I am thinking of changing my Citroen Xantia 1.8lx but need something capable of towing my touring caravan.
I only use the caravan approx 4 times a year with the furtherest distance travelled being around 250 miles.Therefore i normally opt for petrol models rather than deisel for the better performance whilst not towing.
Could anyone recommend an good allround car to suit my needs, i have been considering either a 2.0 Vectra or Laguna around 3 years old.
My caravan is a Hobby Prestige 460 with an unladen weight of 1100kgs.
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How about the best of both words? The new direct injection diesels give pretty good performance (if you are not looking for boy-racer stuff) good economy (35 ish towing, 50 ish solo), loads of torque for towing and they are much quieter than the old diesels. Should be 3 year old ones coming through now (Xantia 2.0 110bhp for instance and I bet there are VWs, Audis, Renaults also) Not so sure about the Ford TDCi judging from posts here, but others will no doubt know better!
I'm impressed by my wife's Xantia!
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"How about the best of both words? "
or even "best of both worlds"!!
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You already have one of the best towcars around in the Xantia with its excellent stability and self levelling. You just have the wrong engine.
The 1.9TD is far better for towing (and normal use) than your 1.8 petrol, one of the more modern HDi diesels would be even better. If you have to then get one with a bigger petrol engine.
Going to something like a Vectra is actually dropping to a lesser ability in towing terms.
If you want to step up a class in towing ability from the Xantia you need a large rear wheel drive with a powerful engine and self-levelling suspension. Above that a 4WD might suit but for 4 tows a year....not worth the downsides all the rest of the year.
MM
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I'll second MM's comments about the Xantia diesel. I tow a 1200Kg caravan with a Xantia HDi and it's brilliant, even beter than the TD which was pretty good too.
Ian Cook
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Hi
Have you had a test drive in a C5 HDI? I had the 1.8 petrol Xantia for 9 years and changed to C5 2.2 HDI in May. It's a brilliant towcar and beats the Xantia hands down on power and economy. The 2.0 is said to be even more economical. I wouldn't go back to petrol.
Having said that, some owners have had reliability problems with the C5. It's a very different drive from the Xantia. I find the suspension less soft and comfy - although it handles well.
There's a good C5 forum at yahoogroups.com if you need more info.
How about a late Xantia HDI?
Graeme
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My Xantia 2.0 16V is a great tow car for anything up to about 1.3 tonnes.
As previous posts have stated, the self levelling suspension is great for towing.
I regularly tow a trailer with anything up to 0.8 tonnes of sand or gravel in it. The trailer itself weighs about 0.5 of a tonne.
If you need to change your Xantia and don't want to go for a diesel I would look at the 2.0l 16V petrol. You can then keep your tow hitch when you change the car - more money saved!
If you need to know how to remove it, let me know and I'll take you through it, I fitted mine earlier this year. It was very easy.
Happy new year!
H
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Took my Christmas Spare bedroom (Caravan!) back to the farmer's field today and managed to get both stuck in inches of squelchy muddy ground. The farmer, a pleasant old boy, came out with a large 4wd to tow both out.
The towcar is an Omega 3.0 which tows beautifully.
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Superchips now do a re-map of the ECU for the C5 2.0HDI pulling it up to 130bhp.
130 BHP!!
That's the same as my 2.0L 16v Petrol Xantia!!!
Do they do one that ups this car as well? I'll have a look.
H
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