What tow car under 4k. Pre-DPF and doesn't rot ?

[r3g]

Looking for tow vehicle for 2 tonne caravan, manual box, under £4k, doesn't rot. Petrol preferred by would consider a pre-DPF diesel. Everyone says Kuga, but these are DPF and are known to go wrong in that department, but on the plus side they generally don't rot. Also been told Nissan 4x4, Toyota 4x4, Jeep 4x4, Navara, L200 would suit, but from my MOT tester pal he says these all rot like feck and generate 2 page long fail and advisory sheets unless they've been undersealed properly.

Any other suggestions / recommendations please? Reliability and rot-freeness is paramount. Not bothered about toys, can be "agricultural". Would prefer 4x4 or pick-up size rather than car, but not essential.

Ta.

[Belle427]

A workmate has a Kuga and i quite like it but they can still have problems. He has had a remap and "Dpf solution" due to isuues with it but obviously thats frowned upon.

[Jazoli]

I'd probably go for a W211/212 e class estate in 320cdi flavour, loads of torque, rear air suspension so self levelling, problem is finding a good one.

[stevemcs]

2 tonne Caravan ? You won’t find a car for that, you will need a 4x4 such as a Discovery or a big pick up.

[chrisch77]

Mk1 XC90, pre 2006 ish for no DPF?

[Daaaveee]

stevemcs said:

2 tonne Caravan ? You won’t find a car for that, you will need a 4x4 such as a Discovery or a big pick up.

Agreed. I would want a Discovery for towing something that big.

[eth2190]

Jeep Grand Cherokee WK, 2005- 2006 to avoid the expensive tax bracket. May take some shopping around to find a clean one though.

Also Freelander 2, less towing capacity but lots of examples to choose from.

Edited by eth2190 on Wednesday 20th March 10:47

[OutInTheShed]

X3 will tow 2 tonnes? May vary by model.
Early ones don't have DPF AFAIK, but booting it uphill with a carvan on the back should give the DPF a good clearout anyway?
X5, more of the same?

There are lots of DPF cars which have racked up decent mileages without trauma.
I think decent garages may have learned to deal with these things over the past 10 years or so, so maybe we are past the 'early adopter' pain now?

Any 4x4 can chuck you a stout bill for transmission problems of course.

A mate had a Citroen C5 which seemed to tow a heavy boat without fuss, but I don't know the exact weight.

Isn't there a 'shed dragger monthly' comic which publishes a table of towcars and capacities?
You'd probably want a historic copy as most of these people won't be seen driving anything 'old'.

[MDMA .]

Any reason for petrol and manual box? At that weight, I’d go diesel and auto. 2000kg is a big caravan. On a Kuga, you’d have the tail wagging the dog! I don’t even think the MK1 Kuga can tow that much anyway.

Shogun/Pajero would be my choice.

[Shabaza]

left field here, but how about a Lexus GS/LS430

[t.boydy]

Early VW Touareg, either the 2.5 or the 3.0.

Great tow vehicles! I had the 5.0 V10 and it was awesome


Tom

[Mad Maximus]

r3g said:

Looking for tow vehicle for 2 tonne caravan, manual box, under £4k, doesn't rot. Petrol preferred by would consider a pre-DPF diesel. Everyone says Kuga, but these are DPF and are known to go wrong in that department, but on the plus side they generally don't rot. Also been told Nissan 4x4, Toyota 4x4, Jeep 4x4, Navara, L200 would suit, but from my MOT tester pal he says these all rot like feck and generate 2 page long fail and advisory sheets unless they've been undersealed properly.

Any other suggestions / recommendations please? Reliability and rot-freeness is paramount. Not bothered about toys, can be "agricultural". Would prefer 4x4 or pick-up size rather than car, but not essential.

Ta.

Old school x5. Manuals are about but you need to search. Same for xc90 but more likely a diesel. Avoid kuga nasty dmf and extremely thirsty for the size of it.

[r3g]

Thanks all, good suggestions to look at. 2 tonne is top end just to cover bases,. Probably a bit less than that in reality and might not even be a twin. Won't be moving it much as it'll be on farm most of the time and anything heavy I could transfer into the tow car temporarily.

Also had some SangYong thing suggested and Kia Soranto but not checked limits yet.

[eth2190]

This XC90 seems like a good buy: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/266693994774

[GreatGranny]

eth2190 said:

This XC90 seems like a good buy: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/266693994774

We've had 2 XC90s, both used for towing a 1500kg caravan and they were great at the job.

Auto is a must IMO and both were the 185bhp versions and we had zero DPF issues.

Only issues were wearing out suspension parts but most big Volvos are known for this.
Relatively cheap to sort.

The one above looks decent and that mileage wouldn't bother me at all.

[Bobupndown]

I had a Discovery 2 for 11 years and towed a twin axle caravan with it which it naturally did superbly. I then changed to a Freelander 2 (Sd4 190 bhp auto) and was prepared to be disappointed when it came to towing the same caravan. I needn't have worried, despite only a 2 ton towing limit and a physically lighter car the Freelander is the better tow car of the two. Had it 6 years now. Mine is 2014 so has DPF but no issues with it at all.

[ZX10R NIN]

As others have said the E320cdi with the straight 8 non dpf drivetrain is the pick at this price point:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202403067...

[super7]

Mitsubishi Shogun…. Loads of grunt, more mechanical than discoverys etc, still look good!

[agent006]

super7 said:

Mitsubishi Shogun…. Loads of grunt, more mechanical than discoverys etc, still look good!

Had one, brilliant tow car, but doesn't really meet the "doesn't rot" point.

[super7]

agent006 said:

super7 said:

Mitsubishi Shogun…. Loads of grunt, more mechanical than discoverys etc, still look good!

Had one, brilliant tow car, but doesn't really meet the "doesn't rot" point.

Never thought of them as rotters??? My old 2006 car is still in one piece and last time I saw it still looked very good!!!