Vauxhall Vivaro?

[lishka]

Does anybody have any experience of a 1.9 vivaro?
The weights are very impresive 2900 + 2000 towing = GTW 4900 Just not sure if it would physically pull 4900!
Our Lunar quasar twin axle is 1310 micro 1600 max so is well within the limits.

 

[WoodlandsCamper]

Please be aware of what you are quoting - the 2900 is gross vehicle weight, not kerbweight. Kerbweight is about 1670 and therefore not much more than the caravan weight (you would be towing at 96%). Gross Train Weight is quoted as 4700 so there is a trade off between what is carried in the vehicle and what is being towed.

 

[JimD1]

Hi Lishka,
We tow a 2007 Swift Charisma 230 with a 2009 2.0 Vivaro. MTPLM for the Charisma is 1295Kg. It tows really well.
A couple of things to consider:

• The air flow when towing with a van is different much less buffeting on the caravan as the van punches a much bigger hole in the air. You'd be surprised how smooth a tow it is.
• Reversing with a panel van is more difficult, especially when reversing to the left, which is almost blind. I always use Milenco Grand Aero towing mirrors & have SWMBO as bankperson
• Be careul with the older Vivaros There was a face lift in 2006/2007 when the 1.9 was replaced with the 2.0. This delivered improved power, but more importantly, fixed gearbox problems which existed previously. Many of the older Vivaros had to have replacement gearboxes before 100k miles (not a lot for a van).
• The 1.9 came in 2 variants - I think they were 85PS & 100 PS - I would steer clear of the 85PS.
• There was an advisory in the handbook for he 1.9 that when towing to keep max speed down to 50mph. Something to consider.....

We know a lot of people who tow caravans with panel vans, especially Vivaros. There are bigger/more powerful options out there, but IMHO the Vivaro is probably the easiest to drive & offers the best value proposition.

If you have any questions let me know.

Cheers,
Jim

 

[lishka]

I was thinking if the caravan was empty (ish) ! then it would be nearer the 1310kg and the van could take up to 2900kg with a kerb weight of 1670kg that would leave 1230kg of people and kit etc for the van? Going on this ratio I thought it wouldn't be a bad match?

 

[Lutz]

it just goes to show that weight ratios don't really make much sense in the case of a commercial vehicle where there is a big difference between kerbweight and max. GVW.

 

[JimD1]

I agree about the relative weight ratios making less sense when towing with a van. Also the comment I made about the aerodynamics being different is relevant. Another consideration is that a van is generally geared differently & the commecial diesel has tons of low-down torque.
My wife's Vivaro has the 115PS engine. It will tow our Charisma quite happily in 6th gear from about 52mph on the flat, & will quite happily take on all but the steepest of motorway gradients. It will pull from 40mph in 5th, so on open roads & motoways it is an easy tow. We have friends who have the long wheel base 2.5 litre 145PS engine, & that tows like an absolute dream - it does drink the fuel somewhat though.....
Jim

 

[Surfer]

Isn't the Vivaro the same as the Renault Trafic, just rebadged?

 

[Martin24]

Hmmmmmm a bit basic and agricultural for our cultured tastes

 

[lishka]

This pulled it great, it's a 2 litre 90bhp and on the 40 mile round trip including some steep inclines it came back in at 25mpg!

With a much better mpg round town solo I really think this is the way forward for us

I've checked with the sites we frequently use and none of them have a problem with us pulling on with this, the side windows seem to make all the difference.

Mentioning a vauxhall vivaro seems to sound a lot better than mentioning a ford transit!!

 

[JimD1]

Many congrats on your new tug

The only problem we have with our Vivaro is over who will get to drive it - it's actually registed in my wife's name & she only lets me drive when towing. She drove a Corsa for ages & always complained that she didn't like driving big cars - now she hates driving anything else.....