Best towing car

ferg01

Hi all,

intentionally not posting this is the motoring section because I wanted to canvass views from boaters.

I have an EV which is useless for towing my 6.5m rib but my other half is possibly looking to change cars soonish so we might look at an ICE car that can tow competently.

Can I check if boaters have views on these cars as towing machines?

1) Audi A6 Allroad (3l Diesel engine);

2) Mazda CX5 (2.2l diesel engine);

3) Volvo XC90 (2l diesel engine);

4) Volvo XC60 (2l diesel engine);

5) Audi Q7 (3l diesel engine);

6) Toyota Land Cruiser (2.8l diesel engine).

On paper they can all tow the boat and trailer which are circa 1800kg combined although I want to weigh them together to get the exact weight. I have the BE licence but I’ve never actually towed the boat myself…though I want to in the future hence this query

Anything I need to think of other than engine towing capacity? The land cruiser is my preferred option but will be a very hard sell here at home!

Any thoughts/comments/suggestions welcome.

Hifive

I tow this to events all over the country with a 3 litre diesel Q7. Boat and trailer are about 1600/1700 kilo and the car hardly notices it. It is long though, at about 47 foot in total, so you need to be careful on tight bends.

have the car since new (2016) and so far It’s been faultless.

Mick Tator

I think you'll need a 3L. I towed a small cruiser Dublin – Kerry and once there in/out of the water at the beginning and end of every season for several years. Boat was 750kgs, engine /trailer/gear another 250. Vehicle was a Freelander TD4, kerb weight I think 2000kg.  Towing was OK on the road trip, had to change gear on long steep hills and fuel consumption was considerably less than usual. The slip I use is near me but  very awkward and steep so there always was a bit of clutch burn on retrieval. The Freeland was fine for my needs but were I regularly doing distances and launch/retrievals I get a bigger SUV.

Current boat is 2500kg + gear +trailer so I get a local with a tractor as I’d hate to see my current car disappear backwards down the slip! (It also saves me a certain amount of embarrassment trying to reverse down a T-junction slip built by the Congested Districts Board in the late 1800's!)

ferg01

Thanks both for the quick responses - will look more at the 3l options. Had a preference for the Audis anyway so good to know!

I have the same fear on the slip, presumably the Q7 would be solid enough or does it come down to slope/tyres etc…?

Hifive

Well that boat is crane launched but I also tow a 20 ft Searay with an inboard v8, which weighs about 1300 kg, with the Q7 and have no problem launching and recovering it at the slip in Dunmore East, which can be very slippy at low tide.

AckwelFoley

Engine size while obviously important isn't the factor that is considered when towing legally. Check the vin plate on the door cill of the vehicle or check the speifics of the car specification on the net.

Biggest defining factor is usually the vehicle size / weight. New ISUZU D'MAX have a 1.9l diesel engine. It has a towing capacity of 3.5 tonne. I remember VW used to do a polo with a 1.9L diesel but obviously you're never going to safely or legally tow 3 5 tonne with it!

Land cruiser from the list above will have the highest towing capacity of 3 tonne, but with 1.8 tonne load, probably not necessary

FintanMcluskey

A Landcruiser is the best & most robust option for towing & recovering in tricky situations.

ferg01

Thanks all…will stay away from the 2.0l.

The Landcruiser is my strong preferred option but yeah…might be tricky to convince my better half.

lol_leo

Bit late to the thread but interested to know what you went for? I sold off a Volvo XC70 recently and regret it. That thing was a beast but road tax killed it. Volvo D5 2.4 engines were built to pull and last!

WildWater

Good article here with suggestions that aren’t all top end premium stuff.

https://www.carwow.co.uk/editorial/best-cars/by-features/used-tow-cars#gref