Continuing my study of the Hymer/Eriba Touring price list I note that:

To upgrade Familia MTPLM's by 150kg costs £330 and uses 10kg of Payload. So in effect you get a net 140kg extra payload but the price list says you get 150kg. Seems to me the list was written by someone who didn't understand the relevance of what they were writing.

Tritons can have their MTPLM's upgraded by 200kg or 300kg at a cost of £380 but there's no added weight so one assumes that the axle fitted as standard can cope with the increase, which makes it a rather expensive paper and new VIN sticker exercise. Standard UK van paper upgrade cost is £60. As there's no additional weight you get the full 200kg or 300kg addition to the Payload.

Troll MTPLM's can be upgraded by 100kg for £380 and there's a 10kg weight penalty, so the Payload only increases by 90kg. Again the price list payload figure doesn't acknowledge that net change.

It does make you wonder what they add to the axles that weighs 10kg more? The suspension arm, brakes etc all look the same and the most obvious change would be to beef up the three rubber units but I can't see how that would add 5kg a side. Possibly slightly heavier duty shock absorbers maybe.

I must admit that it's one of the things that always concerned me about Eribas in that the MIRO quoted in the price list is for a 'poverty' spec. van and when they've had all the usual options added they can easily use up a third, or maybe more, of the payload before an owner loads a thing inside. That should still leave a goodly payload for use by the owner but dealer's and magazines blithely quote the original MIRO, leading an unwary owner into thinking they have 300kg plus to play with when in reality it may be under 200kg.

Hi Andy, new vans come with the upgraded axle already fitted, it costs 89e to upgrade for a new MTPLM plate if you apply directly to hymer after you have bought the van, otherwise the dealer will have a nice lump for themselves as well. I think the lower weight is quoted so that it is compatable for smaller engine cars and fits the 3500kg driving licence remit

Some info in this link.

MTPLM upgrade

As I said I was quoting from the Eriba price list and most UK dealers seem to automatically include a weight upgrade in their standard UK spec. stock vans. Presumably if you order a 'special' to your own spec. then you would be able to specify the standard lower weight if you wanted, but you might have to wait 'til all the stock vans for the season are built, or if your dealer can persuade Hymer to change the spec. on one of their stock orders.

I've also noticed that most UK Eriba dealers don't mention the van's MTPLM, which sa they can all be upgraded at birth and some later on, seems a short sighted policy. I mean the figures on the sticker/plate by the door, so it's not difficult to access. I'm surprised AL don't mention individual van weights, just putting a generic cut and paste sheet which has no specifics. I would've expected better from them.

Another pet hate is the list of what a van is fitted with, but no mention of what it hasn't got. To my mind dealers should post a list of all the major elements that are optional or extras and put a tick where they're fitted. Then you can spot if it has a hot water boiler or not or whether they just forgot to mention it when writing the ad.

Quote: steamdrivenandy wrote in post #4

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Another pet hate is the list of what a van is fitted with, but no mention of what it hasn't got. To my mind dealers should post a list of all the major elements that are optional or extras and put a tick where they're fitted. Then you can spot if it has a hot water boiler or not or whether they just forgot to mention it when writing the ad.

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I saw two 2018 540's on Witoma's site last night, both had the GT Pack and one was 23k Euro's and the other 25k Euro's. All down to the option boxes ticked.

I've been carrying on my refresher research and have worked out why the Trolls went up to a standard 1300kg axle, with an upgrade to 1400kg possible.

A standard 540 has a 1005kg MIRO which means a 195kg Payload with a 1200kg axle. Now the standard payload on a 4 berth UK wobbly box would be around 160kg. So the 195kg for a 3 berth Troll sounds excellent. Prior to the comprehensive changes when production moved to Germany I suspect the Troll's MIRO was quite a bit less, so 1200kg was sensible.

My research has told me that the GT Pack actually weighs 42kg (confirmed by the French price list and the contents are identical).

Then add the:

Spare wheel 20kg
Multibed option 5kg
Sprung rear benches10kg
Carpet 8kg
Autonomy Pack 30kg
Warm air fan & ducts 3kg
Electric boiler 3kg
Shower fittings 5kg
Motor mover 33kg

And you've used 159kg of your 195kg available, leaving 36kg for all the stuff that goes in a van. Absolutely impossible.

Even taking the MTPLM up to 1300kg only leaves you 136kg to load the van, though that's probably more than most 4 berth wobbly owners have.

Whilst their average standard Payload is about 160kg they have to take their battery (20kg) and mover (33kg) from that, leaving them around 107kg for their gear.

The silver finish, stone guard, external locker and sink cover are in the 42kg of the GT Pack Colin. The AlKo hitch has been a standard fitment since about 2014 and is included in MIRO. Mind, the French price list blithely quotes 30kg for the silver finish whether it be on a Troll, a Triton or a Familia, which sounds wrong to me.