Skip to content

Audit and expert opinion

100 km/h approval

If you want to set off on holiday with a caravan or trailer, you should get a 100 km/h speed limit permit for your vehicle combination. This allows you to drive at speeds of up to 100 km/h on motorways and motorways in Germany instead of the usual 80 km/h.

Wohnwagen mit Auto auf Straße

What is a 100 km/h license?

Under normal circumstances, vehicle combinations (i.e. car plus caravan or trailer) may only travel at 80 km/h on motorways and motorways in accordance with Section 3 of the StVO. According to the 9th exemption regulation to the StVO, it is possible to increase the maximum speed on motorways and motorways to 100 km/h for cars with trailers and for multi-lane motor vehicles with a maximum permissible mass of up to 3.5 t with trailers. A caravan or car trailer with a speed limit of 100 km/h can therefore travel at 100 km/h with various towing vehicles.

What technical requirements must be met for 100 km/h approval?

The technical requirements are:

  • Your car is equipped with ABV (= automatic anti-lock braking system)
  • The trailer is suitable for a maximum speed of 100 km/h
  • The trailer tyres are designed for 120 km/h and have at least the speed index L
  • The tyres are less than six years old

In addition, certain mass ratios between the trailer and towing vehicle must be observed. Calculating the legally permissible total mass of the trailer is a little complicated:

The maximum permissible gross weight (GVW) of a trailer that is to be operated at 100km/h can be calculated as follows:

Unladen weight of the towing vehicle * factor X -> maximum GVW of the trailer.

The factor X by which the unladen weight is to be multiplied can be found in the following table:

The values marked with "*" may be utilised if:

  • the trailer is equipped with a suitable coupling with stabilisation device or
  • the trailer is equipped with a suitable dynamic stability system or
  • the towing vehicle is equipped with a suitable dynamic stability system for trailer operation (confirmed in the registration certificate)

is equipped.

Technical equipment of the trailer

without hydraulic shock absorberswith brake and hydraulic shock absorbers
 CaravansOther trailers
0,30.8 or 1.0*1.1 or 1.2*

How do I get the 100 km/h approval?

  • To obtain the 100 km/h approval for trailers and caravans, have the technical requirements checked and confirmed by an officially recognised expert or inspector or a technical inspection organisation.
  • You then apply for the required 100 km/h sticker from your vehicle registration authority.
  • If all the criteria are met and the required documents are available, you will receive the sticker for the 100 km/h permit and the vehicle documents will be changed accordingly.
  • New caravans already have the 100 km/h licence from the factory and do not need to be checked.
  • All you have to do is collect the 100 km/h sticker from the registration office when you register and make sure that the towing vehicle also fulfils the conditions for 100 km/h approval.
Trailer and person pulling it

How fast can you drive with a trailer?

In principle, you may only drive a maximum of 50 km/h with a trailer in urban areas and 80 km/h outside urban areas. If the trailer has a 100 km/h registration, you may drive at 100 km/h on the motorway and on motorways.

A 100 km/h sticker on the caravan or trailer does not automatically mean that you are actually authorised to drive at this speed with your vehicle combination. As the person driving the vehicle, you are responsible for ensuring that, in addition to the technical requirements of the caravan or car trailer, the following technical requirements of the towing vehicle are also met:

  • The towing vehicle must be multi-track
  • It must have an anti-lock braking system (ABV)
  • It must not have a maximum permissible laden mass of more than 3.5 tonnes
  • The maximum authorised mass of the caravan/trailer, including the correction factors, must not exceed the unladen mass of the towing vehicle
  • For non-caravan trailers, these two additional conditions must be met
    • permissible total mass of the trailer ≤ permissible total mass of the towing vehicle
    • Permitted total mass of the trailer ≤ Permitted trailer load of the towing vehicle
  • The drawbar load of the towing vehicle must be approximately reached, but must not be exceeded

Tip: Before every journey, regularly check the age of the trailer tyres and that the technical requirements of the towing vehicle are met (ABV, drawbar load, total weight, etc.).

What you should know

Frequently asked questions about the 100 km/h licence

  • The sticker with the 100 symbol must be affixed to the rear of the trailer or caravan
  • No sticker must be attached to the towing vehicle

  • The 100 licence for trailers is only valid in Germany.
  • If you are travelling abroad with the trailer, the national traffic regulations apply.
  • Find out about the applicable regulations before travelling.

  • If the technical requirements are not (or no longer) met, you may no longer drive your caravan or trailer at 100 km/h
  • As the person driving the vehicle, you are responsible for complying with the regulations yourself
  • However, the 100 km/h licence is not officially "withdrawn"
  • If the caravan is converted, a new test by an expert is required

  • After a successful test, you will receive confirmation in the form of a test report
  • Together with the vehicle documents for the trailer or caravan, you will receive the Tempo 100 sticker from your registration office

Before testing, make sure that all conditions for the 100 rule are met.

  • The costs for a 100 km/h registration vary depending on the caravan or trailer
  • If there is a manufacturer's certificate confirming that the caravan or trailer fulfils the requirements for 100 km/h registration, there are only fees for the official sticker and changing the vehicle documents at the registration office
  • For older caravans or trailers, there are additional costs for the expert opinion
  • The fees vary depending on the region and the organisation providing the certificate

With a category B driving licence you may:

  • drive trailers with a maximum authorised mass of no more than 750 kg or
  • with a maximum authorised mass of more than 750 kg, provided that the maximum authorised mass of the combination does not exceed 3500 kg

You can find out which trailers may be driven with other driving licence categories in the TÜV NORD explanations on the driving licence categories.

Contact

We look forward to your inquiry!