The saga continues

[Ste6t9]

Ok so we’re not in any rush!

The Outlander will pull our van but as you’ll all remember from various posts, we’re always a bit close on limits when we’ve got the whole family in.

The van has axle limits of 900kg and we have to be careful there as there’s not a lot of wiggle room to put much in without overloading the front axle. However putting more in roof box and in the boot isn’t much better because we end up only about 30kg off the GVW of the towcar (which is very light for a 7 seat SUV)

So here’s my requirements:

-Large boot space (dog crate needed to fit in.
-High GVW so we’re not going to overload as the van is limited
-Decent train weight as the van is 1800kg MTPLM (usually ends up about 1750kg)
-not ridiculous MPG or tax bracket if possible.

So far the shortlist looks like this:

Discovery 4
Any type of pickup
Sorento (although boot space not much different to Outlander)

Any other options??

 

[RogerL]

If your budget includes a Discovery, include the reliable option of a VW Touareg 3.0 TDi - only available as a 5-seater so if you need 7-seats include it's sibling, the Audi Q7.

 

[ProfJohnL]

....
So far the shortlist looks like this:

Discovery 4
Any type of pickup
Sorento (although boot space not much different to Outlander)

Any other options??

Land Rovers look wonderful but sadly they have poor reliability record. Most caravanners who have to foot the bills for repairs would avoid LR and opt for the Sorento which has many very good reviews.

Do you want a pick up for your daily drive?

If you are really looking at a pick up, make sure you and your family are really happy with the space and comfort of the cabin. Whilst I am certain they have improved since I travelled in one in 2007, its not what I would call a desirable daily driver.

Alternatives - Hyundai Santa Fe ( sister vehicle to Kia)
Ssansyong Rexton (basically MB running gear)
Skoda Kodiaq
VW Touareg
MB G class

But I also return to suggest the MPV's like the Galaxy which despite it being close on weight is still a fine tow vehicle.

 

[Jcloughie]

I don’t know from personal experience, but from just reading different forums feedback. The Sorento and Santa-Fe always come out on top. But look for one with self levelling suspension. I imagine that the Q7 or Touareg to be capable but more expensive to purchase and run.

John

 

[Kevin M]

My daughter and her partner have just bought a Ford Ranger, 3.2 diesel and auto box. Tows their large van with ease. Lovely vehicle.
We have a Shogun, 3.2, auto box, carries everything you could need inc the dog crate and will tow your van with ease. It does like a drink of diesel but I never bought it for its economy.

Kev

 

[GrizzlyBathplug]

Jeep GC, tows effortlessly, & a big boot, air suspension, & all the goodies you could want.

 

[otherclive]

Ok so we’re not in any rush!

The Outlander will pull our van but as you’ll all remember from various posts, we’re always a bit close on limits when we’ve got the whole family in.

The van has axle limits of 900kg and we have to be careful there as there’s not a lot of wiggle room to put much in without overloading the front axle. However putting more in roof box and in the boot isn’t much better because we end up only about 30kg off the GVW of the towcar (which is very light for a 7 seat SUV)

So here’s my requirements:

-Large boot space (dog crate needed to fit in.
-High GVW so we’re not going to overload as the van is limited
-Decent train weight as the van is 1800kg MTPLM (usually ends up about 1750kg)
-not ridiculous MPG or tax bracket if possible.

So far the shortlist looks like this:

Discovery 4
Any type of pickup
Sorento (although boot space not much different to Outlander)

Any other options??

A modern pickup does ride quite well even when not loaded. Fitted with a canopy it would hole all of your kit and more. If the dog had to go into the rear load area with canopy you would need to check that it wouldn’t get too hot.

Despite LR getting bad press the D4 was a step up from the similar looking D3 and many of the formers problems had been removed plus by now any D4 you bought would have had its issues addressed. One advantage of LR that I found when off roading are that parts are readily available from a variety of sources and there are lots of independents too. Given the large number you see around cf VW and Audi etc can they all be bad and leading the owners to bankruptcy?

One other to consider that does have extremely good credentials is the Landcruiser many of which have a gentle life.

 

[Ste6t9]

All great suggestions. We used to have (before caravans) a Kia Sedona which Mrs Ste loved. Would be quite happy with something like a galaxy but would need to look into how much we can put in it weight wise and that it will pull the van (Grande SE Turin) ok.

 

[otherclive]

All great suggestions. We used to have (before caravans) a Kia Sedona which Mrs Ste loved. Would be quite happy with something like a galaxy but would need to look into how much we can put in it weight wise and that it will pull the van (Grande SE Turin) ok.

Chrysler Voyager is probably the heaviest and largest of the MPVs. The Sedona was a much underrated car.

 

[Buckman]

Jeep GC, tows effortlessly, & a big boot, air suspension, & all the goodies you could want.

Many people overlook the more than capable Jeep Grand Cherokee CRD which tows our 2000kg caravan with no effort even up steep hills. Towing we get about 22-23mpg and solo about 32mpg. Better mileage than the 32mpg if on a motorway. However ours has a full Jeep service history and is now 9 years old with 65k on the clock.
Whatever you decide if possible look for a vehicle with a full dealer service history and low mileage as indicates owner took care of the vehicle and it was nto a company vehicle. It took us 3 months before we found our current Jeep.

 

[otherclive]

Many people overlook the more than capable Jeep Grand Cherokee CRD which tows our 2000kg caravan with no effort even up steep hills. Towing we get about 22-23mpg and solo about 32mpg. Better mileage than the 32mpg if on a motorway. However ours has a full Jeep service history and is now 9 years old with 65k on the clock.
Whatever you decide if possible look for a vehicle with a full dealer service history and low mileage as indicates owner took care of the vehicle and it was nto a company vehicle. It took us 3 months before we found our current Jeep.

What is the problem with a company vehicle? I had one and I looked after it just as I would look after one of my own. It was serviced on the dot by the main dealer network and RR would send service technicians at various times to check it out, particularly for brake and tyre and steering wear.

My wife’s Saab 9000 CSEcwas three year old when our son arranged its sale to us. That was a company car too.

I have also owned two ex Hertz cars. One a Ford Mondeo Gaia estate was six months old and came via Ford Direct, the second a six month old Volvo XC70 came as Volvo approved but the first ownership was Herz. Again in absolutely pristine condition.

I do find such prejudices quite irrational.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Cars without a service history are best avoided. Cars with holes in the service history need to have a very convincing explanation so they might be ok or not!.
Cars with a full history obviously give the best level confidence, and certainly I'd prefer to go with a company car with a full history (and very regular service stamps) than private sale with a less regular pattern.

 

[Buckman]

What is the problem with a company vehicle? I had one and I looked after it just as I would look after one of my own. It was serviced on the dot by the main dealer network and RR would send service technicians at various times to check it out, particularly for brake and tyre and steering wear.

My wife’s Saab 9000 CSEcwas three year old when our son arranged its sale to us. That was a company car too.

I have also owned two ex Hertz cars. One a Ford Mondeo Gaia estate was six months old and came via Ford Direct, the second a six month old Volvo XC70 came as Volvo approved but the first ownership was Herz. Again in absolutely pristine condition.

I do find such prejudices quite irrational.

Many drivers using company vehicles abuse the vehicle and I am talking from past experience. There are some that do look after the vehicle as if it is theirs.

 

[Dustydog]

Many drivers using company vehicles abuse the vehicle and I am talking from past experience. There are some that do look after the vehicle as if it is theirs.

I have to disagree Buckman.
Over 35 years all my Company Cars were serviced regularly and maintained in first class order by main dealer ships. On average they all did 100 k miles over three years. It was a tool of trade which I spent a lot of time in. I and I know my colleagues treated the Co car like it was their own. Most journeys were long, high mileage two to five hours on motorways. Always in 6th gear , clutch and brakes hardly used , engine never thrashed more so running easily at cruise speed . Front tyres did about 20 k whilst the rears easily did 40 k +. FSH imo made all my Co cars a far better buy than the vicars or dare I say being non PC , the little old lady round the corner..

 

[Jcloughie]

I think that a long time ago when with most cars, if they had done 100,000 miles they were considered clapped out. They were underpowered and, I believe, thrashed as a company car. But times are very different.

I once looked at a Lotus Cortina, advertised as ‘one owner’. I asked to see the log book (remember them). Yes, just one owner, Liverpool Metropolitan Police. I did not bother.

John

 

[RogerL]

I think that a long time ago when with most cars, if they had done 100,000 miles they were considered clapped out. They were underpowered and, I believe, thrashed as a company car. But times are very different.

I once looked at a Lotus Cortina, advertised as ‘one owner’. I asked to see the log book (remember them). Yes, just one owner, Liverpool Metropolitan Police. I did not bother.

John

There was a time when cars were clapped out at 50,000!

I bought a one owner Cortina Lotus (the mk2 had the names the other way round from the mk1) - previously owned by Sussex Constabulary with a vinyl roof to hide the roof light fittings - it felt the "bees knees" but that was when 108 bhp was super power!

 

[Dustydog]

I think that a long time ago when with most cars, if they had done 100,000 miles they were considered clapped out. They were underpowered and, I believe, thrashed as a company car. But times are very different.

I once looked at a Lotus Cortina, advertised as ‘one owner’. I asked to see the log book (remember them). Yes, just one owner, Liverpool Metropolitan Police. I did not bother.

John

Showing your age there🤪. The Lotus was built to be abused but cars of that era tended to need decokes , rebores and valve regrinds before 50k😉

 

[otherclive]

I don’t think post #10 was referring to the company cars of yesteryear as the OP is looking for a modern car capable of towing his current caravan.

 

[Dustydog]

I don’t think post #10 was referring to the company cars of yesteryear as the OP is looking for a modern car capable of towing his current caravan.

I think Buckman took an interesting turn from #10 leading to “ do I buy a used Co car”? I doubt much has really changed🤔🤔🤔

 

[Ste6t9]

To be clear.

budget is pretty much whatever we can get for the outlander so we’re happy to have something with a few more miles and years on it but still reliable.

more important is that we can tow confidently without worrying about limits any more.

 

[Bluetonic]

Recently changed to a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe 7 seater from a 2015 VW Tiguan 4Motion for the same reasons.
I miss the fuel economy of the Tiguan and it was more car like handling wise and the infotainment system was far better, but like the torque of the Santa Fe, and the auto box and the space and the sunroof and the rear aircon and the self levelling suspension and the reversing camera........

 

[Beachball]

My daughter and her partner have just bought a Ford Ranger, 3.2 diesel and auto box. Tows their large van with ease. Lovely vehicle.
We have a Shogun, 3.2, auto box, carries everything you could need inc the dog crate and will tow your van with ease. It does like a drink of diesel but I never bought it for its economy.

Kev

Hi Kev is your daughter and partner enjoying the Ford Ranger i have heard they are great

 

[ProfJohnL]

Recently changed to a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe 7 seater from a 2015 VW Tiguan 4Motion for the same reasons.
I miss the fuel economy of the Tiguan and it was more car like handling wise and the infotainment system was far better, but like the torque of the Santa Fe, and the auto box and the space and the sunroof and the rear aircon and the self levelling suspension and the reversing camera........

This has been mentioned before and it's something that only the individual can decide about bearing in mind their individual circumstances. I'm not criticising your choice, but I am trying to suggest a Solo vs Towing factor that should be taken into consideration by the OP

If you intend to tow with a car you must choose one that is legally capable of doing it and preferably one that can manage it with safely.

But there are other factors that might bias a choice depending on the proportion of towing vs driving solo.

Fuel economy
Maintenance costs
Repair costs
Insurance Costs
Road fund tax
Drivability/ comfort
Size
Sustainability/Ecological credentials and environmental impact

Depending on the breakdown of solo vs towing miles you might expect to do you might place different importance to each of the points above.

For a family where the car is used for regular commuting, a smaller more comfortable and economic car might be bets choice. But for a retired couple who go away most weeks in the caravan the vehicle that makes towing the easiest, might be a better option.

 

[Tobes]

Chrysler Voyager is probably the heaviest and largest of the MPVs. The Sedona was a much underrated car.

I had a Chrysler Grand voyager 2005 Stow and Go. It was an awful towcar. 75kg nose weight was low, the 2.8 Diesel was thirsty and terrible through the 4 speed auto. FWD only was terrible with grip. I got rid of it and got an XC90 (2008) which was a fab tow car.

 

[otherclive]

I had a Chrysler Grand voyager 2005 Stow and Go. It was an awful towcar. 75kg nose weight was low, the 2.8 Diesel was thirsty and terrible through the 4 speed auto. FWD only was terrible with grip. I got rid of it and got an XC90 (2008) which was a fab tow car.

I never investigated whether the GV was a good Towcar only that when larger MPVs were being suggested I threw in the GV as a large, roomy and heavy offering. The OP seems quite capable of making the right call given information.