We were looking for advice on pertol towcars recently before committing to purchase the Seat, but there was not much to be found, so we took the plunge anyway. If there is anyone else out there who is similarly unsure, we have now towed our 1,200kg MIRO caravan with the car, and can can report that we are very satisfied with it's performance. The engine pulls better than 1.6 deisel in our previous Citroen C4, and the outfit is much more stable. We are also relieved that the automatic gearbox sorts things out admirably; I set the adaptive cruise control at 60 on the motorway and it virtually drove itself. The suspension is a little firm solo, but this comes into it's own when towing. The only minor criticism is that the front wheels scabble a little if you pull away too enthusiastically, a problem which all of our front wheel drive cars have had. We achieved 32 mpg in mixed towing. Incidentally, the factory fitted towbar is very neat!
I hope this helps those considering moving over to petrol. The 1.4TSI engine is available in several cars across the Volkeswagon group.
Hi simon444,
I also have a 1.4tsi Ateca, manual gearbox, lovely car, neat factory fit towbar.
However, neither of my pairs of mirrors fit. What do you use?
Our caravan is only 2m wide, and so I do not use mirror extensions. However, I have a set for France which I have not yet attempted to fit. I will have a go at the weekend and let you know!
My Eriba is also only 2m wide and I believe is borderline for requiring extended mirrors.
The Ateca is 1.84m body width but the existing mirrors make it wider than 2m so practically it doesn't need them but legally?
I think I'll look out for some 2nd hand Milenco Aeros :)
Considering the ateca is a 1.4 and petrol it seems to do a very good job, better than a lot of 1.6 diesels!
It will pull 1800 according to the leaflets, and it gets a 4 and a half rating from the car / caravan matching site!
Rule of thumb is that if rear body width of car is less than caravan body width then towing mirrors are requied to stay legal. Only one towing mirror required in France though on the French offside.
Whats the tow hook like on the ateca?
Saw a youtube film it seems to be tucked up at the back and it drops down at the touch of a button...looks neat and easy to use.
Weird!
Quote: Originally posted by xplore44 on 16/6/2018
Whats the tow hook like on the ateca?
Saw a youtube film it seems to be tucked up at the back and it drops down at the touch of a button...looks neat and easy to use.
Weird!
Yes, that's the factory fit option, well worth having and cheaper than a retro fit in my case. The factory fit also has full electrics for charging the leisure battery and powering the fridge. It also stops the smart alternator charging which can fry a standard leisure battery, just gives out a steady 14V when the caravan is connected
Very encouraging to read this post. We are due to pick up a new Tiguan with this very same engine & gearbox. I had changed the order to a TDi but the car will do most of its miles doing very short journeys, as the Wife is a Community Nurse. The TDi would have been a concern.