Mirrors or Not

Sorry I'm a bit thick, so would one of you clever people please help me out.  By listing, the suitable tow vechicle caravan combinations, which would comply with the law as it stands without extension mirrors?

 

Thank you

Write your comments here...

I am towing with range rover with a total width to tip of mirrors of 2.220 metres.

The caravan is an average width van of 2.250 metres.

This suggests to me that even with a Range Rover, towing mirrors would be needed by law as the van is wider than the mirrors.

As the Op states his caravan is 2 inches wider than his van this would suggest the need for mirrors.

However the spec for a boxer van shows a width of 2.050 meteres without mirrors and 2.5 meteres with mirrors

So I would think that with a narrow caravan the law may be satisfied without mirrors, but only just.

If the van is 2 inches wider than his mirrors, then my guess would be, that he was running the risk of a fine.

At the end of the day. I don't really care what the law says. I know with my tow car caravan combination I can see more with mirrors fitted than without. Therefore I use towing mirrors.

Sorry I'm a bit thick, so would one of you clever people please help me out.  By listing, the suitable tow vechicle caravan combinations, which would comply with the law as it stands without extension mirrors?

 

Thank you

The answer is so complicated it would never fit on here. Basically almost all car and caravan combinations need extending mirrors but with one or two narrow caravans and the widest towcars you might be legal. Those combinations are unlikely to be of any interest to most people as those with very large towcars probably want very large towcars.

Basically when you get to vans of the size used by the OP there are many caravans narrower than the width of the van including the mirrors which would be legal. If you go back a few years the number of legal combinations would be substantial. The van could easily tow a Lunar Ariva and most other narrower models.

Thanks everyone. Really helpful and yes I do have 4 meters and 20% vision from each mirror...happy days !

On second thoughts.. I,'m going to stick to Byers

 On third thoughts I'm going to attach them but then I'm illegal because they stick out more than 200mm from the van ..so beheading pedestrians on the pavement !

Perhap one of the members that know chapter and verse about the "law" and what it requires could explain to us what the "law" requires when turning a corner and you cant even see the front of the van through one of the mirrors let alone down the side.How does the "law" work on that one then ?

v9

I appreciate I am probably wasting my time here. 

But just because something isn't perfect doesn't mean it's useless. That's the law of common sense. 

I have been using mirrors this year after not using them for around 14 years and in my opinion there are a  must , they take a bit of getting use to , I have marked my car mirrors so they are fixed in the correct place each time and they enable me to see the length of the caravan and more .

I would recommend them to all.

Bear in mind also that as soon as one deviates from a straight line the whole thing becomes a nonsense.

...Got to be quite a deviation if towing mirrors fitted correctly

Sorry JVB but i have to agree with RR man here you only need to be a few degrees off straight and one mirror is rendered totally useless.

v9

Perhap one of the members that know chapter and verse about the "law" and what it requires could explain to us what the "law" requires when turning a corner and you cant even see the front of the van through one of the mirrors let alone down the side.How does the "law" work on that one then ?

v9

The law only requires you to see down both sides when the outfit is in line. You are allowed the restricted view on bends as a view round the side is simply impossible then.