Get yourself thenew passat 4 motion it will be close to what you are looking for but check out exect weights first. i bought one last year and it tows like a dream.
Quote: Originally posted by neil and lena on 09/3/2008
however you cannot argue the fact that in the event of loss of control a caravan weighing 85% of the towing vehicle,the driver has a significantly greater chance of recovering it than if it is at 100% irrespective of whether it is loaded correctly the laws of physics determine that
It is also true that you are morely likely to lose control with a heavier caravan.
I well remember the first outfit I had - a Peugeot 405 petrol saloon, towing a Lunar Saturn. The van was nearly 100% of the Peugeot's kerbweight. The outfit was twitchy, even with a stabiliser, for the whole of the time I had the Peugeot. Several years later, I towed the same van with an Isuzu Trooper which was more than twice as heavy. The outfit was supremely stable without a stabiliser.
The weight of the towcar makes a massive difference to the stability and safety of the combination. Anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves. Folks who push the limits on matching are a danger to themselves and others.
It is also true that you are morely likely to lose control with a heavier caravan.
The weight of the towcar makes a massive difference to the stability and safety of the combination. Anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves. Folks who push the limits on matching are a danger to themselves and others.
Cheers Andrew
I agree. 85% may be a guideline, but it's a figure that has come about for good reasons, and whilst I would not disagree that exceeding the 85% does not necessarily make an outfit unstable, personally I would never exceed it by more than a few Kgs.
Best advice I ever received "Get the heaviest most powerful car you can afford to run, and the lightest smallest caravan you can live with".
------------- Caz
If you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, just keep going till you go round the bend.
Quote: Originally posted by bordercaz on 14/3/2008
I agree. 85% may be a guideline, but it's a figure that has come about for good reasons, and whilst I would not disagree that exceeding the 85% does not necessarily make an outfit unstable, personally I would never exceed it by more than a few Kgs.
Best advice I ever received "Get the heaviest most powerful car you can afford to run, and the lightest smallest caravan you can live with".
If you read all the towing guidelines from the reputable bodies that produce them, they all suggest that 85% is a good starting point, none of them say that 85% is the be all and end all of the subject. I would agree with the advice you were given.
On a lighter note I remember in the 70`s my dad driving a Vauxhall Viva with a 5 berth van behind it. I was only 8 or 9 but it was my job to look out the back and shout to him when a lorry was passing us on the motorway. He then gripped the wheel as tightly as he could an sweated a lot as the caravan twitched all over the place. The following week he bought a Volvo estate.
Being a novice i`m happy to stick to the guidelines of 85% and I think I always will, just for my peice of mind.
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Topic: What tow car
