I’m not a professional driver, I collect classic cars but need to ask.a.lorry related question.
I managed to buy a old mercedes 814 sleeper with 38000 kms on the clock genuine. Yes. You read right, 38000 kms.
It is a tilt n slide recovery truck that has been standing idle hence mileage.
Anyway, purchased as a private vehicle used only to collect my own vehicle’s , so not for comm gain , i.e., picking up other people’s cars.
It is mot exempt, due to being a recovery truck, no tachometer required due to this, however I’ve purchased a car in Barcelona and want to go collect it. Can I do so, and as there are laws against driving lorries on weekends in France, because it’s privately owned, am I allowed to drive on weekends in France heading to Spain.
Thanks for any advice on this.
ALSO.
As privately owned, do I need tacho as I’m in another country…in UK, no tachometer required on this because it’s privately owned and radius of journeys doesn’t exceed 50 miles
I think it is only trucks above 7.5 tons that are banned at weekends in France.
If your classic car hobby is a hobby then you should be fine in this country. People are allowed to use horse boxes for personal use even though they are bound to sell the horses at some stage.
If however the classic car stuff is clearly a business then that would be a different matter. Especially as you are not using the truck as a recovery vehicle but as a car transporter - ad there is a difference.
So for your own personal use and as a hobby you should be fine to use in the UK with no tacho.
However, I think it is trickier abroad. Most years I help a charity in driving a 7.5 box following a load of cyclists cycle down to bordeaux. During the ride handing out water and at the end in Bordeaux filling up the lorry with their bikes. Now we were clear that in the UK this activity is ok without a tacho (and there was a lot of stuff about how the rental of the vehicles was paid for ) but the charity was advised to use one in France ‘just in case’. The continental definition of hire and reward maybe slightly different to that of the UK.
Rich_T:
A tilt and slide is not MOT exempt. The only ones that are now are suspended tow (ie spec lift only, with no capacity to carry anything on the back).
+1…spec lift only is mot exempt…you can tax it recovery if they dont know any better at the post office,but once on the road then it needs an mot no matter if your only transporting glider engines…why dont you save yourself £1500 and let a transport co lift and deliver it for you…recipie for disaster idea sofar.
Rich_T:
A tilt and slide is not MOT exempt. The only ones that are now are suspended tow (ie spec lift only, with no capacity to carry anything on the back).[/quote
Regarding that, …I just had conversation with dvla ,I gave them index number because my log book didn’t come through.
It is recorded on v5 as recovery lorry, and lady inform me it was mot exempt, and I she took my credit card details , taxed vehicle over phone , and told me to apply for duplicate log book (no 20 quid charge)…so what’s going on there then??
Rich_T:
A tilt and slide is not MOT exempt. The only ones that are now are suspended tow (ie spec lift only, with no capacity to carry anything on the back).
+1…spec lift only is mot exempt…you can tax it recovery if they dont know any better at the post office,but once on the road then it needs an mot no matter if your only transporting glider engines…why dont you save yourself £1500 and let a transport co lift and deliver it for you…recipie for disaster idea sofar
Yes you are right…I will get it transported…lady at dvla checked number plate and told me it was exempt, …so I’m even more confused cos I have a tendency to believe people on this forum site over a bureaucrat.
VXR8OWNER:
Regarding that, …I just had conversation with dvla ,I gave them index number because my log book didn’t come through.
It is recorded on v5 as recovery lorry, and lady inform me it was mot exempt, and I she took my credit card details , taxed vehicle over phone , and told me to apply for duplicate log book (no 20 quid charge)…so what’s going on there then??
What happens is, it used to be just a paperwork exercise to change them to MOT exempt, there was never any actual checking of the vehicle, all the lady at the DVLA will have done is check the records and see what it’s classed as on the computer. It used to be the case that anything over 3500kg used for recovery was MOT exempt, this is no longer the case, a few years ago we bought a couple of the triaxle VW T4s, their plated weight was 3501kg to take advantage of that now closed loop hole.
Also, you need to remember that you aren’t actually doing recovery, another area people get confused about, you’re transporting, all be it your own vehicle, so any MOT exemption would be null and void.
There are still flat beds running around with the MOT exemption in place but dont think you’ll get away with it. September or October last year I picked a Jag up from a VOSA checkpoint that that had been pulled in on the back of an old Eurocargo, said Eurocargo was running as recovery with the MOT exemption still in place but wasnt allowed to continue hence me getting the call to go collect the Jag. What happened to the truck I don’t really know or care. To clarify the rules if you’re still unsure, dont even bother talking to Swansea, speak directly to VOSA/DVSA/ The Ministry (or whatever they call them selves this week).
Thank you…
Today as well I phoned to arrange a vosa test. I was told 3 months waiting time.
I anyway paid £112 to book it in.
I have decided to leave it until I’m totally sure.
Anyway a short while later I got phone call, a cancelled appointment for early April has been given to me…so jag in Spain will be transferred to uk by proper firm…my truck will reside where it is till vosa test done.
