Just towed my Eriba caravan for first time which was fine and car was really good. Only issue is noseweight I understand max is 50kg so managing to keep under this is difficult wondered if there are any spring associate or something which would allow noseweight to be higher?

Usually noseweight refers to additional weight on the front of the car...very rare to increase.....with reguards to towing....it's ball weight.....weight on the tow ball...eg how much weight that end of the caravan etc rests on the towball...thats the one to watch besides the total load of the caraven etc and the full load of the car which should not excced the max the car can cope with.

It's the weight of the caravan hitch onto the towball I am talking about which is supposed to be 50kg max for the Roomster I understand

50kgs is nothing really....I weigh 73kgs!....wouldn't worry about it.....doubt if the caravan ball weight is greater than 40kgs......get some blocks up to the same height of the towball under the tow hitch...put a set of bathroom weighing scales on the blocks and rest the tow hitch on the scales....this will tell you the weight of the caravan on the tow ball.....as to the springs for the car......would only bother if you are always going to carry a heavy load in the back of the car (fully laden) with the caravan all the time!

The maximum nose weight for a trailer will normally be in the region of 25 to 50 Kg for a car. You just need to load the trailer evenly.

Rob.

50kgs is nothing really....I weigh 73kgs!....wouldn't worry about it.....doubt if the caravan ball weight is greater than 40kgs......get some blocks up to the same height of the towball under the tow hitch...put a set of bathroom weighing scales on the blocks and rest the tow hitch on the scales....this will tell you the weight of the caravan on the tow ball.....as to the springs for the car......would only bother if you are always going to carry a heavy load in the back of the car (fully laden) with the caravan all the time!

The 'natural' nose weight of caravans varies hugely, and can often approach 80kg. The Roomster's limit is legal rather than physical. It can cope with more than 50kg, but if you ave an accident, some insurers will use excessive nose weight to refuse to pay out. Get a nose weight gauge, and then pack the caravan to hit 50kg. If you need to reduce nose weight, consider lightweight gas canisters like the CalorLite, and pack heavy stuff low down just behind the axle.

Stuart

I tow an Eriba Familia 520 with a Yeti 140 se and like your experience with your Roomster it tows just fine. With regards to caravan noseweight I put 90% of our touring kit in the Eriba and that amounts to a fair bit including awning etc and I just about get 45kg registering on the noseweight gauge so just a couple of things; have you actually tested the load in your trailer and do you pack the heavy kit over the axle, you might find that you too don't quite get to an overload situation with your kit.

Edited 30 May, 201115 yr by Pit-Yaka

I tow an Eriba Familia 520 with a Yeti 140 se and like your experience with your Roomster it tows just fine. With regards to caravan noseweight I put 90% of our touring kit in the Eriba and that amounts to a fair bit including awning etc and I just about get 45kg registering on the noseweight gauge so just a couple of things; have you actually tested the load in your trailer and do you pack the heavy kit over the axle, you might find that you too don't quite get to an overload situation with your kit.

Have you found the Eriba forum? http://www.eribaforum.co.uk/cgi-bin/forum_show.pl

Stuart

One of the issues is that towing stability is generally better the higher the noseweight (provided the towcar can cope with it). 50kg is common with mid-sized cars, 75kg common with larger ones. You need to try and load the caravan so it has the maximum noseweight your car will allow - 50kg in this instance. You should also try and carry as little weight in the caravan as possible, and any heavy items you have to put in the caravan should be near the axles, as central and low as possible. I use bathroom scales and a length of wood under the caravan's tow hitch to check the noseweight every time I hitch up - if the noseweight is too high then take some weight out of the front locker (the gas bottle usually goes in the car when I tow - again, as low and central as possible). Just as important is to make sure that the caravan weighs less than 85% of the weight of the towcar. Try weighing everything you put in the caravan (and I mean everything!) and you may be surprised how much you are overloading it - spare wheel, gas bottle, awning etc. add up to quite a lot before you even start with crockery and bedding. Heavy stuff in the car, light stuff in the caravan - and if you are struggling for space in the car, consider a topbox (but only put light stuff up there!)

Although it may be quite safe to exceed the manufacturer's recommended noseweight by 50% or so, it isn't something you should do, and in my opinion it isn't necessary. A properly loaded caravan can be surprisingly stable in my experience - but get it wrong and it will be a nightmare. I once experimented by putting enough weight in the back of the caravan to make the noseweight neutral (i.e. 0kg) and test drove on a deserted road without a stabiliser. The resulting snaking was something I don't want to experience again. Ever. I am very fussy about how the van is loaded now, and I always use a stabiliser (although I don't think the stabiliser is ever needed during the normal course of events, but it would probably help in the event of a puncture or similar incident)

HTH,

Simon

One of the issues is that towing stability is generally better the higher the noseweight (provided the towcar can cope with it). 50kg is common with mid-sized cars, 75kg common with larger ones. You need to try and load the caravan so it has the maximum noseweight your car will allow - 50kg in this instance. You should also try and carry as little weight in the caravan as possible, and any heavy items you have to put in the caravan should be near the axles, as central and low as possible. I use bathroom scales and a length of wood under the caravan's tow hitch to check the noseweight every time I hitch up - if the noseweight is too high then take some weight out of the front locker (the gas bottle usually goes in the car when I tow - again, as low and central as possible).

HTH,

Simon

It may be a remote possibility, but I really wouldn't want to be trapped in a car after an accident with a gas cylinder. Better to use lightweight cylinders - eg CalorLite - safely secured in the locker.

Stuart

It may be a remote possibility, but I really wouldn't want to be trapped in a car after an accident with a gas cylinder. Better to use lightweight cylinders - eg CalorLite - safely secured in the locker.

Stuart

I don't see it as any greater risk than a car running on LPG, and probably less risk than a car with a petrol tank. Each to his own, though . . .

Just towed my Eriba caravan for first time which was fine and car was really good. Only issue is noseweight I understand max is 50kg so managing to keep under this is difficult wondered if there are any spring associate or something which would allow noseweight to be higher?

Slightly off topic, does anyone having the Skoda detachable towbar know if you get the removable panel to cover the hole when not using it, as you do on the Yeti?

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Slightly off topic, does anyone having the Skoda detachable towbar know if you get the removable panel to cover the hole when not using it, as you do on the Yeti?<br />

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At least on the facelift models the removable panel covers the hole. I didn't even see the hole at first

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Slightly off topic, does anyone having the Skoda detachable towbar know if you get the removable panel to cover the hole when not using it, as you do on the Yeti?

I had to buy the panel as an extra. It's only a few quid but it has to be painted if you want it to match the bumper.

I had to buy the panel as an extra. It's only a few quid but it has to be painted if you want it to match the bumper.

Thanks for that, I've managed to get the part-number now from a spares web site, had forgotten it would need matching up as well. Cheers.

Just returned from our first trip towing our aged Sprite Musketeer with the Roomster.

Very impressed. It comfortably keeps up with motorway traffic, no signs of instability even when overtaking lorries in a crosswind, hardly ever needed to drop out of top gear on the hills, and returned 30mpg average over a 550 mile round trip (all bar 80 miles on motorway). With it being slightly taller than your average car I even had a bit of vision in the rear view mirror through the caravan. Excellent.

Noseweight 50kg, caravan weight probably about 900kg all up. 3 adults plus luggage, awning, gas bottle, and a few crates of beer in the car. Scott stabiliser fitted.

What Roomster do you tow with is it the 1.9tdi ?

What Roomster do you tow with is it the 1.9tdi ?

Yes, the Roomster Scout 1.9tdi. I don't know if the Scout makes much difference from the other variants, possibly tyre size may be different, but I think the other changes are mainly cosmetic.

Considering my two previous cars were Audi A6 2.5tdi avants (last one a Quattro), I was probably going to be a bit critical of this car, but in all honesty, after over 3 years of use, and now towing the caravan with it as well, I am very impressed. It hasn't quite got the quality of finish or the refinement of the Audi, but it costs a fraction of the price both to buy and run, so no complaints there. Surprisingly, I think the brakes on the Skoda are a tiny bit better than the Audi's - the Audi was underbraked for its weight and performance IMHO, and I haven't managed to make the brakes on the Roomster fade yet. I am a fan!

Just back from France where we towed our (non-folding) Esterel with a max weight of 850kg. I got over 27mpg towing with a petrol tiptronic, that doesn't seem bad if you only got 30mpg from a 1.9 TDI.

Just back from France where we towed our (non-folding) Esterel with a max weight of 850kg. I got over 27mpg towing with a petrol tiptronic, that doesn't seem bad if you only got 30mpg from a 1.9 TDI.

I get 36 towing an 1100kg Eriba with a 1.9tdi.

Stuart

I get about same towing my Eriba Triton