Which new tow car

[Blue4you]

Hello all,

I'm new here so please go gentle.

I'm after a new tow car. I currently tow a caravan which fully laden weighs 1400kg.

If i tell you the vehicles I'm interested in I'm hoping someone may be able to give their opinions of them or knowledge from possibly owning them ?

1) Mercedes CLS 3.0 diesel shooting brake.
I love the look of this car, am sure it would pull my caravan and would be the cheapest to run out of my choices but part of me wants to stop worrying about cabin/luggage space when we go away with our dogs.

2) Mitsubishi shogun
Love the practicality of this vehicle as it seems to have stacks of room inside and would have no problems towing. Just running costs are a concern ie road tax £555.

3) LR Discovery 4
Again love the practicality aspect, love the way they look but have heard so many bad stories about problems and issues they seem to have ?!

Can anyone assist with any advice regards the above vehicles ??

Thanks everyone

 

[Hutch]

Welcome, Blue4u, ( Blue ) having never owned any of the cars, but know friends with them, The first question is , will this be you only car or just your tow car for the caravan.
I like the low boot of the Merc, and big boot area, easy to get the dogs in. The Shogun, what a fantastic wagon, , great, alround but expensive to run, The Disco, lacking in Boot space, get a good one, its great, Bad one, !!!.
Over to the others.

 

[PTA]

Just to be contentious;
BMW 5 Series TOURING
VW Touareg ( declaration of interest- I have one. Superb and reliable).

 

[Tuningdrew]

We ran an E Class 320CDi towing 1800kg. Fantastic tow car, very economical, Uber reliable. Only sold it when my back problem meant I couldn’t drive it for any length of time. Bought a Pajero ( Shogun) instead, The upright driving position suited me much better. Again, brilliant tow car.
Couldn’t comment about the Land Rover. The questionable reliability would worry me

 

[Gagakev]

If you go for a Shogun you have the added advantage of the tow bar sticking out at the back and when you get rear ended like I did last week you have to feel sorry for the bloke who hit me with his crumpled bonnet and bumper! Had a few scratches on the spare wheel cover and his red paint on the towball.

 

[Blue4you]

Hi all.

Yes this will be my only car so I should really look at every day running costs but love the larger vehicles. Just not sure what they are like to live with 24/7 ?

Like most I worry about disco reputation but not sure if shotguns are any better as never known anyone who has one ?

 

[Blue4you]

If you go for a Shogun you have the added advantage of the tow bar sticking out at the back and when you get rear ended like I did last week you have to feel sorry for the bloke who hit me with his crumpled bonnet and bumper! Had a few scratches on the spare wheel cover and his red paint on the towball.
View attachment 280

Yes I guess there is that !! Ha ha

 

[otherclive]

Hi all.

Yes this will be my only car so I should really look at every day running costs but love the larger vehicles. Just not sure what they are like to live with 24/7 ?

Like most I worry about disco reputation but not sure if shotguns are any better as never known anyone who has one ?

Disco 4 was a big improvement on Disco 3 despite looking similar a lot of the 3s shortcomings had been ironed out. My choice would be the Shogun as fir the same price you should get a later lower mileage car and they are less complex than Disco 4. Look at the Waranty Direct website for reliability comparisons. I’ve had large 4x4 and they are easy to live with as everyday cars but so much depends on your mileage. Fuel and servicing costs for large awd vehicles are obviously higher than for more mainstream 2WD.
Thought of a pick up apart from size they can be a useful option and are now have more car like refinement with lower running costs than Disco 4. They have to be reliable that’s why so many farmers and outdoor trades use them.

 

[Gagakev]

Blue4you I have had the Pajero, Shogun Sport and this 2010 Shogun model, I can honestly say reliability for me has never been a problem. I will be honest and say the sport was the most comfortable but with this one i purchased the Halfords padded seat cover and really do not now have a problem. Never worried about MPG as only do approx 4,000 miles per year but the mileage may now go up as Im driving it on a daily basis for work purpose's.

 

[Woodentop]

If you are thinking of an estate check out a VW Passat AllTrack or a Skoda Superb Estate.

Although a different type of vehicle the Ford S-Max is also well regarded as a tug.

 

[ProfJohnL]

The first check that any desired tow car can lawfully pull the caravan, and I'm guessing you have already checked that much. Within that limitation you also have to ensure the nose load the caravan produces also falls within the tow cars capability. In case you do not know, the nose load is trimmed by adjusting the position of any items you load into the caravan.

Especially with larger tow cars, their Maximum Authorised Mass (MAM = GVW) can easily exceed 2100kg, which in combination with your caravans 1400kg MTPLM would add up to a combined MAM of 3500kg, and for you to legally drive that outfit you must have driving licence entitlement Be or B+E. Please note the MAM is the paper limits not measured weights and that has caught some new 4x4 users out.

If you passed your test after 30th Jan 1997, you will not have entitlement Be , and you would need to sit the "E" extension test to raise your combined MAM limit to 7000kg.

However in addition to the legal aspect, and in recognition of how far from ideal a caravan is as a trailer, it makes clear sense to keep the tow vehicle heavier than the trailer. There is industry guidance that suggests the trailers MTPLM should not exceed the kerbweight of the tow vehicle. For novice caravanners its recommended to keep the trailer below 85% of the kerbweight. This guidance offers no guarantee of safety or being legal.

Then there is the consideration of your proportion of towing to daily driving. Most working people have a small proportion of towing miles, and for them it makes sense to choose vehicle that is comfortable, economic and convenient for daily use, but perhaps looses out on economy and comfort when towing. When its only a small proportion of mileage its a small price to pay.

Despite the trend towards the use of 4x4s, there are very very few occasions when a caravanner actually needs a 4x4, even when towing, so driving a large 4x4 100% of the time will be considerably more expensive than a simpler car.

 

[Blue4you]

Wow some great replies, thank you all. Some differing opinions and i agree with everyone of you which is why I'm struggling to decide !?!?

Mileage wise I dont rack up that many with or without caravan.

With regards other vehicles, I've been looking for months and the 3 I've mentioned are the only ones my eyes like the look of and you have to like what you buy.

I guess it's probably going to come down to what I would like to drive every day and hope things work out !?!

Slightly worried due to never spending this much on a vehicle, last car being a complete dog and really dont need expensive garage Bill's anymore.

Thanks.

 

[JezzerB]

As you say all those vehicles are capable of towing your van so buy the one you like!

 

[junglejim]

Have you thought about a pickup?
we tow a twin axle with a navara and it's great! road tax as commercial cheaper than the disco's etc. You also soon get used to the size of it parking wise.

 

[Blue4you]

I have Jim, I have actually borrowed one too but my wife didnt like the thought of the dogs separate to us in the pick up canopy. She likes them in the actual cab with us. The dogs come before me in our house, she certainly talks to them more than she does me ??!!

 

[junglejim]

Ours sits in her crate on the back seat, but we only have 1 of them! She only goes in the canopy if we are unfortuante enough to have to take the kids with us!

 

[Blue4you]

Ha ha, yes we wouldnt have room in the cab. Always liked pick ups which I guess is why I like Shoguns too ?

 

[Woodentop]

The first check that any desired tow car can lawfully pull the caravan, and I'm guessing you have already checked that much. Within that limitation you also have to ensure the nose load the caravan produces also falls within the tow cars capability. In case you do not know, the nose load is trimmed by adjusting the position of any items you load into the caravan.

Especially with larger tow cars, their Maximum Authorised Mass (MAM = GVW) can easily exceed 2100kg, which in combination with your caravans 1400kg MTPLM would add up to a combined MAM of 3500kg, and for you to legally drive that outfit you must have driving licence entitlement Be or B+E. Please note the MAM is the paper limits not measured weights and that has caught some new 4x4 users out.

If you passed your test after 30th Jan 1997, you will not have entitlement Be , and you would need to sit the "E" extension test to raise your combined MAM limit to 7000kg.

However in addition to the legal aspect, and in recognition of how far from ideal a caravan is as a trailer, it makes clear sense to keep the tow vehicle heavier than the trailer. There is industry guidance that suggests the trailers MTPLM should not exceed the kerbweight of the tow vehicle. For novice caravanners its recommended to keep the trailer below 85% of the kerbweight. This guidance offers no guarantee of safety or being legal.

Then there is the consideration of your proportion of towing to daily driving. Most working people have a small proportion of towing miles, and for them it makes sense to choose vehicle that is comfortable, economic and convenient for daily use, but perhaps looses out on economy and comfort when towing. When its only a small proportion of mileage its a small price to pay.

Despite the trend towards the use of 4x4s, there are very very few occasions when a caravanner actually needs a 4x4, even when towing, so driving a large 4x4 100% of the time will be considerably more expensive than a simpler car.

Oops Prof. - "on or after 1st January 1997..."

 

[Tuningdrew]

We’re firmly in the pickup camp. Firstly with a Navara NP300 which was a brilliant piece of kit. Replaced it with a new Ssangyong Musso. Not quite got the grunt of the Nissan but far more car-like. Incredibly quiet and comfortable ( heated steering wheel, heated and cooled seats) and very good value for money. Free towbar courtesy of the CAMHC. Swallows up all the gear in the back without getting anywhere near it’s max payload and the two pups travel on the back seat on a Kurgo Bridge with a divider fixed to the front seat backs.

 

[otherclive]

We’re firmly in the pickup camp. Firstly with a Navara NP300 which was a brilliant piece of kit. Replaced it with a new Ssangyong Musso. Not quite got the grunt of the Nissan but far more car-like. Incredibly quiet and comfortable ( heated steering wheel, heated and cooled seats) and very good value for money. Free towbar courtesy of the CAMHC. Swallows up all the gear in the back without getting anywhere near it’s max payload and the two pups travel on the back seat on a Kurgo Bridge with a divider fixed to the front seat backs.

Does the Kurgo Bridge allow the passenger seat belts to be used to fix dogs harnesses to it.

 

[Tuningdrew]

Yes

 

[Beachball]

Welcome Blue4you to the forum

 

[Raywood]

When deciding do remember that your towing mileage is generally a very small proportion of the mileage you do. Any of the cars you mention will do the job well with a decent match and you have identified a short list and the areas that are for or against the models you are considering.
I would look now at which you like best as an everyday car and go with that as to me that is the most important point.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Oops Prof. - "on or after 1st January 1997..."

Oops!!!!

I suspect in this case the issue not be relevant anyway, but it needed saying, thanks for the correction.

 

[woodsieboy]

We kept our Shogun for 15 years, and would have bought another, if we could have found one suitable,the car itself was fairly trouble free and we only sold it as the underneath was starting to rust,things to look out for, there is a timing chain tensioner on the top of the engine, and the nylon/plastic lining can wear away leading to timing chain failure, a simple job to replace . Air conditioning pipes can corrode over the rear axle, a real pain to repair but can be done, on ours we ended up disconnecting the rear air con. Watch for wear in front drive shafts, a pain to replace as they changed them for different models,also prone to exhaust cracking we had ours re welded several times.Also be aware that the rear door can mean you need a longer towbar to clear when hitching up or alternatively hitch up with the door at 45 degrees.Mitsubishi no longer bring in new Shoguns so you may be looking at different spec levels the SG2 is the base model, does not have sat nav, the rest are well specced and the SG5 was an end of line top spec model worth looking for , all the later ones will be autos, also watch out for failure of the selector switch on top of the gearbox,corrosion causes the contacts to give false reading on dashboard, not a particularly expensive fix but time consuming, there should be a good selection available, and if you are not in a desperate hurry keep an eye on Autotrader.

We changed to Hyundai Sant Fe, prefer the manual gearbox, well specced, does prety much everything the Shogun would do, except the 4wd selects itself, Shogun you choose,and the Hyundai has electric handbrake, Shogun is old school.Hyundai Road Tax £200 per year and fuel economy is better than Shogun. Hope this helps

ALSO think some Shoguns are lower Road tax, depends on year, worth checking.