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Quote: Originally posted by DaveS1 on 11/9/2023
Whatever the rights and wrongs of the matter, towing anything that heavy with a 1500 vehicle is going to be a nightmare!
You would probably be reasonably OK here in the flat lands of Essex but anywhere else and you'll be up and down gears non-stop.
DaveS1
Going to challenge you on that point, 'cos I do it, have done it for over 5 years now, and had no problems, AND with a 1.2 litre petrol engine!
My van is 1310Kg MTPLM, my car is 1350Kg tow limit and 1575Kg Mass in service. Been all over the country and thousands of miles, Wales, Lake District, Peak District, Yorkshire, so 'hilly' terrain. OK, I've got 10% more power and a little bit less torque, and a fair bit better performance overall than OP's car, it's fine, yes I undoubtedly do have to change down a gear or two on the steeper hills, but it's no snail, and generally can outpace most trucks, often find myself overtaking them on motorway uphill sections, so not a mobile roadblock! I cruise motorways in 6th gear, yet to find out just how fast the outfit will go before the power runs out, but accidentally done over 75 on the flat with plenty more to come it seems a number of times (think that's indicative of how easy the car finds towing the van! - I generally have to use cruise control/speed limiter to avoid being obsessive about watching the speedo, the car shows no strain!), and again perhaps indicative of how unfazed the car is at towing, my average towing fuel consumption is 27-33mpg, so clearly NOT thrashing the nuts out of the engine to maintain decent speed. I generally cruise at around 55-60, which seems to suit the engine revs and gear ratios to give easy driving and decent economy.
Caravan Club recommend min of 40bhp/tonne GTW, the OP will be around 45, which is only a little less than my power/weight, so adequate. It won't be rapid from standing start, but safe enough to get into traffic streams, it will cruise at a decent speed, it will have enough 'go' to get past slow trucks etc., it WONT be a 'nightmare'! It may require that rather lost skill that we ALL should employ but rarely do it seems these days of 'anticipatory' driving whereby you judge events ahead to minimise acceleration and braking, and keep as constant a speed as possible! That was the way I was taught to drive back in the dark ages, and it's still the way I drive today, and it suits towing perfectly.
As a novice caravan tower, OP would be wise to opt for a lighter van, rather than push to the tow limits, until he has acquire some considerable towing experience, so that would improve his power to weight and performance even more.
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Topic: Grand c max 2014 1.5 diesel towing help
via mobile 11/9/2023 at 4:53pm
