Review automatic towing cars?

Gloomendoom

reeac wrote: »

I don't know how you can force an auto to stay or change into too high a gear - it will decide for itself which gear to use.

With a traditional auto, if you select '4', rather than Drive, it will only use the lower 4 gears. It will only change up to 5 if you exceed the maximum rev limit for 4th gear (the engine would be screaming).

reeac

Gloomendoom wrote: »

With a traditional auto, if you select '4', rather than Drive, it will only use the lower 4 gears. It will only change up to 5 if you exceed the maximum rev limit for 4th gear (the engine would be screaming).

Yes, that's a way to keep the auto in a lower gear and I use that for engine braking on hills but my point is that the auto will sense if you're trying to pull a heavy load in too high a gear - usually from the consequent reduced inlet manifold vacuum- and will change down to an appropriate gear ....you've guessed it - automatically - thus avoiding lugging along at low revs.

BeenThroughItAll

My old Grand Cherokee 2.7CRD was a great tow at with a 1900KG Buccaneer on the back (borrowed, I will add).

Not as nicely as the 4.7V8, or the 4.6V8 Range Rover, though.

Admittedly, all more than 5 years old, but the price they are, you can save a few quid and run one as a second car, and they're all a hell of a lot better equipped and nicer to drive than any Euro-crossover-shopping-shoebox.

marlot

reeac wrote: »

Yes, that's a way to keep the auto in a lower gear and I use that for engine braking on hills but my point is that the auto will sense if you're trying to pull a heavy load in too high a gear - usually from the consequent reduced inlet manifold vacuum- and will change down to an appropriate gear ....you've guessed it - automatically - thus avoiding lugging along at low revs.

Yes, but the lock up will keep engaging and disengaging. on mine, if you put it in 4, the torque convertor can lock up, and it'll sit there happy for hours on end at 60.

marlot

reeac wrote: »

I don't know how you can force an auto to stay or change into too high a gear - it will decide for itself which gear to use.

You can get into a loop. you ease off the throttle so the car ges into 5. then the convertor locks up. then the road rises a little ad you increase the throttle so it goes into 4. then back to 5 etc. whereas leaving it in 4 can let t lockup and stay locked up.

knightstyle

Thanks for all the advice. I didn't know about locking the box in 4th gear, will definitely do that in future.
There is a Ford Cmax near us so will give that a test drive tomorrow, not sure what type of box it has.
Most of the cars recommended are too big for us, we only have one car and tow three or four times a year, caravan all up is under 1000kgs, so finding an economical car isn't easy.

Herzlos

knightstyle wrote: »

Thanks for all the advice. I didn't know about locking the box in 4th gear, will definitely do that in future.
There is a Ford Cmax near us so will give that a test drive tomorrow, not sure what type of box it has.
Most of the cars recommended are too big for us, we only have one car and tow three or four times a year, caravan all up is under 1000kgs, so finding an economical car isn't easy.

Automatic, economical & towing capacity don't really go hand-in-hand though. But I'd have thought most full-size (Mondeo, Insignia) cars could tow 1000kg in automatic form.

marlot

I'd look at these reviews (I know they are for the manual version, but they'll give you ideas).

http://www.thetowcarawards.com/winners/2011-up-to-1424kg/

marlot

Herzlos wrote: »

Automatic, economical & towing capacity don't really go hand-in-hand though. But I'd have thought most full-size (Mondeo, Insignia) cars could tow 1000kg in automatic form.

Mondeo size cars are generally happy and stable towing up to about 1300-1400Kg. So 1000kg is well within limits. A size down (focus, golf etc) would generally be fine too.

Herzlos

marlot wrote: »

Mondeo size cars are generally happy and stable towing up to about 1300-1400Kg. So 1000kg is well within limits. A size down (focus, golf etc) would generally be fine too.

None of them seem to be Autos though?