Towing weight

[John_5109063]

Can anyone explain to me why some manufacturers claim a higher towing weight than others. I've just bought an Avensis Diesel (115 BHp) Estate with a max tow weight of 1300. Also in the equation were a Mondeo and vectra but Toyota reliability won in the end. Whilst both the Vectra and Mondeo I was considering were the 150/130 bhp respectively, I know that both have versions with similar BHP to the Toyota yet still claim a higher towing capability. I plan to tow up to 1250 with the Toyota (not regularly). Any comments, is it too much ?

John

 

[Val & Frank]

You could try www.whattowcar.com they have a lot of useful info on outfit matches etc.

frank

 

[Dave_5085087]

Hi John

Have you tried towing with your Avensis yet?

How about noseweight - 52kgs the book says?

Please let me know.

Thanks

Dave

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Dave,

The maximum towing capacity of any vehicle is not simply determined by the power of the engine, it is a complex calculation that involves items such as how much load can the brakes accomodate, what load can be started on an incline, can the enging cooling cope with the increased load and many other factors to numerous or complicated to mention.

All cars are a design compromise, and how each manufacturer ballances these factors will affect the vehicles ability to tow.

 

[Lutz]

John how did you come to figure out that the Avensis has a higher towing capability than the Vectra or the Mondeo? The maximum permissible towload of the 150hp Vectra is 1700kg and that of the 130hp Mondeo is 1800kg, both of which are considerably higher than the 1300kg figure for the Avensis.