Help choosing towcar

[Sandra_374373165]

Hi, i am pretty new to caravanning and am thinking of buying a sprite quattro es which has miro of 1318 and mtplm of 1575. Could anyone suggest what would be a good tow car to use with this weight of caravan? I have been looking up a few sites and going by the 85% rule this van seems a bit heavy for the average car.

At the minute i have a 2008 Ford C max 1.8 tdci which the handbook says can tow up to 1500 kg but the kerbweight of this car is 1491 which leaves the 85 % rule as allowing me to tow around 1250 kg. Is this right? Is it dangerous to tow above the weight of you car and if so why does the handbook of the car suggest that i can tow to 1500kg.

Any help would be very welcome

s gourley

 

[David_from_Ashby]

Hi Sandra

As far as choosing a car goes, just look at th kerb weights, and find one which is heavy enough that you like. There should be plenty of larger cars capable of towing your van without needing to go for a 4x4. The 85% rule is only a guideline, used for many years to indicate what may be a safe combination.

The handbook will give you the towing limit for the car based on its ability t pull away up a certain hill and also on engine cooling ability as well as structural limits. It does not tell you what is safe. It may well be safe to tow 1500kg of housebricks in a small trailer, as stability with this is not likely to be an issue, but tow a 1100kg caravan which has been badly loaded, and stability will be a major concern. The closer a caravan comes to equalling the cars weight, the more influence the caravan can have on the cars stability, and its ability to control the caravan in adverse conditions.

I for one would not be happy towing the sprite Quattro with a C-max, regardless of how well it is loaded, unless of course you only tow it in its MIRO condition, which of course you won't!

If you like the C-Max, have a look at the S-Max, this should tow the van with relative ease.

Cheers

David

 

[Zafiral]

The 85% rule is a guide, not a rule.

The only legal requirement is that you do not exceed the gross train weight of the car (the stamped 2nd figure on the weight plate of the car). Meaning if the car has only a driver in you could legally tow 1575kg. I would not recommend this however!

I you can stomach the change of car then a S Max 2.0 TDCi would be a good match. I think the 1.8 TDCi has a lower tow weight than the 2.0 TDCi.

 

[Zafiral]

Sorry I should add, I have been towing for only 2 years and can see no problem with modern cars towing modern well loaded caravans above an 85% match. I would never exceed a 100% match.

Remember if you load heavy items (people) in your car, the outfit will be more stable.

In a round about way, I am saying that if the caravan has nothing more than a battery and gas bottle in it and your car is full to the brim, you should have no adverse problems.

 

[Sandra_374373165]

Thank you all very much for the advice. I was just finding the whole thing a bit daunting as i had actually phoned a local caravan dealer who told me that i could legally tow to 1500 kg if that was what the car manual said i could but i was not convinced. I wonder could anyone offer me some more advice on what cars they tow with if i was looking to tow a heavy van like the sprite quattro. I had been told that mazda 6 were a great towing car but again their kerbweight is not the highest.