transit mk6/7 mini artic

[Transit 04]

Were did you get the chrome light bar on the bottom of ur van from? Nice mini artic aswell.

[rwd lynch]

Were did you get the chrome light bar on the bottom of ur van from? Nice mini artic aswell.

it came from a company in ireland called pipefab.

[MrMPuk]

http://www.pipefab.ie/

[sportacus]

stunning !!! put a private plate on it

[sportacus]

im looking to buy a mk6 to convert into a horsebox, after seeing that i will be putting a mk7 front on it

[transitandy]

love it

[transit van]

Very Smart

Any info about air supply for trailer braking and dealing with suzzie connections .

[C & S direct]

Hi there. Just retired with lots of tools and energy. I fancy building a transit mini artic and trailer as a camper unit to travel around the UK and Europe. I like the look of your project tranny converted from a Tipper. What do your reckon the conversion will cost together with the purchase price of the Tipper. What BHP engine does it have and what gross train weight will it pull/would it pull

Will you be at Transitmania in September. I live 35 minutes from there and would love to see what you're doing.

Thanks Alibabared Bedford

yes i'll be at transitmania, a couple of pics of it finished.

That is WICKED a job done

[rwd lynch]

Very Smart

Any info about air supply for trailer braking and dealing with suzzie connections .

the air comes from a small 12v twin compressor, this fills an air tank so theres always air to work the brakes on the trailer and the air bags on the transit.

[Guy88]

Very Smart

Any info about air supply for trailer braking and dealing with suzzie connections .

the air comes from a small 12v twin compressor, this fills an air tank so theres always air to work the brakes on the trailer and the air bags on the transit.

how have you connected the air brakes to the regular van brakes

[snap-on]

Wow that trackter unit looks

[Allsorts Online]

hello all, stumbled across this post when on google, I seem to have become somewhat knowledgeable about these things over the past 6 months

To clarify the position regards DL catagories (which has been confirmed via VOSA tech dept):

You CAN drive these vehicles using "grandfather rights" as follows and NO the issue is nothing to do with the coupling as has been previously mentioned:

B+E combination
Tractor unit plated at 3500 kg gross (this could be a 4600kg or even a 6500kg downplated typically an Iveco 45C or 65C, VW LT46, SPRINTER 616)
Weight combination (including trailer) NO MAX LIMIT AT PRESENT ON B+E combinations her in the UK however it is subject to the manufacturers weight limits once the tractor unit has got Type approval
Overall length of B+E combination 15m
Overall width NOW 2.55M (law has just been changed this year to harminise with rest of EU)

C1+E combination
Tractor unit plated above 3500kg gross weight (Iveco 45c or above, any of the above or similar)
Weight combination 8250KG (as seen on the reverse of your DL, code "107"
Overall length/width as above

CHANGES IN THE LAW DUE TO BE ROLLED OUT FROM JAN 2011 - 2013 EU DIRECTIVE 2006
A major harminisation of ALL driving licences throughout the EU has already started since Sept 2009 with the introduction of DRIVERS CPC (7.5 hours of training every year until 2013 or 37 hours in any one year). From Jan 2011 - 2013 all EU member states will have the SAME licence catagories of which a gross train weight will apply to all B+E tractor unit combinations of 7000KG.

A FEW NOTES TO BEAR IN MIND
1)ANY C1+E combination will NEED AN OPERATORS LICENCE AS WELL AS A TACHO (digital of the tractor unit was reg'd 1st of May 2006, analogue prior to this).
2)Any trailer used will be subject to an annual MOT test along with the tractor unit
3)ANY CONVERSION OF AN EXISTING CHASSIS WILL NEED SINGLE VEHICLE TYPE APPROVAL WHICH WILL INCLUDE A BRAKE TEST CALCULATIONS AND WILL HAVE TO HAVE THE V5C LOG BOOK AMENDED TO SPECIFICALLY MENTION THE TYPE APPROVAL NUMBER, THE NEW TAXATION CLASS WHICH WILL BE "ARTIC TRACTOR UNIT" AFTER THE CERTIFICATE IS ISSUED BY A VOSA STATION
4)ANY B+E combination will also need a calibrated tacho fitted as the train weight will be over 3500kg
5) AND VERY VERY IMPORTANT POINT, the chassis/tractor unit will also have to be capable of carrying the weight on the fifth wheel over the rear axle WHICH IS WHY NO ONE USES A FORD TRANSIT CHASSIS AND GO FOR rear wheel drived chassis such as IVECO, VW , MERC etc. These weight limits will also be show on the Ministry plate/V5C in the form of the axle weights for front axle and rear axle/gross train weight etc
6) Any driver of a B+E or C1E will also have to hold a DRIVERS CPC CARD by 2013 (ie to have done his/her full 37 hours training)

Overall, whilst I appreciate the member does not want to hear the above, may I just point out that at present you may be spending alot of time and money on a conversion of a non-suitable chassis. Please please please get someone to calculate the weights/axle weights and get expert advice as to whether you vehicle is suitable for the trailer you have in mind.

You mentioned that this was going to carry cars, please let me say, I do so for a living and some pretty expensive ones at that, you may find the changes in the law for your forthcoming B+E combination will prevent you from using it legally on the road after Jan 2011 and you might be better prepared to move on to a C1+E version of combination (sadly not using a ford transit crewcab).

Example of a B+E combination THAT WILL BECOME USELESS AFTER JAN 2011

VW LT 46 downplated to 3500KG
Train weight plated at 9000kg
Type approved UK/EU
Vehicle Taxation class "Artic"
Air brakes
Carries approx 4.2 tons

It appears there has been a major omission from the above post.
The following is taken from the "Directgov" website http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/WhatCanYouDriveAndYourObligations/DG_4022547

Medium sized vehicles with or without trailers
Category
Description
Minimum age

C1
Vehicles weighing between 3,500 kg and 7,500 kg, with or without a trailer - weighing no more than 750 kg
18*
C1+E
As category C1 but with a trailer weighing more than 750 kg. The total weight of the vehicle and the trailer together can’t weigh more than 12,000 kg.

The weight of the trailer, when fully loaded, can’t weigh more than the unladen weight of the vehicle

21*, **, ***
*Age 17 if you are a member of the armed services.
**Age 18 if you got your driving licence before 10 September 2009 and the weight of the vehicle and trailer together is under 7,500 kg.
***You can drive C1+E category vehicles at age 18 if one of the following apply:
you have passed your driving test and Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (Driver CPC) initial qualification
you are learning to drive or taking a driving test for this category or Driver CPC initial qualification
you are taking a national vocational training course to get a Driver CPC initial qualification
you had your driving licence before 10 September 2009 - you must take the CPC periodic training within five years of this date
Example of category C1+E: A vehicle with an unladen weight of 6,000 kg and a maximum weight of 7,500 kg pulling a fully loaded trailer with a weight of 4,500 kg – total weight 12,000 kg.

So looking at the bold highlighted section it would appear that you will need a C+E licence and not a C1+E licence to make the proper use of this vehicle and if that was the case you would be driving a 5+ car transporter to make it even more cost effective, surely!

[MrMPuk]

C and C1 don't come into it though as these are plated under 3500kgs.

[rwd lynch]

Very Smart

Any info about air supply for trailer braking and dealing with suzzie connections .

the air comes from a small 12v twin compressor, this fills an air tank so theres always air to work the brakes on the trailer and the air bags on the transit.

how have you connected the air brakes to the regular van brakes

the transit brakes are connected to a reaction valve that controls the air to the trailer brakes.

[Scammell]

Very very confused at this driving licence and weight information,looked at the ugov DVLA website made my eyes water.can somebody boil this stuff down to something that the ordinary bloke can understand please