Suggestions for 4x4 suitable for towing and commuting please!

J

jumpingginger

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After much deliberation I have decided that the best option for me is to have just the one car for towing that I will have to use for commuting aswell. I thought about keeping my fiesta and getting a cheap lorry but would still have 2 lots of tax, MOT, insurance, service etc, as I would if I went with my other option of getting a really cheap 4x4 to use for towing only and keep my fiesta for commuting. But it would be too much of a hassle to have 2 cars, as I keep most of my life in my car and go via the stables to and from work, so I couldn't even keep my fiesta as a 'clean' car and the 4x4 as the dirty one!
I do an awful lot of milege, and have a half hour drive to work twice a day, so need a very fuel efficient economical car, which is easy to drive and tow, (I've never driven anything bigger than a Focus estate, and never towed a thing in my life, and yes I do know that I need to pass a trailer test first!) It must be able to tow a trailer with a 16.3hh, 550kg horse, and possibly a 400kg pony if I ever give lifts. (Haven't got a trailer yet, but it will probably be an Ifor HB10, or whatever is the biggest that they do.) Budget, at the moment nothing more than £4000, but hopefully I will be kept on in my current job (only meant to be a temp at the mo, so fingers crossed!) so might be able to go higher!
Anyone know anything of Kia Sorrentos? Thats what I been eyeing up mostly, or Hyundai Santa Fe.
 
My friend has a Kia sorrento, and it's a lovely car, tows beautifully. I don't think it's too bad economy wise, but they do have big engines, so I'd imagine it's not the best.

There's always a dilemma, I know a lot of people who tow with smaller 4x4s and commute in them as well, and it makes me a bit uncomfortable. My horse is going to be big height and weight wise though so I know I'll need the biggest of everything!

Good luck with your decision, I've always liked the look of Santa Fe's but don't know anyone with one!
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We are same position as yourself and OH decided that Kia Sorrento fits the bill.He was looking into an automatic but has to be after 2004(something about gearbox is better don't know if same for a manual)People we have spoken to who have sorrentos absolutely loved them.
Trying to find one within our budget and not hundreds of miles away is proving hard tho.
 
Santa Fe can't tow as much as the Sorento, the next Hyundai up is the Terracan which can tow more, I have a Sorento and love it but they're not the best at fuel economy, saying that tho i do mostly short journeys (less than 5 miles at a time) and have been told that's the worst for getting good fuel economy from a diesel.

Someone recently did a Sorento vs Terracan thread on here, search it and ull get a lot more info.
 
I used to have the reverse situation when I had a isuzu trooper that I used for towing a trailer and commuting to work.

I was having to spend £50+ per week on fuel just for the commute and probably towed our trailer once a fortnight which usually cost about £20 a time. My solution was to buy a diesel polo for the commute so now it costs the same for towing but I only spend about £10 a week on the commute which saves me about £150-160 a month.

You will need a pretty big 4x4 to tow a HB510 with the two horses (towing capacity over 2 tonne) so the economy won't be brilliant for your commute. I would expect something that could tow that to do around 30mpg.

I know there are 2 lots of tax etc for me but the advantages make it worth it.
 
I've had this dilemma myself and have gone from an expensive to run Lorry to a Shogun Sport and equitrek, but before the lorry I had a Discovery and equitrek and having done all the sums, the Discovery was the most economical, I could get 35 mpg which is good for a good towing 4x4, and it could tow with ease two 16.2 horses with no problem. You should be able to get a decent Disco at the moment, just make sure it is diesel and has a full service history!
 
I have an 07 Santa Fe and it's a great car - tows well and has plenty of performance when it's being a road car. However the best I've ever got out of it fuel wise is 33mpg.

You could look for a 4x4 that has been converted to LPG - that will probably be your best solution. A friend of mine has a Grand Jeep Cherokee which they bought for around £4k then spent another £1.5k converting it to LPG. It pullls their EquiTrek with ease and LPG is very cheap!
 
I'm another advocate for the kia sorento. we researched it thoroughly before choosing the kia. prior to which i had a shogun. the kia is one of the more economical 'full size' 4x4s on the market which still has the beef to tow.
 
I recommend jeep cherokee. I have one and I commute in it and travel 45 mins to work, 1 hour from work to stables, 30 mins from stables to house each day.

We have artic weather here in scotland at the moment and that car has been a godsend.
 
WHatever you get, get an LPG 4x4 - it makes SUCH a difference to the fuel costs. We can tow the horses and an Equitrek 140 miles for £22 in our 4.0L Jeep Cherokee.
 
I have an Isuzu Trooper and use it for work and towed an Ifor 510 with 2 big horses in it. Its great and its a 3.1 turbo diesel, economical and fantastic in this snow. Owned it for 5yrs now and its not new but looks well and runs fab. Wouldnt swap her, and its good on fuel too. Hardly knew the trailer was on the back with the horses in it when I did tow. Share a lorry now but kept the car.
 
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