Which tow car Rog or anyone else advise.

[lornaA]

We are going to be changing our car July 2017 hopefully and have started browsing. My husband and I both passed our tests in 1993, my licence the standard one and my husband has hgv on his as he drives for a living. We are looking for a car / 4x4 to tow an ifor williams 505 plus my highland pony who is 540kg. We will hopefully have a budget of around 14k to 20k depending how much we manage to save and are looking for something a couple of years old probably to fit the budget. Cars we have thought on are Kia sorrento or sportage, Nissan xtrail ( do they do them in a big enough engine to tow) any opinions on these or anything else we should consider. Also need it to be ok on fuel for day to day running and space in the back for 3 kids.

 

[ROG]

Check out the last link in my signature below

 

[Annagain]

The 505 weighs roughly 900kg so with your horse too you're looking at about 1450kgs. Even if you say 1500kg to be on the safe side, there are a lot of vehicles out there that will be up to that job. You also have a pretty healthy budget so it comes down to personal preference. Most of the smaller 4x4s or larger estate cars tow between 1.8 and 2.2 tonnes so any of them will do. This website is quite good. http://www.towinghorsetrailers.co.uk/towing_vehicles.htm
You put the weight of trailer and weight of horse in and it gives you all the models that could tow your set-up.

Personally I love Land Rovers and the last Freelanders (just before they stopped them) are very good cars. People moan that they don't tow much but they're every bit as good if not better than others in their class. I think a lot of people compare them to other Land Rovers and they obviously won't tow as much as they're much smaller.

The Skoda Octavia 4x4 is another excellent tow car if you'd rather something more car like.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Skoda Octavia Scout 4x4 2l 150 bhp diesel manual estate. It has a raised running height over the standard Octavia, and is a seriously comfortable long distance car even with 2 6'1"+ sons in the back.

Tows 2000kg. High 40s mpg.

Can you tell I love ours?

 

[lornaA]

Thanks I had thought on an Octavia that are good cars so I shall research that model. We currently tow with a 54 plate 2litre tdi mondeo and it's actually pretty good at the job. We are just looking to get something a bit newer now.

 

[PaddyMonty]

Best car I've towed with was an Audi A4 (from UK to Lithuania and back). Long wheel base and short distance from rear wheels to tow bar make it very stable. AWD version is you want to get more traction for slippery surfaces.
Should add I've towed with pretty much all the big 4x4s and would still pick the Audi in your situation.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Haha, our previous car was a 56 plate version of your Mondeo . The Scout, (ours is a 15 plate), is a much nicer car, and it's a much better tow car though it has a tad less room in the back than the Mondeo.

 

[asmp]

We had your budget and bought a VW Touareg.

 

[EmmaC78]

I have been looking for a new car too and think I have settled on a Kia Sorrento. The newer ones are fairly low on tax and if you get a manual they can tow 2500kg.

 

[Fiona]

I'm with tiddlypom Our skoda octavia 4x4 estate tows like a dream, on and off slippy grass too and great mpg for non towing duties...

Fiona

 

[cyberhorse]

A friend of ours has towed one of these trailers with a Kia but now has a 4x4 Mitsubishi hybrid. It is saving her a lot of money on fuel day to day compared with her previous tow cars.

 

[fabbydo]

I love my Korando. Very hi spec and tows well. Ok, it's not a Land Rover but it's half the price and has a 5 year warranty. Never thought I would abandon Land Rover (had them for over 20 years) but I'm so glad I did. No more massive bills for silly little things!

 

[SplashofSoy]

I love my Korando. Very hi spec and tows well. Ok, it's not a Land Rover but it's half the price and has a 5 year warranty. Never thought I would abandon Land Rover (had them for over 20 years) but I'm so glad I did. No more massive bills for silly little things!

I have a korando. Not amazing to drive but spec good, excellent value. Does 50mpg normal and 35 when towing. Tows its capacity 2000kg with ease. 5 year warranty and very cheap new compared to similar models such as the Kia sportage.