First camper advice

Alkers

sean61 wrote: »

Is it typical for camper owners to have their vehicles weighed? Mine is 3200kg according to the plate. I'd say it would still be under 3500 loaded up but can't be sure really

Is the 3200kg not the DGVW i.e. the maximum permitted weight of the vehicle fully laden? What does the CVRT disc say?

crabbypaddy

Simona1986 wrote: »

Is the 3200kg not the DGVW i.e. the maximum permitted weight of the vehicle fully laden? What does the CVRT disc say?

3200kg is very common, coachbuilders saved a few quid by buying lightweight ducato chassis rather than the 1.8ton payload maxi chassis.

Alkers

crabbypaddy wrote: »

3200kg is very common, coachbuilders saved a few quid by buying lightweight ducato chassis rather than the 1.8ton payload maxi chassis.

I appreciate that but if you go and get the vehicle weighed and it comes in at 3300kg and is plated 3200kg you could be prosecuted for driving overloaded.

crabbypaddy

Simona1986 wrote: »

I appreciate that but if you go and get the vehicle weighed and it comes in at 3300kg and is plated 3200kg you could be prosecuted for driving overloaded.

It's a much bigger issue than people think VOSA in UK found 80% of motohomes overloaded at the port back around 2009. Buyer beware.

Very unlikely you'd be prosecuted here though if you were weighed €200 fine and 1 penalty point.

In UK you have to be 30% over to be prosecuted. Europe is a different story.

Hrmm...anyone fancy a Hydrogen conversion? Fill the gas tank..lose weight?

crabbypaddy

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

Hrmm...anyone fancy a Hydrogen conversion? Fill the gas tank..lose weight?

Lol reminds me of Gilbert Grape .. Match in the gas tank boom boom.

CelticRambler

Something to be aware of, if you plan to take the 'van to the continent, is it's eco-rating. I've recently received an e-mail from Antwerp telling me that my 2003 Ducato is no longer welcome in the city's LEZ, where my favourite long-stay carpark is located, and this last week in France I would have been subject to severe restrictions when visiting Lyon and Grenoble, and even trying to by-pass Paris.

sean61

Simona1986 wrote: »

Is the 3200kg not the DGVW i.e. the maximum permitted weight of the vehicle fully laden? What does the CVRT disc say?

CVRT disc says 3200kg. Is that the fully laden weight? It's a pretty small camper, I'd like to hope it's still under 3500 with a decent load

sean61

CelticRambler wrote: »

Something to be aware of, if you plan to take the 'van to the continent, is it's eco-rating. I've recently received an e-mail from Antwerp telling me that my 2003 Ducato is no longer welcome in the city's LEZ, where my favourite long-stay carpark is located, and this last week in France I would have been subject to severe restrictions when visiting Lyon and Grenoble, and even trying to by-pass Paris.

Well you learn something new everyday! Are there many more cities like this?

crabbypaddy

sean61 wrote: »

CVRT disc says 3200kg. Is that the fully laden weight? It's a pretty small camper, I'd like to hope it's still under 3500 with a decent load

That should be GVW check the plate under the bonnet if its ducato based the its in left side of the slam panel under the bonnet, other base vehicles often have it onthe firewall. Some manufacturers uprate the chassis and affix a second plate with higher weight over or alongside the original.

I think the actual weight is listed on the pass sheet if not the CVRT center could probably tell you if you ask nicely.

crabbypaddy

sean61 wrote: »

Well you learn something new everyday! Are there many more cities like this?

A couple of hundred, the minimum standard varies and some cities it only applies to vehicle over 3.5 tons.

Theres a handy grid here, you can click camper van, then click diesel lez column to sort.

http://urbanaccessregulations.eu/scheme-by-vehicle-type

CelticRambler

Three in France at the moment (Paris, Lyon, Grenoble) and 22 more to come (Strasbourg next)

Avignon - Communauté d’agglomération d’Avignon
Arras - Communauté urbaine d’Arras
Annemasse - Communauté d’agglomération d’Annemasse
Bordeaux - Métropole de Bordeaux
Cannes - Communauté d’agglomération du Pays de Lérins – Cannes
Clermont-Ferrand - Métropole de Clermont-Ferrand
Champlan
Côte Basque-Adour - Communauté d’agglomération Côte Basque-Adour
Dunkerque - Communauté urbaine de Dunkerque
Dijon - Communauté urbaine de Dijon
Epernay - Communauté d’agglomération d’Epernay
Faucigny, Glières, Bonneville Communauté de communes Faucigny-Glières-Bonneville
Grenoble - Métropole de Grenoble
Lyon - Métropole de Lyon
Lille - Métropole de Lille
Le Havre - Communauté d’agglomération du Havre
Montpellier - Métropole de Montpellier
Paris - Mission de préfiguration de la Métropole du Grand Paris
Reims - Métropole de Reims
Rouen - Métropole de Rouen
Saint-Etienne - Métropole de Saint-Etienne
Strasbourg Métropole de Strasbourg
Saint Maur-des-Fossés
Toulouse - Métropole de Toulouse
Vallée de la Marne - CA de la Vallée de la Marne

From a motorhomer's point of view, it obviously depends on whether you're likely to visit or pass through any of the regulated areas and how exactly they're regulated. In the case of Paris, for example, I would normally by-pass it on the west, but on my last three trips northward, I went east (once to drop someone off at the bus station) and took the route that now lies inside the LEZ (ZCR in French!).

The thing to remember for France is that the new rules mean that if you don't have the new vignette, you're banned outright from the designated zones (08h-20h) and all diesel vehicles over 20 years of age are automatically banned; if you do have a vignette, permission or prohibition depends on what number you've been awarded and the way the local authority implements the system day-to-day. Today, for example, vehicles in category 5 - 1997-2001 - are also banned in Paris, from 05h30 to midnight. In Lyon, only categories 1, 2 and 3 have unrestricted access.

I'm more frustrated about the Antwerp restriction, because I would make one 2km journey to the long-stay carpark at the end of a day, not move for two or three days, then leave early on the fourth day. To do that now, I'd have to buy two expensive day-passes, making it cheaper to stay on the out-of-centre campsite - but then you have to get public transport back into the centre, which is a lot less convenient (not to mention the annoyance of paying for "campsite" facilities when all you want is a parking spot )

fire3038

CelticRambler wrote: »

Three in France at the moment (Paris, Lyon, Grenoble) and 22 more to come (Strasbourg next)


From a motorhomer's point of view, it obviously depends on whether you're likely to visit or pass hrough any of the regulated areas and how exactly they're regulated. In the case of Paris, for example, I would normally by-pass it on the west, but on my last three trips northward, I went east (once to drop someone off at the bus station) and took the route that now lies inside the LEZ (ZCR in French!).

The thing to remember for France is that the new rules mean that if you don't have the new vignette, you're banned outright from the designated zones (08h-20h) and all diesel vehicles over 20 years of age are automatically banned; if you do have a vignette, permission or prohibition depends on what number you've been awarded and the way the local authority implements the system day-to-day. Today, for example, vehicles in category 5 - 1997-2001 - are also banned in Paris, from 05h30 to midnight. In Lyon, only categories 1, 2 and 3 have unrestricted access.

I'm more frustrated about the Antwerp restriction, because I would make one 2km journey to the long-stay carpark at the end of a day, not move for two or three days, then leave early on the fourth day. To do that now, I'd have to buy two expensive day-passes, making it cheaper to stay on the out-of-centre campsite - but then you have to get public transport back into the centre, which is a lot less convenient (not to mention the annoyance of paying for "campsite" facilities when all you want is a parking spot )

Can you bring a 20+ year old to France at all . Also what's the story in Italy

Moomat

fire3038 wrote: »

Can you bring a 20+ year old to France at all . Also what's the story in Italy

I would hope so or our near 30 year old is going to miss a great holiday!

I'm pretty sure these regulations involve densely packed urban centres, thankfully there's much more to France than that. I never had an issue in Italy but as with France, we usually stay rural.

crabbypaddy

fire3038 wrote: »

Can you bring a 20+ year old to France at all . Also what's the story in Italy

Its all in the link I posted above, e.g. select italy, click campervan and it will show you all the height, weight, emissions restrictions for the whole of italy. If you just want to see emissions click the emissions column title to sort then click on the restriction and it will give you all the details you need including maps.

fire3038

crabbypaddy wrote: »

Its all in the link I posted above, e.g. select italy, click campervan and it will show you all the height, weight, emissions restrictions for the whole of italy. If you just want to see emissions click the emissions column title to sort then click on the restriction and it will give you all the details you need including maps.

Thanks folks , I'm about to buy a 1995 camper and thought it might not be able to travel on continent.. so the rule might be to stay out of city centres etc. I might dip back in to forum periodically for advice
Thanks again