downgrading to 3.5 tonne

snowey33

Hi All,

Not sure if this has been covered, but i have a 5 tonne van,was my dads (iveco) and getting it downgraded to 3.5tonne to convert to a camper so i can drive it on my car license.
Has anyone any experience of doing this or is there a clause that i could drive a camper-van of this weight on my b license.

thanks for any advice in advance

niloc1951

it's a long way down.
First, a B (car) licence only allows the driving of vehicles not exceeding 3.5t motorhomes included.

As regards down-plating, the first exercise is to establish the empty weight of the vehicle to be converted, add to this the estimated weight of all the equipment which will be fitted (don't forget things like batteries, gas bottles, etc.), next add the weight of people who will be travelling in the vehicle plus all the water, food, clothing, bedding, camping equipment, bikes and anything else you can think of which could be brought along.
As a rule of thumb your finished project should not exceed about 3t because about 500kg of payload is needed for people and the personal 'stuff' mentioned above.

If the total exceeds 3.5t then you are snookered. A lighter base vehicle needs to be considered or a C1(97) licence.

If it was me and I already had the truck I'd just go for the private 7.5ton license. I wonder if there's much of a saving to be made down-plating.

snowey33

Thanks for the replies,
I was trying to avoid the c1 license, due to cost of lessons, time and so on. Unfortunately I did my test in 99 so miss out on the 97 thing, Also the van is free and i know it's history. According to some specs I found on the internet the kerb weight of this van is 2.3 tonnes. Would this leave enough weight to fit it out and still keep it under the 3.5 tonne. I would be doing it to a high spec.

Nekarsulm

I got a few lessons on a rigid lorry, and managed to pass the test. Its not too hard when I managed with about 6 hours total driving. And your covered for anything you choose to drive.

nailer8

Give a call to the RSA re the downplating. Last information i had was it wasn't permitted unless ordered from new. We sometimes order 4/5t vans plated to 3.5t from the factory but if they are already manufactured (even if they dont have a reg plate on them) we cant get them downplated.
This is relatively new, only happened in the last few years.

snowey33

Thanks Nailer8, I wasn't aware of that. I shall give them a call to find out.

niloc1951

Re-plating up or down can be done and is acceptable to the RSA, as it is to their equivalent bodies elsewhere in Europe.

Have a read of THIS INFORMATION where you will find a lot of useful information, including links to where the appropriate forms can be found.

snowey33

Some good information there, thanks Niloc1951. Had rang RSA today, but they seemed a bit baffled by it all. They gave me another number to call on Monday, but reading through Niloc1951 link it seems not to big of a job to get it done.

nailer8

If you succeed, please post how you did it as it is something a lot of people are looking to get done for various reasons.

Ah go the whole hog, I'd love to see another DIY thread.

snowey33

Will let you all know how how I get on, but things move a bit slow in my world,so it might be a month or two before I have any news.

Ps. Was on to the RSA and they said I'd have to get certification and a plate fitted from the manufacturer or distributor, I can't see this as been to easy as it's not a new van,
But will keep you posted.

Wizard

Any luck with this, I need to do it also !

snowey33

Sorry but no, it has been put on the back burner for a while as I'm working away from home till january. For what it's worth I was on to the distributor about the new plate, but they didn't seem to interested to do this. I didn't push it with them so I'd say they probably would. They said something about changing some bump stops on the shocks for the new weight.
Anyway I still have the van and still hoping to convert it so will post any updates I have.

Wizard

I was reading up on the rsa guidelines, from what unread you can get an nasi approved centre to do it or an sqi , suitably qualified individual, I'm hoping I'm right anyway !

cormie

Did anyone do this successfully yet? What kinda of costs were involved?

nailer8

I’m not sure it’s possible any more but if it is there is no reason the costs should be excessive.
I know it’s impossible with new vehicles, don’t know about older vehicles/conversions etc.
Youll need someone to issue you with a New weights and dimensions plate which is normally the manufacturer, should cost about €150 if they’re willing to give you one (that’s a big IF)
Talk to your local ATC centre.
https://www.nsai.ie/certification/auto-certification/auto-type-approval/approved-test-centres/

cormie

Thanks a lot. I'm on the lookout for a Jumbo transit or VW crafter minibus. I know both vans are most commonly 3.5t, but seems most of the ones that are minibuses are twin axle at the back and higher than 3.5t

salad17

I am also looking into doing this with a transit luton that is rated 4.2 tonne instead of the usual 3.5 tonne.

Was gutted when I found out this one was rated up, but I don't want to go down the C1 route both because of cost, and also if I ever choose to sell the camper conversion it will be much harder to do so as the buyer will need a C1.

I am hoping to downgrade it as a reclassify it as a camper, if that's possible.

Will update on any success!

autumnalcore

Think insurance will difficult on a luton, also rear was never dedigned to carry passengers so if youre thiinking of travelling seats back there then SQI will be difficult lutons can vaporise in a crash.