You are a Guest, please Join now to allow full access to the website and be part of our community. You can register by clicking the "Click Here to create an account" link at the top left of the page under our Logo
Can anyone give advice on towing a smart car I have spoken to my
local smart garage and they say that no you should not tow a smart as it will damage the gear box, but you can see them on the motorway being towed all the time.
I am talking about all four wheels on the the road.
Dave
The following members of MHF thanked kezbea for this posting
We tow a semi automatic Smart car and we have no problems. We had a Brian James Trailer in the past but due to getting a new motorhome and the towing weight being less than our previous model we have since sold that trailer and bought an A Frame from Chris Cox and the service was excellent. Here are a couple of links that will give you more information.
As the gearbox lubrication for the Smart car comes from an engine driven oil pump then it is best if its not towed for prolonged periods without the engine running. This in my book makes A frames less than ideal for a technical reason putting aside any legislative ones.
But
If you have towed a Smart car with an A frame and not had problems then sold the car on its a bit like selling someoe a year old Fiat based motorhome knowing that the gearbox could well let them down should they reverse up a mountain!
The following members of MHF thanked CliveMott for this posting
When I bought my smart in 2006 the dealer advised against towing on an A-frame ("not recommended by Mercedes for technical reasons"), also telling me they would not look at taking-in on part-ex any smart with A-frame brackets fitted ! Seems to be reinforced by Clive's comments !
I 'phoned Merc UK at the time and they gave out the same "advice", strongly advising against. Having said that, I've seen loads of smarts on A-frames here and abroad, but I'm personally a very happy Brian James Bantam trailer "tugger" with mine !
You pays your money and makes your choice, it seems !
Brian.
The following members of MHF thanked LandCruiser for this posting
As the gearbox lubrication for the Smart car comes from an engine driven oil pump then it is best if its not towed for prolonged periods without the engine running. This in my book makes A frames less than ideal for a technical reason putting aside any legislative ones.
But
If you have towed a Smart car with an A frame and not had problems then sold the car on its a bit like selling someoe a year old Fiat based motorhome knowing that the gearbox could well let them down should they reverse up a mountain!
Not being technically minded - I cannot really agree or disagree with any of your comments Clive but my hubby seems quite satsified with the safety aspects of towing with an A Frame and he isn't one to take unecessary risks re such matters! It is worrying though and if you know something we dont then please share this with us and if you have evidence to support your claims then I would appreciate any information you may have access to, as our safety and that of any passengers we may carry is obviously extremely important to us.
If towing with an A Frame is so precarious why on earth hasn't it been made illegal I ask as surely to goodness it is wrong to allow people like ourselves to buy products that are known to be or suspected of causing potential safety issues?
We have seen Smart cars being towed with A Frames from as far as the UK to Morocco and you are talking about an awful lot of miles here! In fact, the people we met during our travels I do not recall any of them mentioning encountering any problems whatsoever and I think they all found, like we do that towing a smart car behind them enhanced their trip tremendously.
I look forward to you pointing me in the right direction regarding obtaining some hard facts and answers to this topic and any websites or internet sites you have come across that confirm what you say I would be keen to read.
Awaiting your reply.
Sue
______________________________________________________________ Laugh and the world laughs with you - cry and you cry alone!
The following members of MHF thanked Sonesta for this posting
I am no sure if i am sticking my neck out about towing with an A frame, but I was against it after reading all of the articles on here and in the press. I decided on a trailer and then had a chat with someone who is a new user of an A frame.
To finally put my mind at rest I phoned the Department of Transport and spoke to very helpful lady who told me that the A frame was legal as long as the requirements for braking and lighting were met, there is also nothing in the near future (at least the next two years as that is how long it takes to bring about new legislation apparently) so I thought great, she also agreed to send me the written documentation to support this.
I received it yesterday and read through twice to make sure that it was written as I thought.
The document dated October 2005 is a note on A frames and it states that when a car is towed on an A frame the A frame and car become a trailer. It then goes on to state that as there are brakes fitted to the car these must work regardless of weight I.E under 750kgs. It later goes on to say that if the trailer braking system has power assistance I.E servo or full power it is likely that this assistance will be required while in motion.
Further on in the document it states that reversing must be automatic which is very difficult to achieve using an A frame.
From reading this note on A frames I have now ordered my trailer from Brian James.
This is my personal experience of investigating the matter but I did speak to three different companies who are fitting A frames who all told me that they are legal, to my mind this is not the case with the A frames that are on offer.
The following members of MHF thanked Wytonknaus for this posting
Thanks for that Wytonknaus I appreciate your help.
We did have a Brian James Bantam Trailer for our last motorhome which was an excellent and quality built trailer so I am sure you will be delighted with it. However, our new motorhome despite being larger has a lower towing weight hence the reason we sold our trailer and opted for the A Frame.
Regards the reversing of the trailer just be advised this is not always as easy as it sounds as my husband (a good driver with 40 years experience) found that on a long vehicle such as a motorhome, reversing is often a bit of a problem and he used to find it hard to see the trailer clearly through the mirrors due to the length of our van - we found on occasions trying to peform this manouvere was somewhat of a hazard at times not to say stressful LOL
With the A frame my husband has found it so much easier regarding storage too as the A Frame simply folds up into a small bag and easily fits into the back of the Smart. Plus we dont have to worry about finding somewhere to store both the trailer and the car plus the motorhome.
As for reversing the A Frame my husband doesn't find this an issue either and although as yet we have never had need to reverse it we feel that if for example we suddenly found ourselves having to do a U turn because we were stuck down a narrow country lane - it will be a lot easier to get out of that problem with an A Frame than if we were towing with a large heavy trailer! With an A Frame we could quickly unhook if the need arose (this takes approx a couple of minutes or so to do) and then rehook the A Frame back up again once we had got oursleves out of the predicament we found ourselves in. If we were causing a build up of traffic during this manouvere I would jump in the Smart and drive it until we found a convenient place to hook back up again (which again would only take a couple of minutes to do) Some may say this is very inconvenient but to be fair whether you have an A Frame or a Trailer finding yourself going in the wrong direction, especially on windy narrow lanes with a motorhome whilst towing a Smart car is not convenient no matter what towing device you use but an A Frame would certainly be a lot easier and quicker to resolve this problem, make no doubts about that!
Our main concerns are primarily the safety and legal issues as we would not want to be towing with anything that doesn't meet such regulations and although the particular A Frame we have meets all the lighting and braking requirements we have no idea about what is meant by the "reversing must be automatic" part of the document you mentioned in your post that the Department of Transport sent you! If anyone can explain what this means we would appreciate their assistance as we haven't got a clue and it is worrying to think we might be breaking the law. I really hope there are no legal issues with the A Frame we have bought as we are really pleased with it and my husband has been impressed with how easy it is to use etc - it would be just our luck to discover we are driving around like Bonnie & Clyde!
Thanks again Wytonknaus for the information it is much appreciated and good luck with your Trailer. I am sure you will love having a little car for the times you want to visit places not easily accessible by motorhome.
Sue
______________________________________________________________ Laugh and the world laughs with you - cry and you cry alone!
The following members of MHF thanked Sonesta for this posting
Bookmarks
Watched Topics
