tow cars....why not ? (1 Viewer)

[pappajohn]

following on from andyjane59's thread.....

Tow cars. Why????
Can I please ask for enlightenment. I cannot understand why MH'ers tow a small car behind them. Why two vehicles with engines, MOT, insurance and tax when one engine etc and a caravan provides the same freedom to drive around. No offence intended.


i assume the majority of us have a car for everyday use.....which will be taxed, insured and MOT'd

then in the same vane as above, why have a motorhome ?

unless you use it as day to day transport its a sinkhole for money.

if you use it every weekend then its still a sinkhole for money.



used it every weekend and its still stood idle for 261 days out of 365.....thats over 70% of the time

it needs tax, insurance and MOT whether its used or not.
so thats 70% of your hard earned cash doing nowt but keeping the sun and rain off the ground.



i was going somewhere with this thread but i'v had a senior moment and forgot where. oh::Blush: and as i spent ages typing it i aint deleting it.



Edit: just remembered...oh:

so, with stats like that wheres the problem having a car in tow when it would be used daily anyway...which is a lot more than the motorhome for most folks.

 

[schojac]

I towed a caravan for many years but love the freedom and ease that a MH offers. It just, only just, gets the edge on the caravan. Unfortunately this country limits the freedom MH's have to offer which can only be negated by hiring a small car, which can only effectively be done from the larger sites, or towing your own. I only started MHing in 2009 and very quickly decided to buy a small car and A frame. Luckily found one at a good price and never looked back. Bit of hassle hitching up, plugging in, break away, test the lights etc but well worth it. Some might say "might as well have a caravan"
Up to now it has cost about £350.00 for the year plus approx 1 mpg to tow it. I also need a larger car due to Mother in Law being disabled and owning a large dog so all in all, MH, Seicento and Focus estate it's rather extravagant. Eventually will reduce to MH and one small towable car. Don't always tow the car, just jump in the MH, turn the key and away. Would I change anything? .............Nah!

 

[haganap]

I would love to aframe my car John but I am not paying £800 for the privilege./ It would be dead handy in some areas of Scotland or Cornwall we visit for a little intimate examination of the area,:thumb:

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[vwalan]

paul google inter trade engineering. then ring them .ask about braked a frames .if you want one they are the people .as used by aa/rac. you may be surprised ,ask all the questions .they have been making a frames for years .possibly the first commercially in uk.

 

[dealgan]

I don't tow, but it seems like a great idea. I'd need space for 2+2 though

The only downside to the MH compared to our previous folding camper is not having a smaller vehicle to go into towns in.

It really hit me a couple of years ago in spain where we drove around & around & around & around looking for parking, but nothing was available. Ended up parked ina sports ground car park, but that was miles (well, a good bit !) away from where we wanted to be.

We did discuss going back to towing after that session, but decided that no, the pro's of a MH outweigh the cons. Big time.
(Also, I guess Ireland is a bit more extreme, in that not as many people use caravans here)

I have a 1983 mk1 golf gti, Nice & lightweight ... Should I tow that ? :thumb:

 

[pappajohn]

I would love to aframe my car John but I am not paying £800 for the privilege./ It would be dead handy in some areas of Scotland or Cornwall we visit for a little intimate examination of the area,:thumb:

thats a fair comment Paul,

the o/p on the other thread asked why pay for a second car just to tow .....but most folks have a car already so there is no unnecessary ongoing cost....unlike a motorhome which may be just stood for 2/3rds its life.

that was my point.

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[barnybg]

A-frame.

Please check that A-frames are still legal,as in Europe they are not ! A trailor with car ON is ???! if fully braked,as long as not overwheight ?

 

[robinmclaren]

it depends on your situation as we are continually being moaned at as have 7 vehicles on the road and we dont need all them ( we think we do as love our toys, are selling 1 to make way for new 1 see not greedy ) my motorhome is for out of town work as well as leisure so i class as a tool to save paying hotels and car is required so tow the rav or box trailer if need excessive materials and tools while there

i cannot park a caravan where i can park and stay in motorhome

i love the freedom from camper vans over the last 20 years which include vw, commer, ldv conversion and now with my motorhome and the choice to take with it what i need, we tow a toyota rav 4 , 4 seater 4x4 which is great fun to use when away and gets used loads when at home and for work in winter when van cant get out , you do not have to have a smart unless limited by gtw, have towed a ka ( hated it ), a nippa (funny and made me smile but wife hated it )

van on its own disneyland last month free to stay with annual passes

van on its own for meet next week

scotland july van with ifor williams towa van to carry boat, outboard, quad bikes , kayaks, etc etc ( never fit these in a caravan but maybe in a fiver)

cornwall aug van with rav 4 a.framed behind to go the places we want in cornwall while parked up

van only disney october

st ives with rav for new year

motorhome on its own 29-30 mpg
motorhome with 4 seater rav 4 on a frame 28-29 mpg

large 4x4 to tow caravan 25mpg
large 4x4 with caravan on 15mpg

we are just purchasing a new freelander and would not even consider putting a caravan on it but may consider a a-frame to toad it behind mh !!!!!!! hey then we could sell the rav , then again maybe not .:thumb: