Has anyone tried it? We're thinking about a caravan but I'm really not sure how my 1.4 (manual) would cope. It managed 4 up and a very full and heavy load on holiday in France but a caravan might be another matter. I've never towed a caravan before! Cheers

Well, the 1,2 TSI DSG is quite happy towing a loaded trailer so the 1,4 should be fine with towing a caravan.

Surely towing weights and loadings are in the owners manual

Surely towing weights and loadings are in the owners manual

Yes but I was wanting to find out what it was like not whether it was legal. Does anyone use a 1.4 to towa caravan?

Edited 23 August, 201510 yr by usedit67

It's more about the torque available and where it's spread than the engine size. I'm sure you could tow it, but if you were going to tow regularly I'd consider swapping for a diesel or at least a less stressed petrol engine.

I don't think it would be to much of an issue if the correct towbar and more importantly electrics loom together with coding them properly, the O3 has a towing stability setting which should engage whenever the electrics are connected, does on mine and I've pulled a lotta of weight without any issues although, not a caravan so I can't comment on crosswind issues.

 

Get the correct towbar and electrics fitted and I would expect any issues.

The torque for the 1.4tsi is 250nm which is roughly equivalent to a 2.5 litre NA engine but as it produces it from around 1500 to 3500 rpm you would need 3 litre NA engine for equivalent torque at low revs.

The octavia has a reasonably long wheelbase which assists stability but a low kerb weight which means a heavy 'tail' would wag the 'dog' .

The down weight on the tow bar is a relatively low 70 kg so in short you would have to be careful that the weight and characteristics of your caravan are relatively modest. A folding trailer caravan would probably be ideal IMO .

If you have an 1500+kg caravan and intend to do significant distances then a diesel would be better for performance and economy, a 4wd diesel even better.

I believe the diesel Scout has won caravanners awards for best of light towing categories.

So certainly possible with your 1.4 if you are not too ambitious and stay within recommendations.

I tow a 1100kg caravan (official max weight, real weight -- who knows? ) 

 

It tows fine, but you will have to change down gears on inclines, and the fuel economy is not great: I get 8-10km/L on the motorway at 90ish km/h (gotta love that company fuel card). 

 

I have mostly done relatively short tows (250km max) primarily on motorways, but next year we are going to south Germany.

I can add that due to the DSG I really don't notice the downshifts, but with a manual you may have to work a bit to ensure you're in the right gear. If you downshift it easily accelerates to 100km/h+.

 

However, my previous car was much better (Audi A6 3.0TDI quattro with air suspension)... 

Thanks guys. Not looking at a huge caravan so sounds like it should drive OK. I guess the key is relaxing and taking it easy!

My van is just shy of 1000kg according to the plate; add in the rest of the stuff in the there and it was probably a bit over but pulled it to Le Mans and back last year no problems.  Did just shy of 30mpg on the run which given the extra weight and (lack of) aerodynamics is pretty good I'd say.

I find it funny that there are those towing a small block of flats around and still achieving similar consumption to TMWNA's normal day-to-day.

 

Says it all really