fun medium size petrol idea that can tow.

rjbell

rjbell

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I know the obvious choice is a diesel but 95+% of the time it will be driving around town so its towing capability needs to be adequate rather than exemplary and from what I gather some of the newer turbo petrol engines have some of the low rev torque that makes diesels first choice for many. My caravan is very light under 1200kg laden and stability is fine with my current Cmax but it's underpowered so i'm happy to stay with a medium family car which suits my need but I need a bit my torque and horses. I'd like to take the opportunity for the horses to get something a bit hot. Doesn't have to be 200+ hp hot maybe warm is a better description. My first thought was an Octavia estate tsi or focus st-line estate.

Budget is about £8k any suggestions welcome.
 
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What engine is in your C Max, does it have a turbo? If it does, it might be worth considering a remap to produce more torque.
 
nilagin said:
What engine is in your C Max, does it have a turbo? If it does, it might be worth considering a remap to produce more torque.
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No, it doesn't, unfortunately, it's an old 2008 1.6 petrol. It's never had a thing wrong with it in 7 years of ownership. I'm tempted to stick with Ford. I'm steering towards the focus estate titanium x or zetec s with the 182ps 1.6 ecoboost engine.
 
Mondeo would have the kerb weight , I used to tow a caravan about same weight as yours with a 1.8 mondeo estate ,it was a bit iffy going over the Pennines but made it o.k in the end .. remember the 85% rule to stay legal and safe
 
the black fox said:
remember the 85% rule to stay legal and safe
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85% is not mentioned in legislation. Only place I know it's found is as a recommendation in the Caravan club handbook (my parents were members when I was a child, we had a CI Sprite), which doesn't make it either statutory or safe - after all not everyone that tows is towing a caravan and not everyone that tows is a caravan club member. To stay legal what you have to to is look at the VIN plate and vehicle handbook, for the GTW and/or the maximum braked trailer weight.

e.g. Land Rovers will tow 3500kg. They weigh much less than 3500kg.

The other consideration for youngsters that passed their test after 1997 is the driving licence requirements for towing, which are much stricter.
 
onomatopoeia said:
85% is not mentioned in legislation. Only place I know it's found is as a recommendation in the Caravan club handbook (my parents were members when I was a child, we had a CI Sprite), which doesn't make it either statutory or safe - after all not everyone that tows is towing a caravan and not everyone that tows is a caravan club member. To stay legal what you have to to is look at the VIN plate and vehicle handbook, for the GTW and/or the maximum braked trailer weight.

e.g. Land Rovers will tow 3500kg. They weigh much less than 3500kg.

The other consideration for youngsters that passed their test after 1997 is the driving licence requirements for towing, which are much stricter.
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What a load of waffle . The OP has a medium sized caravan he posted that as a fact , I mentioned a car that I used to tow a van of the same size , which did it with a bit of a struggle . The 85% rule is not law but it’s a fair bit of common sense if your towing on steep hills . Personally I prefer to tow with a fair bit of extra power in reserve hence I use a 2 litre 4x4 turbo diesel
 
rjbell said:
I'd like to take the opportunity for the horses to get something a bit hot.
.....
Budget is about £8k any suggestions welcome.
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Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 :D although you may have to replace the caravan with a fuel bowser.
 
I used to tow with petrol engined cars but then bought a C Max 2.0 diesel. WOW!!! What adifference. Used to drive as if there was nothing on the tow bar. Only downside for me was that my back didn't like the seats!
 
On a serious note, a BMW 330D M-Sport Touring springs to mind, although at £8k it's going to be the slightly older model so perhaps no X-Drive. But still, bags of torque for towing and plenty of fun when not.
 
gman said:
On a serious note, a BMW 330D M-Sport Touring springs to mind, although at £8k it's going to be the slightly older model so perhaps no X-Drive. But still, bags of torque for towing and plenty of fun when not.
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I love the 3 series tourer the best looking estate out there. I'm a bit nervous to buy a BMW nowadays. Not as reliable as they once were and some very expensive repair bills.
 
Al1944 said:
I used to tow with petrol engined cars but then bought a C Max 2.0 diesel. WOW!!! What adifference. Used to drive as if there was nothing on the tow bar. Only downside for me was that my back didn't like the seats!
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Was the petrols turbo'ed? Some of these new eco petrol engines have the extra torque in the lower revs like a diesel apparently.
 
rjbell said:
I love the 3 series tourer the best looking estate out there. I'm a bit nervous to buy a BMW nowadays. Not as reliable as they once were and some very expensive repair bills.
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The 8th Gen Accord Tourer is a decent looking car and reliable. The 2.2 iDtec can be remapped to just over 200bhp. EX trim are fully loaded and it also has a very good suspension setup.
 
gman said:
The 8th Gen Accord Tourer is a decent looking car and reliable. The 2.2 iDtec can be remapped to just over 200bhp. EX trim are fully loaded and it also has a very good suspension setup.
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that's not a bad shout actually. The boot is massive too.
 
We have a 2009 1.4TSI Octavia. Not a fun car but plenty of torque. Have towed a 1300kg trailer without problems.
 
soeren said:
We have a 2009 1.4TSI Octavia. Not a fun car but plenty of torque. Have towed a 1300kg trailer without problems.
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This is one of the modern turbo petrols i was considering. Has it been reliable for you? I do like the octavia.
 
rjbell said:
This is one of the modern turbo petrols i was considering. Has it been reliable for you? I do like the octavia.
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Yes so far only a recent light issue due to a bad connection in the fusebox. Pretty good for a 10 year old car.
 
nilagin said:
What engine is in your C Max, does it have a turbo? If it does, it might be worth considering a remap to produce more torque.
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Is the 182 1.6 ecoboost in the focus a reliable engine? I think it the same as the fiesta st right?
 
rjbell said:
Is the 182 1.6 ecoboost in the focus a reliable engine? I think it the same as the fiesta st right?
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Yes same engine. 150ps 1.6 engine is also the same just a different map. There is a recall to have the degas coolant pipe replaced and possibly a coolant temperature sensor added, but I am unaware of any other problems. More recent models will have updated engines but reduced capacity at 1.5. The same 150ps and 180ps outputs though. Should be slightly better on fuel and emissions.
 
rjbell said:
Is the 182 1.6 ecoboost in the focus a reliable engine? I think it the same as the fiesta st right?
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I know this is an old thread haha

But, we just picked up a 1.6 ecoboost titanium. It's 150bhp.

It's pretty quick, lovely to drive and makes a surprisingly nice noise when you put your foot down!
 
Bit more expensive, 2016 onwards BMW X1 2.0 XDrive MSport Auto, 2.0 190 BHP turbo , nice to drive, quick & 4x4
 
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Since writing in this post in January .i have downsized from a Kia Sportage 2.0 td to a mondeo mk4 2.0ltr TDCI ,bit more comfort ,speed,power and a decent average fuel consumption of 50mpg + ,massive load gobbling boot to ..
 
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