Mondeo 2.0 TDCI Estate & Stirling Europa 600 towing advice

[Richard_374305363]

Hi,

We have just put a deposit down on a 2005 Stirling Europa 600. The salesman told us my 54 plate 2.0 TDCI Mondeo estate would be able to tow a van up to 1800 KG.

The MIRO of the van is 1400 KG and the MTPLM is 1645KG.

As we are new to the caravan scene I have been looking on the net to make sure I can tow this van, I have found out that if you are using the 85% rule then our caravan should weigh 1351 KG (Kerb weight of Mondeo = 1590KG)

I am quite worried now as the weight of the caravan will obviously increase when it is loaded will I be able to tow it with my Mondeo?

I have the option of using the boot space in my car for heavier items, does filling the boot of the car help by increasing the kerb weight?

I would really appreciate any help & advice regarding this matter as we fell in love with this caravan but do not want to end up with a caravan that is dangerous to tow.

Best Regards

Richard

 

[Garfield]

Apart from the fact that you are near the legal limit and past the recommended limit for your car, loading extra cargo into the boot will not improve things, the suspension of a vehicle is designed as a compromise between comfort and fully loaded stability, which generally means a firm ride with just the driver and wallowing when fully loaded. I once had a Ford XR2 which was like a go kart with just me but with four adults in it was like a pig on ice.

You obviously need to find somewhere to put things but loading extra bits into the car just to make it heavier is not a good idea, the boot of our MPV is occupied by the dog and virtually everything is stowed in the caravan.

It would be interesting to see a test as to which gave the best stability, a 100kg payload in the car boot or the caravan, I would wager that there would be little difference, probably putting my money on being over the wheels in the caravan.

 

[Jim_5071344]

Simple. Get your deposit back. The salesman gave you wrong information to make a sale. You will be over 100% if you load the caravan with a full payload. Quite easy to do.

 

[andy_5039827]

Richard the dealer is totally wrong with his advice.You should name and shame him.

 

[Richard_374305363]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for taking the time to reply, I have actually made an error on my first post, the weights I posted are for a 2007 model, the caravan we are looking at is as follows:

MIRO 1353 KG

MTPLM 1599 KG

Now according to the 85% rule the empty caravan is only 2KG over weight, I am sure I would never fill the caravan with a payload of 246 KG (Nearly a quarter of a ton!)

If I was being realistic then I would have said a payload of 100KG was closer to what we would take, maybe not even that much. This would mean that I was still below the kerb weight of the Mondeo (1590 KG)

Is this better? I know it is over the 85% but not as bad as the first calculations, I went over yesterday and checked the plate on the caravan to make sure I had the correct informaation.

I would really apprerciate your thoughts

Richard

 

[andy_5039827]

Hi Richard Andy again,I own a 55 plate Mondeo Ghia X hatchback and tow a caravan with MTPLM of 1400.The car pulls well but you know you have almost an equal weight on the rear.Your caravans MTPLM is 1599,in my opinion this is a little heavey for the Mondeo as you will always wonder have I crept over it`s 246 kgs of allowance, remember things like gas, battery etc need to be added, it soon adds up.I know it is tempting to buy the caravan,but take it from me there is nothing worse than saying we can`t have that due to its weight,also if you have little experience at towing you are jumping in at the deep end.Good Luck what ever you do,best regards Andy

 

[Richard_374305363]

Thanks for all your advice it is really appreciated, I rang the dealer yesterday an told him I was not happy with the advice I had been given, they told me they would transfer my deposit onto another caravan but would not refund me my deposit as in their eyes they have done nothing wrong

Not quite sure what I am going to do next, any thoughts from you guys

Richard

 

[andy_5039827]

Thanks for all your advice it is really appreciated, I rang the dealer yesterday an told him I was not happy with the advice I had been given, they told me they would transfer my deposit onto another caravan but would not refund me my deposit as in their eyes they have done nothing wrong

Not quite sure what I am going to do next, any thoughts from you guys

Richard

Hi Richard,what I would do is mention this forum and explain you have been wrongly advised by them, and if a full refund is not forthcoming, you will name and shame them on this forum.Good Luck

Andy

 

[parker1158]

Hi Richard

Go to the citizen's advice bureau and ask them (Or ask a lawyer if you know one). If they agree with the consensus of opinion on here then contact the dealer again and tell him you have taken two independent levels of advice and quote the bureau telling him if he does not comply you will take the mater up with the small claims court. Small claims is a simple procedure that can be done on-line.

He is probably trying his best to hang on to a sale even though he knows he is in the wrong

 

[paul_374239978]

hi, i have just returned from my first holiday towing with a mondeo tdci estate (130). i pulled a coachman amara 580/4 twin axle with a mtplm og 1560 kgs .it was fully loaded as was the car and towed 200 miles to north yorkshire no problem at all. very stable , 29 mpg towing, 47 mpg around yorkshire. stick it cruise at 60 mph in fifth gear and relax.

 

[Richard_374305363]

Hi Paul,

Thanks for the reply, is this the first time you have towed a caravan? Did you come across any steep hills? If so how did the mondeo cope. We went camping to the lakes this weekend and the car was loaded to the brim, to be honest with you I had driven to and from work that morning with the boot empty and with it fully loaded there was absolutely no noticable difference in performance, it pulls like a train on the flat & on steep inclines.

Last week I worked out exactly what we would be likely to take, including gas bottles, battery, clothes, food etc and I estimated a figure of 150KG which would take the van to around 1500KG. This would leave a further 99KG if required

This was also leaving my boot completley empty so some things could be put in there if required to distribute the load.

I still haven't made a decision yet we are going to look at an Elddis Avante 556 & a Bailey Pageant Bretagne this weekend.

Richard

 

[Mark_374234073]

Hi Richard

We use the 2.2 tdci estate and the europa 600 you first talked about, we have been out loads with this outfit including 3 kids and bikes ect , done cornwall,devon,wales including snowdon area.

The 2.0 is slightly lower on torque but im sure you will just use 5th more as the 2.2 pulls well in 6th.

The self levelling suspension is very good and do not find any problems towing.

I hope this helps

Regards

Mark

 

[Lutz]

As the caravan is still well within the legal limit (the maximum permissible towload as specified by the manufacturer) any offer to refund or transfer the deposit to another caravan can only be considered as goodwill action on the part of the dealer. Legally I can see no entitlement to a claim, unless one could argue that he should have pointed out the special licence requirements that must be fulfilled in order to tow at over 100% weight ratio (either you must have passed your test before the 1st January 1997 or you need a category B+E licence).