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Topic: a Van as a tow car - any good?
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Page: 1 2
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Message posted by Nosaj07/10/2013 at 5:14pm
Outfit: None Entered Location: None Entered
Joined: 24/6/2013
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Nosaj
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We are thinking of investing in a caravan. It probably won't happen until next year now as we are just in the process of swapping our car over to a van. This may sound like a daft thing to do but I windsurf and the kids have discovered watersports so we have to add a Kayak and a SUP to the kit I will have to lug around so even a Disco won't cut it. There is only so much you can get on a roofrack. I will also have to take the wife, the kids and a dog occassionally as well! I am not quite sure what van yet as it will have to tick a lot of boxes and also tick the box of my longer range goal that it will be able to tow an average family sized caravan say up to 1500kg mptml. I was thinking of something like a VW transporter/Toyota Hiace maybe up to a SWB Vito, Transit or traffic.I appreciate that it will need some power and I am assuming at least a 2 litre + diesel. Does anyone tow with a van? and are they safe and stable and up to the job. Please bear in mind I have never towed a caravan any real distance before. If anyone has any advice it would be greatly appreciated as I am not sure where to start. Thanks EDIT the SUP is an inflatable (so is not in excess of 10 feet-actually packs down small) and my longest windsurf board is 249cm
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Message posted by ChrisPolly+Oscar07/10/2013 at 7:31pm
Outfit: Landcruiser & Avondale Mayfair 510-5L Location: Lancaster
Joined: 30/1/2011
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ChrisPolly+Oscar
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Towing with vans is ideal; lots of weight in the base vehicle, breaks the airflow over the caravan, heavy duty running gear designed for a degree of day in, day out abuse.
We have towed F2 race car on trailer with an 85bhp T4, a 104bhp T4, a 130bhp T5 and a 175bhp T5 Caravelle.
My advice, obvious but there you go, is to go for 130bhp at least, else you will spend a lot of time changing gears on the slightest of inclines.
Can recommend the VW though; very car like to drive very long distances, easy to service & maintain, and the Caravelle has all manner of toys & gadgets.
Vitos rust horrendously, Traffics suffer delicate engine problems and Transits are quite big & unruly for supermarkets & everyone will think you are a pie key...
------------- Regards
Chris
Caravanning for 22 years
1997 Toyota Land Cruiser 3.0TD & 2004 Avondale Mayfair 510-5L
Previous towcars:
2002 Nissan Primera - sold
2002 Ford Galaxy - Died & scrapped. Good riddance.
1998 BMW 525TDS SE - PEx
1998 VW Passat SE - Crashed into & scrapped
1997 Peugeot 406 GLX - PEx
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Message posted by lizzy2308/10/2013 at 8:57am
Outfit: Lunar Lexon CS Location: leeds
Joined: 17/8/2005
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lizzy23
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we tow on a transit, and as its been said its very stable, better the more weight there is in the van, we only feel it on hills and will be getting the van remapped to 115BHP its currently only 85, just a note the CC & C have no problem with Commercial vehicles this is us on site at Glencoe a couple of weeks ago, we have also not had a problem with the commercial sites we have booked and are back at Kippford holiday park at Christmas, i think a lot of sites are now waking up to the fact that there are increasing numbers of vans being used as the only transport by a lot of people, not only tradesman
Post last edited on 08/10/2013 10:39:59
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