The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

I'm looking at buying a small caravan for some cheap weekends away next year to tow behind my 1500tc. Obviously it's not the best engine for towing but it's got an oil cooler and I don't mind pootling down the A38 at 55 mph. The maximum weight listed for towing is 560kg and will only need to be 2-3 berth. Can anyone issue any advice on towing with a Dolomite? Particularly a 1500. Any must do modifications?
I'd like a classic caravan to stay in keeping, could anyone recommend a good model?

560kg sounds very low, it is normally approx 80% of car weight. 500kg is the limit for an unbraked trailer (I think)

Anyway, towing is all about torque, and not letting the engine "labour"

As to caravans, how about a portafold or similar? or if flushed, Eribas are brilliant.

A trailer tent or a folding camper might be worth considering. I doubt there would be many caravans within the weight limit unless you get one of those teardop caravans or a lighweight one. Maybe you should consider using something else to tow with. If you're running a decent sized modern car alongside your 1500TC you could use that as your tow car instead.

Toledo Man wrote: Maybe you should consider using something else to tow with. If you're running a decent sized modern car alongside your 1500TC you could use that as your tow car instead.

The fun is towing an old caravan with an old car and not by a modern tin can.

I travelled many times with a 1000kg caravan to Italy pulled by an uprated 1850. I had to seriously modify the cooling and braking. Before i started using a sprint gearbox on that 1850 I had to change the original type gearbox once a year just after the holiday together with the rearwheel bearings. If you like your dolomite 1500 the best is to find a very light caravan.

Or buy an old volvo.

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Jeroen

I only run the one car these days which is the 1500. Perhaps you're right though when you say that the 560kg is unbraked. I'm currently saving like crazy for a legal situation I have found myself in so won't be buying anything until the spring anyway. Just thought I'd get a head start on the free research.

Most of the caravans of the same vintage as your 1500TC that are available will probably be in need of some TLC. Unfortnately, damp is the biggest problem with the main causes being leaks and condensation during non-use over the winter months. While this is fix-able the interior has to be stripped right back to the outer skin anything water damaged will have to be replaced. If you can find such a caravan without any major problems you might find that it suffers from lack of insuation and will lack some of the essentials. My own caravan is 25 years old but has a few of the mod cons found in newer vans so something from the 1980s & 1990s would be usable and yet be old enough to be considered "classic" (I use the term very loosely!). The single best thing you can to do protect your caravan is to get some dehumidifiers to remove the mositure from the air in the caravan interior when it is parked up especially during the winter months. Mine have the crystals which change colour as they absorb moisture and were well worth the money.

Your weight is braked. An 1850 and sprint have 750 kg braked max and unbraked 350. With good brakes and a decent engine 1000 kg is max and I think a 1500 would be engine wise 750 kg max.

Guess that means my Toldo (Tr7 engine/sprint box and axle) is not really the ting for towing my spitfire on a trailer down to the rolling road when it needs mapping......damn.

Towed a Dolomite on a trailer behind KAC.

0-60 eventually..........60-0 likewise

As has been mentioned in a previous post, a classic caravan would be best as they will tend to be significantly lighter than a modern model equipped with full washroom, central heating etc.
As a lad in the '70s my family had a 10ft Cavalier caravan which my dad towed all over Europe behind a Triumph Herald 1200, so a 1500TC should be able to cope ok with a similarly light caravan. If you're looking for a modern caravan, some of the new micro-vans, such as the Wingamm Rookie, have an MTPLM of 1000kg.
At the NEC the other week there was a Classic Caravan Club which I hadn't been aware of before. Might be worth contacting them for advice.

cliftyhanger wrote:Guess that means my Toldo (Tr7 engine/sprint box and axle) is not really the ting for towing my spitfire on a trailer down to the rolling road when it needs mapping......damn.

With car trailers you can do it, assuming you have the power, but if the towed weight exceeds the towing weight (likely in your case) you are restricted to 40 mph max. This is not a stupid restriction put there for the hell of it. A really heavy trailer can play hell with a light towcar and if it does start to snake, you can't power it back into line. Dealing with this takes both skill AND cojones of steel. Been there, done that! I pulled a MkII Zodiac Abbot estate on a large and heavy 4 wheel trailer behind another MkII Zodiac Abbot Estate from Somerset to London. Even using mostly motorway it took all day! No matter where I got the noseweight, the snakes set in at 35mph. I was absolutely wrecked when I got home! But I did it, I have a pic somewhere of the outfit taken in Radstock before we set off.

Steve

Other than for short distances, I think you might be expecting too much from a 1500TC. Two reasons, both mentioned before – cooling and brakes. Examples I can quote:

My son runs a gardening business and when his Mondeo needed work he borrowed my Sprint to tow the trailer he carries his gear in (350kg unbraked but with high sides). Even that had issues with coolant temperature, the electric fan struggling to keep the temperature below 100C when in town. Normally the radiator / fan set up never has issues when driven normally with no trailer. He also said he was surprised how much performance was affected, presumably from the additional weight and wind resistance on the high sides.

Some 15 years ago I used to tow my race Sprint on a braked trailer with a 2L, 110KW Nissan Primera. At 1350kg this was at the top of the recommended towing capacity. It could tow fine, but one day in heavy rain going down a hill at 55mph the car in front braked. I did the same but the car didn’t slow down at all, the ABS was banging away, but obviously there wasn’t enough grip for the total weight, even though it was within the recommended capacity. Fortunately the car in front saw and sped up! A very salutary lesson that I haven’t forgotten.

I now tow with a diesel XF Jag with an 1800kg towing capacity, but I’m always mindful of the additional weight and restricted ability to control and stop.

The legal requirement in NZ is that the fully laden car and trailer combination must be able to stop in less than 7 metres from 30kph. The implication is that this applies to the road condition when and where you are driving, so applies in the wet or dry. Not as easy as it first appears.

You might not mind pootling down the A38 at 55 mph, probably an ambitious speed with a caravan, but I’ll bet there’ll be a lot of people behind you that will unless you stop and let them past regularly!

Geoff

gmsclassics wrote: You might not mind pootling down the A38 at 55 mph, probably an ambitious speed with a caravan, but I’ll bet there’ll be a lot of people behind you that will unless you stop and let them past regularly!

Geoff

At 55mph you will already be breaking the legal limit which, as I'm sure you are aware, is 50mph unless the road is dualled!

There's a reason I have my Fourtrak, not just to save the Sprint some miles and winter salt, but it's 3,500kg towing capacity is epic.

There's a reason I have my Fourtrak, not just to save the Sprint some miles and winter salt, but it's 3,500kg towing capacity is epic.

Fourtrak? I tow my Sprint in style!

https://flic.kr/p/PbFUc7