Vehicle weight increase, who has done this before?

Hi,
I'm currently considering whether to increase the gross vehicle weight of my new used Sharan or Galaxy from its current value to 2810kg. Doing so would reduce the annual vehicle tax from approximately 300 euros to around 170 euros. However, the cost of the report varies depending on the provider, ranging from 200 to 250 euros, which means it pays for itself after 2 years.

Has anyone here ever done something like that before? If so, what are the experiences with the TÜV (technical inspection agency), the registration office, and the tax office?

Where did you get the expert opinion from?

Best regards, Roland.

Hey,
Read 23 times, but only one person has voted so far...
Did I not provide the correct answers for the remaining 22?
Best regards, Roland.

Why are the taxes going down?
They only get those approvals for trucks, and it's probably not legal to use them with a Sharan.

Anything with a gross vehicle weight exceeding 2.8 tons that can transport both people and goods (must have side window tie-down points and at least seat brackets, and the rear seat must be foldable) can be registered as a station wagon.
If it's registered as a car, it will be taxed based on its weight (173 euros), but the insurance will remain the same.

I'm just not sure how long this will last, because there's a lot of discussion about it in the press right now, and whether they might lower the speed limit for vehicles weighing over 3.5 tons from 80 km/h to 2.8 tons...
Best regards, Roland.

x world one wrote:

Why are the taxes going down? They only get that for truck registrations, and it's probably not legal to get it with a Sharan.

There is also a registration option for so-called "combination vehicles." These vehicles (which are technically passenger cars) are treated as passenger cars for registration purposes, but are taxed as commercial vehicles (i.e., based on weight). This applies to all vehicles with a gross vehicle weight (GVW) between 2800 kg and 3500 kg.
Many SUVs meet this criterion. Therefore, such "off-road vehicles" can still be newly registered even without complying with the EU3/4 emission standards (BMW X5 D, Mercedes M CDI, VW Touareg TDI). Some time ago, several professional journals strongly criticized this practice.
Vehicles that are close to the 2800kg weight limit are often modified to exceed that limit in order to take advantage of a loophole in tax law.

RoBro wrote:

Hey, Read 23 times, but only one person has voted so far... Did I not provide the correct answers for the remaining 22? Best regards, Roland

I'm still missing a suitable answer for people who are driving a Polo platform and aren't even reaching 1.8t .

Okay, I forgot about you guys.
Just choose number 1 or 2 then.
Regards,
Roland.
P.S.:
Try to get a Polo approved as a camper van .

Hi,

Quote:

Did I not provide the correct answers for the remaining 22 questions?

I've added another relevant option.

My car has a permitted gross vehicle weight of around 1600 kg... even when utilizing the maximum allowed towing capacity of 1000 kg, I don't reach the 2.8 tons.

But that gives you a first impression of what a 110 hp TDI engine can do in a Sharan, or what a small car with that engine can achieve in terms of performance.

Best regards,

Jan.

It might not be 100% accurate, but maybe someone will still be interested .

We once re-registered our old Golf 2 D (54 hp) as a 'truck' to avoid taxes.
'I removed the rear seats. Metal panels were riveted onto the rear side windows (for the technical inspection, then window tinting will be applied). I installed a cargo net from ATU.' Ready.
The Golf was registered as a 2-seater vehicle and still cost 180 Marks in taxes, which was considerably less than the over 1000 Marks it would have cost otherwise.
As I understand it, this also depends heavily on the specific Dekra (a German technical inspection company), the responsible tax office, and the licensing authority. Everything went smoothly for us (in District V)...


P.S.: And the dog also had much more space .

@RoBro: If you have your car's load capacity increased, do you also have to use the more expensive tires with the higher load rating?

So, for the Sharan, you need at least a 96 size.
I think he usually wears size 85.
I'm not exactly sure what the price difference is.
Definitely, retreading only makes sense when the tires are already due for replacement.
Regards,
Roland.

@Robro
You're doing a great job of keeping the forum active.
Check this out for information about load capacity.
Okay, I'm ready. Please provide the German text you want me to translate.

Currently, you have a 99% chance of having tires with the size 195/65 R15 and load index 95T.

I have two well-preserved Conti CT22 tires for sale.