towcar to pull series 6 pageant provence suggestions please

[Robfooty]

ordered a new van 2 weeks ago - now my present towcar Terrano 2.7TD has blown the headgasket so it's defunct as it's mega money to repair. The provence is 1420 MPTLM but theres only 3 of us and I can't imagine we would load it right up to the max, we don't have an awning or anything. I'd like to pull it with someting non 4x4 if poss but may not be possible.

Thought maybe a galaxy or mondeo tdci estate etc etc.

 

[seth1]

hello rob ,when you say mega money, how much mate and is that garage prices.

 

[Robfooty]

Roughly

 

[Garfield]

The local garage fixed the head gasket on our VW Sharan 1.9tdi (at 110,000miles) for about

 

[emmitdb]

Hi Rob,

Either of the Audi's A4 or A6. Doesn't have to be new. Let some overpaid yoink suffer the first two years depreciation.

Kerb weight of 1650 1700 kgs is heavier than most in the class with a superb diesel engine.

 

[dsmiles]

Hi Rob,

Either of the Audi's A4 or A6. Doesn't have to be new. Let some overpaid yoink suffer the first two years depreciation.

Kerb weight of 1650 1700 kgs is heavier than most in the class with a superb diesel engine.

A 530d BMW touring is worth a thought. I have a 2001 model, 90kg nose weight, 195bhp, 2000g max tow weight and pull my senator indiana with no fuss.

 

[Robfooty]

530d BMW sounds nice - especially a touring as the terrano was a short wheelbase which meant lack of boot space. I'll have a look around - can't do any less than the terrano mpg wise. Didn't think of BMW.

 

[Robfooty]

As an update to original post - the terrano - or terranosaurus as my wife calls it may not be extinct after. The original main dealer diagnosis of head gasket may not be correct. I won't go into too many details but apparently according to a nissan independant garage (i.e. a bloke who will talk to you while you explain the symptoms of the car) he says it's a temperature sensor fault - this will explain rough running as the ecu is being sent the wrong info!! and is sending the wrong reading to the dashboard. He's so confident he's fitted a sensor for me to try for 2 days - says bring it back in 2 days. Jeez I'll go back and kiss him and pay the bill if he's right. So far so good runs fine at 1/3rd on temp guage. All I need now is the new van. It's been quite mild where I live and we could have gone away.

 

[colin(bridgend)]

My son had similar problem with MG ZS. SRS light on dashboard on constantly - took it to a garage and they reckoned that a new air bag was required - quoted

 

[Garfield]

When the haed gasket went on our Sharan tdi it was running fine but loosing some coolant somewhere, once we attached the 'van and gave it some work, the temperature went up. After a stop - start journey we eventually turned up at Chatsworth on a low loader, van in tow.

A phone call to our village garage came with the immediate diagnosis of "head gasket" without seeing the car. However the VW garage in Chesterfield tested the header tank for combustion gases from a leaking head gasket which came out negative so a new water pump was fitted, needless to say as soon as the van went back on the car it overheated so we limped home using no more than 1/4 throttle and slip streaming trucks.

After Russ at the village garage had replaced the head gasket, his comment was "Those w****rs should know that test almost never works on a diesel!!" We then set off for Scotland with the van without it overheating.