Up-plating a motorhome (1 Viewer)

[Pia]

...has anyone had it done?

We've got an Adria Coral Supreme 680ST 3500 and can go up to 3700 as a paper exercise...(have been in touch with svtech). We're both oldies so have C1.....and I'm 70 next year does one have to have a medical every year upon reaching 70??

Has anyone had a simple up-plate? ....and has there been any problems with arranging breakdown cover in Europe for a MH weighing 3700....or any other problems for that matter?

Many thanks

 

[jezport]

No problems, its an easy job

 

[Pia]

Thanks Jezport...do you travel in Europe?

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[tonka]

Up - plating... LOADS have done it..
SV Tech are fine, you are have another option J R Russell ? search the posts.
70 is a medical, I know it's not annual, maybe 3 or 5 years ?? Some of our "mature" funsters will know more..
Breakdown no issue as long as you go with right company. The likes of Safeguard and Comfort cover them as standard. Seperate cover can be bought from ADAC..

 

[DBK]

The frequency of medical examinations is up to three years. I guess the "up to" is because some medical conditions may require more frequent checks.
https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/renew-your-driving-licence-70-plus

 

[magicsurfbus]

Safeguard's breakdown cover arrangements change for vehicles over 3500 Kilos, but don't stop. I was told they allow more for the repair work instead of the overnight accommodation and hire car. The process is pretty straightforward (I'm using SVTech) but you may be advised to have air assist suspension fitted on the rear axle. I've done that recently and now need to finalise the paperwork to get my new plate.

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[Speve]

Did it with SV Tech had air assist on rear and wider tyres fitted no hassle there are others that do it cheaper but in MHO SV Tech are worth the extra

 

[Pia]

Thanks everyone....we've breakdown with the C&MH club so will check that out.....we can go to 3700 without mechanical aids but above that we would have to have air assist supension and wider tyres....we're well ok with 3700 so shall stick with that....we'll go ahead with SV Tech as they have been so helpful and informative so far....but it's always best to chat to folk who have had the experience.

 

[Pia]

C&MHC Red Pennant are OK with uplating up to 4.500kg and under 15 years old...so that's good news. So we'll go ahead now and have it done ...yippee!!!!

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[Spanner]

We uprated ours via SV Tech and I fitted air assist to the rear at the same time.
As you may be aware a lot of motorhomes are on the limit of the rear axle weight before and after uprating !
The 2000kg limit on the rear axle can be safely increased by 150kg by upgrading the rear tyres, when this is done SV Tech offered to replace the weight sticker (foc) to reflect the increased capacity of the rear axle, the maximum weight of 3850kg is unchanged in our case.

 

[magicsurfbus]

If you're planning to travel in France and Germany you might consider applying for your urban environment stickers whilst your V5 form still says 3500 kgs max, but I didn't tell you that OK?

I'm debating the morality of applying for a 3500 Kgs Sanef toll tag before the form changes, as we'll still get through the barrier on Classe 2 after the up-plating anyway

 

[Pia]

magicsurfbus ....thank you for that...we avoid inner cities like the plague

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[Speve]

We fully intended avoiding city centres on this trip however glad we got the Umwelt sticker as we were diverted due to heavy traffic through a zone, so well worth six Euros

 

[Lenny HB]

The 2000kg limit on the rear axle can be safely increased by 150kg by

As you may be aware a lot of motorhomes are on the limit of the rear axle weight before and after uprating !
The 2000kg limit on the rear axle can be safely increased by 150kg by upgrading the rear tyres, .

Not necessarily it depends on the chassis the Al-Ko AMC Light has a max of 2000kg on the rear and to be increased you have to fit air suspension, with air and correct tyres it can be increased to 2240kg.

 

[Puddleduck]

Ours was uprated to 3650 through the dealer as a paper exercise when we bought it new. We had the choice of registering at 3500 or 3650 with the paperwork supplied by the manufacturer (Adria) so might be worth writing to the manufacturer to see if they can provide the paperwork free of charge (or for a nominal fee).

3650 works well for us as fully laden with kayaks, bikes, all the gear and spares, etc etc etc we are over 3500 but under 3650 and well within capacity on both axles.

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[Billggski]

Going over 3500k is a significant figure for a Moho. Your road tax will go down, phg is less than plg. Recovery is more difficult as a bigger tow truck has to be called up, speed limits can be lower, insurance and breakdown companies are more limited, you need a medical every 3 years if over 70, or an extra test if you passed before 1-1-97, making it less saleable to young families. Can you just take less stuff?

 

[Pia]

Going over 3500k is a significant figure for a Moho. Your road tax will go down, phg is less than plg. Recovery is more difficult as a bigger tow truck has to be called up, speed limits can be lower, insurance and breakdown companies are more limited, you need a medical every 3 years if over 70, or an extra test if you passed before 1-1-97, making it less saleable to young families. Can you just take less stuff?

It can easily be down plated again when we want to sell it which won't be any time soon as we love it. It came with some heavy extras so even with the bare minimum of the lighest stuff 3500 is just not enough 3700 will be fine. We have electric bikes which are quite heavy and we like the stuff we have. We have all our legal stuff with the C&MC with whom we have already spoken....no problems there at all. We're both oldies so have C1....the medical for me next year shouldn't be a problem as I have no medical conditions (at the mo) my hubby is years younger (my toy boy). But thank you for reminding us of the disadvantages I prefer to make a decision fully informed.

 

[Billggski]

Yes, mine was registered at 3850k when I bought it, although the plate said 3500k and there had been no alterations to the suspension or tyres. I've fitted 225 section tyres at the back to be safer, but otherwise it is standard.

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[138go]

I'm debating the morality of applying for a 3500 Kgs Sanef toll tag before the form changes, as we'll still get through the barrier on Classe 2 after the up-plating anyway

We have an A Class at 4250kg and only got charged at Classe 2 when we went this year. They have no way of telling.

 

[The Cruisers]

Magicsurfbus mentioned the sanef toll tag. What's that?

 

[magicsurfbus]

Magicsurfbus mentioned the sanef toll tag. What's that?

An electronic tag that sits on your windscreen, allowing you to drive through the Liber-T barriers on French Toll roads, rather than jumping out of the cab to put cash or cards into the pay machine, or driving up to the increasingly rare manually operated booths. It debits your bank account directly. There's a small admin fee to operate it.

https://www.saneftolling.co.uk/support/faq/support-Faq.List/#1.0.

In theory they're only for Classe 2 vehicles <= 3.5 tonnes and <= 3 metres tall, but as many here will confirm, heavier MHs routinely go through the barriers as Classe 2. The barriers have a system for checking height but not weight.

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[138go]

An electronic tag that sits on your windscreen, allowing you to drive through the Liber-T barriers on French Toll roads, rather than jumping out of the cab to put cash or cards into the pay machine, or driving up to the increasingly rare manually operated booths. It debits your bank account directly. There's a small admin fee to operate it

We just used a Halifax Clarity Card .. Worked really well SWMBO just had the window down ready and picked the nearest slot for the card. Saved on admin fees and actually getting the device in the first place. Worked really well on the few toll roads we used.

 

[Minxy]

Up - plating... LOADS have done it..
SV Tech are fine, you are have another option J R Russell ? search the posts.
70 is a medical, I know it's not annual, maybe 3 or 5 years ?? Some of our "mature" funsters will know more..
Breakdown no issue as long as you go with right company. The likes of Safeguard and Comfort cover them as standard. Seperate cover can be bought from ADAC..

You're thinking of JR Hartley!

It's Ruffles:

How we went about uplating our Rapido A Class

 

[Welsh girl]

If we up plated we'd have only 200 payload. Not enough for us although we'd love the lower tax. Crazy isn't it higher weight,lower tax.

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[magicsurfbus]

We just used a Halifax Clarity Card .. Worked really well SWMBO just had the window down ready and picked the nearest slot for the card. Saved on admin fees and actually getting the device in the first place. Worked really well on the few toll roads we used.

Our Santander cards work first time in them too and without the PIN, but my better half can't reach from the window very easily and she has a dodgy knee, so climbing in and out of the cab at pay machines is quite literally a pain. I'm buying the tag as a present to make trips easier for her. (Other presents are available.)

 

[barracudabus]

an extra test if you passed before 1-1-97, making it less saleable to young families

I love this firstly because you've just referred to someone (me) who will be turning 40 soon, as a young family

But most relevantly as we've just bought our first MH and annoyingly the OH passed her test early Feb '97 so for the sake of a 30 odd days she has no C1 on her licence. Therefore we had to instantly rule out anything over 3500k for now as she doesn't fancy an HGV test and at the best part of a £grand it's not cheap either. So certainly worth taking into consideration.

It can easily be down plated again when we want to sell it which won't be any time soon as we love it

However, very interesting to see that a vehicle can be downgraded again, something we may look into if we ever look to change. I assume it's easy in your scenario as you're only upgrading as a paper exercise, else I assume tyres and air suspension, etc would need changing back.

 

[Pia]

I love this firstly because you've just referred to someone (me) who will be turning 40 soon, as a young family

But most relevantly as we've just bought our first MH and annoyingly the OH passed her test early Feb '97 so for the sake of a 30 odd days she has no C1 on her licence. Therefore we had to instantly rule out anything over 3500k for now as she doesn't fancy an HGV test and at the best part of a £grand it's not cheap either. So certainly worth taking into consideration.



However, very interesting to see that a vehicle can be downgraded again, something we may look into if we ever look to change. I assume it's easy in your scenario as you're only upgrading as a paper exercise, else I assume tyres and air suspension, etc would need changing back.

I'm not sure what is involved if one goes for the major changes but since the air suspension kit and the alternative tyres must weight a fair few kilos I guess these would all have to be removed.

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[Pia]

Yes, we've noted this and will act accordingly not always easy to re-distribute but then I enjoy a challenge at the moment we have 1850 on the back axle but that's without the electric bikes...approx 50k (accounting for the extra because of their prosition at the end).....not a lot more to pack once they are one apart from the wardrobe and the fridge....we don't carry a lot of food we buy as we go. We're not big on clothes either so not too worried there....shoes can be stored at the front behind the seats.