PHEV as a towcar

[Buckman]

Yeah - that was bold, the Carlton was very quick of its time. What is amazing is how we take what was the unusual edge of the performance world for granted now. Back then (30 years ago) the Carlton was as good as it got. The P*2 DMLR is half a second quicker to 62 without the 50kw SW performance upgrade. With it, its a whole second quicker. Sure the P*2 is limited to 128mph. But thats kind of enough on a road ;-) The current holder of the fastest production car (0-60) is the Pininfarina Battista (1.9s, 217mph top) followed by the Tesla Model S Plaid (1.98), topping out at 200mph.

But given the Battista is a hyper car, and the Tesla is a very comfortable 4 door saloon, maybe the Tesla gets the title of the modern day Lotus Carlton

In South Africa the Vauxhall Carlton was used as a pursuit vehicle as it was very fast and handled well. My friend bought one with a high mileage at a police auction for a bargain price.
Everything worked even the air con as it had been maintiain by the police mechanics however it had holes where the two way radios had been fitted. He had the car for many years before selling it on for almost as much as he paid for it originally.

 

[RogerL]

Yeah - that was bold, the Carlton was very quick of its time. What is amazing is how we take what was the unusual edge of the performance world for granted now. Back then (30 years ago) the Carlton was as good as it got. The P*2 DMLR is half a second quicker to 62 without the 50kw SW performance upgrade. With it, its a whole second quicker. Sure the P*2 is limited to 128mph. But thats kind of enough on a road ;-) The current holder of the fastest production car (0-60) is the Pininfarina Battista (1.9s, 217mph top) followed by the Tesla Model S Plaid (1.98), topping out at 200mph.

But given the Battista is a hyper car, and the Tesla is a very comfortable 4 door saloon, maybe the Tesla gets the title of the modern day Lotus Carlton

It comes down to how many constitutes "production" - and whether you use acceleration or top speed as the measure.

 

[otherclive]

When I was working in Oz my boss took us out for a drive in his Holden Monaro. With all of its body kit it really looked the part and boy did it go. He took us to a car fest in Canberra where cars from all over Oz gathered and basically the police turned a blind eye. The customised Utes were all over the place and some had put a tremendous amount of work into them.

 

[RogerL]

When I was working in Oz my boss took us out for a drive in his Holden Monaro. With all of its body kit it really looked the part and boy did it go. He took us to a car fest in Canberra where cars from all over Oz gathered and basically the police turned a blind eye. The customised Utes were all over the place and some had put a tremendous amount of work into them.

The Monaro was sold in very small numbers in the UK as the Vauxhall VXR8 - it's related to the Carlton/Omega/Senator.

Opel/Vauxhall tried to put the GM small block V8 into the Omega but couldn't solve the cooling problems when running flat out on the Autobahn - strangely they never asked their GM colleagues at Holden for assistance.

 

[Buckman]

When I was working in Oz my boss took us out for a drive in his Holden Monaro. With all of its body kit it really looked the part and boy did it go. He took us to a car fest in Canberra where cars from all over Oz gathered and basically the police turned a blind eye. The customised Utes were all over the place and some had put a tremendous amount of work into them.

The Monaco was and still is a very powerful car. Actually too powerful and not very good in bends as the tail swung out and being rear wheel drive if you were not a good driver, end of you and the car.
My father in law had the Holden pickup with the straight six engine and it was a plodder with column gear stick change, but one of the most reliable cars I ever had the pleasure of driving.

 

[Buckman]

The Monaro was sold in very small numbers in the UK as the Vauxhall VXR8 - it's related to the Carlton/Omega/Senator.

Opel/Vauxhall tried to put the GM small block V8 into the Omega but couldn't solve the cooling problems when running flat out on the Autobahn - strangely they never asked their GM colleagues at Holden for assistance.

I may be wrong, but I think the Monaco has a Chev V8 engine same as the Camaro?

 

[RogerL]

I may be wrong, but I think the Monaco has a Chev V8 engine same as the Camaro?

Ye - the GM small block V8.

 

[otherclive]

In Oz there were two engine variants. V6 and V8. The one we were taken out in was the “ bells and whistle” top spec V8. The Boss liked to make his mark !!

 

[Buckman]

Ye - the GM small block V8.

I don't think a 6l engine can be called a small block V8. Only kidding as you can get bigger V8s like in the older Mustangs which were I think over 7l.
The same V8 was used in the Vauxhall Firenza car in the late sixties in South Africa. It was known as the Cam-Am with a 5l V8 same engine as the Camaro. Only 100 were built and if you can find one expect to pay a small fortune.

 

[RogerL]

I don't think a 6l engine can be called a small block V8. Only kidding as you can get bigger V8s like in the older Mustangs which were I think over 7l.
The same V8 was used in the Vauxhall Firenza car in the late sixties in South Africa. It was known as the Cam-Am with a 5l V8 same engine as the Camaro. Only 100 were built and if you can find one expect to pay a small fortune.

GM small block V8 goes up from 4.3 litres to 7.2 litres - their big block V8 goes from 5.7 to 10.4 litres

 

[Buckman]

GM small block V8 goes up from 4.3 litres to 7.2 litres - their big block V8 goes from 5.7 to 10.4 litres

My son has the 2012 V8 Landcruiser and I think it also has the Chev V8 4.7l petrol engine.

 

[Raywood]

We would always prefer a cross over type of vehicle as it is higher than a standard saloon. It makes it easy to enter and exit if you have a disability. Currently I have difficulty if we use our Corolla as hard to exit as too low to the ground for me. In addition, with a cross over in a rural area of a narrow twisty road you have slightly better vision in certain areas being higher up.

Wit a Mazda 6 as a tow car I can agree with you. I would like an SUV and like the Kuga but my wife simply does not like the idea, so for the time being I am stuck with a saloon.

 

[RogerL]

My son has the 2012 V8 Landcruiser and I think it also has the Chev V8 4.7l petrol engine.

Is that an aftermarket conversion - the Toyota V8 is well regarded.

 

[Buckman]

Is that an aftermarket conversion - the Toyota V8 is well regarded.

No standard. He lives in Eswatini in southern Africa. It is a top spec Land Cruiser.

 

[RogerL]

No standard. He lives in Eswatini in southern Africa. It is a top spec Land Cruiser.

I can't find any references to Toyota using the GM V8 in production.

 

[Tobes]

@figbat, Did you manage to set up a test drive in an EV version of the XC40? Given your existing XC40 T4 is FWD, and by your account works really well, just wondering why the need for AWD is present? (I mean don't, get me wrong - I love AWD for snow and mud, but for most roads FWD is good). I.e. have you tried the XC40 PHEV recharge? BTW - can you charge at home? If not, a PHEV is not for you. PHEV need to be charged every night to get the best out of them. And its huge assistance with an EV too.

 

[Buckman]

I can't find any references to Toyota using the GM V8 in production.

Yep you are right. I have never seen or been in his car. See HERE for more info.

 

[figbat]

@figbat, Did you manage to set up a test drive in an EV version of the XC40? Given your existing XC40 T4 is FWD, and by your account works really well, just wondering why the need for AWD is present? (I mean don't, get me wrong - I love AWD for snow and mud, but for most roads FWD is good). I.e. have you tried the XC40 PHEV recharge? BTW - can you charge at home? If not, a PHEV is not for you. PHEV need to be charged every night to get the best out of them. And its huge assistance with an EV too.

Our XC40 is AWD as was the XC60 we had before it and the Škoda Yeti before that. It’s probably not an absolute need, but we do prefer AWD and it has got us out of a bind a few times. Hence why the XC60 Recharge this time around as the XC40 Recharge is FWD. We can charge at home as our other car is a MINI Cooper SE, so we already have a full EV and a Pod Point 7kW charger.

 

[Tobes]

Our XC40 is AWD as was the XC60 we had before it and the Škoda Yeti before that. It’s probably not an absolute need, but we do prefer AWD and it has got us out of a bind a few times. Hence why the XC60 Recharge this time around as the XC40 Recharge is FWD. We can charge at home as our other car is a MINI Cooper SE, so we already have a full EV and a Pod Point 7kW charger.

Ah - I am out of touch! I didn't know the ICE XC40 had an AWD variant, but yeah - I totally get it. And if you have a full EV I can stop banging on about how good they are to drive ;-)

 

[xtrailman]

Our XC40 is AWD as was the XC60 we had before it and the Škoda Yeti before that. It’s probably not an absolute need, but we do prefer AWD and it has got us out of a bind a few times. Hence why the XC60 Recharge this time around as the XC40 Recharge is FWD. We can charge at home as our other car is a MINI Cooper SE, so we already have a full EV and a Pod Point 7kW charger.

I only buy 4wd cars I like the extra traction.
Also only buy auto and SUV.

 

[Deryck]

I've looked through various threads but not found exactly what I was looking for.

We currently use a Volvo XC40 T4 AWD (190 PS, 300 N.m) to pull our Bailey Pegasus GT65 Rimini (1,472 kg MTPLM), a job it does well. However we are looking at options to replace it and have decided that pure EV is a step too far, but PHEV will probably be a good option.

I'm pretty up-to-speed with cars and how they work, but one thing concerns me - how well does a PHEV blend the ICE and motor for towing? For example I wouldn't want the car to exhaust the battery and leave the car with only the ICE to pull the van up hills or in high load conditions. Is there a driving mode that keeps the battery topped up and available for torque-assist, rather than depleting the battery during the journey and leaving you underpowered when needed? And if so, does anyone have experience of how well it is deployed?

The car we're considering is a Volvo XC60 Recharge T6 AWD (largely because they don't do an AWD XC40 Recharge). I gather this comes with a number of driving modes which manage the electric:ICE usage - is there a preferred one for towing a caravan?

When not towing, this car could easily do our daily duties in EV mode - the ICE would generally get used for towing and occasional longer journeys.

Recently purchased the XC60 Recharge T6 AWD and about to tow for the first time on Thursday.
There are as you say various driving modes but Volvo suggest the use of the AWD as it uses ICE and electric. Nobody can tell me exactly why and it would be interesting to see what mode they were in when PC tested the V60 T6 AWD recently but the did give it an overall of 88% . Certainly like the car so far.

 

[figbat]

I will await feedback. Thanks!

 

[ProfJohnL]

Recently purchased the XC60 Recharge T6 AWD and about to tow for the first time on Thursday.
There are as you say various driving modes but Volvo suggest the use of the AWD as it uses ICE and electric. Nobody can tell me exactly why and it would be interesting to see what mode they were in when PC tested the V60 T6 AWD recently but the did give it an overall of 88% . Certainly like the car so far.

I suspect if you find an explanation on a forum, it will only be speculation rather than information direct from Volvo for that recommendation.

I suggest you ask Volvo.

 

[Deryck]

I will await feedback. Thanks!

XC60 T6 Recharge towed like a dream and never had to use AWD as noted from another comment that it was advised if the road was greasy. Started in Hybrid mode and pulled away without ant hesitation albeit a flat road and did so for 5 miles before the ICE came in intermittently. Got caught in the Edinburgh Bypass Fire yesterday with massive tailbacks. Actually had to unhitch the van turn around and go back up the motor way. Never seen that before. 2 hours later got going again. Electric was depleted after about 25 miles but did come on slightly when braking. After Stirling and heading foe Appin near Oban I decided to try the B mode classed in America as 1 pedal driving. It certainly worked and you could see the battery being supplied as you went down hill if you took you foot of the accelerator.. Hardly had to use the brake pedal at all and battery power kept jumping in and out.. Actually arrived on site with battery level at 2 miles.. Overall towing 157 miles it achieved 24.8mpg and my 67 plate D5 was 25.4 for the same journey around 3 years ago.. Hope this helps in your decision.

 

[figbat]

XC60 T6 Recharge towed like a dream and never had to use AWD as noted from another comment that it was advised if the road was greasy. Started in Hybrid mode and pulled away without ant hesitation albeit a flat road and did so for 5 miles before the ICE came in intermittently. Got caught in the Edinburgh Bypass Fire yesterday with massive tailbacks. Actually had to unhitch the van turn around and go back up the motor way. Never seen that before. 2 hours later got going again. Electric was depleted after about 25 miles but did come on slightly when braking. After Stirling and heading foe Appin near Oban I decided to try the B mode classed in America as 1 pedal driving. It certainly worked and you could see the battery being supplied as you went down hill if you took you foot of the accelerator.. Hardly had to use the brake pedal at all and battery power kept jumping in and out.. Actually arrived on site with battery level at 2 miles.. Overall towing 157 miles it achieved 24.8mpg and my 67 plate D5 was 25.4 for the same journey around 3 years ago.. Hope this helps in your decision.

It’s useful and reassuring, thanks. My main concern was that with the battery depleted and only the ICE left to power the outfit, it would struggle but it seems not.