Towing Car Wanted - Less than £3000 - Suggestions????

[lanciamad]

Hi Guys,

Having bought myself an e30 325i race/track car and trailer i'm after a more sensible vehicle to tow it around with.

I just about managed to get it home with an Audi A3 1.8 Turbo (150bhp) which pulls fine, but on the two occasions I had to do a hill start, it really doesn't like it and is on the max towing capacity, weight wise. I really don't want to be pulled over / changing clutches everytime!

Looking for something that has performance (170+ bhp), is preferably not much older than 10 years old, less than 100,000 miles and is quite comfortable in towing at least 1800kg, which would be the BMW and trailer + spares, tyres etc... Looking at £3k max!

Are automatics more capable / less wearing when it comes to towing?

No big 4x4 suggestions please , land rovers, chelsea tractors etc, don't do anything for me. Open to more retro / unusual cars too if reliable and cheap to fix.

Let the suggestions roll in.........

Thanks, Marcus.

[retrolegends]

Volvo 240



Ok not quite 170bhp and a bit older than ten years.

[oakesy]

A BMW E39 would be pretty much perfect

[adi]

E36 325tds would be my choice, if you can find one! Straight 6 diesel goodness

[welshpug]

or an E34.

[adi]

In fact you'd get a 330d within that budget. Twin turbo straight 6 diesel FTW

[scimjim]

this fails on age and mileage but I can guarantee that 175 bhp of straight six diesel turbo goodness can pull over a small town

auto every day for towing and buy an estate so you can fit your race kit and a gazebo in the boot even with the black Labrador and wellies.

retrorides.proboards.com/thread/160439/mercedes-e300-td-750-gloucester

[dunc]

E39 530d touring would be my recommendation. The touring versions have self leveling air suspension at the back so sit straight as an arrow regardless of the load.

[composimmonite]

Volvo 240 get my vote as well. When bonnet came up on my 240 GL at speed it did so much damage I scrapped it and replaced it with a 740 SE. Both had the 2.0 CIS engine. IMO the 240 was a far better tow car. As retrolegends says older than 10 years and under 170 bhp though. BTW for towing you want torque more than bhp. For example Land Rovers have quite low power but will tow anything !
Mate had a Vectra 2.6 and plenty of power for towing his big caravan but bad weight balance between car and caravan (yet still just within manufacturers / the recommended 85% ratio) so he ended up having to buy a 4x4 to get something to make a safe towing combo.
This is possibly where you will also have a problem as you need a vehicle around 2000kg (min) and that will limit choice.
I've towed cars on trailers with spares and even with a Land Rover if you get the loading wrong they can be frightening to drive. Tow 1800kg with a car of similar or only slightly heavier and you risk spending a fortune on spare underwear.
What about looking at caravan tow vehicle test results to see what people recommend as a good hauler ?

Paul H

[compass]

I'd personally go the 4x4 route, or buy a van. IMHO, the best tow vehicles have a LWB and weigh a decent amount. Trooper 3.0 diesels are great towing vehicles. A bit agricultural, but cheap and far more powerful than Landys. Injectors can be troublesome, but even now are replaced FOC by Isuzu if they fail.

If you're dead set against 4x4's though, the best car I've towed with has been a 3.0 Omega. Plenty of power, and very stable. Retro wise, a W124 Merc estate would be great, especially if you could get the E300 or 320. Self levelling suspension, bullet proof engine and very comfy.

Auto or manual is personally. Auto for ease, although many cars will need additional oil coolers. Manuals give more control when tackling hills, where autos can sometime hunt for gears.

Hope this helps.

[lilbob]

a ford galaxy TDI gets my vote loads of room high towing weight and comfy to drive

[smurf]

Shame you don't want a 4x4

Mine will pull a house down

3.0 hilux surf manual ( no overheating like the autos)

Plenty of space and its got a winch so you can recover almost anything as well

[hcanimal]

Ford ranger diesel pickup?

[rallye]

This maybe doesn't tick all the boxes but i'd recommend a VW T4 2.5 Tdi of sorts, i towed my 106 all over the country in 2012, Aberdeen - Prescott hillclimb on 1 tank of fuel! (460 odd miles)



My Caravelle had bigger injectors & remap and made 150bhp/240lb ft torque, add cruise control and some XR2i 16v seats for added comfort, the velle even has a/c fitted.

You also have lots of storage space, you can even kip in it if you want.

[keithrg]

Thats a tall order. YOU say under 10 years old but then say retro. Bmw E36 323i 328i 330d (old 2.9) E39 528i would be my choice and manual. Old volco 850 940 most modern cars don't have towing capacity

[domino1971]

what about an audi allroad or ex traffic cop Volvo xc estate plenty around and fairly cheap,.? hope this is of help also old Mercedes w123 pretty retro and pretty bomb proof I have had 1 with 400,000 miles on it and it was a manual diesel estate . have you tried carandclassic.co.uk very good website  like this forum. hope this is of help to you. if you can handle a left hand drive, try autoscout24 and a wee euro trip. / mobile.de europes autotrader.

[lanciamad]

Thanks for all the suggestions so far guys, very useful. Keep them rolling in! I will be trying to use a works transit if at all possible but if that's a no go, the kermit A3 i've got will have to make way for something more suitable for the job.
Cheers, Marcus.

[curryracer]

How about a Subaru Forester? Not quite 4x4 territory, good towing capabilities (all those farming/horsey people cant be wrong!)
If thats too big then what about a Legacy estate? With or without turbo they are reliable (if looked after. Running gear same as Impreza so loads of spares around) and you wont see too many on the road.
Both have big boots (Legacy is slightly longer / Forester is taller) '03 onwards Foresters (and possibly others) have non-permanent 4wd so can be reasonably economical.
I admit I am a little biased. I sold my Legacy estate last year after 8+ years 90k miles and replaced it with a Forester!!

[smurf]

You know you want it

[lanciamad]

Not my cup of tea i'm afraid!

Think a BMW E39, seems to be the best suggestion from a very limited choice of cars that are upto a towing capacity of 2000kg and within budget. Hard to find something sporting, attractive with a good towing ability.

Fancied a 156/159 sw but the towing capacity isn't upto the job