Message Forums

Having now got the 2007 Pathfinder, we are looking at getting a new (s/h) towcar.

We towed our pop top caravan with both a Clio and a Scenic but the Pathfinder is heavier so really the Clio would be right on its limit.

So I think I will keep the Scenic (04 plate) as a dogsbody car and tomorrow we will go and look at a 08 Scenic DCI 106 1.5 Dynamique to do the towing and as the decent car. This also has slightly more cc's and more torque than the older one.
85% of the Kerb Weight is 1071kg so comes well within the safety limit as the Pathfinder limit is 1000kg. .

Anyone any thoughts on us towing a Pathfinder with this car?  

Quote: Originally posted by bordercaz on 26/10/2010

---

Cart before horse, Lobey?

---

Not really. The old Scenic will tow it alright but she who must be obeyed wants a newer car and she fancies one in the local garage. A 08 Scenic with just 15000 miles on the clock.

I just feel that I want to make sure it will "more than" do the job before we go and buy it.

Scenics are notorious for their low towing limits and so I thought I would run it past the members to see what they thought.

I would realy consider getting something bigger and more powerful than a Scenic to tow your Pathfinder.There will be those who are going to say it will tow it ,Well it probably will just about ,  We had used to tow our Pathfinder with a nissan primera we towed with it for about 6 years it towed fairly we well but it struggled on steep hills and overtaking needed a big traffic gap and caution.We changed our car to a Citroen c5 2litre diesel ,with its power and size, the difference in towing was like night and day,I now feel a lot more confident and its become a pleasure to tow with instead of something to worry about.We have also found that there is not a great deal of diffence in the running cost of large or small cars. please have a careful think about it before deciding.

Thanks Samfan. I will look at that.

Thanks Freeatlast. We towed the Pathfinder home when we bought it and it was badly loaded by the seller.

We used the 04 Scenic and it was fine until I hit 63 mph and then it started to wobble.

I have since put a leaf type stabilizer on it and ofcourse I will load it better.

I will try to sideways push tomorrow. Now that it is 3 years old, even although it has had little use, perhaps I should be thinking of fitting new tyres anyway.

Hi Lobey, not sure that you are supposed to go faster than 60mph when towing!

Seriouly if you want to enjoy your drive, as well as your hols, you may be best going for something with better towing capacity to save you stress on long steep hills!

We tow ours with a BMW 5 which does really well but need to change as we are now back to taking two dogs camping and the back seat is just not big enough for both!   Good job our kids won't be seen camping as there is no room for them too!

Well whatever we do decide to go for, it will have to have the ability to remove the rear seats and have a large boot.

Yesterday I built an A-frame and suspended a weighing machine from it. I then weighed about 75% of the equipment that we would normally take for a weeks holiday in the pathfinder.
I added that to the delivered weight of the base unit, plus the weight of the battery and the still to come, motor mover and I am at 1043kg and we still have to add my medical equipment, our clothing and our food.

I realise that if we are taking the awning, then it and everything that goes with it will have to be in the car along with us, the clothing, the food and the two dogs, but, and for us it is a big but, whatever car we do go for has to be practical for our needs throughout the year as well. That means that it has to be able to accommodate 4 adults comfortably in both the front and the back with decent leg room.

I am 6' 4" and I struggle for leg and height room on the back seat of most cars.

We will not find the perfect car for the money we have to spend on it and whatever we do get will be a compromise.

Go for older but higher quality, higher spec cars that way you win on price but actually have a far more reliable and powerful car.  Newer does not always equal better!

Thanks Andcow, We already know that the Scenic will tow the Pathfinder. We towed it up from England when we went down there to buy it and it has already towed it on a trip to the Trossachs.

Anyways, thanks for all the comments, but we went to see the car today and bought it on the spot.
With only 15000 miles on the clock, it looks and feels brand new. We are just awaiting it having a towbar & the electrics fitted and then we'll take delivery.

Working out the figures for the Scenic towing a Pathfinder, even if we fully loaded both the car (kerb weight + full lpayload) and the pathfinder (max 1000kg) we would still be 300kg under its Gross Train Weight.

Quote: Originally posted by LobeyDosser on 26/10/2010

---

 Now that it is 3 years old, even although it has had little use, perhaps I should be thinking of fitting new tyres anyway.

---

I checked out the tyres today for yon sideways sway and did not see any.

Altogether in the 3 years previous to us buying it, it was reported to have done just 5 weekends away and what we see in the unit, this appears to be correct.

Now while this does not help with the age of the tyres, there is certainly very little wear on the treads which are almost comparable to the unused spare.

However, before next season I will get an approved caravan engineers report done on it and everything properly checked then.

Quote: Originally posted by andcow on 28/10/2010

---

my husband (a mechanic and MOT inspector) checks the insides of the tyres as they will show cracks if they need to be changed regardless of age/prior use.

---

Well that is a new one on me!!!!

I have never seen a mechanic or an MOT Inspector, check the inside of a tyre!

As tyres are made up of many layers of different materials, what is observed on the outside is unlikely to also be seen on the inside and ofcourse different types of tyres will have different properties, advantages and weak points.

Tyres, like any other part of your vehicle or trailer, have to be checked at regular intervals, but the environment that they are being both used and stored in has as much to do with their life span as age.

Just because I have had trailer type camping units for many years, does not qualify me as an expert on them or any part of them and as such, when it comes to what is safe to use and what is not, I put my peace of mind on the findings of the expert that does my annual services.
I have used hime for several years now and trust his judgement implicitly.

Gottya.

I'm afraid I will not be inspecting anything FC wise furra wee whiley.

I lost my footing on the back steps today and landed in a heep at the bottom. I must have twisted to one side as I fell and I caught the corner edge of the bottom step across the side of my replacement knee joint.

Nothing broken but I have a bit of a dent.

I guess I will be giving the workshop a miss for a few days.