# chassis uprating



## barrosa (May 9, 2005)

Has anyone uprated from 3200Kg to 3500Kg if so how do you get a new vin plate. The van has been fitted with air assist? Is there any thing more that i need to do :?


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## camoyboy (May 9, 2005)

Give Ian Holt a call at TVAC on 01772 457116. Tell him the details of your base vehicle and he will advise on what you need to do. I was lucky as I went from 3500 gvw to 3850 gvw without having to do anything, apart from fit the plate.
Colin


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## barrosa (May 9, 2005)

Thanks camoboy will give them a call ,am getting ready for a month trip to Scotland when van is loaded will get weightd and see what it does weight and then decide from there. Any idea of the cost :? should it need to be uprated :?:


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## camoyboy (May 9, 2005)

It cost me £250 plus VAT for the plate, which seems an awful lot of money for a tinfoil sticker, but at least you have the peace of mind that you are legal. It could cost alot more than that if you did happen to get caught.
You will need to let Ian know your tyre size and load rating when you call, as this is crucial as to whether you can upgrade or not.
Colin.


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## bognormike (May 10, 2005)

what do they do to upgrade it? Any fool can river a tin plate under the bonnet!  Change of brakes, suspension, tyres ?


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## 88726 (May 9, 2005)

yep ! also makes me curious as to how somebody can magically increase youre legal payload
just by supplying a plate , ive upgraded my suspension myself so i deserve a new plate , does this guy have some legal powers that allows him to do this ? hence the cost ?
cheers
kenny+stella


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## camoyboy (May 9, 2005)

Yes, TVAC do have legal powers to replate all types of chassis. The 2.8 JTD Maxi 18 chassis is built as a 3850 Kg chassis, but is downgraded to comply with the 3500Kg licencing laws. Therefore it is just a case of re-issueing the original weights for this particular model.
Other makes of chassis may need springs, tyres and brakes upgrading before a new plate can be supplied. 
TVAC also issue a certificate to show the vehicle has been upgraded in accordance with all the proper authorities, as the vehicle may come into a different taxation class.
Colin


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## bognormike (May 10, 2005)

Thanks, Colin. My pilote started off as 3500 when it left the factory, but was uprated by Pilote for the UK market after the Alko chassis was fitted.
I suppose it could therefore be downrated if required, but I would lose the extra load capacity (wine, beer etc) on a long trip; have to balance the extra capacity against restrictions on vignettes in Switzerland / Austria for instance.


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## mikejj55 (May 24, 2005)

I obtained a new VIN plate from:

http://www.tagplates.com/

I sent them a photo of the style of plate, in my case Peugoet, and they provided a corresponding match to the plate with a next day turnround. The plate was attached by plastic "plugs" - so about a 1 min job to replace the plate!

In my case I had a lower overall capacity than that rated for the two axles so I was able to legitametly increase the overall rating.

:lol:


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## 88993 (May 11, 2005)

That sounds, very interesting mikejj55, almost too good to be true. Do you just tell them what to put on the plate or do they give you the options of what is possible for your particular vehicle?
Surely they won' t make up plates with any weights and, if they did, would this be legal? Has anyone else used used this company?
This is what the web site says-

VIN CHASSIS COLOUR TAGS AND ADHESIVE LABELS SUPPLIED FOR ALL MAKES OF VEHICLE RANGING FROM CLASSIC CARS TO HGV'S 

THE SPECIALIST IN REPLACEMENT VIN PLATES, OFFERING EMBOSSED AND ETCHED PLATES 

CAR VIN PLATES AND STICKERS £39.99 HGV'S £49.99 VIS VINS £19.99-£25.00 COLOUR PLATES £25.00 ALL PRICES INCLUDE VAT AND DELIVERY


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## 88993 (May 11, 2005)

And what about the registration document? Won't DVLA need proof or documentation before they will update your details?


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## RobinHood (May 19, 2005)

I certainly wouldn't want to try this.

My van was uprated from 3500kg to 3850kg by process of replating only. (it's based on a Fiat Maxi, and as stated elsewhere, with appropriate tyres and springing supplied as part of the Camping Car package its design weight is 3850kg, plated down to 3500kg to avoid numerous restrictions).

The plate was provided by SVtech, who also provided certification to a standard required by the Vehicle Inspectorate.

As far as I know, if the work is not carried out to the Vehicle Inspectorate's standards (which includes a qualified engineers assessment and certification that design limits have not been exceeded), then replating is likely to be seen as illegal.

Somewhat more relevant than this, unless you can provide evidence of the process being underwriiten by a qualified person, your insurance is likely to be invalid (likewise, you should inform your insurance company of any change).

Part of the fee you pay provides you with professional advice on safety and the design limits, and protects you against any of the above, since if necessary you can claim against the certifying body.

Every vehicle I have ever owned has had a combined axle rating greater than the GVW. Blithely assuming you can uprate under all circumstances above the GVW but below the combined axle rating is IMO somewhat foolish, since in many circumstances this may exceed the safe load for braking capacity.

In addition, uprating above 3500kg places the vehicle in a different taxation class, requiring amendments to the V5, additional road tax, and certain additional restrictions, both in use and who can drive.


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## mikejj55 (May 24, 2005)

I totally agree!

All I wanted to offer the Forum was a source of VIN plates; *not *any recommendation as to what should be done technically or legally to increase chassis capacity.

I stand by what I have done as my vehicle was originally sold in a country where it was plated to meet the limit of a then prevailing tax band (ie 3100kg) and if it had been originally sold onto the UK market, as some were, (same vehicle model) would have had a higher rating.

I fully understand the issue over brakes and consequently went through a carefull asessment courtsey of commercial vehicle MOT station to determine if there were adequate inherent capacity.

I hope that puts things into perspective


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## 98729 (Apr 17, 2006)

*Motorhome Uprate/Downrates*

Hi,

been having a read of what has so far been said. 
... Yes TAG plates will supply you a plate to your request. 
... The question that should be being asked is have they got data to support the conversion. Now thats the important bit.

Not to go in to too much deapth here (contact me if you do) but when upratng a vehicle there are several factors to take in to account. One of the more important factors being brakes and their performace at higher weights.

If all you want is a foil plate with higher weights then save yourself the cost and get anyone to print it (your own printer if you want). If what you want is to know the uprate is: Safe, recoginised by the Ministry and Insurance companies, LEGAL to name a few then what you should be looking for is a company that spends a lot of money in the testing of a precedent vehicle to the higher weight, holds EEC approval with the ministry that means in the event of an accident or query it can be shown how it was uprated, then contact me.

Check out the website for a bit more info. (URL edited out by moderators) I will get it more up to date in time. All queries welcome and I will try an answer them all as soon as.

many thanks.

Look out for the article on rerating in the Practicle Motorhome due April/May.


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## Bazza (May 1, 2005)

*Uprating*

Hi All.

We had our Fiat based, Fiat chassis vehicle uprated by TVAC. This included the rear suspension upgrade (air ride or similar) a change to the brake / load system to keep the brakes in sync with the new ride height & loadings. In 2005 this cost £820 including the issue of a new plate. The original spec was 3850Kg, now we are 4100Kg. If the standard tyres had been better we could have made it up to 4150Kg i.e. the maximum allowed for this cab / chassis combo. Payload is key to full timing. I recently heard that manufacturers are held to a tolerance of some 4% which means on a 3850Kg motorhome the 585Kg payload that they advertise could well be a bit adrift in reality - anyone ever weigh empty & see how it stacks up with the brochure? Next motorhome will probably be a 6 wheeler, maybe a 6 ton Merc or Iveco to get a 1200Kg plus payload..... one day!


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