Anyone tow with an estate car?

[I don’t like mondays]

Hi
I’m looking at buying a towing vehicle and an Ifor or Bateson to tow a 13.2 pony and 15h (weight taped at 347 and 460…I think). Could I get away with towing my two with an estate that can tow 2tonnes eg Ford Mondeo/BMW 3 Serise estate. Even if on paper the car can tow that much is it ok for the car and ponies? I want to avoid a 4WD or pick up if I can because this is my everyday/work car so can’t to too thirsty or high road tax. Thanks in advance

 

[honetpot]

I have towed with mostly an estate, and it gets harder to find one that is heavy enough, I think the lightest trailer is about 700k, you need something that is not going a go over weight, but more importantly be safe. Most animals weigh more than you think, my 13.2 Highland weight 450kg on a weight pad, at three, and was not over weight looking at him.
If you ever have had a trailer start to swing behind you, it really is scary, so you need your wits about you, and can flip a car. On a road the draft from other traffic can start a swing, so its not always something you can control, and then the animals move. The most I ever towed with my old Rice Europer, was two ponies, about 700kg.

 

[chaps89]

My parents tow with an Audi estate. It tows no problem but the main thing my mum dislikes about it is the length, it’s then a very long set up.

 

[holeymoley]

I used to but only one pony and a single trailer. It was absolutely fine if you only go venue to venue, ie tarmaced roads but any tracks with a bit of rubble and an incline you will put extra strain on the car which will over time, cause you problems. Or if fairly steep you may lose traction.

Husband has a 3 series bmw estate and while it is a nice car(it’s not our tow car) it’s incredibly low, I’m not sure it would really be for horses.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

I'm not any sort of expert but tbh I think you'll struggle with a 2.0 to pull two. I had an X-Trail that was supposed to be 2.5 and I put my 13.2 who weighs 464 in a Pegasus Huntsman trailer and it wouldn't pull the flippin' toilet chain let alone a single pony up the back. Granted it was an older model but it was seriously frightening when I got to any sort of hill (I'm in Devon so plenty!) and had to have this conversation-with-Jesus and/or promise my soul to the devil to get to the top.

Also there is the issue not just what will it tow but braking too.......... that is fundamental and you could be putting yourself & horses in danger by not having enough to stop you, where you may have a situation where the tail is wagging the dog if that makes sense and you could jacknife.

I would take some professional advice (or there will be plenty on here no doubt) before you make any sort of decision. I'm in the same dilemma right now of finding a suitable towing vehicle.

Ohh and don't trust what your weightape tells you!! My weightape was consistently telling me that my pony (profile pic) was 420k; but we had a professional weighing session with a portable weighbridge at the yard Wednesday night and she came up as 464!! If you are underestimating the weight of your two horses combined it could tip you over the towing limit.

No doubt there are others on there who can give you better advice than I....... looking forward to hearing whatever wisdom comes.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I tow with a 3 series BMW estate and I would not recommend it for what you want to do/your set-up. It is a long and low set up, which us mostly doable, but there were some places where I was glad to be with my friend in her truck. If we did not know about the parking situation at a competition, we always took the truck, and we're thankful that we did because the BMW doesn't fare well in mud, hills, or having to hop a curb.

I tow an older poly trailer that's really bare bones and light. I only tow my one horse who is a 160cm tall PRE. I'd never put another horse in there with him behind that car. Someone asked me to bring a Fell with him one time, and that might have been doable, but I'd rather not!

The other issue is that it's a manual transmission, so God help me when I have to stop on a steep hill and get the whole thing moving again. I had to leave out of a very very steep driveway once and someone walked out in front of me at the top (totally oblivious person). I had to stop and the back all the way down the hill, then come back up because I lost all momentum. It's terribly also hard on the clutch.

There are some routes and parking situations that I know well, and the set-up is fine for those. I didn't buy this car with towing in mind, and while it is technically capable and there have been many times when I've had no issue, I wouldn't recommend it.

One time I had to borrow YO's VW Touareg and it was so much better. I didn't have to plan routes to avoid things, I didn't have to fret about the parking, and I didn't have to worry when it snowed a bit. I'd never tow with the BMW in snow.

It being a long set-up is quite frankly the least of my problems. We definitely would've opted for a different estate perhaps, but more than likely a SUV, if we weren't moving soon (can't take the car with us), so it wouldn't be worth it, and YO has a lorry and SUV available if there's an emergency.

I don't feel unsafe in many instances, but it's not a set-up I'd recommend. Especially for 2 equines...unless they're minis. It's been a decent car, but you've got to put safety first.

 

[throwaway2022]

I tow with a 2L Smax, it’s the car we had and I can’t upgrade for another year or two so I work with what I have. Tow limit is 1695kg, trailer is an IW 401 at about 750kg ish off the top of my head? Pony is a small sec A so maybe 250kg. I’m way under my max limit and feel totally comfortable with this set up. I have towed heavier with it and felt fine but it was good weather and on roads. I really don’t think you’d manage two with your current car I’m afraid, even if you can swing it weight wise I’d be concerned about how safe you felt when actually driving.

 

[I don’t like mondays]

Thanks everyone. Sounds like I need a heavy 4x4 or pick up to make it safe and easy to tow 2 ponies. My 15h is a chunk so I wouldn’t be surprised if he weighs a fair bit more than the weight tape. They are my kids ponies so they’d usually travel together. Back to the drawing board I think. Thanks again