Vauxhall Meriva Owner's Manual page 165

Coup ling socket l oa d
The c oupling socket load is the load
exerted by the trailer/caravan on the
coupling ball. It can b e varied by changing
the w eight distribution when loa ding the
trailer/caravan.
The ma ximum permissible coup ling socket
load (55 kg) of the towing vehicle is
specified on the towing equipment
identification plate and in the v ehicle
documents. This must a lw ays be complied
with, pa rticularly in the case of heavy
carava ns/trailers. The coupling socket load
should b e no less than 25 k g.
When mea suring the coup ling socket load,
mak e sure that the drawbar of the loa ded
trailer/caravan is at the sa me height as it
will be when the trailer/caravan is coupled
with the towing vehicle load ed. Particularly
important for trailers/carav ans w ith
tandem axle.
Rea r axle load duri ng towing
With the tra iler connected and the towing
vehicle fully loaded including all
oc cup ants, the perm itted rear axle load
(specified on the identification plate a nd
vehicle documents) must be exceed ed b y
no m ore than 25 kg and the max imum
permitted gross vehicle weight b y no more
than 30 kg. I f the ma ximum perm itted rear
axle load is ex ceeded, a m aximum speed
of 60 mph (100 km/h) app lies, and 50 mph
(80 km/h) for commerc ia l vehicles.
Driving and o peration
Driv ing chara cteristics, t owing ti ps
Before attaching the trailer/carav an,
lubricate the ball of the trailer/caravan
towing device. However, do not lubricate
the ball if a stabiliser, w hich a cts on the
coupling ball, is b eing used to d amp
hunting.
C heck c aravan/trailer lighting before
starting to drive. The fog tail lam ps on the
vehicle a re deactivated when towing a
carav an or trailer.
Trailers with LED turn signals m ust have a
provision enables la mp monitoring for
comm ercial bulbs.
Handling is greatly influenced by the
loading of the trailer/c aravan. Loads
should therefore b e sec ured so that they
cannot slip and be placed in the centre of
the tra iler/ca ra van if possible, i.e. ab ov e
the axle.
In the case of trailers with low driv ing
stability, do not exc eed a speed of 50 mph
(80 km/h); the use of a friction-type
stabiliser is strongly recommended.
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