Can you tow an E30 with a (A frame)

[steve1066]

Can you tow an E30 with a (A frame)

[bodger]

yes

[whipsey]

be careful though the a frame i have tends to crush front bumpers and panels

[steve1066]

Thank lads
steve

[zaust]

As long as it is not auto....

[gazza]

be carefull on not exceeding the maximum train weight permitted or if a e30 tows another e30 the rear car should not exceed the weight of the towing car ...you could run into legal problems if caught

[Cabrio]

only issue is lower valance...I would reccommend removing spoiler/trim etc as will damage

[ShepsEvo3]

I tried towing a 1972 3.0 CSL with a Discovery using an A frame. Damn CSL kept wanting to turn right. Had to have a mate tow me while I sat in the CSL steering.... for 200 miles

[gazm3]

As mentioned above they tend to trash Is lip spoilers or anything similiar or bigger.

[DanThe]

The weight of the vehicle being towed should not exceed 75% of the towing vehicle.

I have had a transit van jack knifing many a time by trying to pull E34's

[Brianmoooore]

There's nothing in law, per se, about the weight of a towing vehicle relative to the weight of what's being towed. (I'm assured by my brother in law, who's an expert on all things towing).
Artic tractor units tow trailers much heavier than the unit, for example.
There are plenty of other regulations you might contravene, but there's nothing actually says that you can't tow heavier than the car.
The E34 on a trailer I once towed behind my touring was pushing it a bit though!

If I was towing an E30 on an A frame, I would remove the front bumper and try to fix the A frame to the bumper mounts.

[2002is]

i know for 100% certain you cannot a frame an e34, i turn left the e34 goes straight on, i turn right.........yep e34 goes straight on, i go straight on the e34 wanders!!!!
i went to scotland (from cornwall) and found out at 9.30pm that i needed to return with a trailer so i did!
bloody 2400miles AND 4 days travling, over £300 in fuel to get a non runner M5

i have a framed a few 1602 bmw's and also a citroen zx and not had a problem
so has anybody actually used an a frame with a e30??

im sure if the bumper has to come off thats not a big problem, however what i am sure about is if you use the a frame and the car dosnt turn with you then your in the shit!


can anybody try/advise on this

[Brianmoooore]

E34 has recirculating ball steering, and I'm not sure how that reacts to working " the wrong way around".
Rack and pinion on an E30 should be OK, (as long as you remember to unlock the steering!)

[murran]

cant you borrow/rent a trailer?
me a couple of months ago.....


also an m20b25 in the boot of my touring. sat on the bumpstops at the back!

[Loony]

The car itself if in contact with the road should be roadworthy ie tax and mot and also insured.If not then it should be on a trailer.

With regards to the weight issue
Police Forces use the manufacturer's recommended towing limit as their guide. Under no circumstances should the vehicle's gross train weight be exceeded.If you go over this then you could run into problems.

Also when a vehicle is towed using an A-Frame attachment it becomes a trailer and needs to comply with trailer regs.

Any trailer over 750KGS gross weight must be braked.

However if any brakes are fitted they must work on the overrun of the trailer, and must produce an efficiency of 50%

The combination must also be able to be reversed.

Offences would usually be in relation to the braking system not operational (con&use regs), and perhaps using a prohibited vehicle on a motorway (Motorway regs).

[essexboy]

so has anybody actually used an a frame with a e30??

me and my dad towed my old white e30 on an a frame but it wasnt a good idea, as you said the car wanted to go the opposite way everytime you turned unless the steering lock wass left on which you wasnt meant to do, but we got home from the 30 ish mile trip with the front tyres squealing

[2002is]

so has anybody actually used an a frame with a e30??

me and my dad towed my old white e30 on an a frame but it wasnt a good idea, as you said the car wanted to go the opposite way everytime you turned unless the steering lock wass left on which you wasnt meant to do, but we got home from the 30 ish mile trip with the front tyres squealing

this is what i thought was going to happen!


the trouble with a trailer is

you need a towbar
towing is slow while empty (60mph)
drinks fuel while empty
costs £50 or so to hire
while towing is very slow and drinking lots more fuel than just an a frame
and at todays fuel prices that works out to about 2.5hours and £40 in fuel more than an a frame
oh and its a 550mile round trip
think the best way for this car is get a lift there, then a mot failure sheet, insure it and drive it home

was thinking about a dolly but need towbar, slow etc not as bad as a trailer but the car that needs towing has been lowered so might drag on the floor with a towing dolly

[essexboy]

so has anybody actually used an a frame with a e30??

me and my dad towed my old white e30 on an a frame but it wasnt a good idea, as you said the car wanted to go the opposite way everytime you turned unless the steering lock wass left on which you wasnt meant to do, but we got home from the 30 ish mile trip with the front tyres squealing

this is what i thought was going to happen!


the trouble with a trailer is

you need a towbar
towing is slow while empty (60mph)
drinks fuel while empty
costs £50 or so to hire
while towing is very slow and drinking lots more fuel than just an a frame
and at todays fuel prices that works out to about 2.5hours and £40 in fuel more than an a frame
oh and its a 550mile round trip
think the best way for this car is get a lift there, then a mot failure sheet, insure it and drive it home

was thinking about a dolly but need towbar, slow etc not as bad as a trailer but the car that needs towing has been lowered so might drag on the floor with a towing dolly

wouldnt you need a towbar for an aframe

[murran]

550 miles! trailer trailer trailer.

60 mph while empty? mine did 80 just fine pulling it while empty.........
anyway 60 is the most economical speed to drive at?

find a car a little nearer to you?

drive it back £550 miles? is it reliable enuf?

[daimlerman]

There's nothing in law, per se, about the weight of a towing vehicle relative to the weight of what's being towed. (I'm assured by my brother in law, who's an expert on all things towing).
Artic tractor units tow trailers much heavier than the unit, for example.
There are plenty of other regulations you might contravene, but there's nothing actually says that you can't tow heavier than the car.
The E34 on a trailer I once towed behind my touring was pushing it a bit though!

If I was towing an E30 on an A frame, I would remove the front bumper and try to fix the A frame to the bumper mounts.

Artic's are designed for their job!The trailer is partly superimposed upon the towing vehicle so that the weight is distributed over ALL axles of the towing unit. The trailer brakes are operated by the footbrake of the unit in such a way as to cause them to apply very slightly ahead of the towing unit(EBC). Not a fair comparison to a car/trailer combination.

[2002is]

a frame needing a towbar

LOL yea good piont LOL what the feck was i thinking about!!


i was proberly thinking that somebody can collect the a frame without a tow bar but a dolly or trailer would ALWAYS need a tow bar
i dont own an a frame but borrow one off a friend and the wife collects it for me when im at work
no way would she tow a dolly or a trailer!!

LOL what a knob

the car was £600 but then again it is 225 miles away, couldnt find anything nearer as i live in cornwall and anything 318is fetchs a primuim IF it ever comes up
i want a car now so i can get used to it ready for the spring as thats when i am going to start the project

im now wondering how far are you allowed to drive with a failure sheet?
insurance is not a problem as i can change it from my suzuki vitara (anybody want to buy a vitara??) its the time involved getting it through an mot as the plan is.........
get a lift back to slough on sat 5th jan, mot/fail sheet on the sat and drive home on the same day.
reliable?
WHO KNOWS??
if it stops ill have to AA it the rest of the way but im not sure that they have to recover if there is no TAX on it BUT if slough to cornwall isnt to far legaly to drive on a failure sheet then its legaly on the road so they will have to recover it.

im guessing that it will make it though just take it easy and keep a regular eye on oil and water all the way home

[Cabrio]

Loony...actually speaks sense...take his advice

A frames are great for short trips (attaching arms/chains to lower arms (not rack) securely)...still need lights or an additional driver for signals...if you come across a traffic officer who knows his job will be in trouble if both cars are not legal.

For the sake of £50 for a trailer or paying someone then is the safer option Vs the possible consequences

Choice is yours but there are risks and costs with all options...if towing a long way get a trailer as you will potentially be breaking so many laws and possibly costing you more...dont take the chance

Where are you as may know someone with a trailer

[2002is]

trailer will just take toooooooo long
i think im going to go with the mot failure sheet idea
who knows it might even pass!
a frame im pretty sure wont work and as stated brakes may cause a bit of a problem the tow car is an E34 525 estate so no problem stopping just legal issuses here.
i a framed the 1602 from newcastle last week at 90mph in one scary moment but only for about 300miles no more the rest of the time i was only doing about 70!

JOKE
the 525 didnt hardly know it was there! does 48mpg@85 empty and 34.9mpg@70 with 02 behind

with an e30 estate and trailer it will know about it alright and will drop to around 25mpg if im lucky
so after all said and done the mot route is going to be the better bet for sure.

anybody know how far is too far for this idea?

i cant seem to find ANYTHING about it on the net.
as far as i know/understand you are allowed to drive to an mot station without mot or tax PROVIED the car is
booked into the mot station
you are going the shortest, non-stop route
it is in road worthy condition as to the best of your knowledge (whos knowledge mechanic or solicter?)
and you have insurance
but i cant find out how far you are allowed to drive.
IE do they say closest? NO
ive spoken to friends (pub talk) and they all say that you wouldnt be allowed to drive that far, when i ask WHY? they simply say, oh its just to far!
yea right good job they arnt running the country

where/how do you find out?

[whipsey]

if you towed with an a frame last week you must have a tow bar a towing dolling would raise the front wheels so would be a better option imo

[Cabrio]

It has been done before...but if something happens be prepared for a Police man/woman with a sense of humour failure.....think about it....why would you do it in their eyes/minds....

Ignorance is bliss sometimes so maybe you will get away with it if you dont breakdown or involved in an accident or get stopped...or tell them you thought it was legal BUT it is supposed to be an MOT you would normally use that is local to you...agreed that is what you are doing ....but common sense would say that it would also be local to the car

Dont know what its failed on but can you fix it and put it in for MOT local to the car!! then drive it home

Make sure you are also insured...and remember if there is no tax you could get pulled

[Cabrio]

Also a transporter collected a car from Hertfordshire the other week from Nottingham and charged the guy about £100...less than the fuel for you as they were delivering a car to London and wanted something for the return journey...just a thought and likely to be less than the fuel....

[murran]

mmmmmmm. towed that e21 229 miles homeover 500 in total, took a whole day starting at half 7 int morning + got home bout 9. cost bout £100 in petrol in my 320i touring.
its only a day, its only money!!!
just get a trailer. takes away all the unknowns, questions and stress!!

[Loony]

If you go the mot route then it would need to pass or at least not fail on anything serious enough.If it failed on tires,brakes or anythimg else importent enough you could start to get into a serious problem should something happen.Lets say on the way home you was involved in a serious rtc and the police check your car over and after checking with vosa (mot) they find it failed that day on those issues.i think you can see where this could lead.Then if the car is not roadworthy will your insurance company use this as an excuse to say its not insured.If its not mot'd then you can not tax it.Therefore driving home you are going to ping every anpr camera on the roadside and in every police car so you may as well place a big sign on the back saying pull me over.Then when they do pull you over what are they going to say about the distance you are driving on a faliure sheet and the issues it failed on.If it passes an mot then fair enough.If it is not taxed thats two offences there,the offence of failing to display(police issue)and failing to have tax (dvla issue).
The problems you can start to run into are never ending.My advise get a trailer.

[Cabrio]

Loony ... I think we have made it clear...if he does it and gets lucky he will only try it again until he does come a cropper...or gets done by a copper...ho ho

I think he is the loony...as you say if the car has roadworthy issues...then it spells trouble with a capital T

Its difficult for me to understand as I have a trailer and trade plates, and I did use an A frame in the past and although I was ignorant to the facts I was lucky...but now sensible enough to not take that chance again...my A frame has not been used for 8 years maybe longer...maybe I will put it on ebay....cheers and Happy New Year

[2002is]

i think im driving it as im getting a lift there now
£0
petrol home £30

mot needs doing anyway £45-£50

possibly fix little problems in slough but yes you are correct if they are major failures then im in a spot for sure.
the cars lowered so i think it will drag with a dolly PLUS still got the weight issue 75% and all that
trailer nope nobody i know has one, cant get one till people go back after the 2nd and more than a day inc picking it up (always working) and giving back (always working) a frame isnt a great idea due to legals and steering.
might speak to the fella and ask him to run it in for mot that way ive got a choice if it fails badly
plus i can argue on the price if it does (possibly)
may have to look into transport companys but they normaly want £1 a mile UNLESS WITH lots of homework/emails etc i can find somebody who is coming to cornwall empty for a pick up this end

[Cabrio]

Other option is to store till ready...do know a storage company not far away..charge between £7-£15 a week...good luck...but dont break the law its not worth more likely to be stopped also this time of year and now you know the score likely to be more careful but also more nervous

[Brianmoooore]

Book the thing in for an MOT and drive it home afterwards. It's a BMW E30, not a three year old Ford, so the chances are it'll pass, unless the previous owner knows something, and that's the reason it's for sale!
Insurance cover can be provided for £10 for the day by one of the online insurers who do this. (Dayinsure from Norich Union, for instance). Make sure you carry the paperwork with you.
Tax won't be an issue, as long as you have some kind of proof that you've just bought the car and as you are legally returning home from a MOT. Possibly a good idea to back tax it to the beginning of the month, for a belt and braces approach.

[murran]

chances are itll pass??? mine had been off the road for 2 1/2 years before i bought it! would have had bout 3 red sheets if id have put it straight in for a test!

[Cabrio]

Brian...that was a risky statement they are now prone to so many issues if not been maintained or had dodgy mot's in past....even when not used for a while and with little mileage between mot I have had failures from MOT inspectors I know well....its their job at the end of the day and cant take risks these days....but yes I have also got lucky and cars I expected to fail have also passed...generally the E30 is a great car and robust BUT beware things like tyres, brakes, corrosion and all those silly things

[Brianmoooore]

Out of the 15 or so E30s that I've bought, nearly all have been driven home on their wheels and under their own power. When I've inspected them on the ramp, I've never found anything other than minor MOT failure points. Nothing that would make any one of them dangerous to drive.