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We use a Galaxy with the 2.0 diesel with Powershift auto gearbox, it's got the 140 bhp engine and it's a great tow car. I think it has a kerbweight of 1731 kg and the max tow weight is 1800 kg. The noseweight limit is 90kg but the towbar itself has a max limit of 80 kg so that is something to look out for. We like the car and so far it has been very reliable. I think the S-max weights etc are the same as the Galaxy.

Rob

We also tow with a Galaxy 2.0 automatic diesel and we l-u-r-v-e it! It's a 2011 model so don't know if that's the same shape that you're meaning but it probably is?

Rob and Tina are right about the kerbweight and max tow weight which is one of the reasons we went for that over the C Max plus when reading reviews etc on them both. It did say that the Galaxy tends to have the better road holding. Well, speaking for myself you can't beat a decent bit of road holding so that won hands down for us and we don't regret getting this one bit.

Also love the extra width inside the car that we didn't have in our two previous Zafira's so this one spoils us with spreading out room and plenty of room for young families, (not that ours are young. In fact they've both got young of their own now).

If I had to find one itsy bitsy complaint about the Galaxy, (and it's nothing to do with the towing ability), it would be a minor one which is that while there is an amazing amount of boot space, (providing you haven't got the sixth and seventh seats up of course), the boot does slope down towards the edge and I've lost count of the number of times I've had stuff lurch out of the back when I've opened it coz it's slipped down the slope. You wanna see something funny.....me sitting on the edge of the boot desperately trying to retrieve whatever has fallen out onto the road and no booger about to help me pick it upLessons learnt, I now ALWAYS peep through the side opening when opening up so that I can see if there's going to be anything likely to jump out. Saves a lot of faffing about for me and also saves risking damaging any breakables in bags that may have slipped towards the tailgate too.

But as for towing....an absolute dream and you can almost forget that you're even towing and our Ellie aint no lightweight either.

Another added bonus, and an important one in the current financial climate, is that it's very, VERY economical on fuel even when towing. But that might be the same for all diesel's I don't know since this is our first diesel wagon ever. Mind you, it does cost a fortune to fill it right up in the first place!Do love it though.

Hippy

I'd forgotten about that bit of boot floor! We've got very dark glass in the back so it's impossible to see what's about to fall out the back when you lift the tailgate.

Our Galaxy is a December 2010 model and we also have the electronic handbrake which works really well with the caravan on the back, hill starts are really easy.

Rob

Modern autos have oil coolers so there's not any problem with transmission fluid overheating. Many are actually "semi automatics" which are different again. We have to have an automatic due to Tina's health problems so I've never driven a manual version but I have seen lots of Galaxies on camp sites and they seem well liked. I think the older 1.9 diesel is probably pretty good compared with the 2.0 but you have to look out for high mileage cars that have been used as taxis.

Don't forget to look at the VW and Seat versions as well.

Rob

Quote: Originally posted by Rob and Tina on 23/6/2012

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I'd forgotten about that bit of boot floor! We've got very dark glass in the back so it's impossible to see what's about to fall out the back when you lift the tailgate.

Our Galaxy is a December 2010 model and we also have the electronic handbrake which works really well with the caravan on the back, hill starts are really easy.

Rob

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Oh I can't see what might be going to fall out of the boot through the glass, nope. I peep in through the side of the tailgate as I open it v-e-r-y  very gently Did have a disaster one day when a bag of shopping belonging to my niece who'd been out with me, decided to land on the road and we heard this ominous.......crash! She'd bought one of those special occasion mugs as a gift for her brother-in-law and it was in several pieces but still in it's box

It was since that fateful day that I've taken to peeping in to make sure it's all clear

Hill starts seem to be a doddle for us too, with or without Ellie hanging on behine.....not sure if we've got an electronic handbrake though? Mechanics are a mystery to moi, I'm just happy that it all works

Can say that we've towed with manual gearboxes and automatics and automatics win hands down for us.

Hippy

 

We have a 2010 model Smax - 163 PS manual tdci and it is perfect for towing with one drawback - no spare!.

I thought it would be no problem but last year on our way to the Alps we suffered a puncture on the M25 that caused us a few problems - had to be trucked off to Folkestone for the night and then had to get up early the next day to ring around any local tyre companies to see if they could get hold of the right tyre for us - eventually and £560 for two tyres later - (yes that's £280 each !) - we were on our way.

I am fairly relaxed about not having the spare when driving solo but will be getting either a spare wheel or just a spare tyre to put in the van for when we go off on our summer hols.

with regards to towing limits  - noseweight 90kg - Kerbweight 1,690 kg, Max towable mass 1,800kg.

getting 45mpg ish solo mainly on shortish journeys - max 20 mile trips

When we towed to the Alps last year with 4 in the car, 3 bikes on the roof and one in our Ranger GT60 540/6 we got about 24mpgish over the whole journey from Cardiff to Annecy.

Great car - nice and smooth plenty of power - highly recommend it but be aware of the spare issue - not sure if the Galaxy comes with a spare or not.

If you go for the Smax and have a long journey with a full car the rear 2 seats are easy to remove with a torx key and they weigh about 7~8kg each and release a fair bit of extra space when they are out