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We are currently thinking of changing our towcar and wondered does anyone have any advice?  We have a caravan with a MIRO of 1218kg, 1436 MTPLM., though this could change in the next year or so.  Currently we have a Citroen C5 2 litre diesel estate and it pulls the van very well, but I don't like the driving position and the fact that it is a nightmare to park in virtually any carpark, it being so long!  We have been thinking about the Citroen C-Crosser but can't seem to find many reviews on this as a towcar, I liked the Ford Kuga, but it is very expensive.  The Kia Sportage looks good but there doesn't seem to be many used ones around and they are too expensive to buy new.  Any advice would be appreciated.

If you would consider a 4x4 then I can personally say that we love the x-trail we have just brought (2008 model). It has a kerbweight just over 1700kg so will be fine for your van and tow ball weight of 100kg. As the 4 wheel drive is selectable you will get around 40mpg combined when not towing and more when driving on the motorway (as long as you keep the speed sensible )

Other models you might like are the Honda CRV (but expensive even second hand), Kia Sorento (better towing weight than the sportage) or perhaps a volvo V70?

Darren

We had a Peugeot 4007 until September & it was a good towcar. We towed a 1480kg MTPLM Bailey Pegasus.

However it had a thirst, my overall average was 33 mpg & that is with a 31 mile each way daily commute on motorways. towing I would get about 22 - 23 mpg with three bikes on the roof.

The car was comfy with a big boot in 5 seat mode, but the fuel economy meant it had to go as I do around 30000 miles a year.

My car wasn't completely reliable, a leaking oil seal needed the gearbox, propshaft, exhaust & front subframe removed so if it wasn't warranty then the labour cost would have been huge. To me the clutch wasn't right after it was put back together, but the dealers just said that it was within manufacturing tollorances.

Personally if I was buying any of the 3 clones, I would stick to the Mitsubishi as my local Peugeot dealers were not familiar with the car as apaprt from the badge & the engine, the rest is pure Mitsubishi, including all the running gear & electrics.

The Sportage gets good reviews from most people I have spoken to but you had better check the spec as I believe that some models have a max towing weight (braked) of 1400kg which might make it a bad match for your van (you can check this on the V5 document or on a number of websites). The hyundai Santa Fe has lots of good comments on here plus is heavier and has a max towing weight (braked) of over 2000kg. MPG on the Santa Fe won't be amazing and I would expect a combined of around 37-38 when not towing (I am sure someone on here with one will be able to give a firmer figure). I would say the Santa Fe is similar to the X-Trail with a slighty higher towing weight but either would suit your current van.

Unfortunatly we were in the same boat as you as although our current ranger is very light we want to change in the next 18 months to a 5 or 6 berth van and needed to go for a tow car now that would pull around 1450kg in the future. After a lot of looking we finally opted for the X-Trail as it came with a lot of kit as standard (on the sports model), had manually selectable 4WD and good reviews. I would avoid the T30 X-Trails (pre 2007) unless they have an extended warranty due to problems with the Turbo but post 2007 models (T31) are fine and the 2.0DTI engine is good........last week I was getting 46-47mpg on a motorway run sticking to 70mph.

Its a difficult choice as ultimatly you need a heavy(ish) tow car for a caravan around 1450kg and this in turn will effect the MPG and size.!

Why go to all that expense of buying a 4x4 just for a miro of 1218.

Virtually any large saloon or estate will tow that, I know I will get another slating but the Octavia and Superb 1.9 tdi will tow your van with ease, with much cheaper running costs, when solo you will return over 50 MPG solo 35 towing

Quote: Originally posted by Skoda Bob on 01/12/2011

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Why go to all that expense of buying a 4x4 just for a miro of 1218.

Virtually any large saloon or estate will tow that, I know I will get another slating but the Octavia and Superb 1.9 tdi will tow your van with ease, with much cheaper running costs, when solo you will return over 50 MPG solo 35 towing

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I am not going to slate this view but....I guess the issue here will be what the actual weight is of the van. If it is empty with no motor mover, awning, gas bottles etc then he "might" in theory be able to go this route but if they load anything in the van then I personally would like a tow vehicle that fits the max 85% of MTPLM. Remember the MIRO is the weight it leaves the factory and does not included the gas bottles, battery, etc without then considering normal load items likes bottles, leads, batteries, etc,

As you mention there are some estates that may well suit their needs and I think some of the Volvo V70's will have a kerb weight that suits this weight of van....but they would need to check the max braked towing weight as some (i.e Sportage) have a low weight of around 1400kg.

Quote: Originally posted by leicester campers on 30/11/2011

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We are currently thinking of changing our towcar and wondered does anyone have any advice?  We have a caravan with a MIRO of 1218kg, 1436 MTPLM., though this could change in the next year or so.  Currently we have a Citroen C5 2 litre diesel estate and it pulls the van very well, but I don't like the driving position and the fact that it is a nightmare to park in virtually any carpark, it being so long!  We have been thinking about the Citroen C-Crosser but can't seem to find many reviews on this as a towcar, I liked the Ford Kuga, but it is very expensive.  The Kia Sportage looks good but there doesn't seem to be many used ones around and they are too expensive to buy new.  Any advice would be appreciated.

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Before the 4007 we towed a 1482kg mtplm caravan with a Zafira 150 CDTi.  While it was not as good a tow car as the 4007, it more than held its own & was much more economical when used without the van.

As a car it was heavy for its size, & with if you get one with optional front & rear parking sensors, parking is a breeze.  It has the high up driving position so one of those could be a possibility.

I tow our 1430 MTPLM caravan with a VW Touran 1.9 TDI.  On our last holiday the 300 mile trip from Cornwall (near Truro) to Leicestershire left me with about a quarter tank, without filling up during the journey.   I did fill up on way down because we had a very long delay on the M5 due to an overturned caravan, so I am not able to comment for that journey.  The car has not yet done 20,000 miles, so a little more improvement may result as the engine loosens up.

Bertie.

Quote: Originally posted by Alan Partridge on 04/12/2011

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From the 2011 model year (late 2010) the Outlander in manual form has been fitted with a 174bhp Mitsubishi MIVEC diesel engine instead of the PSA 154bhp engine. The Mitsubishi engine seems to be more economical. I have averaged 39mpg over 8,000 miles, including about 900 miles towing at about 26mpg. The official combined figure of 43.6 mpg is hard to achieve, but in the real world it does seem to be better than the PSA engine - a friend has one that is returning low 30s.

The bad news is that you probably won't find MIVEC diesel engined version of the Outlander much under £20k, as they are relatively new (it's a 2.3 litre version of the 1.8 in the ASX).

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If I averaged 39 mpg (Peugeot claimed 39.2 mpg combined), I may still have a 4007!!!

With the exception of the 4007 I have generally matched the combined figure on my solo driving, but the 4007 was nearly 20% adrift.

Previous cars include 05 Renalt Scenic 1.9 DCi,  56 Civic 2.2 CDTi, 08 Zafira 150 CDTi in addition to the 4007.

On solo use, I get about 46 - 47mpg out of my Mondeo 2.0 TDCi. The combined figure is 47.9 mpg.