Towcar, does petrol make more sense?
Discussion
We're thinking about buying a new car and leaning toward the caravan puller of the year Skoda Kodiaq.
Typical annual mileage is 8000 of which relatively few would be towing, just the main summer holiday and the odd weekend here and there. Most of the mileage will be my wife running the kids about and maybe me taking the car on a 14 mile each way a-road commute.
Up until now I'd assumed the diesel was pretty much necessary for the towing, but having second thoughts as the 190ps diesel is about £2k more expensive than the 180ps 2.0 TSi petrol and the way we are optioning the car up we might come close to the £40k RRP VED threshold.
We expect to keep the car a long time, 5+ years.
positives for petrol:-
- fuel is slightly cheaper
- car is cheaper to buy
- government encouragement in taxation changes/ulez etc. against diesels
- possibly lower residuals in time as diesels become less popular?
positives for diesel:-
- better fuel consumption
- high torque better for towing
Is there a good reason not to go for petrol?
Will a VAG 2.0 TSi 180ps DSG equipped car pull a caravan ok (max laden mass 1420kg)?
Typical annual mileage is 8000 of which relatively few would be towing, just the main summer holiday and the odd weekend here and there. Most of the mileage will be my wife running the kids about and maybe me taking the car on a 14 mile each way a-road commute.
Up until now I'd assumed the diesel was pretty much necessary for the towing, but having second thoughts as the 190ps diesel is about £2k more expensive than the 180ps 2.0 TSi petrol and the way we are optioning the car up we might come close to the £40k RRP VED threshold.
We expect to keep the car a long time, 5+ years.
positives for petrol:-
- fuel is slightly cheaper
- car is cheaper to buy
- government encouragement in taxation changes/ulez etc. against diesels
- possibly lower residuals in time as diesels become less popular?
positives for diesel:-
- better fuel consumption
- high torque better for towing
Is there a good reason not to go for petrol?
Will a VAG 2.0 TSi 180ps DSG equipped car pull a caravan ok (max laden mass 1420kg)?
I'm leaning towards a petrol for my next tow car mainly as it will be the wife's main run around and she does very little driving so it won't get the long drives that diesels need to stay healthy. Probably be something big, heavy, 4x4 and with a big engine (3L+ / 6 cylinder) though. Got a fairly big van (1575kg MTPLM).
That said the torque my 535D produces means that it easily gets up to 60 (and occasionally over whilst overtaking) and is not troubled by hills. Only thing that lets it down is that it's absolute rubbish in a muddy field.
That said the torque my 535D produces means that it easily gets up to 60 (and occasionally over whilst overtaking) and is not troubled by hills. Only thing that lets it down is that it's absolute rubbish in a muddy field.
Edited by C0ffin D0dger on Friday 25th May 14:02
I dont know if its similar/the same, but the DSG I had in the Passat (last car) was fine for reversing the caravan. A little bit on-and-offy, but thats probably symptomatic of the way the gearbox works, IE a clutch engaging and disengaging.
It certainly felt much less abusive than reversing with a manual, and to be fair, i soon learned how to use the brake very gently so that the car started just to creep.
In terms of comparison between the Diesel Passat and Petrol/Hybrid merc i have now, under general tow, the Petrol needs revving a little bit more if you need to hustle getting out of a junction etc, but nothing drastic. When sat on the motorway or the like, its not really any different, especially if its an auto/dsg. Main bone of contention is the range at the moment, and this is Hybrid/Small tank specific, but I was used to getting 400 miles ish when towing with the Passat at about 30mpg (indicated), the merc, will average between 18-20 indicated depending on weather, and an absolute max of 200 miles so fuel stops are more regular. Nothing drastic, just requires a little more planning. I 'think; the merc also has a DSG style gearbox (C350e) and for info also has the same on/off style when reversing as the passat, but again, nothing of note really.
(have purposely excluded the hybrid bits here as it doesn't seem relevant!)
Hope this helps.
Rob
It certainly felt much less abusive than reversing with a manual, and to be fair, i soon learned how to use the brake very gently so that the car started just to creep.
In terms of comparison between the Diesel Passat and Petrol/Hybrid merc i have now, under general tow, the Petrol needs revving a little bit more if you need to hustle getting out of a junction etc, but nothing drastic. When sat on the motorway or the like, its not really any different, especially if its an auto/dsg. Main bone of contention is the range at the moment, and this is Hybrid/Small tank specific, but I was used to getting 400 miles ish when towing with the Passat at about 30mpg (indicated), the merc, will average between 18-20 indicated depending on weather, and an absolute max of 200 miles so fuel stops are more regular. Nothing drastic, just requires a little more planning. I 'think; the merc also has a DSG style gearbox (C350e) and for info also has the same on/off style when reversing as the passat, but again, nothing of note really.
(have purposely excluded the hybrid bits here as it doesn't seem relevant!)
Hope this helps.
Rob
gareth_r said:
Will the commute keep the diesel DPF working properly?
I haven't a clue, I'm guessing not.gareth_r said:
How well does the DSG gearbox deal with low-speed manoeuvring when towing a caravan?
A few reviews suggest it's not a problemBill said:
How does the torque actually compare? I'd assume the diesel has more, but it's a turbo petrol so how close is it?
Petrol 236 vs Diesel 295
C0ffin D0dger said:
my 535D easily gets up to 60 (and occasionally over whilst overtaking) and is not troubled by hills. Only thing that lets it down is that it's absolute rubbish in a muddy field.
I tow with a 2004 E320 v6 petrol estate right now. It's plenty powerful enough to do the job and will exceed 60 where legal no problem, but also terrible in a field. It gets down to about 15mpg and revs high too, so although doing the job fine, isn't so relaxing. I think it has 232 torques https://www.autoevolution.com/cars/mercedes-benz-e...robknapp2 said:
I dont know if its similar/the same, but the DSG I had in the Passat (last car) was fine for reversing the caravan. A little bit on-and-offy, but thats probably symptomatic of the way the gearbox works, IE a clutch engaging and disengaging.
It certainly felt much less abusive than reversing with a manual, and to be fair, i soon learned how to use the brake very gently so that the car started just to creep.
In terms of comparison between the Diesel Passat and Petrol/Hybrid merc i have now, under general tow, the Petrol needs revving a little bit more if you need to hustle getting out of a junction etc, but nothing drastic. When sat on the motorway or the like, its not really any different, especially if its an auto/dsg. Main bone of contention is the range at the moment, and this is Hybrid/Small tank specific, but I was used to getting 400 miles ish when towing with the Passat at about 30mpg (indicated), the merc, will average between 18-20 indicated depending on weather, and an absolute max of 200 miles so fuel stops are more regular. Nothing drastic, just requires a little more planning. I 'think; the merc also has a DSG style gearbox (C350e) and for info also has the same on/off style when reversing as the passat, but again, nothing of note really.
(have purposely excluded the hybrid bits here as it doesn't seem relevant!)
Hope this helps.
Rob
All interesting stuff! I did consider a mitsubishi phev, but ideally want 7 seatsIt certainly felt much less abusive than reversing with a manual, and to be fair, i soon learned how to use the brake very gently so that the car started just to creep.
In terms of comparison between the Diesel Passat and Petrol/Hybrid merc i have now, under general tow, the Petrol needs revving a little bit more if you need to hustle getting out of a junction etc, but nothing drastic. When sat on the motorway or the like, its not really any different, especially if its an auto/dsg. Main bone of contention is the range at the moment, and this is Hybrid/Small tank specific, but I was used to getting 400 miles ish when towing with the Passat at about 30mpg (indicated), the merc, will average between 18-20 indicated depending on weather, and an absolute max of 200 miles so fuel stops are more regular. Nothing drastic, just requires a little more planning. I 'think; the merc also has a DSG style gearbox (C350e) and for info also has the same on/off style when reversing as the passat, but again, nothing of note really.
(have purposely excluded the hybrid bits here as it doesn't seem relevant!)
Hope this helps.
Rob
We tow a 1350kg Bailey. We've gone for the 1.5 TSI petrol Kodiaq. For the 10,000 miles per year when the van isnt on, its a much better bet than diesel. For the 1500 miles when the van is on, then it will be adequate. Not worth getting a diesel, although plenty of good deals on them as nobody wants them.
Not VAG related, but I'm of the theory that good towing cars are compromised in other areas and good driving cars are not so good for towing.
For the half dozen times a year when I tow our caravan, I'm more than happy to run a turbo petrol SAAB with a stage 1 remap. Gives me 235bhp and 380Nm torque. still does 0 - 60 in less than 10 seconds with the van behind
I found that adjusting driving style using the manual paddles allows you to take advantage of the extra torque
For the half dozen times a year when I tow our caravan, I'm more than happy to run a turbo petrol SAAB with a stage 1 remap. Gives me 235bhp and 380Nm torque. still does 0 - 60 in less than 10 seconds with the van behind
I found that adjusting driving style using the manual paddles allows you to take advantage of the extra torque
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