Replacing my Freelander tow car

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  • Unknown
    Unknown Forum Participant
    edited January 2020 #32
    The user and all related content has been Deleted User
  • Rufs
    Rufs Club Member Posts: 4,072 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited January 2020 #33

    and i can confirm that the Sorento 2013 model is not a problem eitherlaughing

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited January 2020 #34

    The 2018 model sorrento no problem either our friends have one and have just lookedsurprised

  • Cornersteady
    Cornersteady Club Member Posts: 14,426 ✭✭✭
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    edited January 2020 #35

    lol, opps embarassed

  • Extugger
    Extugger Forum Participant Posts: 1,293
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    edited February 2020 #36
     

    I tow 1800kgs with an auto Sorento and it does the job superbly. The other model I considered was the VW Touareg, but my budget meant we got a virtually new vehicle, instead of something 3 or 4 years old. With your budget, I would seriously consider it, as it meets with all your requiremets

     
  • Briang
    Briang Club Member Posts: 670 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #37

    Have a look at the Toyota Land Cruiser great bit of kit won't break down I have one.

     

  • lornalou1
    lornalou1 Forum Participant Posts: 2,169
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    edited February 2020 #38

    2.8l engine with only 177bhp. better tow cars out there.

  • davetommo
    davetommo Forum Participant Posts: 1,430
    edited February 2020 #39

    Be careful what you brag about it might just breakdown tomorrow.

  • mylo
    mylo Forum Participant Posts: 104
    edited February 2020 #40

    Ford kuga probably the best tow car in the world

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited February 2020 #41

    Is that an American  "world"wink

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited February 2020 #42

    You've been watching too many Carlsberg ads

  • Briang
    Briang Club Member Posts: 670 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #43

    The one I have is a 3.0 litre td 190 bhp.It has every thing you need. As for breaking down never that is why Australia loves them in the bush and in the desert in dubai and other arab countries.

  • Briang
    Briang Club Member Posts: 670 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #44

    It won't break down very reliable. Ask anyone who has one.

  • Metheven
    Metheven Club Member Posts: 3,987 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #45

    Have a look at the Toyota Land Cruiser

    Bulletproof, excellent reliability 👍 and no I don't have one.

    Ford kuga probably the best tow car in the world

    Disneyworld.

  • lornalou1
    lornalou1 Forum Participant Posts: 2,169
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    edited February 2020 #46

     Hahahahaha. funny.

  • Boff
    Boff Forum Participant Posts: 1,742
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    edited February 2020 #47

    We had one for 9 years 2003 120 series in the end the chassis rusted away.  It was reliable (mainly ) for 11.5 months per year.  On the 2 week summer holiday it would develop a fault always different and never stoped us driving it but this fault always added about £200 to the holiday. Oh yes it ate front brake callipers. I think that 4 were replaced during the time we had it.  I replaced it with a Touareg which as a tow car is superior in almost every way imho.  

  • kentman
    kentman Forum Participant Posts: 147
    edited February 2020 #48

    We went from Freelander to Discovery sport  and are not regretting it.  Freelander was a great tow car but DS is better.  We have a Coachman VIP replated to 1700kg. I have considered a change  but DS is only just heavy enough and most alternatives are lighter except for bulkier ones which I don't really want. Sorrento would be a possibility but it just doesn't stir my heart (ok, I'll admit my wife and I are car enthusiasts and also have a Jag xk8, mgf and a Saab 9-3 convertible).  Frankly, the DS is the most comfortable of these for long journeys,  is enjoyable to drive and averages over 40mpg

  • davetommo
    davetommo Forum Participant Posts: 1,430
    edited February 2020 #49

    Could be famous last words

  • Metheven
    Metheven Club Member Posts: 3,987 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #50

    People and 'my cars more superior than yours', I bet the previous one was at the time, along with the next one in the future.

    BTW, my neighbour has an alluminium catch tray he used under his previous Touareg to catch the oil, its for sale if needed.

  • Boff
    Boff Forum Participant Posts: 1,742
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    edited February 2020 #51

    Sorry if you don’t like my experience over 9 years.   But  with our LC the engine and gearbox were bullet proof but some of the ancillary parts not so.  The Touareg compared to the LC, has 60% more bhp, 70% more torque and 35% lower emissions.  It doesn’t drip oil but then again nether did the LC    It is simply in my opinion and experience a better tow car than the LC.   Obviously I am comparing a 15 year old vechicles with a 3 year old one but even comparing same age vechicles then the VW still had some advantages.   

    Would I recommend a Touareg for the op?   Not really, because I don’t think he is looking for something that big.  The Kuga based on the weights alone does appear to be a viable suggestion, but so is holding onto what he already has.

     

     

  • cyberyacht
    cyberyacht Forum Participant Posts: 10,218
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    edited February 2020 #52

    I had a Kuga for six years, bought at two years old. Never missed a beat. Not a mega-heavyweight but a good all-rounder.

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
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    edited February 2020 #53

    I haven't noticed anything in the above thread that says 'my car is superior than yours' .... people have just put forward their experiences of the tow car they have.

    Can I say that a Merc ML350 is a fantastic towcar! 😉

  • Unknown
    Unknown Forum Participant
    edited February 2020 #54
    The user and all related content has been Deleted User
  • Metheven
    Metheven Club Member Posts: 3,987 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #55

    .... and rubbished others suggestions, as have I.

    Those experiences will be flawed, simply because criticising your own towcar would deem to be failure on your part when purchasing. So yes, I can quite believe you saying you have a fantastic towcar, just like I have wink

  • kentman
    kentman Forum Participant Posts: 147
    edited February 2020 #56

    A key issue is that everyone's requirements are different.  As I mentioned above, my caravan is plated to 1700 kg so although I like many of the VW Group's vehicles they are all too light apart from the VW Touareg or the Audi Q7 which are both bigger and more expensive than I want. I  am a Jaguar enthusiast and belong to both of the Jaguar clubs but the FPaceis also too light in 2.0l form and its sloping rear is less practical than the Discovery Sport.  I like the upright driving position of an SUV so am not inclined to have an ordinary estate.  In other words, we all choose vehicles which suit our needs So although it is fair enough for members to relate their experiences of cars they have owned, it is irrelevant for them to criticise ones they have not, even if they have seen them broken down on the motorway (which would recently include a VW, an Audi and a Merc in my travels).

  • Takethedogalong
    Takethedogalong Forum Participant Posts: 17,042 ✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #57

    If your Freelander has been/is a good car, no underlying issues, why not consider buying an extended LR warranty? 

  • flatcoat
    flatcoat Forum Participant Posts: 1,571
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    edited February 2020 #58

    I tow a caravan plated at 1800kg with my Passat Alltrack quite legally and in the real world of car with passengers, dog, awning etc is about 97% weight ratio. It is only in the UK caravanners get a cold sweat over towing ratios and the so called 85% rule. There are plenty of VW Group products that will legally and safely tow a 1700kg caravan.

  • kentman
    kentman Forum Participant Posts: 147
    edited February 2020 #59

    Everything has to make their own decisions. Kerb weight of 1725kg is lower than I feel comfortable with to tow a 1700kg caravan.  Not to say you are wrong but each to his own

  • Rufs
    Rufs Club Member Posts: 4,072 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited February 2020 #60

    was in the local Kia showroom last week getting a headlight bulb changed on OH's Carens (as you can see i do not have a mechanical bone in my body), looked over the latest Sorento, I have a 2013 model, what a great car, but do i need all those bells & whistles?, and at what price undecided, Yes i currently have a reversing camera which i do use but still a mirrors man, yes i use cruise control, (would like adaptive) i have a standalone sat nav, I never use my phone whilst moving, i go forwards always in drive/eco mode, never used manual, i go in reverse. Never used lock 4wd, diff lock, radio sometimes for news, lane control seems like a bad idea to me, read about a Merc last week that nearly caused a serious accident because lane control mistook a couple of bad skid marks in the road for lane markings undecided, and when all these gizzmos start to go wrong they go wrong big time.

    Would like a good reliable basic tow car at a sensible price that would tow my 1575kg caravan, but cant find a new/second hand car of todays era that fits that bill.

    7 year warranty on my Sorento runs out soon, have i ever used it, NO, thank goodness, but how much did i pay for this when i bought the car?, (second hand), I am sure the old girl has got a few more years left yet, so if it is not broken why try to fix it.

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited February 2020 #61

    Our Sportage KX4 auto is seven years old this month I have  never  used up to now,  park assist,4x4 lock ,down hill "assist?,but do appreciate the rear camera when hitching up c/van,it has nearly 35000 miles on the clock,my dealer will yet again  try to get me to get a newer model when it has its service and Mot next week ,but as i have told them when they go back to having a full size spare wheel as standard , we may have a chatsurprised