as the kerb weight of the new octavia is only 1400kgs had 1 over weight bridge recently, far to light to tow 2000kgs and dangerous.so you should be looking at 1200kgs max as a guide.
Quote: Originally posted by rickyash on 01/1/2015HI,
I have read this has a towing cap of 2000kg, anyone out there who can confirm the maximum i should be looking at in regards to a weight of a van?
Thanks
R
many cars /4x4s have a towing capacity far greater than there kerbweight but under NO circumstances should you tow a caravan that weighs more when fully loaded (MPTLM) than the the tow cars kerbweight .
If your looking for a big heavy twin axle then the Octavia estate 4x4 will not be heavy enough
My 2012 Octavia has a tow limit of 1,600kg with a mass in service of 1,495kg (V5C) the 2014 model is 50kg lighter!! I am looking at another caravan with a mtplm of 1,350kg giving me a tow ratio of 90% and to me that is plenty safe for towing, however I could go up to 100% and tow 1,495kg (b+e licence) and still within the GTW, but would I do it, no.
The dealer gave me a good deal to trade mine in for a 2014 one, and told me it would tow anything! no doubt it would, but not safely at 60mph on a motorway.
Agree with comments about 2000kg seeming high in relation to weight of car, but Octavia Brochure Page 43 gives max towing , braked for 2.0 CR TDI 150PS 4x4 as 2000kg. But somewhat, inconsistently in my view, a max noseweight of 75kg in common with other Octavias. So perhaps take professional advice from, say Skoda Customer Services to find out what the figure really means in practice
I've regularly towed 1200 kg with my 2006 1.9 TDI DSG 105 PS Octavia since new with out problem.
As a 'nearly new' buy, I felt that Superb offered much more value for money than Octavia. Just bought Superb 2.0 TDI DSG 140PS in order to take advantage of listed 1800kg tow limit. Have not yet has tow bar fitted, but so far the car has exceeded my expectations.
The max tow weight quoted for any car is a technical figure only based on actual ability of car to tow up a gradient, 8%, I think. A 4X4 will have higher max tow due to better grip. Towbar download or noseweight figure relates to strength of towbar mounting points & has no connection with technical max towing weight.
The confusion arises because it is suggested the above figures have some connection with what is safe for the car to tow when really they do not. Towing safety is dependant on weight ratio of trailer to car & for caravans due to large surface area subject to crosswinds etc a figure of 85% is suggested. Noseweight should be 5-7% of caravan weight & this might not be achievable within car limit leading to unstable tow. Also of course driver ability & competence comes into it & towing speed. An experienced driver might be 'safe' towing a heavier caravan because they adopt a driving style that keeps to 55mph motorway truck speed for example.
The vehicle manufacturer cannot advise on towing safety due to diversity of trailers that might be towed. They can only provide a set of figures for the driver to work within.
Roger, I agree unreservedly with what you posted above.
It has long been an observation of mine that the limiting factor really is the max drawbar loading figure (more commonly referred to as noseweight).
Given the majority of saloon type cars seem to have a noseweight limit of 60kg - 75kg. Using 5% - 7% of 'van weight would give a tow weight of 857kg - 1200kg for 60kg of noseweight and 1071kg - 1500kg for 75kg of noseweight.
The above ranges intuitively seem 'right' to me as does the 85% guide, but it occurs to me that I've never seen the hard science from which the above mathematical formula derive.
Anybody got any idea who carried out this research and can point to the original source?
I think practical experience beats research. Its fairly obvious that a trailer heavier than car could induce a 'tail wags dog' situation where a sharp high speed manoeuvre is required to avoid accident at motorway speeds for example, so logic would dictate that trailer should be somewhat lighter than tow car. A caravan with large surface area subject to crosswinds would only make any bad situation worse.
The 85% figure as mentioned seems a sensible guideline to me. Its advice aimed at new caravanners who might have no understanding of the dynamics in involved. Its not unusual to see people doing stupid things with trailers, I've seen small trailers fully loaded with sand, about a tonne & so on so clearly some drivers have no clue or just take a chance.
Driving locally one might get away with it but caravans tend to be towed on long motorway trips so some sort of basic guidance should be available for those that seek it.
Whilst I'm not disagreeing with some kind of ratio between 'van & car weight, but surely everything must have some kind of experimental basis to either prove or disprove their validity. Was wondering where 85% and 5% - 7% derives. You don't just pull important figures like these out of the air.
A question for any French, German, Dutch or Scandinavian members: Is '85% guide' as prevalent amongst caravanners in France, Germany & Holland or Scandinavia as it is in the UK?
I'm only asking that as I've seen a continental caravan manufacturers brochure (can't remember which one) with a Renault Scenic hitched to a 'van looking twice its size, and Continantal 'vans are not generally known for their lightness.
Quote: Originally posted by rickyash on 01/1/2015
I have read this has a towing cap of 2000kg, anyone out there who can confirm the maximum i should be looking at in regards to a weight of a van?
To give a quantitative answer to OP's question, on the basis of discussion above:
Given: Max Drawbar loading (noseweight) specified for Octavia 4x4 = 75kg
Accepting: Minimum noseweight should be no less than 5% of 'van weight.
Then: in order not to exceed noseweight limit of 75kg, 5% of what is 75kg?
Back to what makes sense & my mention of taking chances with overloaded trailers & so on. I was an HGV1 driver all my working life & I took plenty of chances with dodgy loads, overweight, top heavy & so on, without mishap. I'm quite sure I could hitch an 1800kg caravan to the car in the op & arrive safely at my destination. I would do it by taking a great deal of care, I have the experience & understanding to do this.
For those who do not have that experience & do not understand the dynamics there are guidelines to stay within. At a minimum a new caravanner needs to understand that caravan needs to be somewhat lighter than car & noseweight needs to be more or less correct. That way there is margin for error, they can drive on a motorway in adverse conditions at the speed limit or slightly over(as many caravanners do)& not need to have the kind of driving skill that driving a 44tonne truck requires.
Ones needs to get away from the idea that car & caravan manufactures bear some sort of 'responsibilty' in matching their products together. The makers of both cars & caravans need to produce safe roadworthy vehicles, provide specifications for those vehicles & it is the responsibility of the driver to ensure a good outfit match.
What others do is neither here nor there, one does indeed see some appallingly badly matched outfits on the continent(3 bike rack on A frame on car with 70kg download limit for example) & equally bad driving, 70odd mph along French autoroutes etc.
The guidelines are sensible, logical & make sense to those that understand them. Those that do not understand just need to work within them to know that way they will have an outfit that should be safe to tow.
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Topic: skoda octavia 4x4 2014 2.0D Towing cap
