16 replies to this topic

[clubbie nl]

Hi there..

Some off you might remeber this from the 2005 imm in Salou Spain wich we visited with this..
I was wondering if this is allowed in the uk..?

http://i188.photobuc...sselopmini2.jpg

http://i188.photobuc...sselopmini3.jpg

http://i188.photobuc...sselopmini4.jpg

http://i188.photobuc...terbusklein.jpg

I'm planning on towing my mini towards the 2009 imm in this way..
This is allowed in Holland where i'm from,but was wondering if this is also allowed in the UK????
It's pretty much a strange site on the moterway's so everybody is looking at you <police includ> and i don't want any kind off attention from those guys..

We drove it in 2005 from Amsterdam,Holland towards Salou,Spain in less than 13 hours..doing a 100km/h everage speed..<140km/h is also no problem..>
Qiute some attention along the way, but no police..
Only in France at the peage <tol> house..the woman at the counter called the police cause she thought the Mini didn't payed for the moterway and that he sticked like glue behind the Peugeot..
So 40 km after the peage the police stoped us..but we did payed for a car with trailer..so no worry's..
The France police guy looked and looked and looked and then.... he had to take a picture on his mobile phone with a big smile on his face..
And in Salou people came up to me and told me i was crazy doing 140 km/h in a mini Van <drumbrakes at front> only 1 meter behind that Dutch Peugeot van..<drove them by late at night near Bordeaux,France with 140 km/h....>

So the question remains..IS THIS ALLOWED IN THE UK???
I've spent some hours searching,including dvla site ,but didn't find the answer..

In Holland and the rest of Europe we already did about 4000 km with towing mini's..no problem's so far

big thnx already..

[THE STIG]

well they tow cars behind motorhomes here with a frames like yours , but think has to be under 750kg is a bit of a grey area

heres what they say on ebay guide to a frames etc http://reviews.ebay....000000009148711

There is alot of legal jargon behind the use of a tow dolly and A frame for the towing of cars

If you thinking of buying one of these then you may want to think again after reading this guide

The use of tow dollys and A frames are only intended for the recovery of broken down vehicles

The vehicle you are recovering must be road legal ,ie have an mot,road tax and be fully insured

The vehicle you are using to pull the tow dolly is also legally required to be able to tow the weight of your towed vehicle and your tow dolly must be able to carry the weight of said towed vehicle ,now where it gets tricky is that not all of the weight of the towed vehicle is on the tow dolly ,but it does not matter are your are still towing the whole car using this device

In other words you cant turn up with Clio and tow dolly and expect to tow a volvo estate ,where as the other way round and your tow dolly can carry the full weight of a Clio then its not a problem ,providing both cars are legal ,mot'd road taxed and insured and of course only if the Clio has broken down ,However if you tell " Mr Policeman its broken down" then theres nothing he can do to tell you otherwise , after all he is a policeman not a car mechanic how is he going to know

Most of the tow dolly's are plated ,you get some home made efforts that you really should avoid

If you are using a tow dolly to move a track car,autotest,rallycar or a car that is not road legal then you are breaking the law

The best option is use a car trailer ,ok these are exspensive but its saves a lot of hassle and you can tow what you like depending on the weight limit of the trailer etc

You se a lot of large camper vans towing these micro cars ,again believe it or not they are breaking the law as they are not Recovering a broken down vehicle .

Its madness i know and i think a lot of police turn a blind eye if they think that your set up looks to be safe and alot of them just dont know the law with regards to tow dolly's

I think the whole law should be changed as a tow dolly is far easier to have sitting about than a muckle great car trailer and there are lighter and easier to use ,but until the law is changed Tow dolly's and A frames are for the use of recovery purposes only .

Hope this helps and i found this information via the police as i was concerned i was breaking the law using a tow dolly for my autotesting car ,since i have got rid of my tow dolly and the autotest car as i have no where to keep a large car trailer

Edited by THE STIG, 24 June 2009 - 05:50 PM.

[cookie4343]

I think its ok aslong as the car your towing has got TAX M.O.T and insurance, i may be wrong.

Edited by cookie4343, 24 June 2009 - 05:44 PM.

[leaky]

I cant see why not. IF you look at this pic.

http://farm3.static....4102ef4.jpg?v=0

You can see that the AA vans in England are fitted with the same kinda thing.
Hope this helps.

Edited by Mini-jon, 24 June 2009 - 05:47 PM.

[THE STIG]

I cant see why not. IF you look at this pic.

http://farm3.static....4102ef4.jpg?v=0

You can see that the AA vans in England are fitted with the same kinda thing.
Hope this helps.

but the aa rac etc are towing broken down cars which is technecly waht there for and only that

[leaky]

Yea but if it wasnt allowed then surely they would only be able to use the trucks to take cars away on and not toe them like that. I could be wrong though.

[clubbie nl]

In Holland you need to have:
-insurance on both cars..
-m.o.t <Dutch is A.P.K.>
-tax on both cars..
-registration plates of the towed car visible!!! <not the front car's plates..>
-the lights need to work off course..<or a lightbar like mine..>

So it's only allowed over here if the car <that's towed> is on full working order..<not sorn'd ?? ><if i'm correct..>
Off course the mini is under 750 kilo's..

Over here the law see's it as a car and not as a trailer..<in Holland it's very gray about this subject..RDW <dutch dvla>can't tell me if it's allowed..but they also can't tell me it isn't allowed..>Police don't know the answer ass well,al they could do was looking very strange and laughing..

So probally there is no problem if i drive this around the UK?

[THE STIG]

Yea but if it wasnt allowed then surely they would only be able to use the trucks to take cars away on and not toe them like that. I could be wrong though.

towing dollies and a frames are only legal for removing broken down cars see second post on the page

[THE STIG]

In Holland you need to have:
-insurance on both cars..
-m.o.t <Dutch is A.P.K.>
-tax on both cars..
-registration plates of the towed car visible!!! <not the front car's plates..>
-the lights need to work off course..<or a lightbar like mine..>

So it's only allowed over here if the car <that's towed> is on full working order..<not sorn'd ?? ><if i'm correct..>
Off course the mini is under 750 kilo's..



So probally there is no problem if i drive this around the UK?

no legally the car being towed must have broken down not able to drive on its own power and is being recovered

but as in ebay guide most police turn a blind eye as its a grey area in the law as all you have to say is the cars broken down ,

but as your towing from abroad cant say for sure

could be stop or not depends on the police who see it but if it all looks ok then proberly would get away with it

[clubbie nl]

@ stig..thnx..that's what i wanted to know..
I'll take the spark plugs out if the mini when i arrive at Dover..hahaha..

Sorry officer..he broke down on me..

[Gaffer]

@ stig..thnx..that's what i wanted to know..
I'll take the spark plugs out if the mini when i arrive at Dover..hahaha..

Sorry officer..he broke down on me..

Im not 100% but i think dollys can only be used by the motor trade, as in the same rule for trade plates, and the car must be broken down and in the process of being recovered.

They cannot be used to transport from one place to another, although i have seen plenty being used behind campers here in the west country.

As with show plates, its a gamble you take.

[clubbie nl]

showplates?
what's that..?
i'm from holland..so please some explaines one that..

the car is roadlegal,full m.o.t.,insurance,road tax payed ,etc. etc. <nothing wrong..,untill Dover..:}
also checking currently about regulations in Belgium..probaly the same as Holland for sow far..

Edited by clubbie nl, 24 June 2009 - 08:20 PM.

[dave21478]

Its not a grey area at all, the law is perfectly clear.

An a-frame (which is what is pictured, is not a dolly, a dolly is something completely different with slightly different regulations) is perfectly legal to use, as long as certain criteria are met. The man one is that the towed car must weigh under 750kgs GROSS weight. If the car weighs more than 750kgs gross, the outfit must have overrun brakes fitted. Braked a-frames are available (i have one myself) but they do not meet this legal requirement. When a car is connected to an a-frame, it is classed as a trailer, so if its over 750kgs, the brakes must meet trailer brake standards, which is simply not possible with a car.

However, it is legal to tow a car heavier than 750kgs, but only in the event of a breakdown and only to tow the car to the nearest "place of safety." thats the phrase used, not garage, or home etc, but to the nearest safe place to effect repairs or load the car onto a trailer.



Your issue confuses the matters somewhat. The above is what the UK law states, for UK cars. Since we are all One Big Happy European Union now, you can use a car registered in any member state temporarily in any other member state as long as it complies fully with the legal apects in its home state. So, if you can prove without question that your outfit is legal in your home country, you will be ok with it in UK.


People call it a grey area because they dont understand the law, but thats no excuse. Many police themselves dont understand these laws. I have asked several serving officers about a-frame use and not one of them could give me a definitive answer, hence me finding this out for myself. VOSA are the ones to worry about though, if stopped at a VOSA checkpoint with an a-frame being used improperly, the will pull your pants down. And if you are unfortunate enough to have an accident whileusing one, your insurers will also give you a reaming.

[redhotmini]

showplates are registration plates which have been modified, i.e. to spell out a word, different spacing, fonts, colours etc. not legal but people drive about with them.
towing dollys can be used by anyone, no problem there.
as far as i was aware, certain towing doly setups essentially turn the car into a 4 wheeled, unbraked trailer (they attach to the bottom arms and act on the steering of the towed vehicle) which is how people towing them behind motorhomes etc get away with it. only law is an unbraked trailer must be under 750kg fully laden.

[clubbie nl]

Ok..thnx dave21478 & redhotmini for the explaining..
Definitly no problem then..overhere it's roadlegal and i can prove it by law..
I'll make sure to bring some copies of that with me then..<in dutch..hehe officer..>
Point is..
-IT's A A-FRAME..no dolly or so..
-The mini is way under 750 kilo..as we all know.-no problem
-taxed
-mot'd.
-insured
-normal road legal <plates aswell> car
-lightning works perfect.

The A-frame is attached to the front subframe on the tow-<eye?>-boults.
The A-frame is attached to the mini and front car by chain's <don't wanne lose it,if ever comes lose>>
The mini is on 4 wheels on the ground.
Off course no steering lock on..,key in lock and 1 click..giff's a mess iff not..
It steers on it's self cause it's just behind the front car..follow's perfect.
There is a xtra steelcabel attached to the mini handbrake cable ,just behind the handbrake cable in the exhausttunnel ,so it pulls the handbrake if ever comes lose ,and brakes the mini by it's own handbrake..just like a trailer would over 750 kg..<SAFTY FIRST ;] >.