Towing A-Frame/Dolly and the law

[crofty1984]

Hello all, a bit of a two parter.
First part: Assume I already have the racing car, it is road legal, taxed, insured and my intention is this -> Drive it to a race, race it and drive back. If I have a prang then dad will keep a towing frame in the truck and he can get it home. (Note, I could do with a definition between dolly and a frame Something to do with one lifts the front wheels of the towed car off the rod I guess) First, is this ok? I've seen some stuff about being for "recovery only", which it would be. What are the rules if it's not recovery and I just don't fancy driving it to another race?

Second Part: at the moment the car I'm thinking of getting is NOT road legal. Would it be possible to use either of these methods to get it home from the seller/to the MOT.

The car will weigh 1000kg. (BMW E30)

[Jefftav]

Hi Mate, I am no expert but have had to move my restoration project around so have a tiny bit of knowledge.

Your car must be insured for the road. An A Frame fixes to the car and the car remains on 4 wheels and I don't think anyone needs to sit in the car as the towing car does all the work. You will off course need a trailer board with the towcars number plate and working lights. A dolly has wheels so the car only runs on 2 wheels(rears), again I think a trailer board is required. If the car is lowered then these can be awkward to use. A solid drawbar is OK but someone needs to steer the car and the relevant number plate as effectively the car being towed is a trailer. If a vehicle is sorned it can't be towed on a public road you have to use a transporter as all 4 wheels have to be off the ground.

If your dad has a truck a trailer might be a good investment for you.

[paintman]

Have a look through the following links.
Dollies can only be used to recover a vehicle from its broken down location to - effectively - the nearest place of safety. That doesn't mean halfway across the country! You may bring up the subject of the dollies used by many AA vehicles, but in the links below you will note they are regarded as 'specialist breakdown vehicles'
An A-frame is viewed as a trailer and a trailer with a weight over 750kg must be braked. With very few exceptions (the caratow link but if your car is damaged then unlikely this would be of any use) an A-frame will not comply with the law other than the removal to a place of safety aspect.
So you will need a proper trailer to remain legal. And you will need to comply with the driving licence requirements for trailers.
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/vehicles/vssafety/...
http://www.caratow.com/
http://www.quattroforum.com/forum/general-technica... (prosecuted & fined)
http://www.gmb.org.uk/Templates/PressItems.asp?Nod... (letters from DFT re the AA & other organisations breaking the law using the VRS dolly)
http://www.recoveryuk.com/laws.html (Essex Police 'Breakdown vehicle' 'Recovery truck' 'driving licence requirements')

You could of course chance your luck, but if you get a prohibition notice it makes life a bit difficult!
And you are also assuming that if you do have a bump on the track that the vehicle won't need trailering anyway

Edited by paintman on Monday 18th January 23:45

[thinfourth2]

Part 1a

If you intend to race it and then drive home there is a bloody good chance that your tyres will at some point end up below the legal limit so you will need to drag a spare set of road tyres to the track

Part 1b

If you do prang it and you remove a front corner how are you going to get the front wheels on the towing dolly?

Part 1c

If you roll it how are you going to get the metal ball on the towing dolly.

Part 1b

If you blow a diff how are you going to get it home with the rear wheels locked


Get the idea yet.

Just buy or hire a trailer it is by far the simplest and easiest solution by a long long way.