Advice please for a beginining on towing

[Paul_374318720]

Hello

My wife & I are looking to invest in a caravan, but before i can go any further, I need to understand weather my exsisting car is man enough for the job or do I need to invest in a a new car. My gut feeling is yes, i'm going to need another car, but i was hoping the experts, that's you, exsisting caravan owners, will be able to answer the question.

As it is just the 2 of us, a 2 berth caravan will be ideal, our current car is a Ford Fusion 1.4.

I'm hopeing that one of you out there will be able to offer the advice we are looking for. I'm sorry if it seems a daft question, but i hope you understand.

Many Thanks

Paul

 

[Etch]

Hiya

The short answer is it would depend on the size of caravan and the weight, i would think that your 1.4 engine would be ok with a small caravan on the flat but may struggle on hills i would personally go for a bigger car with a more powerfull engine.

 

[DavidW1]

Hi and welcome to caravanning - you could do no better than read the hints for newbies on this PC web or go to the Caravan Clubs website and do the same, that is if you already havn't done so.

I don't know the kerbwieght or the max tow of your Fusion but would roughly guess at about 1100kg and 1200kg respectively and those important figures from you car handbook are the starting point in any calculations.

Using the 85% rule, 1100kg gives you a max recommended tow of 935kg which excludes most two births at the lower end of the new market but as older vans tend to be lighter, extending the search by a few years will widen the choice.

You may also be taken by small popup vans like Eriba which even modestly sized cars can pull with ease.

 

[nkosibob]

hello paul

Don't think about towing with a 1.4 petrol engined car, you may get by on small A or B roads but the motorways particularly the long inclines will be very difficult even towing a small van. There are quite a few good towing cars about, which would suit your purpose, but go for a diesel, they are a much better option. Check that the car you buy has a service history as well, very important

 

[MikeyW]

Have a look at www.whattowcar.com it's very handy for outfit matching.