UNLADEN WEIGHT (1 Viewer)

[gwyntaxi]

I have a 2005 Hymer 644 Starline, but for the life of me I cannot find out the UNLADEN weight,unless of course i take it to a weighbridge,which is something I REALLY DON 'T fancy as it would probably take
me a few days to completely empty it,and then find somewhere to put it all. It is not shown on the VIN plate or in any of the user literature, does anyone out there have any suggestions without resorting to the above...
Thanks in anticipation.gwyntaxi.

 

[tonka]

Unladen is not shown on motorhomes..
If you could find some original spec as it came from the factory it would be of little use as anything added by previous owners or yourself would alter it..

it's a good reason why not to trust quoted payloads when vans are for sale, unless it's brand new from factory and you know nothing has been added..

 

[Deleted member 29692]

Even if you could find something in Hymer literature somewhere it would probably be made up hopelessly optimistic numbers. If you really want to know accurately a weigh bridge is the only way. BTW it won't be "unladen weight." It will be MIRO (mass in running order) which makes some allowance for fuel, water and driver.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[johnp10]

Gwyntaxi,

The only place you can get Unladen Weight is from the chassis manufacturer.
As NickNic said, MIRO is more relevant, although not quite the same thing as ULW.
In completely unloading your van you will get the TARE weight, not ULW.
It would be a wasted exercise.

Just curious...why do you want to know the ULW?
It's only really of interest in determining what type of vehicle it is (motor car, heavy motor car, locomotive, etc.)

Are you trying to figure out your payload?

 

[RS_rob]

why bother emptying it weigh it as it is & see where you stand then you have a rough idea of how much leway you have espesially if your current contents are regular items.
you can always add & subtract later by weighing individual items to remove or add.

 

[DP+JAY]

I'm guessing it's for speed limits.
No easy way I'm afraid, remove everything that's not screwed down & go to the weighbridge.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[daveandsan]

I'm guessing it's for speed limits.
No easy way I'm afraid, remove everything that's not screwed down & go to the weighbridge.

Speed limits are down to your gross weight which is in your V5.

 

[DP+JAY]

Speed limits are down to your gross weight which is in your V5.

Not for a motor caravan.
It's on your unladen weight.

http://www.motorhomeplanet.co.uk/motorhome-speed-limits/

 

[johnp10]

I'm guessing it's for speed limits.
No easy way I'm afraid, remove everything that's not screwed down & go to the weighbridge.

That wont give you the ULW, just the Tare Weight.
A vehicle cant be stripped to it's ULW.

Unladen and unloaded are not the same thing.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Badknee]

I have just weighed mine to find out a starting weight and it was 3240 with me in it on the weigh bridge, half a tank of fuel and the water tank full, grey waste empty.
I did this because I couldn't find the converters plate (Autocruise) anywhere and as been said there have been a lot of bolt on extras since it was build, tow bar, bike rack, air suspension and the like.
Sorry my friend but empty would be the best or full and take a guess.

 

[Don Quixote]

We take ours before each trip to local WB, but cannot understand why people fill up the water tank ( thats on average 80 kg's of weight ( our water tank is 120lts - 120kg ish...... ) you don't need to carry. When we travel we carry 10lts in a bottle, enough to cover travel and fill up or top up enough to live on arrival. Loaded up weight is the best way as you know what you have left or in some cases what you have to remove!!!!

 

[DP+JAY]

That wont give you the ULW, just the Tare Weight.
A vehicle cant be stripped to it's ULW.

Unladen and unloaded are not the same thing.

It's as near as you'll get.
https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-weights-explained

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[johnp10]

Agreed, as near as you can get, but the OP wanted ULW for some reason still not clear.
Not possible on a weighbridge.

Once it's stated by the manufacturer it's a done job.
Cant be altered.

 

[DP+JAY]

My understanding was any " fixture" was to be included in the ULW?
Eg. A manufacturer builds a chassis cab & states the ULW.
The body builder then adds the body which now has to be added to the ULW?
At a later date a tail lift is fitted, this also has to be added to the ULW?
It is also not uncommon for commercial vehicles to have a body change during their life
which also changes the ULW?
So does not any "fixture" to a motorhome (awning,towbar etc.)not alter the ULW?

From VOSA Testers manual.
ULW Unladen Weight - The weight of a vehicle inclusive of the body and all parts which are ordinarily used with the vehicle when working on a road.
Unladen weight does not include the weight of water or fuel used for the propulsion of the vehicle, or of loose tools and loose equipment.

 

[pappajohn]

So does not any "fixture" to a motorhome (awning,towbar etc.)not alter the ULW?

From VOSA Testers manual.
ULW Unladen Weight - The weight of a vehicle inclusive of the body and all parts which are ordinarily used with the vehicle when working on a road.
Unladen weight does not include the weight of water or fuel used for the propulsion of the vehicle, or of loose tools and loose equipment.

Rightly so, water, fuel, tools, driver, passengers etc are not part of the structure and are removable so constitute carried goods and contribute to the gross weight.

Kerb weight includes an allowance for driver, fuel, oil, cooling water etc but not tools...things need for the basic operation of the vehicle.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[gwyntaxi]

Gwyntaxi,

The only place you can get Unladen Weight is from the chassis manufacturer.
As NickNic said, MIRO is more relevant, although not quite the same thing as ULW.
In completely unloading your van you will get the TARE weight, not ULW.
It would be a wasted exercise.

Just curious...why do you want to know the ULW?
It's only really of interest in determining what type of vehicle it is (motor car, heavy motor car, locomotive, etc.)

Are you trying to figure out your payload?

Thanks for your interest,yes,the main reason for my curiosity is to find out what the actual payload is

 

[gwyntaxi]

PHEW,well,thanks for all the replies and the interest shown by ALL of you I didn't think such a mundane sort of subject would attract so much attention ,many thanks to all you contributor's,gwyntaxi

 

[DP+JAY]

Ah, different ball game. The ONLY way to find that is take it to a weighbridge, with every thing you are likely to travel with ( including passengers) and get the axles weighed.
Only then can you really know what payload you have & on which axle.
The manufactures MIRO (mass in running order) will give you an idea BUT be careful as they are known to air on the optomistic side. Plus it does not take into account any "extra's", many of which you might think are "standard", eg. oven, awning,bike rack etc. Just because the dealer sold it like that doesn't mean it's standard.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[JeanLuc]

I have a 2003 B630 Star-Line on a 316 Sprinter chassis. It is slightly shorter than your B655 (I think that is what you have as there isn't a B644 Star-Line). The MIRO will depend on the chassis, engine and gearbox plus any additional fittings. The Hymer 'book' figure for a B630 MIRO is 3,000 kg (yours will be a bit higher - say 3,050 kg). But that is for a van based on 313 Sprinter chassis with manual gearbox and no extras. The 31x chassis has a GVW of 3.8 tonnes.
If yours is on a 41x chassis, the MIRO will be higher still, but then so will the GVW - 4.6 tonnes (unless it's been down-rated).
As an indication of what else to take into account, I have shown below the calculations I have used, as advised in the Hymer model catalogue and from known weight data.

 

[gwyntaxi]

I have a 2003 B630 Star-Line on a 316 Sprinter chassis. It is slightly shorter than your B655 (I think that is what you have as there isn't a B644 Star-Line). The MIRO will depend on the chassis, engine and gearbox plus any additional fittings. The Hymer 'book' figure for a B630 MIRO is 3,000 kg (yours will be a bit higher - say 3,050 kg). But that is for a van based on 313 Sprinter chassis with manual gearbox and no extras. The 31x chassis has a GVW of 3.8 tonnes.
If yours is on a 41x chassis, the MIRO will be higher still, but then so will the GVW - 4.6 tonnes (unless it's been down-rated).
As an indication of what else to take into account, I have shown below the calculations I have used, as advised in the Hymer model catalogue and from known weight data.

View attachment 45607

Hello there JeanLUC, Sorry,my mistake mine is the 655 starline,don't know what I was thinking of there,the base is the mercedes 316cdi. but as I said in an earlier email it does not show the unladen weight,or MIRO as it has now become known,I keep harking back to my caravanning days of years ago,the VIN plate does state 3800 as you say,but it's a pity that the manufacturer is not legally obliged to include the MIRO if they did I think as consumers we'd have more of a level playing field, thanks for your help and interest,gwyntaxi.

 

[JeanLuc]

I understand your frustration but in defence of Hymer, they quote the standard MIRO in the model catalogue - not handbook (or used to). The problem is that this can only be a starting point as so many options exist and dealers can fit extras after the van has left the factory but before it is sold. That is before even considering what may be added prior to a second-hand sale. My chart above gives an idea of how this can change the MIRO, in my case increasing it by 239 kg.
The only way to be certain is to fill the van with water, fuel and lpg; add essentials that you always carry, then go to a weighbridge. Take the result away from the GVW of 3.8 tonnes and you will have the available payload.
In practice, I have done it the other way around by loading everything we want to take for a decent trip (say 4 or 6 weeks) including food, clothes, bikes, toolkit etc., full tanks of diesel, water and lpg, then I have gone to the local weighbridge with both of us onboard to check things before departure - leaving enough time to go home and make adjustments if required.
I have done this twice in the last two years: the first time we had about 100kg spare, the second time we had about 80kg spare. At the same time I check both axle loadings by having the whole van weighed, then just the rear axle (the front axle load is found by difference). I have found that there is plenty of spare on the back but the front has less; surprising really considering it's a RWD chassis, but then the 2.7 engine and auto gearbox will add a bit to the front.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Judge Mental]

we do the same more or less as JeanLuc above. while it is nice to know what your payload is, and I always weigh a van empty when I buy it. whats more important is your all up weight in holiday mode as only then do you know if you're traveling safely and legally.

when you do weigh the van note the axle weights, go to tyre manufacturers website and check the weights for the true axle loads. a lot of the time you can reduce the pressure and improve the ride/handling