[fleeced]

Ive been looking (well dreaming!) at small livestock trailers, i.e. Ifor p6 size, and lots of websites say it can be towed by a large family car, if anyone has a trailer that sized, what car do you tow it with? Thanks!

[Fleecewife]

We have a small sheep trailer - think it's called Trojan - single axle, max load 750kgs, unbraked, pretty similar to the Ivor Williams type. We tow it with the old Land Rovers and now a Subaru, previously a Mondeo estate - it tows beautifully, so you hardly know it's there.  There are rules and regs - inevitably - about just what weight you can tow braked and unbraked.  Worth checking out, but there are some people on here who know the exact regs (I store all that stuff in my OHs head  )  I have taken my little trailer all over the country full and empty. It only takes about 10 of our sheep at a squeeze, but that is enough for us.  It also carts manure, firewood, neeps, motorbikes, timber, furniture, hay, straw, piglets, rubbish and so on 

[Norfolk Newby]

One of the simpler rules of thumb for towing is to make sure the car is always heavier than the trailer.

Modern cars are quite powerful so there is a tendency to assume that a small powerful car will happily tow a large trailer.

The problem is that side winds and road camber will pull the trailer off course and the heavy trailer will take the car with it.

Therefore, choosing a 4X4 makes a good choice since their additional machinery makes them heavier than a similar size/seating capacity saloon. This is in addition to the 4X4's abilities on bad surfaces, steep slopes etc.

I have an automatic 4X4 which pulls my horse box very nicely. Pulling away up a slope is no problem and changing gear is just one less task to worry about. Modern (well maintained!) brakes mean that engine braking is less of an issue. So controlling the car's speed by changing down and using the engine to slow the car isn't so necessary.

You can get a driving course on trailer towing at some driving schools now. If you haven't tried towing a trailer, this is worthwhile to give you some experience before setting off on your own. My wife and I did this and it was very useful. If you have got your driving licence recently, you may need to pass another driving test for towing as well. But even if you have had your licence a long time, I would recommend some instruction.

[Collie26]

If you past your driving test after 1997 then you must pass a trailer test

[Womble]

Hiya, We have the P7e, in the following spec, which suits our needs absolutely perfectly:

• Livestock kit (self explanatory, but the canopy is also good for keeping loads dry in nasty weather). Also seriously debating using the top as the roof for a pig ark next year!! 
• High mesh sides (Really useful for carting things other than livestock!)
• Wide "Floatation" tyres (possibly a little more drag and trailer width, but worth it on muddy ground)
• Jockey Wheel (standard trailer only came with a prop stand at the front, which was utterly useless!)
• Single prop stand at rear (ok, the original front one moved back - Enables you to stand in to load furniture etc without it tipping up)

Also, we bought the P7e rather than the P6e, and have been very glad of the extra length, although I know it costs a bit more. The P7e also weighs more than the P6e though, so this may swing you in favour of the smaller model if towing behind a car. Have you tried phoning Ifor Williams? They were incredibly helpful when I tried them. Also, your local caravan dealer will probably be able to tell you what your car can legally tow braked and un-braked.

Anyhow, for light loads such as a dismantled 6x4 shed last night, or a few sheep, I would have no hesitation towing it behind my 1.6 diesel Focus. For heavy loads such as logs or rocks (this is one hard working wee trailer!!), I always tow using the 4x4, as I really don't think the car would have enough power. I did try to find out how much the Focus would tow legally, but my local dealer tried to put me onto the Ford helpline at £1.50 a minute  , so needless to say, I didn't bother trying, and just make sure I use the Landy for anything heavy.

[hughesy]

All vehicles have a maximum towing capacity which is set by the manufacturer. While the plod will probably be unaware of what can tow what if anything bad happens you can be sure the insurance company wiluse everything at their disposal to avoid a pay out.

[Red]

I have a Panda 4x4 which is capable of towing up to 3 sheep in a small trailor ... very easy to park!

[fleeced]

Thanks everyone, lots of really helpful and useful things to think about. Ive seen the Bateson 12 LT trailer too which I like the look of, I think I need to go look at a few trailers to help make a decision about what I want etc!

[waterhouse]

Most family cars will tow 1500 to 1800 kg and that goes for the little 4*4s too, but braked loads are often double unbraked.  That still means that all the single deck Ifor Williams sheep trailers can be safely towed cos the heavier ones are braked.

The problem comes with the horse trailers: my IW 510 weighs 1100kg empty and a pair of hunters is a bit more.  Add some water and fodder and you've got 2.5 tonnes for which a serious 4wd is needed.  My Nissan is rated at 3 tonnes, the Range Rover will haul 3.5tonnes braked.   The IW trailers are wonderful to tow with, utterly stable.

Should also mention that a horse trailer makes a great feed store.

[fleeced]

Most family cars will tow 1500 to 1800 kg and that goes for the little 4*4s too, but braked loads are often double unbraked.  That still means that all the single deck Ifor Williams sheep trailers can be safely towed cos the heavier ones are braked.

The problem comes with the horse trailers: my IW 510 weighs 1100kg empty and a pair of hunters is a bit more.  Add some water and fodder and you've got 2.5 tonnes for which a serious 4wd is needed.  My Nissan is rated at 3 tonnes, the Range Rover will haul 3.5tonnes braked.   The IW trailers are wonderful to tow with, utterly stable.

Should also mention that a horse trailer makes a great feed store.

Yes horses soon add a fair bit of weight too anything! We had a horsebox when I used to take mine out and about as my mare refuses point blank to get in trailers!

[waterhouse]

Ah, a posh mare!

[fleeced]

Posh isnt the word Id use... Pain in the.... might be more like it  

[Antz]

Try finding your car on here http://www.gocaravanning.com/cars/towcars.html
Will tell you what weight you can safely tow.
We used to tow a small Sinclair horse trailer with one horse in it with a Citroën C5, coped well enough.
The posh mare would only ever load on the lorry, until we upgraded the trailer to an equitrek which she loves to ride in. The old Sinclair is now used to store a couple of big hay bales.

[TheCaptain]

If you past your driving test after 1997 then you must pass a trailer test

No, you don't.

[robert waddell]

i was under the impresion you had to sit a seperate test for towing a trailor you will need to pass on your info
heard recently of a 16 year old that past his tractor test and was carting silage with the high capacity trailors  is that legal or not (on the highway)