| Author | Message | ||
     Paul Yorke Prolific User Username: paul_yorke Post Number: 152 Registered: 6-2006 |
Hi , I've been asked : 1980 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. What is the legal towing capacity? I live in Australia so are the legal requirements the same as England? But I can't see the figures in the workshop manual. Any Ideas? | ||
| Bill Coburn Moderator Username: bill_coburn Post Number: 965 Registered: 4-2003 |
Paul It is really quite interesting that your correspondent should consult you rather than a host of advisers here. Firstly I googled vehicle towing capacity and it turns out that there are indeed Federally agreed rules on the practice rather than the popular Australian pastime of each state having its own version of how to look after the interests of its citizens! The relevant bit reads Where a vehicle maker has not specified a maximum towing capacity, the following guide may help. Where the trailer is fitted with brakes, the maximum capacity is 1½ times the unladen mass of the tow vehicle. When the trailer doesn’t have brakes installed, the maximum capacity will be equal to the unladen mass of the motor vehicle. All trailers over 750kg gross trailer mass (GTM**) must have brakes installed that meet or exceed the following requirements to ensure compliance with Australian Design Rules: etc etc As far as I am aware there has never been any consideration of towing by the Factory for the post55 cars full stop. I do have a service bulletin for the Mark VI which talks about the means of fitting tow bars but of course we are dealing with a chassied car! In Canberra we have at least two car with tow bars and they seem to handle all reasonable loads but if the above rules are followed there should be no problem. Personally I would not fit a tow bar unless its heaviest load would be the contents of a common 6 x 4 trailer. It is not only the towing and stopping of the weight but the stresses set up in the car on cornering or worse when the trailer gets the wobbles. | ||
| Patrick Lockyer. Grand Master Username: pat_lockyer Post Number: 766 Registered: 9-2004 |
Hi Bill,Intresting that you appear not to have any recomendations on nose weight in OZ. I am running a limit of 100kg with my hitch point. Only use a car that is structionaly sound with no corrosion [rust] One of the best tow cars ever with the rear self leveling and helper or heavy duty rear springs. With the unstressed engine it is a doddle. | ||
| Bill Coburn Moderator Username: bill_coburn Post Number: 966 Registered: 4-2003 |
Ah Patrick/ I believe we do but I thought I had done enough for our mysterious enquirer. I am amused at your term nose weight which conjures up all sorts of inappropriate riposts! I think we call that hitch load and remember using the bathroom scales on a block of wood to check the distribution of weight on the trailer. I quite agree with you providing the car is in good nick it should be a doddle indeed. Australia's first mass produced car emerged in 1948 - my father had Holden number 40! It was the first car that emerged in the postwar era that people realised had no chassis. This was ridiculous because the place was teeming with Austins and Morrises and Wolselys none of which I remember having chassis. Anyway the question of towing came up and many a bar was strapped behind these new fangled product of GMH and the then the stories started about cars being stretched and rear door flying open etc etc. But your point about condition should be well observed. I have seen a well worn early Shadow in which the panel behind the rear seat was literally torn apart with cracks simply from flexing on pretty bad country roads in outback Australia. The owner was not fussed and had his mate who was a 'cracker of a bloke' and a 'bloody good welder' get stuck into the assembly welded it all up reinforced it and as far as I know the car is still galloping across the gibbers somewhere in Queensland! And I should point out that the Late Bert Ward the Service Manager at our then Sydney dealer devised a means of strengthening the chassis on the Mark VI Bentley and related types which were dismantling themselves on our country roads. The Factory ignored the problem despite numerous pleas for help. Bert's efforts were most effective and being the gentleman that he was he sent drawings of the mods to the Factory for interest. The receipt of these was never acknowledged. But you will be very suprised that when the 'M' series cars emerged with welded chasis instead of those fool rivetts, every frame was modified to the millimeter with Bert Ward's modifications. And as yet we have to see an acknowledgement although I think the best outcome for Bert will be to confront those involved in the great garage in the sky! Excuse the vernacular which I thought I would share with you. Yesterday I was discussing with an American, the fate of an abandonned railway line and I was telling him about the problem of wooden sleepers rotting. Much confusion for a while until he realised I was talking about 'ties' which when you think of it is a far more appropriate term for those bits of wood or blocks of concrete that keep the rails apart! | ||
| Stephe Boddice Frequent User Username: stephe_boddice Post Number: 61 Registered: 2-2005 |
Pat, I must assume that your running limit of 100kg is missing a zero? 100kg would not even cover the weight of the wheels and tyres. Should we assume that you mean a load limit of one tonne plus the trailer weight? As an aside, it is good to see you back on the site again. SB (Message edited by stephe boddice on 18 May 2008) | ||
| Paul Yorke Prolific User Username: paul_yorke Post Number: 153 Registered: 6-2006 |
Stephe, the actual weight on the tow ball is usually pretty low. Hopefully the wheels and tyres ( if you are talking about the trailer ones ) are on the road so can be counted as weightless. Trailer wheels are positioned so (with care) the load is evenly balanced over the wheels or axles so the weight on the toe hitch is minimal. Problems start when you're forced to reverse a car onto a trailer or the lengths are wrong. Or the tow hitch height is wrong, or . . . . . Towing is usually very stressful  | ||
| Jan Forrest Frequent User Username: got_one Post Number: 94 Registered: 1-2008 |
Most caravan clubs recommend a total (braked) towed weight of 80% of the towing vehicle, which equates to about 2,000 kilos for most post-war Rolls/Bentleys. More than this is just being greedy As for nose weight this refers to the vertical weight placed on the tow ball so it doesn't try to jump off the ball. This becomes fairly irrelevent if a shackle and pin arrangement is employed, but since this is usually for heavy plant on trucks is unlikely to involve trailers towed behind private motor cars. | ||
| Bill Payne Experienced User Username: wimpy Post Number: 26 Registered: 1-2007 |
Nose weight, tongue weight or hitch load will have a definite impact on whether the trailer tracks correctly or attempts to steer the car. 5-10% of the gross trailer weight is your target. Closer to 10% gives smoother towing, with larger trailers you probably want to use something closer to 5%. If cargo on the trailer has a higher center of gravity, then you would move closer to the 10% figure. Keep in mind trailering changes braking characteristics. More hitch load removes weight from the front wheels which could result in rear brake lockup which would not be good. | ||
| Andrew Lark Experienced User Username: drew Post Number: 14 Registered: 6-2009 |
Somewhat off topic, but this thread has reminded me; I was travelling on Sydney's M7 motorway a couple of weeks back and overtook a caravan - being towed by a lovely green Shadow I. I had a smile from ear to ear - I wanted to give them a wave but I figured it wouldn't made sense as I was travelling in our Toyota 4WD at the time. Now that's the way to travel in style. I'm tempted to set our Shadow up to tow, but after the thousands of dollars spent on setting our Toyota up with every gadget conceivable, I think I should stick to the Toyota - otherwise I might have no reason to not drive the Shadow! :-) Apologies for the divergence. Andrew. | ||
| James Feller Frequent User Username: james_feller Post Number: 75 Registered: 5-2008 |
I suggest they buy a 4WD that is made for and set-up to tow and done with it. Frankly, a Rolls or Bentley towing a trailor or caravan looks terrible... most unbecoming of one so lovely.... settle... only having a a little rib. :o) J | ||
| Paul Yorke Grand Master Username: paul_yorke Post Number: 415 Registered: 6-2006 |
Over here - any caravan being towed fills me with dread! lol. Caravanning, especially abroad, was once the domain of the rich – and a surprisingly large percentage of Clouds and early Shadows had tow bars on. Cheaper flights soon put paid to that though, and we ended up with a scrap pile full of tow bars. | ||
| Jan Forrest Frequent User Username: got_one Post Number: 98 Registered: 1-2008 |
Although I run a Toyota Estima (4WD) with a towbar I've recently acquired a towbar for The Old Girl and intend to fit it shortly. The only things I tow are a small trailer (actually the BILs, but as it's stored in my garage and I helped him refurbish it he lets me borrow it as required) and an 11' RIB on a small dedicated trailer. However I'm considering selling all my camping gear and Toyota to purchase a caravan or folding camper some time next year. The only problem would be that I woudn't be able to tow both the 'van/camper and the RIB at the same time, so I may have to reconsider my plans in the new year. As an aside: One of the top caravan manufacturers in the UK goes by the name "Van Royce"! They're the equivalent of the US's Airstream in terms of luxury and especially price. |
