Trailer or recovery truck?

Hi all,

Looking to take my cars to shows, track, etc...
May also want to start a small transportation service, but this will be on a very small scale at first.
Just wondering what the pros and cons of each would be?
A brake'd trailer obviously if it was that.
But do you need separate insurance for just a trailer? Also would need a suitable vehicle for pulling the trailer and the vehicle. So that means another possibility 4x4 vehicle and insurance.
Maybe a recovery truck would be easier, but need to read up on requirements.

Any advice welcome...

No idea on either Andy but the recovery truck looks a whole lot easier than the trailer !
You'll defo need a decent motor (not necessarily a 4x4) but something sufficient to pull a trailer and you'll need lots of storage space. The recovery truck looks the same size as a removal van which you don't need any extra licence conditions to drive so just a question of insurance.
I'm sure some on here have more experience and can be more precise !

When did you pass your test ?
Recovery truck means you have it and a car on the back and still take up less space than car and a trailer. Recovery truck normally has a winch not all trailers do. ( could add one)

4x4 doubles up as a spare car and more comfortable on long run should use less fuel . Running Cost depends on what model of each you buy.

Truck all the way if you are going to make money off it. If it's going to sit there, a trailer would surely be more cost effiecient. I would hate using a trailer heaps, just my opinion

If not doing lot of it probably a decent trailer to start with and something like a td4 freelander pull it.
Long trailers easy reverse etc, I use an old forester with a trailer and it very agile due to foresters turning circle and good visibility .
flatbed truck way go if start doing lot of it . Insurance will need sorting either way as if carrying anything high value and doing it as a business you not going be covered via vehicle insurance alone .
Bobs opinion on it should be useful as he got experience on both and insurance cover aspect I expect .

I guess it all depends on how serious you are on doing the whole recovery thing I mean if you have to buy a a truck and a trailer then a second hand trailers are around £2000 then obviously what ever you choose to pull it with ... recovery trucks I've seen around 3k up to 10k all depends on how much you want to throw at it .... it's certainly a few grand to kick it off either way ...

I would prefer a truck over a trailer especially what I saw last week on the m20 motorway on the way home from work a transit  towing a mercedes sprinter on a trailer  he got a right snake on going over the brow of the hill how he manged to not flip it was beyond me I hastily put my foot down going past him as he was swerving all over the place he's face certainly didn't look like he was enjoying the ride

All to do with the right vehicle and loading the trailer properly underpowered or overpowered but not enough weight of towing vehicle is a disaster waiting to happen

The thing with recovery trucks like a transit or sprinter, is they're still only 3.5 tonne gross, so your limited to what ypu can carry on the back, granted loads of people do it, either they dont know or dont care. We had a mk5 transit recovery truck in work with a steel body and alloy tread plate runners and that weighed in at 2200kgs without a driver, so you can only really carry small cars under 1200kgs. Rx8's are 1400 something kgs for example. But with newer trucks and an all alloy body you might get one down to 2000kgs.

Now the thing is, is to have the correct trailer license and then your able to tow behind the recovery truck as they're usually 5 tonne gross with a braked trailer. So from a business point of view it makes sense as you can take two loads at a time, all beit smaller cars.

Either way there's alot to look into if you want to do it right and legit.

I know a guy who has air bags under the back axle to disguise heavy loads.

Thanks for info guys.
Going to look into recovery trucks.

Depends whether you want to do it as a business or whether its just for your own vehicles.

I never used to do it as a business only for my own stuff and occasionally helping mates out who had broken down.
Ive had both recovery trucks and trailers and a truck is by far the best imo. If you are collecting cars from around the streets and off peoples driveways etc then a trailer can be a huge headache especially as theres double parking in most residential streets which you will never be able to back a trailer up as you simply wont have the room.

So deffo a recovery truck, and if your license allows (im old so have 7.5t entitlement) buy a 7.5tonner as in the longrun they are more fuel efficient as you dont have to bury your foot through the floor at the slightest of inclines, you can carry more or less any car or van, more reliable with the larger engine and you can easily pull a trailer behind it if needs be so in short you could possibly carry up to 3 vehicles.
If its just your stuff and people you know you can also get away without using a tacho & you dont need an 0 license either.

Other thing which could be handy (which im thinking of) is a lwb luton van which is easy to adapt to take a vehicle (race transporter) get the leaf springs uprated which is not dear, maybe a door fitted to the side and then you have a multipurpose vehicle where you can pick up anything and carry it in safety in the dry which then opens up many more doors if you want to do it as a business.

That last idea lwb Luton van conversion sounds ideal.
Trailer or even removal jobs...Cheers

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/192250899220

This looks quiet cool

That's got some miles on it

Yeah nuts aint it must be hard to value something like that with so many miles but as a vehicle which naturally goes long distances it may be different to a normal car? Who knows but the design of it seems quiet simple to do