Hi all, getting near the time to change our towcar, but i cannot make up my mind as what to go for. I quite like the Hyundai' Tucson and the santa Fe, and have also considered the Trajet. We must have an automatic due to health problems, and a car that is not to low to get in and out of.
We tow a Bailey Ranger 500/5 weight is 1149 and need something that does'nt drink the juice.
An idea of budget and whether you're looking to but new/used would help everyone trying to advise. We have a Kia Sportage (56 plate) towing 1400kg comfortably - the Kiaeffectively being the same as the Tucson of a similar age. The only slight issue that we have is that fuel economy is not great...
We had this problem ended up with a touareg wow what a choice all the vw refinements 3.0 v6 diesel pulls our 2000kg van like a dream was not goin to try it as it was a little more than we wanted to spend but wow glad we did and no timing belts in v6 so I will save 1000 there so that's a bit of he over spend recouped in time so I have convinced oh lol
You should be able to tow 1149 kg with a diesel estate, a passat or vectra or mondeo etc. Or you could posh up to a Volvo/Saab/Audi etc. It will save you a fortune in fuel etc.
Quote: Originally posted by alan29 on 14/3/2011
You should be able to tow 1149 kg with a diesel estate, a passat or vectra or mondeo etc. Or you could posh up to a Volvo/Saab/Audi etc. It will save you a fortune in fuel etc.
True - my Santa Fe only gets 35mpg if you're a gentle driver and only 25mpg if (like us) you do lots of short, rush-hour journeys. Towing is 23mpg which is OK for a reasonable size 4x4. The Tuscon is very similar but shorter, so less boot space.
However, if the extra height is an issue, you're scuppered with an estate - after my SF, I always feel like I'm falling into them. Problem is, high cars tend to be 4x4s and none of them are great on fuel. The only other option may be the large MPVs (Ford Galaxy, S-Max etc) but their economy isn't that much better.
------------- 'In later life, you will be more disappointed with the things you didn't do than with the things you did.' - Mark Twain
I have towed with a vw touran which is higher than a normal estate, it's a bit like a tardis and really good on mpg figures. It was the 2 litre 140 bhp version, manual. I now tow with a 10 plate santa fe auto and it's brilliant, really love it and get 26mpg towing with 4 bikes on roof.
i would consider both cars, especially the touran if cost is an issue.
We are on our second Trajet now, We had a petorl manual one which towed ok, but drank the fuel and on hills needed a bit more power, then decided to buy a VW Sharan, £2200 in repair bills, we decided last month enough was enough and have now bought another Trajet, but diesel auto,
Towed great down to wareham last month, good enough fuel economy and really comfy,
It also is very comfy round town, and i can easily fit 4 kids in it, my 2 dogs and a pushchair.
We are considering eventually swapping our smaller runaround for a sante fe to use for towing in the winter or if we go to CL's
We we're really pleased with the last Hyundai so hope this one is as good, My mum also has a little i10 and she has been thrilled with it.
I know some people slate them for being a bit cheap but we love ours.
------------- Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.
Towed a 1500kg sterling europa 540 with a Kia Sportage (same car basically as a Tucson). Towed it fine. Bit of a pain for gear changes being a 6 speed so changed it for a bigger engined Kia Sorento with only 5 speeds. Bigger engine means i hardly ever need to change gears on motorways, so it is a much more relaxed drive. But it uses more fuel boo hoo!! Tucson will tow the Bailey with ease, and buy the right one you will also get great spec for not alot of £s.
------------- Why am i doing this instead of camping??!!
hi, i have a Santa Fe 2.6 petrol automatic (but also has the option of using in 'manual' mode which is now LPG powered, its expensive to have converted, but if you do the mileage and keep the car you will get your money back and save - i save around £30 every time i fill up and get the same like for like mileage whether i fill with petrol or gas. the car will also be worth more when you come to sell it (i hope!)
saving £30 - fillling up 60 times (around 300 miles per tank driving carefully) = £1800 (approx cost of installation - though you can get it done for less if you shop around), so depending on how often you fill up will determine the saving overall. if you keep the car for 5 years and fill up 26 times per year = 5x26x30 = £3900 minus initial installation cost of £1800 = £2100 saving !!!! bigger savings if you do more mileage and fill up more often than twice a month!
lpg prices in france are similar to uk, but a lot cheaper in belgium for some reason?
there is an lpg car forum so you should log on and read up first to get some ideas of if you want to go down the route of having an LPG car.
perhaps an lpg version of any of the other vehicles youre looking at may be worth exploring? there are plenty out there on ebay etc to take a look at? just be careful about vehicles which are old/high mileage and have LPG conversions RECENTLY fitted. some of these have been done just to sell and make a bigger profit than selling it as a petrol guzzling vehicle.
though i must fiinish by adding i do love my santa fe - its the only car i have bought the same model of in succession after over 30 years of driving - i suggest you try the car auctions for big savings on initial purchase, go for one around 3 years old if you cant afford newer, that gives you enough 'age' on the vehicle to be able to sell after 5 years (or just keep as a tow car?) i reckon youre looking at around 5k for a car around 50k mileage and fully loaded with lots of extras (my last santa fe had 150k on the clock when i sold it to someone who just wanted to tow his van with it!!) - i put 100k on it and it still drove like a dream. LPG does no damage to the engine (no carbon deposits) so it should drive for ever in theory!
ps - NO i do not work in the lpg industry - just in case youre thinking i would be a good salesman LOL - just retired after 32 years in the fire brigade, which suggests i wouldnt drive a vehicle that some might think a bit dangerous in a collision - they are just as safe as petrol/diesel fuelled vehciles.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Tucson, Santa Fe, or what?
