What car do you tow

[Barky-Bill]

Hi Everyone

I'm new to this forum so excuse me if this question has been asked already :Blush:, wifey and I intend to go full timing by next spring, house sale allowing, one of my pre-emptive plans is to buy a small car suitable for pulling behind the camper, I've done some research and the most likely scenario is to have a braked trailer for the 'lil' car, rather than an 'A' frame.

I just wondered what peoples opinions are of different cars and the pro's and con's, the obvious choice is a Smart, but I might sometimes have to do 3-400 mile journeys to visit elderly parents. Neither me nor the wife are small people, although I have travelled in a friends Smart comfortably, (he drove it to Naples and back from Essex ).

Antway, thanks for your comments in advance. :thumb:

 

[dazzer]

Smart cars can carry 2 people anywhere is comfort. If there were only 2 of us id have one tomorrow :thumb:

 

[IrasciBill]

Smart Car

Hi Barky-Bill,
No problems with head or leg room in a Smart - both much better than many "larger" cars. Also, because seats are offset, there's no problem with broad shoulders etc. Does require a change of driving style, however, and I would recommend an extensive test drive before deciding. I'm very happy with mine :thumb: - but I don't think I would want to drive it for 300 - 400 miles on a regular basis - and certainly not to Naples and back. :Blush:

 

[Barky-Bill]

I should have said my friends who went to Naples in a diesel Smart are considerably smaller than me, in fact I think I probably weigh as much as my small welsh friend and his petit Italian partner put together.
:Blush:

 

[marrod23]

Hi folks we tow a fiat sequento which is very light & easy to tow it also carries 4 people quite easy you can drop the rear seat down which then makes a good trailer we are also quite big 7 find theirs plenty of room cheers happy travels Rod:thumb:

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[Larrynwin]

Hello Barky - Bill our toad is a Peugeot 107 which we tow on a Brian James trailer or A frame. The 107 is an excellent small car seats 4 , £35 a year rfl and 60plus mpg.
Its kerbweight is 800kg and on my trailer the gross weight is 1125kg. You would need to consider the suitability of this weight for your motorhome and driving licence restrictions.

 

[Barky-Bill]

I have an old style license (passed my test in '77), and know I can drive up to a 3.5 tonne vehicle without any problems, we intend to buy a 23'-27' camper, probably based on the Sprinter CC or a T5, (I am a VW Camper fan of old), is this a C class?

The little Peugeot 1007's with the sliding doors seem to be a good buy, they're a 4 seater, just about.

 

[scotjimland]

I have an old style license (passed my test in '77), .

You call that OLD ? passed mine in 1967 ..

back on topic

I also had a '98 Fiat Seicento Sporting, just sold it, complete with A frame.

It will carry four adults, get 45 - 50 mpg, you can pick up a late model in decent shape for under £1k .. best to look for the Sporting with the 1100cc engine.. and later models ( 2002 on I think) have multi point fuel injection .. Nippy about town but short on legs on motorways and noisy at high speed.

Points to be aware of

Clutch Cable.. prone to snapping, if sticky will need replaced, easy DIY about £20
Gear box, check for noise, some reports of premature failure, mine was ok at 90k miles,

Dislikes.

No power steering, heavy when parking
No temperature gauge , only a warning light
No A/C

 

[kennygd]

I tow a smart car on a smart car trailer and I don't even know it's there , even mastered reversing and that is with a 6 wheeler motorhome, can still stck it up with shopping,:thumb:

 

[kennygd]

I tow a smart car on a smart car trailer and I don't even know it's there , even mastered reversing and that is with a 6 wheeler motorhome, can still stack it up with shopping,:thumb:

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[pappajohn]

I have an old style license (passed my test in '77), and know I can drive up to a 3.5 tonne vehicle without any problems, .

hi bill, do you mean you personally dont find a problem with 3500kg or do you refer to your licence restriction.

in case you didnt realise, you can drive up to 7500kg + 750kg trailer on your pre '97 C1 + E licence....unless you have other health/ age related restrictions of course.

whatever car you choose make it economical as its running costs will be on top of the £10,000 to £15,000 per year needed for a comfortable lifestyle when full timing.

 

[estcres]

Usually an old broken down one!!!!

 

[robinmclaren]

toyota rav 4 4x4 on a a frame , lots of room , used daily when at home and great fun when arrive , really comfy to use daily

 

[camcondor]

We have a Smart for Two which has an A frame, plus we also have a Brian James A max micro car trailer for it which we never use as our property is on a steep slope and my partner and I struggle to manage the trailer on the slope

The Smart is towed with no effort by our A class on either the A frame or the trailer, I've even trailed the Smart behind my Range Rover, using its A frame, when we've needed two cars at a venue for a few days, but wanted to travel together on the long journey there

The Smart is very spacious for 2 adults and fits a weeks shopping in the "boot" , also very fuel efficient, but perhaps more expensive to buy than some of the other micro cars.:thumb:

 

[Reallyretired]

As many above we have a smart car which we tow on an A frame, which has no discernible effect on mpg. I am 6'4'' and around 98kg so not small and I have loads of leg room. Probably the furthest I have driven in it is about 100miles each way, for long trips I use my Grand Vitara.

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[old-mo]

Kia Picanto auto on a 4 wheeled trailer and Honda Jazz,, Honda is more comfy but a lot heavier,, but saying that I drove 1200 miles from Spain in one go in the Kia,, and was not as bad as I thought it would be.

If you are thinking of Europe,, go down the road of a trailer, cos they are getting hot in Spain on "A" frames..

 

[Barky-Bill]

Thanks everyone for your replies/advice,

I've now realised I can drive up to a 7500kg unit oh: (plus 750kg trailer), but I can't see myself going that big, I quite fancy the Smart 4two, but have been advised to go for the 700cc one if I can, I'm impressed with towing the Rav4, that's bigger than I would have thought of and as we intend to do Europe I will be going trailer rather than A frame.

I see I need to do a lot of research into curb weights, braked trailers, etc, etc, but hey, if everything goes according to plan I have about 9-10 months to prepare :thumb:

We're still investigating the costs, but we know we can afford a couple of years clear without work, but I intend to do agency work anyway when I park up anywhere for a significant time to supplement our funds.

 

[scotjimland]

We're still investigating the costs, but we know we can afford a couple of years clear without work, but I intend to do agency work anyway when I park up anywhere for a significant time to supplement our funds.

Good luck, we left Basildon in 2006 to embark on our full time adventure .. now back under tiles in Suffolk.
It was a fabulous experience but it does eat up money at an alarming rate .. budget prudently, live as cheap as possible, use cheap or free Aires and you may get away with about 12k per year ..

safe travels

 

[craiggs]

we have a smart and i was told to get the 1000cc and we did its been spot on but it only has 12000 m on the clock and we are selling that at the end of next month with the birstner i820 and thats only done 5000m but you get what you pay for

 

[MAUBRI]

Hi Barky-Bill,
No problems with head or leg room in a Smart - both much better than many "larger" cars. Also, because seats are offset, there's no problem with broad shoulders etc. Does require a change of driving style, however, and I would recommend an extensive test drive before deciding. I'm very happy with mine :thumb: - but I don't think I would want to drive it for 300 - 400 miles on a regular basis - and certainly not to Naples and back. :Blush:

i've driven one regularly for 10 years and if it wasn't for the fact that someone wanted to have another passenger, I would still have it. I used to travel around 350-400 miles once a month when visiting the kids over a weekend, the only down side was problems with the cross-winds when on open roads at speed, but I still prefer the more positive ride from the rear engined rear wheel drive than I do with our present front wheeled drive car that we tow, this being a Toyota Yaris Verso, plenty of room but boring to drive.

Brian

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[Barky-Bill]

we have a smart and i was told to get the 1000cc and we did its been spot on but it only has 12000 m on the clock and we are selling that at the end of next month with the birstner i820 and thats only done 5000m but you get what you pay for

Was that a veiled sales pitch, sounds like a very nice setup, but I think it would eat too far into our cash reserves oh:

 

[Paul.Liz]

Kia Picanto auto on a 4 wheeled trailer and Honda Jazz,, Honda is more comfy but a lot heavier,, but saying that I drove 1200 miles from Spain in one go in the Kia,, and was not as bad as I thought it would be.

If you are thinking of Europe,, go down the road of a trailer, cos they are getting hot in Spain on "A" frames..

Could somebody explain the difference between a "road trailer" and an "A frame"

Thanks
Paul C

 

[scotjimland]

Could somebody explain the difference between a "road trailer" and an "A frame"

Thanks
Paul C

Hi .. welcome to the forum.

a road trailer carries the car.. all wheels off the road

an A frame tows the car with all wheels on the road using a frame in the shape of an A .. hence A frame..

search 'A Frame' for some great reading and debates ..

 

[656]

We tow a 2002 Smartcar on an Aframe, as others have said you don't know its there. I regularly drive it to Peterborough to see the grand kids - 210 miles round trip and costs are about £15 in petrol. Took it to France this year, parked up at Gravelines and went all over the place in that week - about 500 miles :thumb:

 

[motor roamin]

Hi Barky-Bill amd welcome.

I tow a Citreon Berlingo Diesel 55-60mpg, and a tardis when inside, I much prefer big cars, but I am so impressed with this that I find myself leaving my S Class Merc on the drive and taking the Citreon.
I tow it on an A frame or trailer I have the trailer because sometimes I take my Corvette when I want open top motoring.

Hope this helps oh and it's not for sale

All the best Rick.

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[Road Runner]

I used to tow a Kia Cerato 1.6 GS but had a load of money tied up in a car that got used so little so bought a cheap an Citroen 1.9 D ZX SX and its a great little car 50 mpg and no depreciation and on the button all the time.

I have a Volvo Estate as main car so realistic about my toad.

 

[Road Runner]

Here mine filthy dirty after a cross country tug from Wales to Billing aquadrome

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