Tyre pressure pulling a caravan

[forbefor]

Hi all,can anyone tell me, when pulling a caravan should I inflate the tyres on the Mav to full load or does it not matter. (obviously before setting off, thought I better put that in before anyone else does) .:nenau

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

Hi all,can anyone tell me, when pulling a caravan should I inflate the tyres on the Mav to full load or does it not matter. (obviously before setting off, thought I better put that in before anyone else does) .:nenau

I don't, and i tow some big trailers and caravans, remember the nose load is only about 75 kilos and that is only the weight of one passenger in the back.

I also find high tyre pressures on both car and caravan tend to give a less stable tow - a harder and more bouncy ride :thumb2

 

[geoffdown]

I don't, and i tow some big trailers and caravans, remember the nose load is only about 75 kilos and that is only the weight of one passenger in the back.

I also find high tyre pressures on both car and caravan tend to give a less stable tow - a harder and more bouncy ride :thumb2

i thought the nose weight on the terrano/mav is about 120kg max might be wrong

 

[briggie]

says 120 kg here

http://www.nissanpress.co.uk/press_.../2003/Terrano-engine-data-dimensions_2003.pdf

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

i was talking about the nose weight of the caravan not the T2 :doh

120 is the maximum the T2 can take, the caravans max nose weight will be much less 50 -75k !

 

[MudLifeCrisis]

i was talking about the nose weight of the caravan not the T2 :doh

120 is the maximum the T2 can take, the caravans max nose weight will be much less 50 -75k !

Alko chassis max noseweight is normally 100kg , dread to think what mine runs at ;O)

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

Alko chassis max noseweight is normally 100kg , dread to think what mine runs at ;O)

The actually nose weight varies by make and model (as you know) but i find good towing practise is to load it to the max and run with the caravan level or very slightly nose down.

I confess I too sometimes exceed the nose weight, but the effect of good loading and tyre pressures is better than a stabiliser :thumb2

 

[briggie]

i remember when i had a volvo 940 se turbo estate , and a monza 1200ct tin tent ... i was stopped on the a47 by the nick nick brigade doing a routine check on caravans .... apparently my nose weight was 85kg .... 10 kg too much , so i merely removed the electric extension from the front locker and put it in the rear of the caravan .....job sorted lol

 

[Thomas-the-Terrano2]

agree about having tyres at max makes hard ride.

put the trolls up to recommended for las trip, now it
rattles and bangs round town solo, ok the road are
rough....
the troll only has one set of pressures, the t2 had
normal and loaded. recall we tended to run at 26psi
all round, after all the tyre is the first part of the
suspension and at max this benefit is reduced or
lost.

back then the caravans were only 12 and 14 footers
so nose was 50-75 kg max. the big 'un below is
more at 100kg or so.

Caravan Club usually suggest it at 7% of trailer weight.
for mine @1660kg that 116Kg...

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

The largest caravans we have, have a gross of 2.6 tonnes, I have never even thought about measuring the nose weight :doh

 

[lacroupade]

The largest caravans we have, have a gross of 2.6 tonnes, I have never even thought about measuring the nose weight :doh

Lost your bathroom scales then?

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

Lost your bathroom scales then?

didn't loose them, just fell out with them years ago, bloody liars :augie

 

[rustic]

I don't, and i tow some big trailers and caravans, remember the nose load is only about 75 kilos and that is only the weight of one passenger in the back.

I also find high tyre pressures on both car and caravan tend to give a less stable tow - a harder and more bouncy ride :thumb2

Don't forget that the tow ball is behind the axle, so for say every 100 kg you are putting on the ball you are putting more on the axle, as you are in affect lifting the front, so this weight goes somewhere. Acting like a see saw, and the axle is the fulcrum.

Now if you put a 75 kg person in the back seat, ie in front of the rear axle then most of the weight will be on the rear axle, but some also on the front.

So it's not the same. 75kg on ball might equate to 100 kg on axle.

75 kg person in seat may equate to 60 kgs on the rear axle.

I agree with hard tyres give an uncomfortable ride, and I find the unladen tyre pressures on the rear a bit hard, but you never know what you will be carrying next.

 

[rustic]

didn't loose them, just fell out with them years ago, bloody liars :augie

I agree.

We bought one of those talking bathroom scales a few years back, we threw it through the window when we weighed ourselves individually as it prompted "One at a TIME... PLEASE..."

We bought a replacment and that said " No coach parties please"

 

[andrewk]

I used to set pressure to the factory settings on the 'Trolls door surround - 29psi front and 32 psi rear. At 32 psi, the rears wear a LOT more in the middle than at the edges, so much in fact that it has reduced tyre life substantially. I've just bought a new set of General Grabber AT2 and I'm not going to make the same mistake again.

I now use the "4psi rule" and it seems to work very well - tyre wear is now even and it seems to corner better with less understeer. There are loads of references on the web if you Google it, mostly Australian. This one explains what its all about: http://www.patrol4x4.com/forum/nissan-patrol-gu-gr-10/correct-tyre-pressure-4-psi-rule-13522/

After using the 4psi rule to suss out the best tyre pressure, I now set front and rears to 28 psi - and increase the rears to 34 psi when towing a 1500kg caravan.

Andrew

 

[makeitfit]

Tyre pressure pulling a caravan :nenau
I'd say at the most about 5psi :sly
and dont forget to load all heavy stuff at the back of the t tent to keep hitch weight as looooow as poss

 

[andrewk]

Caravan Club usually suggest it at 7% of trailer weight.for mine @1660kg that 116Kg...

If you have an Alko hitch, the noseweight limit will be 100kg, so you should not go over that.

Andrew

 

[elpeede]

Personally I have the tyre pressures as recommended by the manufacturer and make a point of checking them not only on the car but more importantly on the caravan. As a bobby I've swept up many a wreck and seen the affect of poor tyre maintainance, on vehicles, occupants and pedestrians.

As for sticking to the manufacturers specs.. I've also seen the vehicle exam reports after fatal / life changing accidents and if there is anything likely to shoot you in the foot loading and tyre pressures is way up there.

Just my observations. We average around 2500 miles a year towing the caravan, mainly across Europe in the summer.

 

[makeitfit]

We average around 2500 miles a year towing the caravan, mainly across Europe in the summer.

Cheers for that, very considerate indeed :thumbs
Top bloke :bow

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

Cheers for that, very considerate indeed :thumbs
Top bloke :bow

you watch way too much top gear :augie

I agree on manufacturers specs, but! The thread was about weather or not to tyre pressure should be set as for a loaded car, or an unloaded one?

I would say unloaded (unless the car is loaded) I don't believe the tyre placard refers to towing, and if it was critical then I'm confident it would. :thumb2