Best non diesel towcar
Discussion
Looking to replace my E91 tow car when its inevitable demise comes with a bork worthy bill. Mrs Gpfanuk won’t entertain a diesel and I don’t want the hassle of detaching a caravan when I stop to recharge every 100 miles or so with an EV. Thinking PHEV but open to suggestions. Max 20k. Gentlemen, the floor is yours…
Define 'best'. Estate cars like that Volvo are rubbish compared to a proper tow vehicle. Best ones I've had have been eg V8 Petrol X5s with the self-levelling air suspension, Porsche Cayenne Turbo (again, with air) and Dodge Ram (no need for air).
Anything like that makes a mockery of messing about with a little estate car.
Anything like that makes a mockery of messing about with a little estate car.
What are you towing ?
I presume if you're using an E91 it's nothing too heavy
I regularly tow 3+ tons and was shocked how even a 5.7 V8 just didn't compare to a 3.0 TD
I'd also question why your wife objects to diesels, in the early days they weren't great but for most people they are far better than petrol for giving instant torque at road speeds
I presume if you're using an E91 it's nothing too heavy
I regularly tow 3+ tons and was shocked how even a 5.7 V8 just didn't compare to a 3.0 TD
I'd also question why your wife objects to diesels, in the early days they weren't great but for most people they are far better than petrol for giving instant torque at road speeds
Mammasaid said:
That will be rubbish compared with a 3l 6cyl TDI guess it depends on what your towing, i tow 1100kgs with a Skoda 280 estate, we fill the car, have a roof box and it averages anywhere between 18 and 23mpg, the previous Mondeo 2.2 was between 25 and 29mpg.
It tows fine, its not the best tow car but thats more to do with the autobox and suspension. What you will find with towing is the torque is in the wrong place, with the dsg's hesitancy to sometimes change down then it drop 2 gears, don't get me wrong it has the power but sometimes i wish i had the ZF8 gearbox.
If it wasn't for the small boot and fuel tank and 1500kg towing weight i'd consider the 330e, better towing capacity and the V60 T6 Recharge would be an option.
At the moment my current search on Autotrader is 5 series and F PAce 3.0 Supercharged engines. I would still go with petrol.
It tows fine, its not the best tow car but thats more to do with the autobox and suspension. What you will find with towing is the torque is in the wrong place, with the dsg's hesitancy to sometimes change down then it drop 2 gears, don't get me wrong it has the power but sometimes i wish i had the ZF8 gearbox.
If it wasn't for the small boot and fuel tank and 1500kg towing weight i'd consider the 330e, better towing capacity and the V60 T6 Recharge would be an option.
At the moment my current search on Autotrader is 5 series and F PAce 3.0 Supercharged engines. I would still go with petrol.
573 said:
Define 'best'. Estate cars like that Volvo are rubbish compared to a proper tow vehicle. Best ones I've had have been eg V8 Petrol X5s with the self-levelling air suspension, Porsche Cayenne Turbo (again, with air) and Dodge Ram (no need for air).
Anything like that makes a mockery of messing about with a little estate car.
A V90 is a "little estate car"?!? Anything like that makes a mockery of messing about with a little estate car.
This place is f
king batst crazy sometimes.OP is towing a caravan that he currently uses an E91 for and you're suggesting a Dodge Ram?!?
I used to tow with a Honda Accord Estate. The DTec used to get 27mpg towing but you could feel 1400kg on the back. I now drive with a Vito and you wouldn't know it was there. Its metallic blue so don't quite look like the travelling gardeners you might think tow caravans with vans. We load it up with kit in the rear, bikes, BBQs etc.
MrBig said:
A V90 is a "little estate car"?!?
This place is fking batst crazy sometimes.
OP is towing a caravan that he currently uses an E91 for and you're suggesting a Dodge Ram?!?
It's all relative This place is f
king batst crazy sometimes.OP is towing a caravan that he currently uses an E91 for and you're suggesting a Dodge Ram?!?
I bought a Dodge ram a few years ago, they're not the best towing car, at least the 4.7 isn't because they don't have the lowdown torque to pull really heavy loads from a standstill
However, once you get them going it's a different story
I was overtaking a line of slower moving traffic, erm enthusiastically, on a wide A road
Mid overtake I glanced in my RVM and was reminded that I was towing a car !
I'd forgotten, thankfully before pulling back in
MrBig said:
573 said:
Define 'best'. Estate cars like that Volvo are rubbish compared to a proper tow vehicle. Best ones I've had have been eg V8 Petrol X5s with the self-levelling air suspension, Porsche Cayenne Turbo (again, with air) and Dodge Ram (no need for air).
Anything like that makes a mockery of messing about with a little estate car.
A V90 is a "little estate car"?!? Anything like that makes a mockery of messing about with a little estate car.
This place is f
king batst crazy sometimes.OP is towing a caravan that he currently uses an E91 for and you're suggesting a Dodge Ram?!?
Even apart from not needing a huge 4x4 for a caravan, the Dodge Ram is especially insane - the big SUVs are already hard work enough to park etc, adding a metre of length, a few inches in width and height, woeful economy, and left-hand drive into the equation
KTMsm said:
I'd also question why your wife objects to diesels, in the early days they weren't great but for most people they are far better than petrol for giving instant torque at road speeds
This is the big question. There's a reason most people who tow a lot use diesels.If the car gets used as a daily and spends a week a year towing a caravan then fair enough, I get that many people prefer to drive a petrol than a diesel.
But once you've stuck an extra 1.5 tonnes or so on the back, those driving characteristics are very different and you're going to be sat in a wheezy underpowered petrol and stopping for fuel every 200 miles when you could be wafting along in a comfortable diesel.
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