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this post was submitted on 30 Jul 2023
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Glad someone said it. Just because you can pull something doesn’t mean you can stop or maintain pulling said thing. That being said yeah I agree you don’t always need a truck.
If the car is rated for towing the weight of the trailer, of course it can stop it. That's what the authorities are going to test, among other things, before greenlighting a car with those specifications.
They’ll test it for the weight, however it’s important to understand the testing cycle. Were the tests only setup on flat ground? Did they adequately test braking? Did they ride the brakes for a while? Is there a difference between haulable weight with trailer brakes vs without? It’s also important to note that in the US tow ratings are setup by the manufacturer… which means that numbers are super subjective and simply a circle jerk of who is willing to legally put a larger number on the vehicle.
All the new 3/4 ton trucks can tow more than US drivers with a class C license in most states could legally carry. The numbers are kind of useless IMO.
As far as I know, the maximum unbraked trailer mass is 750kg in Europe, although for some cars it can be lower.
With a braked trailer the limit is up to the manufacturer (and your driver's license).
Thank you! How long has the trailer brake been common/mandated over that size in Europe? I tried looking it up but the closest I could find was some UK government website mentioning the 90s (or maybe early 2000s).
Trailer size up to 750kg, anything above it needs special license regardless of what's towing it. Here are the categories:
I did find this regulation regarding towing: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32012R1230
I don't know if any other European regulations regarding the maximum unbraked weight predate this one.
Thank you! That one also showed that they test with all tanks filled to a minimum of 90% and all manufacturer equipment provided. Which was nice to see the specificity on ensuring testing was done with a full vehicle and trailer!
You're welcome. These regulations are usually quite specific, and if something is missing, it usually gets added in a later revision.
I know the car we used to pull our camper back in the early 80ies (Alfa Sud) had different towing limits for trailers with and without brakes. No idea about general limits for trailers, but if your car has those limits you better not be caught exceeding those.