A bit more comparison of the figures provided by the manufacturers.
I have added some other common vehicles and have shown the comparison of 80% and 90% of maximum towing rating. The figures continue to be a little eye opening.
It still assumes that each vehicle would only have 10% of that 80%/90% of maximum towing rating as a ball weight. I understand there is always variation in towball weight for any van as everyone loads their van differently.
The assumption of passenger weight is open to variation and the weight allocated to "bullbar" is an indication only for accessories etc which may not be applicable to many owners as they do not have bullbars etc ... but there may be other items added to the vehicle.
If any of the vehicles were loaded to their GVM and towing the van at 80% of the maximum towing rating, they would be heavier than the van. However, if towing 90% of the maximum towing rating some become a little lighter than the van.
I have now shown GCM against both 80% and 90% of maximum towing rating. Makes it interesting.
I know there are some who tow upto the maximum 3,500Kg vans because the brochure and salesman said so. Unfortunately, time will overtake them when those nasty authorities finally get their act together.
Interestingly, it would appear on the numbers in this 'snapshot' that towing a van that is only 80% of the maximum towing rating it would be easier with one of the available utes or their 'SUV' alternatives to stay within GVM.
I doubt it would be possible to provide a 'snapshot' of a collection of vehicles that could come close to each owner's use and packing of their vehicle.
I am still not trying in any way to provide conclusive information/advice to the owner of any particular vehicle - simply to provide a 'snapshot' display on how manufacturers, dealers and salesmen/women of both van's and vehicles don't really tell the actual story ... a 'snapshot' on how difficult it is to stay under GVM in many cases and the weight of the van on the GCM.
OH, and despite what some will think, I am NOT showing any bias to ANY particular make/model. At the risk of seeming boastful, my vehicle and van, as I am set up, are well within their weights - including axle weights.
I have included the spreadsheet as it is easier to read ... otherwise, this are 'snapshots' of the data
John, thank you for the interesting read before I have my afternoon nap.
Its was interesting the other day I caught up with a friend who was for a time a new car saleman and he was over the moon with his latest vehicle, one with a 2500kgs towing capacity,
I said to him I thought it was a new car as the tow bar looked fresh, then looking harder at it I noticed this sticker in black and white 2500kgs maximum. I read the sticker out loud asking him how heavy is your caravan, it just went straight over his head skipped though the car park, gone forever.
You can guess the rest, yep caravan has a tare weight of 2500kgs plus.
How can we help these people who have invested heavily in there set ups with no knowledge of weights and measures.
The LC200 can be upgraded to 3800 GVM and 4000 BTC, via lovells kit
This upgrade can be inspected by an auto engineer who will certify the upgrade which in turn allows the rego docs to be updated together with any compliance plates on the car.
There is no formal published GCM for the LC200, on the rego docs the GCM is marked as 0kg, all vehicle plates are silent on the matter.
There is an extensive discussion on this on the LCOOL forum.
G'day John,
Brilliant but is there an error in your chart?
You have two IZUZU D-Max vehicles - one in the top group, one in the bottom & each with different figures. Is one of these supposed to be the Pajero? I'd guess it is a popular tow car.
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Warren
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If you don't get it done today, there's always tomorrow!
John, thank you for the interesting read before I have my afternoon nap.
Its was interesting the other day I caught up with a friend who was for a time a new car saleman and he was over the moon with his latest vehicle, one with a 2500kgs towing capacity,
I said to him I thought it was a new car as the tow bar looked fresh, then looking harder at it I noticed this sticker in black and white 2500kgs maximum. I read the sticker out loud asking him how heavy is your caravan, it just went straight over his head skipped though the car park, gone forever.
You can guess the rest, yep caravan has a tare weight of 2500kgs plus.
How can we help these people who have invested heavily in there set ups with no knowledge of weights and measures.
Enjoy Ralph.
Many will slip through the net, potentially to our detriment if we're driving anywhere near them. Maybe random roadside checks by traffic authorities will do us all a favour. Those who take the time to pay attention to weights and ratings will having nothing to fear.
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Cheers,
Tony
"Opinion is the medium between ignorance and knowledge" - Plato
I think this is an excellent initiative Rocky. One alteration to consider is using the range of Tare/Kerb weights for what are ostensibly "the same vehicle", where options effectively decrease the margins available for payload and towing. I do realise that sometimes this range of weights can be difficult to extract from the manufacturer's data. Notwithstanding... a great job ğ
I do understand, and accept, the difficulty in providing 'iron-clad' figures in such an exercise, there are so many variables, quite apart from the way manufacturers state their numbers. Which is why I said this in the OP -
"I am still not trying in any way to provide conclusive information/advice to the owner of any particular vehicle - simply to provide a 'snapshot' display on how manufacturers, dealers and salesmen/women of both van's and vehicles don't really tell the actual story ... a 'snapshot' on how difficult it is to stay under GVM in many cases and the weight of the van on the GCM."
Cheers - John
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