Hi all .. I have been towing a caravan for many years always with a company car and usually at 100% tow match.   I have now taken voluntary redundancy which has turned into early retirement...   

So I have a 2018  sel executive manual 2 ltr 150 estate I know the towing capacity for this model is 2000kg.

I'm looking at getting a new caravan with a mptl weight of 1800kg.

So... what's your thoughts on this? Will it be to much for the car? Not worried about the 85% tow match I'm mainly thinking of the long term wear on the car. Should I get a lower weight caravan?  Any advice welcome.

 

Thanks

 

This is a good site for comparing data and gives more data than just % matching

 

https://towcar.info/

There is no doubt that towing a heavy van will increase the wear on the car. Many of the components suffering more wear, brakes, suspension etc are all consumables so I guess you would just have to replace them sooner than if not towing which isn't a big deal really. 

Engine wise I would look to change the oil much more frequently to ensure it is always as good as it can be, say every 6k miles if towing regularly....the engine will run under much higher load and oil temperature when towing than running solo. The turbo in particular will be glad of this. I know in performance car circles many folks swap the 5-30 oil for 5-40 as this gives better protection under the temperatures encountered during hard driving or towing heavy loads than 5-30. I have done this on my Superb 280 which is used for towing and also gets given some stick from time to time too. The ever thinner oils specified in modern cars are more aimed at fuel efficiency than engine longevity. 

 

Obviously the clutch and gearbox are going to take more wear.....clutch and DMF are consumable....my Octavia managed 80k on the DMF/clutch with a remap and a lot of towing and hill starts on the slipway, the, clutch plate was half worn and the DMF was ok still. I only changed them as the slave cylinder leaked and it was all coming apart.  If on the motorway, especially on slight uphill gradients I tended to keep the revs a little higher often towing in 5th rather than 6th despite the car being able to maintain speed at lower rpm in 6th as this will be beneficial to the DMF.

Edited 23 March, 20224 yr by MarkyTDI

Philbusa … does your estate have the factory fitted towbar prep? If not you may well find the cooling system will struggle to cope. OEM tow prep involves fitting uprated cooling components.   Look for other posts on the topic? When I got my 68 reg 190tdi dsg 4x4 I found the Skoda  warranty may be at risk if I installed an aftermarket bar without the OEM tow prep. For me the Skoda aftermarket warranty is important.

Edited 24 April, 20224 yr by MikeM46
Typo!

To follow on with this post I have now brought a new caravan a swift challenger with mptl of 1700.  Purchased it from near cambridge to first tow home was about 200 miles,  the car towed brilliantly best tow I have ever had ...  even managed a average of 33mpg.  I was also surprised at how stable it was towing ...   very pleased with 

7 hours ago, MikeM46 said:

OEM tow prep involves fitting updated cooling components. 

It’s a widely held view / myth - but I’ve yet to see any proof / conformation of this ‘uprated’ cooling system…………..I’d very much like it to be true but for the nominal amount of money charged I doubt it amounts to much…………Skoda aren’t renowned for being magnanimous.

11 hours ago, Berisford said:

It’s a widely held view / myth - but I’ve yet to see any proof / conformation of this ‘uprated’ cooling system…………..

 

 

Just from a cursory glance of some online parts catalogues, there certainly are differences between standard (1D0) and towbar fitted/prep'ed (1D4/1D7/1M5) cars.

 

For example, there are some different hoses and fan configurations for the 1.6TDi Octavia seemingly based on the above PR codes:

 

 

 

I'd expect something similar for the Superb with the same engine. Obviously that's not to say all models need upgraded cooling, only that some might depending on the conditions their being used in

 

That view is shared in Skoda's own retrofit towbar guidance:

Quote

Since trailer operation makes higher demands on the engine cooling system, as far as technically necessary, the cooling system must be reinforced when a hitch is installed at the factory. This occurs e.g. by installing a stronger or second radiator fan and / or a larger radiator.

The cooling system should be strengthened, even with a retrofitted hitch, if it has not already been carried out at the factory. Otherwise, under extreme engine load (mountains, high outside temperatures, high trailer load), overheating of the cooling system can not be ruled out. When converting, the parts listed in the Electronic Catalogue of Parts (ETKA) must be used for engine cooling when towing a trailer. In addition, the work instructions of the corresponding repair manuals must be observed.

The cooling system gain can be omitted if it is ensured that the engine is not under extreme stress, e.g.:
♦ permissible trailer weight not reached by a considerable margin
♦ no high outside temperatures
♦ no long, steep climbs
♦ no trips at high altitude

In any case, the coolant temperature gauge must be carefully observed. If the needle of the display moves very far into the hot area, reduce speed immediately. Even a cooling break must be inserted if required. The engine must run at idling speed for about 2 minutes to prevent heat accumulation.

Note
♦ For vehicles with air conditioning, the engine cooling unit can be relieved when the air conditioning is switched off. As a result, the vehicle combination’s starting ability is improved and overtaking is made safer.
♦ If the cooling system has not been reinforced, the seller must inform the buyer when the vehicle is sold.

 

 

there's also the cabling from front to back to ease CAN connectivity. 

My caravan is 8 meters long but thankfully they were sensible enough to not use Canbus.

 

They still aren't even capable of making a caravan that doesn't leak or of drilling pilot holes for the fixing screws of the front & rear ABS panels instead of splitting them open by driving the screws straight through the plastic, I shudder at the thought of the balls up they would make using canbus wiring, which would actually be a very good idea for the all important weight reduction.

 

The alleged cooling system upgrade that comes with the towbar preparation is absolutely essential for towing in the mountains of the Sahara Desert!

Edited 23 April, 20224 yr by J.R.

18 hours ago, Berisford said:

It’s a widely held view / myth - but I’ve yet to see any proof / conformation of this ‘uprated’ cooling system…………..I’d very much like it to be true but for the nominal amount of money charged I doubt it amounts to much…………Skoda aren’t renowned for being magnanimous.

Yes, the extra cost with OEM fitting is comparatively marginal for the simple reason is it’s the marginal extra cost of the towbar prep equipment compared to the cost of the standard fitting equipment. Getting a full OEM equivalent retrofit is far more expensive because of the full cost of the replacement parts involved.

7 hours ago, langers2k said:

 

 

Just from a cursory glance of some online parts catalogues, there certainly are differences between standard (1D0) and towbar fitted/prep'ed (1D4/1D7/1M5) cars.

 

For example, there are some different hoses and fan configurations for the 1.6TDi Octavia seemingly based on the above PR codes:

 

 

 

I'd expect something similar for the Superb with the same engine. Obviously that's not to say all models need upgraded cooling, only that some might depending on the conditions their being used in

 

That view is shared in Skoda's own retrofit towbar guidance:

 

 

Many thanks for posting the Skoda retrofit towbar guidance. Would appreciate it greatly if you could provide a link to that so that I can if necessary quote it back to my dealer?

All I want is to be able to tow a small trailer very occasionally & have no plans for mountain of

 

or Saharan like towing of any sort! But should there come overheating related issues of any kind I don’t want having used a non-OEM towbar providing Skoda with an opportunity to deny cover!

 

Next task … finding a reputable towbar & specialist fitter combination in Devon or Somerset!

16 hours ago, MikeM46 said:

Would appreciate it greatly if you could provide a link to that so that I can if necessary quote it back to my dealer?

 

Sure, attached it here: D4B80828146-Trailer_operation_as_of_2016.pdf

 

It's something I downloaded from erwin mid 2021 so there might be a newer version but I doubt anything significant has changed regarding a 2018 car.

 

Other than the towbar it self, factory fitted cars do change software properties as well, once a trailer has been hooked up, gearbox mode changes, abs, esp, acc, blind spot, front assist, rear sensors, rear traffic assit, manuvre assist, optional trailer assist kicks in, cooling regime changes, supposedly even the fuel delivery, and other engine related stuff changes mode upon trailer connection, of course only if its done and coded properly, factory or not, it has to be coded, connected to the CAN network, and for the superb, there are different fan sizes, fan blade pitch is different, the CFM numbers fans can move is different, the supplementary heater pump is also a larger diameter, and more changes i cant remember from the top of my head.. 

Note- i was told this by more than one master service techs that work for 3 main dealers in my country..

My superb has came factory fitted, but i was wondering for a octavia my wife was wanting to buy for herself, which did not come with a tow bar

It's a miracle my car with its £110 towbar & electrics will even start the engine & get off the sloping driveway then, I am towing to Dunkerque & then on to Gatwick tomorrow, maybe I should have a Convoi Exceptionnelle escort with motorcycle outriders & flashing lights to warn all the other road users of the danger.

On 24/04/2022 at 20:32, langers2k said:

 

Sure, attached it here: D4B80828146-Trailer_operation_as_of_2016.pdf

 

It's something I downloaded from erwin mid 2021 so there might be a newer version but I doubt anything significant has changed regarding a 2018 car.

 

Thanks!

Greatly appreciated!!

On 24/04/2022 at 23:13, bubib5 said:

Other than the towbar it self, factory fitted cars do change software properties as well, once a trailer has been hooked up, gearbox mode changes, abs, esp, acc, blind spot, front assist, rear sensors, rear traffic assit, manuvre assist, optional trailer assist kicks in, cooling regime changes, supposedly even the fuel delivery, and other engine related stuff changes mode upon trailer connection, of course only if its done and coded properly, factory or not, it has to be coded, connected to the CAN network, and for the superb, there are different fan sizes, fan blade pitch is different, the CFM numbers fans can move is different, the supplementary heater pump is also a larger diameter, and more changes i cant remember from the top of my head.. 

Note- i was told this by more than one master service techs that work for 3 main dealers in my country..

My superb has came factory fitted, but i was wondering for a octavia my wife was wanting to buy for herself, which did not come with a tow bar

a bunch of this is optimizations. To keep emissions low, to make sure temperatures don't go too high under extreme conditions. I would also assume to make life easier for the driver to be smooth with a trailer on and compensate for the higher train weight. Mine seems slightly tamer when there's a trailer correctly connected (yes, I drove one the other day and didn't realise that the electrics were broken until relatively late). 
Besides, what's also not clear from the list is how much of this is for homologation in European countries where the rules are stricter than the UK's "bolt it on, it will be fine".  

2 hours ago, brettikivi said:

a bunch of this is optimizations. To keep emissions low, to make sure temperatures don't go too high under extreme conditions. I would also assume to make life easier for the driver to be smooth with a trailer on and compensate for the higher train weight. Mine seems slightly tamer when there's a trailer correctly connected (yes, I drove one the other day and didn't realise that the electrics were broken until relatively late). 
Besides, what's also not clear from the list is how much of this is for homologation in European countries where the rules are stricter than the UK's "bolt it on, it will be fine".  

Makes sense, i cant witness to the difference between UK an EU regulations, but i can tell you that modern cars with heaps of systems do optimize for certain situations, i forgot to include in the list that cars with tow preparation from factory, or factory mounted tow bar have uprated rear springs,  cars with DCC as well have system changes when a trailer is connected.. I for one would not be so keen to bolt it on and pedal around, especially on my 15 and onward, no matter the brand!