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Surely if your fortunes have changed for the better its time to get rid of that little old car

and move on to a more suitable towing machine

In therory you can tow up to 100% of the vehicles unladen kerb weight.

As long as what you are towing is braked.

I have a Diahatsu Hi jet van for odd jobs with a Kerb weight of 1500kg. I wouln't dream of towing anything over 650kg lol

Quote: Originally posted by Big Al on 03/10/2012

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Surely if your fortunes have changed for the better its time to get rid of that little old car

and move on to a more suitable towing machine

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Quote: Originally posted by ridge walker on 04/10/2012

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In therory you can tow up to 100% of the vehicles unladen kerb weight...

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agree with 664DaveS  a 1 ltr engine will be hard pressed to pull any caravan.look at GOING caravans as these are the lightest i know of and possibly too heavy.also look at teardrop vans.

http://www.jcleisure.com/GoingUK.htm

Personally I would agree with Big Al, the AX would struggle engine wise even if you found a van with the right weight match. Also if its done a fair few miles it would be working the engine too hard for such a small car and you would probably suffer the increased possibility of breakdowns.

I would look at possibly changing the car if you are able,  if not you mentioned you enjoyed camping and want to step up from a tent, have you considered a suitably matched trailer tent?

I think I'd be inclined to hang on for a bit and see if you can afford to upgrade early next year (although that means you might miss out on some winter bargains).

Couple of other options though if you really can't wait

1) See if you can find someone that might swap cars - there may be someone out there near you with say a 1600cc that wants to downsize and as long as the running costs aren't too much more you might be able to do it. Try your local facebook For Sale page.

2) Do you have any family or friends that would tow your van for you if you cover their costs even if just for a couple of breaks next year by then you might be in a better position.

3) As above but borrow the car and cover their additional insurance costs

4) Have a look at hiring. If you can get one with a towbar it might work out cheaper doing this for a couple of breaks next year than buying another car  you will still keep your AX's cheap running costs and then as things get better you can look into buying a bigger one . There is someone on here that does that and because it's too expensive to run around in a towcar all year round

5) Finally - have a look at a seasonal pitch at a nearby site and tell yourself it won't be for too long just until things are on the up (bit expensive though I think)

Hope it all works out