thinking about buying one off trademe so i can tow small car behind van. from wot i gather A frame bolts onto car mounting points and other end hitches to vans tow ball and car steers itself.can anyone confirm if these things are legal!
shuddupowh,
Feb 7, 12:12pm
Im sure it is, housebuses etc use them to tow their car with them so they can go places a bus is not ideal to be taken eg shopping.
tinytoolmans274,
Feb 7, 5:29pm
Down here in Southland every second vehicle has an A frame attached. Ok not that many but most contractors vehicles do.
jkm,
Feb 7, 6:19pm
The law is currently changing. There are weight restrictions and i believe the vehicle being towed cannot have been registered after year 2000.
It may have already happened as a limit on front end chassis mods for air bagged vehicles.
smac,
Feb 7, 8:05pm
Y'what now!
I've discussed A frames extensively with NZTA in the past (before I built mine). The upshot is they are legal, simply because the law doesn't say they aren't. It is legal to tow a vehicle, and it is not illegal to use a rigid join between vehicles rather than a rope. Because of this (ie you're just using a metal rope in effect) there are no actual standards for their construction or inspection. Just use your brain.
One thing to be aware of - you can't back a vehicle (very far) towed with an A frame - wheels on the towed vehicle will flop over to full lock because of the caster.
If any of this has changed, I'd be keen to see the legislation.
jokerboss,
Feb 7, 8:15pm
lights at night are a must
kcf,
Feb 7, 11:17pm
don't tow a car that has more front end grip, than the tow car has back end grip . my friend spun his Dad's Sigma (fwd) a-framing his Mini.
mantagsi,
Feb 8, 6:45am
I've got one that I've used in the past for towing my beach buggy and it actually works surprisingly well, not a bad idea. Have had a couple of tricky tight corners now and then but for getting around the place it worked a treat. Give it a shot!
petermcg,
Feb 8, 8:08am
Yes they legal, but if you get one make sure it is attached professionally,, do a good Job,, otherwise if one has a mishap it will bugger it up for all of us.
jkm,
Feb 8, 9:14am
Here is what I was referring to; FOR AN A-FRAME TO BE ATTACHED TO A VEHICLE PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING:
There has been a change in Warrant of Fitness regulations that has come into
effect as of 1st December 2010.
If the towed vechicle has a GVM (laden weight) of 2,500kg or less you can NOT attach
an A-Frame if any if the following apply;
Any car (sedan/station wagon/hatch) manufactured on or after 1st March 1999
Any car (sedan/station wagon/hatch) that was less than 20 years old when it was first registered in NZ on or after 1st April 2002
Any van/coach manufactured on or after the 1st October 2003
Any SUV/4WD manufactured on or after 1st October 2003
Taken from Probars website.
fordcrzy,
Feb 8, 9:18am
so you CANNOT tow your mid 90's hatch with an a frame if it was imported after 2002.thats going to stuff up the plans of the 55+ year old baby boomers
morrisman1,
Feb 8, 9:19am
if its gunna be that damn complicated, the local bobby wont know either
jkm,
Feb 8, 9:20am
Can still tow the Model A though!
pauldw,
Feb 8, 11:20am
The WOF manual actually states that the attachment has to be certified "???the vehicle is required to comply with a frontal impact occupant protection standard and the auxiliary bar: ??
smac,
Feb 8, 7:10pm
ahhh.ok, so regs applicable to driving around with an A frame folded up in front of you.
My one, and most I've seen on cars that get towed around by motor homes detach from the car easy peasy. So won't be on the car at WoF time, and won't be on the car when it is being driven (so frontal impact irrelevant).
However in saying that, I would guess attaching one to a newer car would be downright impossible with the bigass plastic bumpers and airbag sensors etc.
pauldw,
Feb 8, 7:43pm
How much metal is left bolted to the car!
smac,
Feb 8, 7:58pm
On mine! Nothing that matters. Minis usually have two tow 'eyes' that protrude through the front valance. I have replaced these with internally threaded hex bar that the A frame bolts into. They protrude no further than the original loops and all my bolts are 1/2" as opposite to the original which were much smaller, so it's all stronger than factory.
As for the motor home ones, no idea, but most seem to be on 80's -90's small cars. As above, don't know what they'll move to in the future, dolly maybe.
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