which is best

[jon_5062082]

right , im selling my Terrano shortly and wanting a decent towcar to pull about 1200kgs safely.

The cars im interested in are:

Laguna 1.9dci estate (new shape)

Xsara Picasso HDi

C5 Hdi estate

Omega Td estate

Passat Tdi estate

comments from any of the owners of these vehicles on their pros and cons would be appreciated

cheers , Jon

 

[Jaydug]

On another caravanning forum I've read bad reports about the Laguna. Haven't used either of the two Citroens, but I've towed with other Cits for 15 years. Have read good reports on Picasso and C5. In fact I've got my eyes on the C5 for when my Xantia is too old.

 

[jacky3]

whats wrong with the terrano????

 

[jon_5062082]

18-25 mpg , sluggish , vague steering when towing , wife hates driving it.its a good laugh off-roading & it looks the part but after 6 months the novelty wears off & you get sick of pumping your hard earned dosh down its filler neck for sod-all return in performance.

 

[MickC1]

Hmm, we've had a Terrano 2.7 TD since new in 1995 and haven't had any problems with the steering or sluggishness. My wife also prefers driving it to our Corsa. Still every outfit is different. Perhaps you've got a Friday afternoon model.

I know that this isn't answering your question Jon, just an observation that I've pointed out to many people in the past. That is that it's not worth changing a car purely on the grounds of mpg, (I know that you've got other problems so this may not be the predominant factor here). After all, if you spend

 

[jon_5062082]

i can live with the mpg if i get some sort of decent performance from the vehicle , but i dont , i seem to be losing out all round , poor performance , vague steering / handling and paying through the nose at the pumps for the privilege.its not so bad solo but i still get the impression the steering aint quite right despite the parts that have been replaced.the car looks the part and as you know good interior space , but how much money do you throw at a problem in the hope it cures it?

then we MAY have the added kick in the danglies of increased taxation on these vehicles rendering it next to worthless anyhow.

the link arms are all new as i was told that this would cause the car to wander if worn (and they were worn) balljoints replaced , new tyres & tracked , get the van on the back (and it aint incorrectly loaded) and the steering is very very vague, cambers are a nightmare as are rough surfaces yet when an artic flies past the outfit barely twitches.

it has me beat im afraid.

no, aint got a spare mirror , sorry.

 

[Andrew_5071583]

i can live with the mpg if i get some sort of decent performance from the vehicle , but i dont , i seem to be losing out all round , poor performance , vague steering / handling and paying through the nose at the pumps for the privilege.its not so bad solo but i still get the impression the steering aint quite right despite the parts that have been replaced.the car looks the part and as you know good interior space , but how much money do you throw at a problem in the hope it cures it?

then we MAY have the added kick in the danglies of increased taxation on these vehicles rendering it next to worthless anyhow.

the link arms are all new as i was told that this would cause the car to wander if worn (and they were worn) balljoints replaced , new tyres & tracked , get the van on the back (and it aint incorrectly loaded) and the steering is very very vague, cambers are a nightmare as are rough surfaces yet when an artic flies past the outfit barely twitches.

it has me beat im afraid.

no, aint got a spare mirror , sorry.

Yes, it gets a little frightening, doesn't it? I've heard all sorts of rumours about increased taxation charges for 4X4s. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they are just that - rumours. The yoghurt-eating, tree-hugging crowd don't seem to be able to understand that my X-Trail uses less fuel and gives lower emissions than many medium-sized "family" saloons. And also thatI live in a part of the country where daily I have to use muddy, pot-holed tracks etc. What do they expect me to do? Buy another car just for my trips into town? I've often thought that if they do introduce ridiculous taxation fees for 4X4s I'll take a leaf out of the road haulage firms' books, and register my car on the continent! If it's ok for firms like Eddie Stobart (Belgium)and many other firms' UK-based rhd lorries (Belgium, Holland etc) I see on the M25 then its good enough for me. I have friends in both Holland and Germany who have said I can use their addresses to register my car at. Not sure of the legality, mind. I think you can only use a foreign-registered vehicle for 6 months in UK. Not sure if a day trip to Calais twice a year would be acceptable!

 

[Dustydog]

Hi Jon, I've just sold my three year old Laguna Sport Tourer 2.2DCi Initiale model. This is a fantastic diesel and regularly returned 40+ mpg solo and 30mpg towing our Bailey Pageant Vendee 1400kgs. The power or more the torque was unbelieveable . The long drag hills of Cornwall only caught me out once needing third gear, otherwise maintaining the legal speed limits was a cinch. I loved all the gismos including the cruise control and sat nav. I did insert those rubber spring assistors on the rear springs because we always packed the car to the roof but within the permitted tolerances. 75,000 miles later I was very happy. However not sure how it would have survived going forward as services were becoming expensive, new discs etc . The tyres were rubbish. You only had to look at a pot hole or curb and they puntured. Nearly

 

[emmerson2]

At risk of repeating myself, for towcar simply read Range Rover V8 (on LPG, of course) Emmerson

 

[steven_5068626]

yove got a problem with your terrano talk to these boys on there forum www.nissan4x4ownersclub.co.uk

 

[jon_5062082]

yove got a problem with your terrano talk to these boys on there forum www.nissan4x4ownersclub.co.uk

yes , have done , got some good advice but it sounds expensive and time consuming just to track the fault down. could be one of several things and its all beyond my capabilities to sort out , specialist laser tracking devices mentioned in case its a tracking problem.

 

[CaptainKangaroo]

whats wrong with the terrano????

I'll tell ya ................... its pig ugly, steers like a barge on a rough sea and eats fuel at the same rate a yank eats burgers ............. get a life, get a real car!