Tow car - Advice/opinions/recommendations

RainbowDash

RainbowDash

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Hi all,

Time has come for the current ShrikeThelwell mobile to be put out to grass. I have a budget of £3500 for a new one - 4x4 this time to give option of towing horse trailer/caravan etc and not knackering it on the daily run to the yard - and to use over winter.

I'm currently looking at:

Toyota RAV4
Landrover Freelander
Honda CRV

Do any of you have experience of these cars? Any to avoid/expensive to fix/insure/tax etc? Have I missed one out? - Am I missing out a potential gem? (Looking at cars around 2l either petrol or diesel).

:D
 
We didnt buy a towing car in the end as my new job came with a 120 mile commute and a 4x4 became out of the question but we looked at the Toyota and the Honda

We discounted the Toyota as it was only available in petrol and the insurance quotes we had were high, also it was quite small inside so the opportunity to stash things securely was a problem. On the plus side it's supposed to actually be if some use off road and some people swear by them

Wr discounted the Honda because the figures on fuel efficiency and insurance simply did not stack up - beware of official figures!!!!
 
I wouldn't go with any of those for towing, unless you're towing a pony in a single trailer. They're not man enough for the job.
 
Many thanks Welsh D :D

I've looked at the 'official' figures for all these cars and will take them with a pinch of salt. My current car's official figures is 50mpg but in reality I get nowhere near that and I drive like a granny :D

The new motor needs to have some off road capability and not just a tow machine - thinking about splitting the budget in two and getting a smaller 4x4 for runs to the yard and larger car for the tow work.
 
I can tell you a Honda CRV will be no use as I've just had to buy a much more powerful car to tow with. I did tow with the Honda and just one horse in an IW 510 but it was always a struggle. Flat roads fine. Any kind of hill, nightmare. Reversing with horse on board difficult and reversing up any sort of incline was nigh on impossible. I've just got a Mitsubishi L200 which is great. I suggest looking at something like that or a Shogun or Kia Sorrento which has good reports but you'll either need a bigger budget or a very old car.
 
I'm afraid I wouldn't tow with any of those mentioned either, they are leisure 4x4s and not up to the job.

IMO the best 4x4 for towing is the Nissan terrano, there's been a few test-drive things done, and this came out on top.

Others to look at would be the Daihatsu FourTrak, the Shogun or Discovery, or the Isuzu Trooper. All except the Disco come in a short-wheel-base version which would be fine for your needs :)
 
I towed one 16h in a 505 with a freelander. It just about coped as Long as u didn't stop on a v steep hill but 2 is a big no no . I have upgraded car to BMW x5 but b4 that had jeep Cherokee which was great as well, unfortunately any decent towing vehicle will not be great on mpg.
 
The tow vehicles I have looked as for best mpg are the Nissan-xtrail and the Hyundai Santa fe. You will need to check the tow capacity of each model as not all models will tow. The Nissan x-trail sport does 2000 kilos and can't remember the Santa fe model. So check with manufacturer. But the correct one Also tows 2000 kilos. I am only towing one 16hh horse though. If you are towing two I would be more inclined to look at the beefer 4x4 such as a disco or a serrento (serrentos are supposed to be good mpg) Good luck in your search :)
 
Check out the link in my signature below - the one which mentions members vehicles and trailers

Are you towing under B or B+E licence rules?
 
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