhome and anybody wishing to carry a copy of the email from the DVSA or DFT with them please PM me and I can send it on.

Cheers rob i have nailed it just incase for me though im not going to carry one.
What gets me there was a case about it and well docked a few years back, maybe dropped now, hope so as silly.

 

[Wully]

The reason I was asking about weight. I’ve got a couple of commercial for work they are MOTd as class 7 and I know the towing rules and weights for them. Motorhomes are MOTd at class 4 same as a car so basically the rules of a passenger vehicle like a car was just wondering if the car rules are different to commercial rules. My work pickup has a ton payload in the back but I can also tow a trailer at 2 ton.

 

[trevskoda]

Police here dont seem to bother much these days unless a accedent has happened or it looks well overloaded, dont see any many traffic cops these days.

 

[Nabsim]

Can a 3.5 ton motorhome tow a wee trailer up to a certain wait or is the 3.5 ton the total wait with a trailer ?

After dropping my Merc to 3.5 I have little payload but as it’s only me and two small dogs I am ok. If Caz ever comes she likes the car anyway so only sleeps in it.

My gross train weight when plated at 3.8t and 4t was 5800kgs, after dropping to 3.5t my gross train weight is 5500kgs so could still tow a 2 tonne trailer

 

[wildebus]

Can a 3.5 ton motorhome tow a wee trailer up to a certain wait or is the 3.5 ton the total wait with a trailer ?

I know this answer is outside of what you are mainly asking and also is a bit obvious, but it so depends on the motorhome.
There are some chassis that have ZERO tow ratings (The Bailey Adamo is a key example, although they may have fixed that on the newer ones?).
The ALKO chassis Motorhomers are usually very limited in their tow ratings. I did an setup for someone in their tag-axle Burstner and they only have 1tonne towing limit. They are actually selling it and getting an Iveco based Motorhome to give them a higher tow limit so it can be used to tow a large trailer.
And the same apparent motorhomes have different limits depending on the age. My MH was registered in 2008 and when I got it weight-uprated, I was given a Tow limit of 1000Kg, which seemed too low to me. Checked the brochure for a 2008 model Autotrail Cheyenne and that was the limit. However, my MH was actually BUILT in 2007 and the 2007 Autotrail Cheyenne has a 2000Kg tow rating. Checked the VIN with Autotrail and they confirmed my rating is 2000Kg, so got the updated limits corrected. FIAT must have made some change between 2007 and 2008 to their chassis as there is no Autotrail VIN in the Motorhome, just the original FIAT one.

VIN Plate should always reveal the correct limits.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

In addition if you can tow 2000kg, it must be a four-wheeled braked on all four wheels trailer & the 2000kg includes the weight of the trailer.

 

[mark61]

Lets take for example a van with a GVW 3500KG and a GTW of 5500KG, can you tow a trailer weighting 2500KG, if the van weighs 3000KG at the time?